#Dr. Rachel Levine

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Ryan Adamczeski at The Advocate:

Republicans on the Louisiana Public Service Commission have voted to strip the state's only LGBTQ+ elected official of his leadership role after he defended Dr. Rachel Levine. The commission's GOP majority voted to remove Davante Lewis from his position as PSC vice chairman on Wednesday in response to a post from Lewis calling Republican Gov. Jeff Landry an "asshole." While conservatives claimed the vote was in the name of civility, Lewis says that it is "hypocrisy at its finest" and that his opposition "deliberately targeted me for political reasons." "I don't believe anybody of the trans community or the LGBTQ community, the immigrant, Black, Asian, Latino, poor, working, union communities should be attacked simply for who they are," Lewis tells The Advocate. "If you want to attack people for their identity and make fun of them, then I'm gonna call you out on that. This may not be the last time I call [Landry] or anybody an asshole if they're doing asshole behavior." Lewis' post came in response to Landry's public attack against Levine, an admiral in the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps and pediatrician who is a trans woman. Levine was the highest-ranking out trans person in President Joe Biden's administration. Landry claimed that anti-vaccine conspiracy theorist Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who was recently confirmed as Department of Health and Human Services Secretary, is a "major upgrade," despite not actually replacing Levine, who served as assistant secretary.

[...] The motion passed 3-2 along party lines, though without the support of the community, as the meeting was attended by dozens of civilians who unanimously spoke in support of Lewis. PSC meetings are usually empty — Lewis says "out of people who are not a lobbyist or lawyer, maybe on average three or four will attend these meetings" — but yesterday's was attended by "about 50 to 60 plus people who had no agenda" other than to defend him. While the Republicans on the board wouldn't be able to "get two people to come rally for them at a commission meeting if they paid you," Lewis says his support was all "organic," as he "didn't rally people" and "didn't ask for anybody to show up."

The removal of Davante Lewis from the Louisiana Public Services Commission over Lewis rightly calling Gov. Jeff Landry (R) an “asshole” on Facebook was grossly unjust.

[batboyblog]

What Joe Biden has Done for LGBTQ+ People

I wanted to list out everything The Biden Administration has done for Queer people in the last 3 and a half years, but according to GLAAD it'd been 337 moves (and I noticed they missed a few things...) there was just no way to list every ground breaking first Queer person ever nominated to fill this or that job, every ally with a historic LGBT rights record nominated for a top job, every beautiful statement of support, every time he tried to get Congress to pass the Equality Act (support it!) So I've gone through and done my best to pick the ones I think were the most important, but everyone should check out the full list!

Day 1: Signs executive orders banning discrimination and ordering a full review of all federal agencies policies to better include and support LGBT people

Pete Buttigieg becomes the first openly gay person nominated and confirmed for a cabinet level post as Secretary of Transportation

Revokes Trump’s 2018 ban on transgender military personnel

Department of Housing and Urban Development implements LGBTQ protections in housing, becoming first federal agency to implement Pres. Biden’s executive order

First President to recognize and proclaim Trans Day of Visibility

Department of Justice Civil Rights Division issues an official memo that the Supreme Court's Bostock decision against LGBT workplace discrimination also applies to education through Title IX

HUD withdraws a Trump Administration proposed rule change, and reaffirms trans people's rights to seek shelters matching their gender identity

HHS announces the withdrawal of Trump Administration rules that allowed discrimination by healthcare organizations against LGBT people.

The State Department and later Homeland Security announce babies born to Queer couples overseas will be American citizens if one parent is American, in the past the child only qualified if they were genetically related to the American citizen parent.

The Justice Department files against a West Virginia law banning trans students from school athletics

Department of Veterans Affairs announces it will offer gender confirming surgery for transgender veterans. There are an estimated 134,000 transgender veterans in the U.S. and another 15,000 transgender people serving in the armed forces.

President Biden Signs a law making the Pulse Night Club a national memorial

The State Department creates an X gender marker for passports and other documents, allowing gender affirming identification for non-binary and intersex people for the first time.

