4 ms·

To be more precise than the headline: People with disorders of sex development such as Morris or Swyer syndrome have XY chromosomes, but they have female exter

• pimlottc 1y ago
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  • blueflow 1y ago
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    • CoastalCoder 1y ago
      My guess is that many are weary of this aspect of recent culture wars, and would prefer the conversation focuses on the interesting science instead. Note: I did not vote on the comment in question.
    • jrm4 1y ago
      Obviously, our two options here (and pretty much always are) "don't use this word because it hurts feelings and reinforces stereotypes" or "let's all step back and try to decide/encourage the idea that it is actually useful enough to use" Here, the latter seems appropriate? "Disorder" is "out of order," it is something that is rare. I suppose "rare condition" might work too, I'm open to suggestions.
    • Aurornis 1y ago
      > Can't know what is a disorder is or not when you don't know whats "normal" I hesitate to wade into this discussion, but in the case of the conditions listed in the article there are a number of additional symptoms and medical difficulties that go along with the genetic variants. It's not a simple matter of confusion about sex. As for "normal": The biological systems involved are not functioning normally because a genetic mutation prevents them from doing so. For example, Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome means the person's androgen receptors are dysfunctional, and therefore biological functions that rely on androgen receptor activation are not working. I know the concept of "normal" and "disorder" can trigger people, but biologically speaking this condition arises due to rare genetic variants that stop biological functions from working as intended. The medical speak is not meant to cast social judgment on these people.
      • blueflow 1y ago
        Your answer is recursive and sort of leaves the question unanswered, so my reply is kinda an repetition of what i already asked: How do we know what the normal function is? How do we know how things are intended to work? (Intended by whom?)
        • CoastalCoder 1y ago
          Some people use "normal" to mean "typical". Some others use "normal" with a connotation of "proper" with regards to the designer's intent or (maybe?) some moral framework. The ambiguity might cause trouble in this kind of topic.
        • anon84873628 1y ago
          Are you actually confused by this? From a biological perspective it's pretty clear what "normal function" is expected. Sexual reproduction is a core goal of human organisms, so when the sex organs don't function, that is a disorder of the machinery.
        • Aurornis 1y ago
          > How do we know what the normal function is? How do we know how things are intended to work? (Intended by whom?) Is this intentionally obtuse to prove a point? In the case of these conditions, a specific receptor in the body is not working properly. The receptor exists to bind to androgens and trigger downstream activity. In people with this condition, the receptor isn't properly activating in the presence of androgens. That receptor serves numerous functions in not only humans but across countless other species. For an analogy, imagine you're trying to plug a device into an outlet in your country. Yet it doesn't fit. When you look at the prongs you discover it actually has 6 prongs pointing in random directions and can't possible fit into any standard outlet in your country. In fact, you can't even see how it would possibly work at all in any outlet anywhere because it doesn't make sense. It's safe to say that the connector isn't "normal". That's basically what's happening here. There's a clear and obvious version of what's typical, and it's likewise clear when a rare variant can't be observed to have some differences that can't possibly work. Meanwhile you can go anywhere else and observe typical plugs inserted into typical outlets and they're functioning typically. There is a very clear "normal" in this case and it's easy to see how the receptors are supposed to work. Call it "typical" if that makes you feel better, but the medical community isn't using these terms for judgment or scorn. There's a movement to pretend like we can't call anything "normal" lest we hurt someone's feelings. Yet most of these patients are discovered prior to the age of 10 (e.g. pre-puberty) because they seek treatment for various symptoms that they recognize as "not normal".
  • dmitrygr 1y ago
    disorder, n. -- An illness or condition that disrupts normal physical or mental functions. Does the condition disrupt normal physical operation of the body as it should normally operate based on the chromosomes present? Yes.
  • sethrin 1y ago
    That there can be differing viewpoints on this matter is demonstrative that sex as well as gender is a social construct: the categorization and distinguishing characteristics of sex are normative. It's deeply ironic that the people complaining about "gender ideology" are in fact its purveyors.