Conversion therapy refers to the practice, often by religious groups, of trying to "cure" people of their sexuality, gender expression, or LGBTQI identity.
Comment: What deceptive nonsense. Notice the "often." By including it, they capitalize on liberal rejections of religious viewpoints. But so-called conversion therapy is much wider than that. This will apply to any therapist that even hints that maybe their patient isn't REALLY transgender. It will require therapists to simply accept their patients' self-diagnosis, no matter how misguided or wrong.
"Those who have experienced conversion practices talk about ongoing mental health distress, depression, shame and stigma, and even suicidal thoughts," the minister of justice, Kris Faafoi, said as he introduced the legislation on Friday. "Conversion practices have no place in modern New Zealand. They are based on the false belief that any person's sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression is broken and in need of fixing."
Comment: Sometimes it IS broken and need of fixing. Pedophiles (who are victims of pedophiles as children). Rapid onset gender dysphoria, a psychogenic mental illness. There are more examples than that, of course, but according to these clowns sexual or gender problems are never the result of psychopathology.
The legislation makes it an offence to perform conversion practices on anyone aged under 18, or with impaired decision-making capacity, with a sentence of up to three years' imprisonment. It also makes it an offence to perform conversion practices that cause "serious harm," irrespective of age. That carries a sentence of up to five years' imprisonment.
Comment: Under 18 is when transgender kids need help the most. This will prevent them from getting it. State-enforced child abuse, plan and simple.
Conversion therapy is legal is many parts of the world, including the UK and many states in the US. A report by the United Nations Independent Expert on protection against violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity found conversion practices caused "significant loss of self-esteem, anxiety, depressive syndrome, social isolation, intimacy difficulty, self-hatred, shame and guilt, sexual dysfunction, suicidal ideation and suicide attempts and symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder."
They found the practices violated UN conventions against torture, and recommended a global ban. Health bodies including the American Psychological Association have concluded there is no evidence that conversion practices are successful in changing sexuality or gender identity.
Activist Shaneel Lal, a survivor who has campaigned against conversion practices in New Zealand, said they broadly welcomed the bill and it demonstrated "potential for real change". Conversion practices, Lal said, have "pushed and driven so many queer people into a life of pain and misery and death and [thinking that] God will never forgive them for it. Every single story that I've heard of conversion therapy, victims have questioned whether it is worth living - and I was one of those people."
"Religious leaders have weaponised the relationship that queer people have with God and manipulated them into thinking that God will hate them if they don't change ... We are told that we are broken, that we have no future, that we will lose our family and friends," they said.
But Lal also raised concerns with the bill's wording, and some of its provisions.
They said the "serious harm" wording "implies that it is OK to cause harm, if it is not serious harm" and raised concerns that survivors may struggle to gather the evidence required to demonstrate that serious emotional and psychological harm had been done to them.
Comment: Yeah, the problem with this bill is that it is TOO specific. The vaguer the better, apparently.
Faafoi said the definition of conversion practices under the law required that they were "performed with the intention of changing or suppressing their sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression". Lal said that proving intent was difficult from a legal perspective, and could leave survivors struggling to clear the bar for prosecution. They also argued the first offence should not have age limits, as queer people could experience harm at any age.
Faafoi said the bill had been "carefully designed" to ensure that legitimate health services, counselling, and "general expressions of religious beliefs or principles about sexuality and gender" will not be captured.
Comment: Good luck with that.
"Health professionals, religious leaders and human rights advocates here and overseas have spoken out against these practices as harmful and having the potential to perpetuate prejudice, discrimination and abuse towards members of rainbow communities," Faafoi said.
New Zealand has the highest youth suicide rate in the OECD, and that rate is higher among LGBTQI+ youth. Local research from 2019 found 79% of trans and non-binary New Zealanders had seriously contemplated suicide and two-fifths had self-harmed in the past 12 months.
With a majority Labour government in power, the bill is likely to pass.
Reader Comments
We used to listen to music. Go see sunsets. Ah! The Eternal Sunset. Of course, I dropped acid at some rock festivals, too, but the people didn't look like those above.
I'm not sure I could do any psycedelics in my old age. Even mushrooms, etc. I'd have to be out, out, out, out in the country. Never in the city. The vibes are so bad these days.
Back in the day (I was 15-18 or so, so that's 74-79 or so) there was always acid, mostly blotter and orange sunshine/purple haze, etc., but occasionally, we would get true windowpane, which was just liquid acid dried into a clear sheet the thickness of saran wrap. With it, something the size of the gap in the top of this 'e', would be cut into a four way hit! Incredibly clean, not the speedy type stuff like most of it.
Anyone ever smoked opium? Great stuff - but don't drive on it.
SWIM told me that.
RC
I devoured six of those little suckers and ended up terrorising the nice families on Toronto Island for a day.
Fond, fond memories
When my friend first started smoking pot (~ age 13) the Thai sticks were still being imported by big brothers coming back from Vietnam. Dipped in opium no doubt!