The Census Bureau for the first time issues a Survey with questions about sexual orientation and gender identity

On the 10th anniversary of the repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, Veterans Administration announces that soldiers discharged for homosexual conduct, gender identity or HIV status qualify for veterans' benefits

Dr. Rachel Levine becomes the first trans person confirmed by the US Senate when she was nominated to be Assistant Secretary for Health, she also became the first trans flag rank officer when she was sworn in as a 4 star Admiral for her job as head of the Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, his makes her the highest ranked trans person in government

Holds the first ever vigil in the White House for Transgender Day of Remembrance

HHS announces rule change to reinstate and expand protections against discrimination in the Affordable Care Act, including denying coverage for gender-affirming care.

Social Security Administration reverses a Trump Administration policy and allows benefits claims by surviving partners in same-sex relationships, whose partner died before marriage equality was legal

President Biden signs the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act (a bill he helped originally craft in the Senate) which for the first time has grant programs dedicated to expanding and developing initiatives specifically for LGBTQ survivors of domestic violence

The TSA announces new technology and policy shifts to improve the customer experience of transgender travelers who have previously been required to undergo additional screening due to alarms in sensitive areas.

The Social Security Administration allows people to edit their gender and name on records for the first time without legal and medical documentation

The US Air Force announces it'll offer medical and legal aid to any personnel families affected by state level anti-trans youth bills.

Karine Jean-Pierre becomes the first Lesbian to serve as White House Press Secretary

on 50th anniversary of Title IX The Department of Ed strengthens protections for Students against sexual harassment and discrimination

Veterans Affairs announces survivor benefits now extended to partners from relationships before marriage equality was legalized in 2015

President Biden signs the Respect for Marriage Act into law enshrining protections for marriage equality for same-sex and interracial couples

The Department of Ed announces new rules around athletic eligibility under Title IX, declaring blanket bans on trans students violate the law and setting up strike standards for schools

The White House announced a suit of new protections for LGBTQ people, including a new job at the Department of Ed to combat book bans, a joint DoJ Homeland Security effort to combat violence and threats and HHS evidence-based guidance to mental health providers for care of transgender kids

President Biden signs an Executive Order directing HHS to protect LGBTQI+ youth in the foster care system, a rule they later passed requiring Queer foster children to be placed in affirming homes

The Biden administration joins families of transgender youth in Tennessee and Kentucky in petitioning the U.S. Supreme Court to review and reverse a circuit court ruling allowing a ban on mainstream health care to be enforced

President Biden Signs a EO expanding on past EO on equality and helping underserved communities

The Department of Education's Civil Rights office opens an investigation into the death of Nex Benedict. President Biden in his statement said: "Every young person deserves to have the fundamental right and freedom to be who they are, and feel safe and supported at school and in their communities. Nex Benedict, a kid who just wanted to be accepted, should still be here with us today. Nonbinary and transgender people are some of the bravest Americans I know. But nobody should have to be brave just to be themselves. In memory of Nex, we must all recommit to our work to end discrimination and address the suicide crisis impacting too many nonbinary and transgender children.��

[hellochildrenoftheatom]

Queer Jews Project Day 19 - Rachel Levine

The highest-ranking openly transgender public official in the United States Government, Dr. Rachel Levine has served as the Assistant Secretary of Health since 2021. That means she’s second in command at the Department of Health. Before her current job, she was The Pennsylvania Secretary of Health and lead her state through the COVID-19 pandemic. Throughout her career, she has focused on LGBTQ medicine, children’s health, and the opioid crisis.

Learn more about Rachel Levine here.

Queer Jews Project

[opspro2005]

This faux-male should be executed along with every supporter in brandon’s installed administration.

[coochiequeens]

A man who got where he is, careerwise and having a family by transitioning later in life, wants to take that way from minors.

