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Gender Dysphoria: Psychological Disorder or Choice?

Reviewing the statistics of the ratio of MTF transgenders to population as a whole, reading numerous webpages and just being part of the community I often find myself questioning many tgirls and their continued banter about 'needing' HRT/ SRS to feel 'normal'. Looking at the statistics, either nature is really screwing up by producing 'women in men's bodies' or we have a real problem with our social structure. I am leaning toward the later.
I have always believed that the 'soul' or 'essence' of the human animal is not gendered per se; in our hearts we are androgynous. As most of you know, we all start off as females, and somewhere in the process a leg gets broken off one of the chromosomes and we turn male. Barring medical problems such as Kleinfelter Syndrome or AIS, HRT and SRS are elective therapies. To be quite blunt, the continued whining about making "one's outsides feel like their insides" gets quite tiresome! Sometimes life deals us a hand of cards and we just have to take a draw and make the best of what we have. Gender identity for the most part is a mental state. I am of the belief that emotionally, we are both male and female. Unfortunately, society and culture dictate a large portion of what those rolls are. Another aspect I think is often ignored is how visually oriented our culture is. I have often asked myself "If I was blind, would I crossdress?"
Please do not misunderstand, I am in full support of those that are in transition. My point is getting honest with one's self. Many of you probably think that I am callous and opinionated....callous no, opinionated yes!

Food for thought..........

The TG Community

I have been involved with the transgender community for the better part of 20 years. I am originally from San Francisco, where I had opportunities not many others had. In the early '80's, the transgender phenomenon was still fairly outside the lines of society. The gay community took a dim view of the whole thing and kept most TV/TS's at arms length. The hetero wing of society still thought of the desire to appear, or want to change into the opposite sex a emotional disorder that needed to be treated.
The TG/TV community itself was factioned and each had very strong opinions. Out of this developed a 'food chain' that was loosely in the following order:

1. The pre-op transsexual. She is living 24/7 in accordance with the Benjamin standard and look forward to SRS in the near future.
2. The mid HRT transsexual. She is not quite to living 24/7 and not a male anymore. She still has considerable amount of clout because she is a 'true believer'
3. The Shemale. She was kind of in a class by herself. She was probably doing porn to make enough money for SRS, or wanted to remain 'hermaphroditic'
4. The garden variety TV. Looked down upon by the pre SRS and mid HRT queens because he is just playing and doesn't have the courage to follow through.
5. The gay drag queens. Persona non grata. Just an anomaly of the gay community.

I know this must seem very rash and judgmental on my part, maybe so. I was fortunate to have a TS girl friend at the time who was the one that gave me the low down on how the structure worked. Over the years, an individual transitioning became more acceptable. I'm not sure if that's true or not, I think just more people decided it was ok and society had to go along. What was even more interesting was that the structure didn't really change, just mutated. The pecking order is still more or less the same with the exception of the casual TV getting a little more say.
About 5 years ago, I moved to Minnesota, where I am presently living. Just being the person I am, I sought out local TG groups to find like minded individuals. Having been out of the 'scene' for about 10 years, I was very surprised in what I found. The number of male to female TS's that are married and hetro were astounding! The availability of hormones and doctors who would prescribe them was equally surprising. What I found most remarkable was the general attitude of the 'tgirls'. Everyone now is supposed to cater to their needs! Wives, sorry S.O.'s, are supposed to be understanding and supportive. Guys who look like 'Fish' from 'Barney Miller' are resentful that they are starred at when they are en femme. It is expected that TG's are to be added to the affirmative action list. Many have the attitude that the state has the onus of their SRS. This may come as a shock, we have to adapt to society and not vise versa. Our social structure, right or wrong, is made up of a majority of people who don't have gender dysphoria, and many don't have a clue of how to relate to it. I am a TV that is associated with D/s which makes me rather fringe in the eyes of society. I live 2 lives and have to be careful not to let the more alternative of the two slop over. I am involved with electronic manufacturing. It is a genre that would not do well with me coming into a Monday morning status meeting dressed as a woman, never mind having my riding crop in hand. I think we all need to take a hard look at our attitudeds and mindset.

Being Female....so to speak

I have often found some of the contridictions in our culture both interesting and frustrating. Why is it that a woman can go into a store and buy men's clothing items without anyone thinking that it's strange or weird? On the other hand, men going to buy women's clothing is looked upon rather strangely. Many sales clerks look at you as if you have invaded sacred ground. I often go to stores in as a male and purchase makeup and other female items. It seems to disturb the clerks more than it does me. But then again, younger women are much more open and helpful. In fact, many think crossdressing is really cool. I guess women are expected to take care of a man's needs. I have a male friend that is embarassed to buy his own underwear! I really don't see this as a liberty for women. Looking at it closely, it is another aspect of subjugation.

Being female in this society is tough. As much as we would like to deny it, they are treated as second class citizens, not taken seriously and thought of as playthings. I run into it all the time on line. Many men want to amaze me with their rapier sharp wit, sexual prowess and suave personality. Most of the time I find it boring and cliche. Don't get me wrong, I love good conversation. I find quick wit and sincerity much more stimulating than "Rico Suave". Being a transvestite will give you a whole new perspective on society as a whole.