• @Cypher
    link
    English
    -220 days ago

    I think I was fairly clear, it is a binary system that has some rare exceptions.

    Saying sex is a binary is saying there are only males and only females.

    In healthy examples of mammals where development has occurred normally this is true.

    This whole ‘its a spectrum’ argument is like saying humans aren’t bipedal, there’s a spectrum because some people are born without legs! It doesn’t make any sense.

    That doesn’t mean that society should refuse to accept, include and support people born without the ability to walk.

    • @MirthfulAlembic
      link
      English
      420 days ago

      Then it’s not a binary system. It’s a system with two extremely dominant members. Those are different things. You can be more binary in specific contexts e.g., gametes and egg vs sperm.

      I’d be very cautious about the healthy description in reference to intersex people. I don’t believe you are trying to say anything nefarious, but there’s a reason it shows up in eugenics arguments.

      I didn’t say sex was a spectrum, though perhaps someone else you were speaking with did. I wouldn’t use spectrum for sex, since there are multiple differentiating factors with differing measures.

      • @Cypher
        link
        English
        019 days ago

        I didn’t say sex was a spectrum

        It helps if you read and comprehend the comment chain to understand what is being discussed before you jump in with ‘I didn’t say that’ when I never claimed you did.

        I don’t see why it’s so hard for you to actually read the comment chain. It is right there. You can re-read it at any time.

    • knightly the Sneptaur
      link
      fedilink
      English
      1
      edit-2
      16 days ago

      I think I was fairly clear, it is a binary system that has some rare exceptions.

      You are describing a “Bimodal Distribution”, where most but not all fall into one of two categories.

      If it were a binary system, there would be no exceptions.

      Saying sex is a binary is saying there are only males and only females.

      In healthy examples of mammals where development has occurred normally this is true.

      Intersex mammals aren’t “unhealthy”, they’re simply different.

      This whole ‘its a spectrum’ argument is like saying humans aren’t bipedal, there’s a spectrum because some people are born without legs! It doesn’t make any sense.

      That doesn’t mean that society should refuse to accept, include and support people born without the ability to walk.

      Make up your mind, are people who are not bipedal still human?

      If they are, then obviously humanity is not exclusively bipedal and attempting to define us as such will cause problems with everyone from non-bipedal infants to the non-bipedal elderly and disabled folks of all ages.