Image: WASHINGTON, DC - OCTOBER 21: (L-R) Jesse M. Ehrenfeld, MD, MPH, President of the American Medical Association; Admiral Rachel L. Levine, MD, the 17th Assistant Secretary for Health (ASH) for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; and Charlotte Clymer, writer, transgender activist, and military veteran speak on stage during Learning With Love: The 2023 PFLAG National Convention, four days of educating, lobbying, networking, and leading with love, taking place October 19-22, 2023 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Paul Morigi/Getty Images for PFLAG National)

A head-on collision between science and politics

By JESSE SINGAL JUN 25, 2024

When the World Professional Association for Transgender Health’s Standards of Care Version 8 was released in September 2022, a very strange thing happened: WPATH removed references to minimum age requirements for various medical interventions, describing the change as a “correction” in a notice that now reads, weirdly: “This correction notice has been removed as it referred to a previous version of the article, which was published in error.” Whatever happened, exactly, it’s clear that until late in the game the document did have age minimums until, suddenly, it did not.

The SoC 8 was supposed to have been created via something called the Delphi process. As the document itself explains: “Consensus on the final recommendations was attained using the Delphi process that included all members of the guidelines committee and required that recommendation statements were approved by at least 75% of members.” Suffice it to say that making a sudden, major change so late in the game calls into question whether that process was fully adhered to.

Thanks to a rather remarkable document just unsealed as part of Boe v. Marshall, one of the many American lawsuits over youth gender medicine, we now have a potential explanation for why the age guidelines were removed: direct pressure from assistant secretary for health of the Department of Health and Human Services Admiral Rachel Levine (who is a trans woman herself) and the American Academy of Pediatrics.

The document is titled “Appendix A To Supplemental Expert Report Of James Cantor, Ph.D. In it Cantor, a Canadian sex researcher, critic of youth gender medicine, and frequent expert witness on behalf of those attempting to ban or or restrict it (including in this case), claims that “Assistant Secretary for Health Dr. Rachel Levine strongly pressured WPATH leadership to rush the development and issuance of SOC-8, in order to assist with Administration political strategy.”

He backs this claim up with the following internal communications from WPATH members involved with the creation of the SoC 8 (here and elsewhere in the document, the names of the people who wrote the words in question are redacted):

I have just spoken to Admiral Levine today, who—as always is extremelysupportive of the SOC 8, but also very eager for its release—so to ensureintegration in the US health policies of the Biden government. So, let’s crack onwith the job!!! 

I am meeting with Rachel Levine and her team next week, as the US Department of Health is very keen to bring the trans health agenda forward.

The failure of WPATH to be ready with SOC 8 is proving a barrier to optimal policy progress and she [Dr. Levine] was eager to learn when SOC 8 might be published. 

[T]his should be taken as a charge from the United States government to do what is required to complete the project immediately. 

More worryingly, Cantor charges that “Assistant Secretary Levine also attempted to and did influence the substantive content of SOC-8, based on political goals rather than science. Specifically, Assistant Secretary Levine, though [sic] a staff member, pressured WPATH to remove recommended minimum ages for medical transition treatments from SOC-8.”

Here, too, he has evidence from anonymized emails written by those involved in the SoC 8:

Sarah Boateng, who is Adm. Levine’s chief of staff [said the] biggest concern is the section below in the Adolescent Chapter that lists specific minimum ages for treatment, she is confident, based on the rhetoric she is hearing in DC, and from what we have already seen, that these specific listings of ages, under 18, will result in devastating legislation for trans care. She wonders if the specific ages can be taken out and perhaps an adjunct document could be created that is published or distributed in a way that is less visible than the SOC8, is the way to go. 

The issue of ages and treatment has been quite controversial (mainly for surgery) and it has come up again. We sent the document to Admiral Levine. . . She like [sic] the SOC-8 very much but she was very concerned that having ages (mainly for surgery) will affect access to health care for trans youth and maybe adults too. Apparently the situation in the USA is terrible and she and the Biden administration worried that having ages in the document will make matters worse. She asked us to remove them. We have the WPATH executive committee in this meeting and we explained to her that we could not just remove them at this stage. 