Interestingly, a dear friend who's got a medical pot approval recently acquired some stuff that was simply, powdered hash. Quite impressive. Looked like what we called 'Lebanese Blonde.' It was in a vial that would have made folks drool back in the 70s.
I've gotta say though that I've never met anyone else who's ever done true windowpane, which was basically just acid crystalized into the thinnest, clear sheet. ANYONE? I still don't know why it was less 'speedy' than blotter et al., but it was.
We've gotta meet, lady. Oh, on that front, I've got a way to make $ gambling (I've only won since I've learned it but that's only three trips) and I ain't going to go into it here, but it would be fun. (It IS perfectly legal. Crazy cool story behind that one.)
RC
My first acid trip was classic - one tab didn't seem to kick in for half an hour so took another seconds before it came on. Was still pinging next day during an appointment with my attorney where I felt like I was in a Ralph Steadman cartoon [Link]
The giveaway on that point in your words is the 'dream/dreamlike' reference. Nothing else like it. Damn! I'd volunteer for that right now!
RC
*Florida rednecks will find a way. (And no, they weren't trying to fool folks, for we, by and large, weren't foolable; rather, my guess is that they were the ones that had fallen away from the bamboo splinters.)
rc
"Down at the border you've need to be older . . . [Link]
Sick shit and double standards.
homosexuality and bisexuality is pretty normal in the world of mammals. The other stuff ain't. Nuh uh no way.
its mental disease. Simply put.
The most successful politicians I have know have all had a touch of the psychopath.
RC
I apologise.
Sorry. Sorry.
(The second was for the weightlifter).
I've gotta wonder, if I was you would I be more ashamed of what my country's done than I am here? FWIW, in terms of sinning against mankind, I dare say I've got more to be ashamed for - though y'all's government is really trying to catch up.
Lord help us all.
RC
As I commented:
"How the New Zealand I once loved has changed.
When I was ten years old, over sixty years ago, Mum would casually ask me to take the .22 and bag a rabbit or Puke for dinner.Time was we would have loved the opportunity to stuff the freezer with venison."
They are inedible roasted but Mum made wonderful soup out of 'em.
I re-read my comment and realised our American friends might not understand so I posted an addendum.
Just as I did, I saw your comment come up. Yep. Wonderful soupmakers the old Puke. Easy to skin - save plucking.
Then I heard from my Pops, (what I many years later read in Warren's 'All The King's Men'), "You have to lead a duck,
JackRC!" ) (RC: (silently) Yeah, I know - I guess I followed it - mea culpa. )RC
*Never eaten one but just found this: rc
Which reminds me of the "acid days" when a group of mates and I were sitting in the dawning light after a long night of a trip in the countryside, near a duck pond and packing a wide variety of rifles and shotguns. As the day grew lighter there were still no ducks, but after a while a seagull flew over the pond, then bam, down it went. Then more seagulls came in to eat their fallen comrade, this was followed by more bams, and more and more seagulls went down. As more the seagulls went down even more seagulls came in to eat them, seemingly oblivious to the noise of around 10 or a dozen weapons being furiously discharged (I can't remember exactly how many of us were there, but it was quite a few... there's a good reason I can't remember the precise details - but I can't remember what it is). After a while we ran out of bullets. The seagulls had a feast... or were the feast.
Now, if we're going to get into such semantics, I've gotta add: Ran out of bullets? Jesus, you guys must all have been world class marksmen.
Finally, I was ALWAYS the guy who detested - and literally stopped - vandalistic type events like the slaughter you just described of gulls. Also, that same tendency (even worse) is what led to the extinction of our Carolina parakeets, as they would fly back to help their family member, etc. (And they weren't even eaten!)
Your story sounds like a nightmare to me.
You shoot it; you eat it! So tell me, how did the gulls taste?
RC
Nothing quite as much fun as blasting possums, rabbits and seagulls when you may or may not be under the influence of substances you may or may not have partaken of.
Now I've never seen a swine sized one: RC
They have a great diet - just the best of everything which is why they are such a pest. You don't want them in your orchard!
I still hate possums, but you're not allowed to kill them over here in Oz, even when they're raping your avocado tree!
Haas are God's food for we mere humans..
RC
What is a .457 sniper rifle? I've never even heard of the cartridge. I'd have expected a 30.06 or a .308. Is it what we call a 45-70? [Link] Also, [Link] It seems that any such straight cartridge like that (e.g., those in Marlin 'Guide Guns' etc.) would have too short of a range for sniper work and I don't believe that the .457 which I just found was even around back then. Thanks.
RC
[Link]
I detect it's kind of like the fact that a .45 ACP (which is subsonic) is a favored suppressed round. (I've never even fired one.)
As my uncle called them, they are 'rainbow rounds' due to their slow, high, arc.
Never heard of a .458. Cool! Excellent link.Thanks!
For you, friend, some Richard Thompson 1952 Black Lightning: [Link] (Album); Beeswing (quasi live): [Link] One of the best guitarists I've ever seen (I've seen him ~ 5-6 times) and you'd be hard pressed to name a modern guitarist I've not seen except Hendrix. (And no, I've never seen The Beatles, but while they were great, they couldn't play like that.)
RC
R.C.