I'm not the most patriotic of people, I consider myself European which is not always popular, I am also a republican which is also not a very popular position, especially in year like this one. SO it is not success in sport, fine views of our Royal Family or a burst in pride at some action of a member of the Government (like the chief whip) that has brought on this sudden affection for my homeland. No it was this article brought to my attention by Janie. It seems incredible that an Judge anywhere in the civilised world can make decisions like this based solely on his own personal views (prejudices) rather than on case law, or established procedure.
To summarise Judge in Oklahoma has denied two women the right to change their names to female ones in order that their name should match their chosen gender. As I understand it this could not happen in the UK, there is a process by which one can legally change name, I do not think it requires judicial permission. More to the point there is a procedure for legally changing gender, to change all official documentation and records, while I may very well be a bit laborious it is an established procedure which does not require any individual to give their approval. I have a fried who is pre~op she has recently been through this procedure, so now her name, and all her documentation matches her gender, surely this is the civilised way to proceed.
I have yet to meet an American who I did not like, yet I sometimes find myself in despair when I hear about some aspects of living in America. The Land of the Free, sorry guys that still sounds like an aspiration to me.
I have just added a fresh label Rant this is an acceptance that I may be becoming a little less tolerant as I grow older!
Paula's Place
4 comments:
Please don't judge all of us Yanks by idiots like this one jurist. And remember that, over here, most judicial decisions are rendered at the state level, not the national...which means that, in the more conservative areas, what you and I would think of as common sense and common decency may be in short supply. Furthermore, in most states, judges are elected, so that they must avoid making controversial decisions that might be used against them in the next election.
I really don't know enough about the subject or situation to comment Paula, sorry. I think every country has it's strengths and weaknesses.
Decisions like that Judge's are few and far between. You might find this interesting.
I'm English born and bred and I've lived in The Colonies for quite some time (23 years... Which is far too many to count. Really - it is. I've tried it.) I thought I was being clever when I told someone, 22 years ago, that England and America are two nations divided by a common language. (Oscar Wilde beat me to that observation!) Personally, I love the place. :-)
If you're interested in what "land of the free" actually means, I can only suggest Alexis de Tocqueville's "Democracy in America". Happily - and I didn't know this until just now! - there's a web site dedicated to the man's writings. It comes complete with some choice quotes. :-)
Here are two pertinent quotes:
"There is hardly a congressman prepared to go home until he has at least one speech printed and sent to his constituents, and he won't let anybody interrupt his harangue until he has made all his useful suggestions about the 24 states of the Union, and especially the district he represents."
"In towns it is impossible to prevent men from assembling, getting excited together and forming sudden passionate resolves. Towns are like great meeting houses with all the inhabitants as members. In them the people wield immense influence over their magistrates and often carry their desires into execution without intermediaries."
That should tell you pretty much all you need to know. (And if you're interested in how modern American's define "freedom" - you can read George Lakoff's tomes about language. In a nutshell: "free" doesn't have a singular meaning. A fact I (ab)use with enthusiasm. :-D
None of us are free, in as much as we are subject to the dictates of the majority (or as in the UK at the moment the largest minority) that is the nature of democracy. In the UK we are subjects of the Crown, in the US you are citizens, yet many in the UK consider themselves "free". There are many in the Middle East who are now questioning whether they were more free under a single dictator, than under the dictatorship of democracy.
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