[W]e heard your [Dr. Levine’s] comments regarding the minimal age criteria for transgender healthcare adolescents; the potential negative outcome of these minimal ages as recommendations in the US [. . . ] Consequently, we have changes to the SOC 8 in this respect. Given that the recommendations for minimal ages for the various gender affirming medical and surgical intervention are consensus-based, we could not remove them from the document. Therefore, we have made changes as to how the minimal ages are presented in the documents. [Note: “your” may well refer to an aide of Levine’s rather than the Secretary herself, though it’s unclear.] 

Cantor also includes emails from SoC 8 contributors expressing surprise at the sudden change, including this one making. . . well, the same point everyone else made after news of the late-stage “correction” broke:

I don’t see how we can simply remove something that important from the document—without going through a Delphi—at this final stage of the game [. . . ] I realize that those in favor of the bans are going to go right to the age criteria and ignore the fact that we actually strengthened the strictness of the criteria to help clinicians better discern appropriate surgical candidates from those who are inappropriate [. . . ] It’s all about messaging and marketing. 

I’m actually crashing on a different but related freelance story at the moment. Check out Leor Sapir’s Twitter timeline for more details about this and another just-unsealed document. Next week, when I’ve caught my breath, I’ll write a little bit more about this as well as yet another damning claim Cantor makes, that the American Academy of Pediatrics “issued an ultimatum to WPATH: Should WPATH not delete the age minimums, AAP would not only withhold endorsement of SOC-8, but would publicly oppose the document.” 

But I wanted to at least get this short piece up, because the Levine angle is important and alarming. It demonstrates an indisputable conflict between how WPATH has portrayed the SoC 8 — as a document steeped in evidence and careful deliberation on the part of experts — and how the guidelines were actually formulated.

[religion-is-a-mental-illness]

By: Azeen Ghorayshi

Published: Jun 25, 2024

Newly released emails from an influential group issuing transgender medical guidelines indicate that U.S. health officials lobbied to remove age minimums for surgery in minors because of concerns over political fallout.

Health officials in the Biden administration pressed an international group of medical experts to remove age limits for adolescent surgeries from guidelines for care of transgender minors, according to newly unsealed court documents.

Age minimums, officials feared, could fuel growing political opposition to such treatments.

Email excerpts from members of the World Professional Association for Transgender Health recount how staff for Adm. Rachel Levine, assistant secretary for health at the Department of Health and Human Services and herself a transgender woman, urged them to drop the proposed limits from the group’s guidelines and apparently succeeded.

If and when teenagers should be allowed to undergo transgender treatments and surgeries has become a raging debate within the political world. Opponents say teenagers are too young to make such decisions, but supporters including an array of medical experts posit that young people with gender dysphoria face depression and worsening distress if their issues go unaddressed.

In the United States, setting age limits was controversial from the start.

The draft guidelines, released in late 2021, recommended lowering the age minimums to 14 for hormonal treatments, 15 for mastectomies, 16 for breast augmentation or facial surgeries, and 17 for genital surgeries or hysterectomies.

The proposed age limits were eliminated in the final guidelines outlining standards of care, spurring concerns within the international group and with outside experts as to why the age proposals had vanished.

The email excerpts released this week shed light on possible reasons for those guideline changes, and highlight Admiral Levine’s role as a top point person on transgender issues in the Biden administration. The excerpts are legal filings in a federal lawsuit challenging Alabama’s ban on gender-affirming care.

One excerpt from an unnamed member of the WPATH guideline development group recalled a conversation with Sarah Boateng, then serving as Admiral Levine’s chief of staff: “She is confident, based on the rhetoric she is hearing in D.C., and from what we have already seen, that these specific listings of ages, under 18, will result in devastating legislation for trans care. She wonders if the specific ages can be taken out.”

