‘This isn’t how good scientific debate happens’: academics on culture of fear in gender medicine research - Cass review found professionals in the field are scared to discuss views amid risk of reputational damage and online abuse

submitted by neolib from theguardian.com

all 10 comments
sorted by:
top
newinsightfulfun

[–]neolib[S] 5 insightful - 1 fun5 insightful - 0 fun6 insightful - 1 fun -  (1 child)

Some selected quotes:

The paper, which summarised the state of relevant research, was met with an immediate backlash. “I’ve been accused of being an anti-trans activist, and that now comes up on Google and is never going to go away,” Baxendale said. “Imagine what it’s like if that is the first thing that comes up when people Google you? Anyone who publishes in this field has got to be prepared for that.”

...

After publishing her review, Baxendale was contacted by a senior expert outside the UK who said they had walked away from a study after being told the team would only publish “positive” findings.

[–]xoenix 3 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 0 fun4 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

The Guardian should hire security for their offices.

[–]neolib[S] 2 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 2 fun -  (6 children)

"93% upvoted" on /r/transgender/ for some reason:

https://old.reddit.com/r/transgender/comments/1c2bdz2/this_isnt_how_good_scientific_debate_happens/ (https://archive.is/mqfyC)

UPD Funny quotes from comments:

I assume this is another hatchet job from our 'friends' on the 'left'.

It's just hate - the guardian is a hate rag.

given The Economist's continued desperate pleas for other English speaking nations to adapt the UK's approach on this

Good quality research cannot be done when genocide is being threatened.

it's from the guardian, which, just like every other major UK media, is transphobic.

[–]OuroborosTheory 3 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 0 fun4 insightful - 1 fun -  (5 children)

when a group's had unquestioned control over an institution (like the Grauniad and top NHS directives) that actually badly reduces their ability to launch propaganda: they just stormed the administration offices or did the narc-takeover thing they always do and had the people with real power do everything for them

the moment someone says "no" and turns on them they find their abilities atrophied, so you just have them shrieking nonsense like "Doctors Without Borders is transphobic!" but now nobody's bobbleheading along like they had to for a decade

[–]ClassroomPast6178 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (4 children)

Yeah, they’ve grown accustomed to getting their own way and the “no debate” stance that they had until last week has meant that none of them can actually stand up to any sort of challenge from competent opposition.

It’s all very much falling down around their ears and they lack the talent to do anything to save themselves now that the public has been shown behind the curtain (and it turned out they were hurting children back there).

[–]OuroborosTheory 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (3 children)

alas it'll probably be replaced by another silly thing, like militant southpaws (can't use the words "sinister" or "right" any more, all the children's books will have to be "updated," sitcoms recut, cartoons redubbed, six-figure "consultants" screaming at teachers and driving them to suicide, mandatory hour-long sessions for all students/employees)

idpol's just too adaptable (and lucrative) a model for building whole institutions overnight to be abandoned; it's like mad-libs romantic nationalism, any Lithuanian/Serbian/Frisian/north Indian/Hutu/third-gen Turk in Berlin will tell you very loudly they wuz kangs/built the first pyramids/inspired Atlantis/invented everything beginning with language/suffered worse than anybody in history

the whole substantive social-political context would have to change from the Obama-Trump era, immediately making it as outmoded as the White Feather Movement or bell bottoms

[–]ClassroomPast6178 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (2 children)

Oh for sure, it’ll mutate into the next unbearable thing that everyone will be forced to participate in.

[–]OuroborosTheory 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (1 child)

like how they're now pretending "Latinx" was always unpopular

[–]ClassroomPast6178 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

It’s LatinE now, bigot!

[–]Jiminy 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

Similar to vaccines , main goal of it all was maybe to consolidate control