Is It Fair?
Transsexual cyclist Rachel McKinnon sparked controversy after winning a gold in a women’s world championship race prompting the third place finisher, Jennifer Wagner, to say “It’s definitely NOT fair” in response to a Tweet. McKinnon argues that her eligibility to compete is within the rules and regulations adopted by the International Olympic Committee and the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). However, there is a long-running battle raging in the CAS on the subject of requiring female athletes in some sports to meet an upper testosterone limit – with the use of drugs to reduce the male hormone if necessary. To be honest, I’m really not sure how I feel about this one. On the one hand, I support the right of transgender women to be treated equally. On the other, it does seem unfair for female athletes to be competing against people whose body composition, aside from the realignment surgery, would seem to give them an unfair advantage. I’d love to know what you think.
Now, That’s Service
There’s been a bit of rain in recent days. Some of us have rejoiced, though I’m quite put out that it rained in Juffair, where I work, but not at home in my garden. Of course, there were loads of social media posts about it – after all, we see showers so very rarely and almost never in October. I have to say the post featuring a man being pushed to his car in a shopping trolley, apparently by supermarket employees, has to be my favourite. Check it out here https://www.facebook.com/100011658914450/posts/714790118919612/ and feel free to share your own videos on our social media pages too.
I’m With Swifty
Taylor Swift has come in for some flack for sharing her political views, endorsing Democrat candidates for the upcoming mid-term elections in the US. Some would say she should stick to entertainment, while Republican fans have said they feel “betrayed” as if the singer is discounting their long-term support and adoration. The backlash seems a bit hypocritical when President Trump doesn’t seem to have a problem with using performers’ work without their permission – even to the extent that Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler had to officially order the Trump campaign to stop using his songs at its rallies! I say, good on Taylor. People in the public eye have a voice, why shouldn’t they use it?
Macron’s Mummy Gaffe
The seemingly enlightened French President, Emmanuel Macron, put his foot in it with mums across the globe after claiming educated women don’t have big families.
Last year he came under fire for suggesting that Africa’s main problem is “seven, eight children per woman”. And at the end of September, he dipped his toe back into the waters of controversy in a speech to the Gates Foundation’s Goalkeepers Summit in which he stated: “Please present me the lady who decided, being perfectly educated, to have seven, eight, nine children.”
Admittedly, his point was supposed to be that parenthood should be a choice. But there’s been a backlash from educated mums who’ve taken to bombarding the president in a campaign with Postcards to Macron sharing pictures of themselves and their large families.
I have some sympathy with the hapless leader since it seems his heart is in the right place, but you’d think someone in such a high-level position could choose his words more carefully!