Another email stated that Admiral Levine “was very concerned that having ages (mainly for surgery) will affect access to care for trans youth and maybe adults, too. Apparently the situation in the U.S.A. is terrible and she and the Biden administration worried that having ages in the document will make matters worse. She asked us to remove them.”

The excerpts were filed by James Cantor, a psychologist and longstanding critic of gender treatments for minors, who used them as evidence that the international advisory group, referred to as WPATH, was making decisions based on politics, not science, in developing the guidelines.

The emails were part of a report he submitted in support of Alabama’s ban on transgender medical care for minors. No emails from Admiral Levine’s staff were released. Plaintiffs are seeking to bar Dr. Cantor from giving testimony in the case, claiming that he lacks expertise and that his opinions are irrelevant.

Admiral Levine and the Department of Health and Human Services did not respond to requests for comment, citing pending litigation.

Dr. Cantor said he filed the report to expose the contents of the group’s internal emails obtained by subpoena in the case, most of which remain under seal because of a protective order. “What’s being told to the public is totally different from WPATH’s discussions in private,” he said.

Dr. Marci Bowers, a gynecologic and reconstructive surgeon and the president of WPATH, rejected that claim. “It wasn’t political, the politics were already evident,” said Dr. Bowers. “WPATH doesn’t look at politics when making a decision.”

In other emails released this week, some WPATH members voiced their disagreement with the proposed changes. “If our concern is with legislation (which I don’t think it should be — we should be basing this on science and expert consensus if we’re being ethical) wouldn’t including the ages be helpful?” one member wrote. “I need someone to explain to me how taking out the ages will help in the fight against the conservative anti-trans agenda.”

The international expert group ultimately removed the age minimums in its eighth edition of the standards of care, released in September 2022. The guidelines reflected the first update in a decade and were the first version of the standards to include a dedicated chapter on medical treatment of transgender adolescents.

The field of gender transition care for adolescents is relatively new and evidence on long-term outcomes is scarce. Most transgender adolescents who receive medical interventions in the United States are prescribed puberty blocking drugs or hormones, not surgeries.

But as the number of young people seeking such treatments has soared, prominent clinicians worldwide have disagreed on issues such as the ideal timing and criteria for the medical interventions. Several countries in Europe, including Sweden and Britain, have recently placed new restrictions on gender medications for adolescents after reviews of the scientific evidence. In those countries’ health systems, surgeries are only available to patients 18 and older.

The email documents were released by the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Alabama, in a challenge to the Alabama ban brought by civil rights groups including the National Center for Lesbian Rights and the Southern Poverty Law Center on behalf of five transgender adolescents and their families.

Transgender rights groups have turned to the courts to block laws, like Alabama’s, that have been approved in more than 20 Republican-controlled states since 2021, but the courts have been split in their rulings.

On Monday, the Supreme Court announced that it would hear a challenge to Tennessee’s ban on youth gender medicine, which makes it a felony for doctors to provide any gender-related treatment to minors, including puberty blockers, hormones and surgeries. The petition, filed by the Department of Justice, cited the WPATH guidelines among its primary “evidence-based practice guidelines for the treatment of gender dysphoria.”

Additional emails cited in the new court filings suggest that the American Academy of Pediatrics also warned WPATH that it would not endorse the group’s recommendations if the guidelines set the new age minimums.

In a statement on Tuesday, Mark Del Monte, chief executive of the American Academy of Pediatrics, pointed out that the medical group, which represents 67,000 U.S. pediatricians, had not endorsed the international guidelines because it already had its own in place.

He said the academy had sought to change the age limits in the guidelines because the group’s policies did not recommend restrictions based on age for surgeries.

Last summer, the pediatrics academy reaffirmed its own guidelines, issued in 2018, but said that it was commissioning an external review of the evidence for the first time.

The numbers for all gender-related medical interventions for adolescents have been steadily rising as more young people seek such care. A Reuters analysis of insurance data estimated that 4,200 American adolescents started estrogen or testosterone therapy in 2021, more than double the number from four years earlier. Surgeries are more rare, and the vast majority are mastectomies. or top surgeries. In 2021, Reuters estimated that 282 teenagers underwent top surgery that was paid for by insurance.

