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Culture War Roundup for the week of April 24, 2023

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The state of Minnesota has passed a trans refuge bill.

Specifically, the bill would prohibit the enforcement of a court order for removal of a child or enforcement of another state’s law being applied in a pending child protection action in Minnesota when the law of another state allows the child to be removed from the parent or guardian for receiving medically necessary health care or mental health care that respects the gender-identity of the patient.

From my reading of this (not a lawyer, obvs): previously if a child ran away from home, and was found, the child would be returned to the child's parents. Now, however, if a child runs away from home, and claims a "transgender identity" the state will use its powers to keep the child from its parents.

This seems: absolutely pants-shittingly insane to me? Like I'm sortof reeling from disbelief at this and am still trying to figure out what I'm missing. This also seems to imply that if a child runs away to Minnesota, that the child will be kept in Minnesota away from his or her parents.

Can anybody help me understand this? This goes so far beyond anything that I had even considered in the realm of possibility that I'm sure I must be misunderstanding this.

As a related side note: I am reaching a point where reading things on this topic is becoming incredibly difficult. There seems to be so many seemingly double/triple/quadruple entendre words that its hard to follow.

Interestingly minnesota prohibits drinking to minors of 21 and piercings and tattoos to minors of 18, without the consent of a parent or guardian.

Because it doesn't consider those medically necessary.

It's curious that a bunch of activists managed to do what all the might of the Alcohol and Tobaco industry didn't. Still remember those cigarettes commercials with Doctors seal of approval and whatnot.

Hilariously, this is the first time it's occurred to me that one can genuinely die from being denied alcohol while withdrawing. Alcoholics have a wildly stronger claim to fear of death through marginalization and failure to provide 'treatment' than 'trans people'

During Prohibition Era, you could get a doctor's prescription allowing you to purchase "medically necessary" alcohol. This went much like the recent medical marijuana policies in many states. The biggest difference was that alcohol prescriptions were more constrained, mostly only being available to the wealthy and connected at the time.