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Notes -
To be clear, I lean more on the open side in terms of Trans Rights/identity. I think it makes sense that some people are born with gender dysphoria, and I do think transition probably is a good treatment when this happens. (That said, I do think there's a socialized version that should be treated entirely different).
But the question really has to be asked. Is this special pleading...and let's be clear, it absolutely is special pleading...enough to oppose a group? It sucks that it is this way. I'm not a fan of this. But ultimately, I do believe it's entirely rational to oppose a group/identity who is claiming this power with some semblance of success. I'm not saying it's the best way to go about things. (Nor am I saying it's the worst, to be clear, although my personality/aesthetic leans towards a more pluralistic, open approach).
But at the end of the day, I do think this type of politics drives a large amount of the identity culture warring we see today.
I guess I see it as almost the reverse.
Identity culture warring is ingrained in the human species, and that drives our politics, and has since literally all recorded history. We notice the things that make ingroup similar and outgroup different, and we find reasons to attack the outgroup, often based on the things that make them different. In some cases this might even be justifiable.
In this way, trans people as a group provide a 'useful' wedge for cynically amoral actors to generate tons of heat and lend cover to their other cynically amoral activities that might bring ire upon them.
This doesn't answer the policy question, however. Stuff like "can a child who is too young to consent undergo this invasive procedure? Should their parent have a say? Should a transitioned person be legally entitled to be treated as their assumed identity?"
And the way we answer those policy questions is going to inherently impact how we answer many other, arguably more salient questions, and I can say that I, personally, am uncomfortable with the implications that come with denying parents input into their child's major medical decisions or forcing people to accept a person's "assigned" identity as a legally binding matter.
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