Gender-related surgeries for minors have been a focal point for some politicians. Gov. Ron DeSantis, Republican of Florida, has argued that surgeons should be sued for “disfiguring” children. In Texas, where parents of transgender children have been investigated for child abuse, Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, has called genital surgeries in adolescents “genital mutilation.”

The final WPATH guidelines state that distress about breast development in particular has been associated in transgender teenagers with higher rates of depression, anxiety and distress.

“While the long-term effects of gender-affirming treatments initiated in adolescence are not fully known, the potential negative health consequences of delaying treatment should also be considered,” the guidelines state.

“Gender-affirming surgery is valued highly by those who need these services — lifesaving in many cases,” Dr. Bowers said.

==

Expect Levine to resign with no admission of fault and a wave of gaslighting akin to that of Claudine Gay. That is, being a martyr who is departing to avoid being a "distraction," while reframing justifiable scrutiny for ethical violations as being the beleaguered victim of a relentless campaign of bigotry.

🤦‍♀️🤦‍♂️

Impressive this coverage actually appeared in the New York Times.

[doctor-silvair]

Mathematical Formulas for Building Friendship and/or Romance

In exploring the intricate dynamics of interpersonal relationships, we draw upon psychological principles from influential works, including "The Like Switch" by Jack Schafer, "The Social Animal" by Elliot Aronson, "Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion" by Robert Cialdini, "The Art of Seduction" by Robert Greene, "Attached: The New Science of Adult Attachment" by Amir Levine and Rachel Heller, and "The Dark Side of Human Nature" by Dr. Kevin Dutton.

By distilling these principles, we can derive mathematical formulas to conceptualize the complex processes of making friends and fostering romantic love.

A focus on those who are introverted or less social are included, as these tend to be those who have a harder time with making friends and/or finding romantic partners.

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Formula for Making Friends: First Meeting and Building Affection Over Time

1. Mathematical Formula for First Meeting:

Let ( F ) represent the likelihood of making a friend in the first meeting, which can be calculated as:

[ F = (C + I + R) \times (E + V + S) \times \frac{1}{D} ]

Where:

( C ) = Charisma (scale of 1 to 10)

( I ) = Interest shown (scale of 1 to 10)

( R ) = Rapport established (scale of 1 to 10)

( E ) = Environmental context (scale of 1 to 5, based on factors like familiarity and comfort)

( V ) = Values similarity (scale of 1 to 5)

( S ) = Social skills (scale of 1 to 10)

( D ) = Distance from the person (in feet; a lower distance increases friendliness)

The resulting ( F ) value will yield a score between 0 and a maximum threshold, indicating the potential to cultivate a friendship.

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2. Mathematical Formula for Building Affection Over Time:

As relationships develop, the formula changes to accommodate ongoing interactions:

[ A = (T + C + D + A_{r}) \times \frac{F}{N} ]

Where:

( A ) = Affection level (scale of 0 to 100)

( T ) = Time spent together (in hours)

( C ) = Communication quality (scale of 1 to 10)

( D ) = Depth of shared experiences (scale of 1 to 10)

( A_{r} ) = Affection expressed reciprocally (scale of 1 to 10)

( F ) = Friendship score from the first meeting

( N ) = Number of negative interactions (such as misunderstandings or conflicts)

The aim is to maximize ( A ) over time, demonstrating growth in affection and intimacy.

Variables for Common Personality Types

Understanding personality types can further enhance the calculations. Using the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) framework, we categorize individuals into 16 types, each influencing the dynamics of friendships and romance.

Extroverted types may score higher in ( C ) and ( I ) during initial encounters, while introverted types might require higher values in ( T ) and ( D ) for deeper connections.

The alignment of personality types may also affect ( V ), where compatibility significantly enhances friendship and romantic potential.

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Chaos Theory and Risk Factors

In assessing relationships, Chaos Theory becomes pivotal in calculating risk factors. The unpredictable nature of human interactions means that even minor variations can lead to vastly different outcomes.

Risk Factor Formula:

[ R = \sum (X_{i}) \times (P_{i}) ]

Where:

( R ) = Overall risk level of the relationship

( X_{i} ) = Risk factors (e.g., misunderstandings, external pressures, past traumas)

( P_{i} ) = Probability of each risk factor occurring (on a scale from 0 to 1)

Higher ( R ) values signify greater risk, indicating the need for proactive measures to mitigate issues.

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Challenges and Solutions

Common problems encountered in building friendships and romantic relationships include:

Miscommunication:

Solution: Enhance communication skills (Success Rate: 80% if both parties are willing).

Differences in Interests:

Solution: Find shared activities (Success Rate: 70%).

Time Constraints:

Solution: Schedule regular meet-ups (Success Rate: 75%).

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Optimal Meeting Environments for Introverts

For a shy, reclusive introvert, optimal places for meeting potential friends include:

Online platforms (Success Rate: 85% due to controlled interaction).

Bookstores or libraries (Success Rate: 75% with a common ground of interests).

Interest-based workshops (Success Rate: 80% leveraging shared experiences).

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Approaching Someone Briefly Met

To get closer to someone you only briefly met, utilize social media or mutual acquaintances to reconnect. Leverage situational contexts like similar events or clubs to increase chances of interaction.

Alternatively; Use what information you have (such as where you met, their name, ecs.) and use this to ensure more meetings can occur.

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UML Sequence Diagrams

School Environment:

Identify shared classes → Initiate conversation → Share interests → Suggest collaboration on projects → Schedule study sessions.

Social-Based Environment (Bar/Coffee Shop):

Observe body language → Approach with a friendly compliment → Engage in light conversation → Ask open-ended questions → Exchange contact details.

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Conclusion

By employing these formulas and strategies, individuals can calculate the likelihood of establishing friendships and romantic relationships. And by following the principles in this, it should make it simpler to make new friends and/or romantic partners.

Understanding the interplay of various psychological principles, personality types, and environmental factors allows for a more systematic approach to human connection.

While the inherent unpredictability of human interactions introduces complexity, a mathematical framework can guide and optimize the pursuit of friendships and love.

[most-mistreated-characters]

THE MATCH UPS (Round 1)

Left Side

Jesus vs. Tori Vega

Trina Vega vs. Yellow Guy

Scott Evil vs. Todd Jacobson

Jesse Pinkman vs. Candace Flynn

Jack Kline vs. Megamind

Sheldon Cooper vs. Sunny Baudelaire

Isadora Quagmire vs. Leafpool

Morrigan Crow vs. Filthy Rich

Bubble vs. Theodore Templeton

Dr Heinz Doofenshmirtz vs. Butters

The Cabbage Merchant vs. Meg Griffin

Starscream vs. Sam Puckett

Freddie Benson vs. Spiders

Ants vs. Tony Stark

Mabel Pines vs. Amy Pond

Mary Jane Watson vs. Nathan Byrne

Bees vs Alberto Scorfano

Finn vs. K1-B0

Wheatley vs. Bucky Barnes

Klaus Hargreeves vs. Will Graham

Viktor Hargreeves vs. Harry Dresden

Crosshair vs. Bruce Banner

Jaskier vs. Anya Jenkins

Saw Gerrera vs. Kira Yukimara

Chloe Valentine vs. Christopher Lightwood

Xion vs. Loki

Aaron Hocthner vs. Mouse Gerwitz

Sasuke vs. Marcus

Matsuda vs. Kanji Tatsumi

Hades vs. Ursala

Sam Winchester vs. Yamcha

Gamzee Makara vs. Tavros Nitram

Right Side

Bill Woodward vs. Charlotte

Jonathan Sims vs. Tim Stoker

Violet Baudelaire vs. Donald Duck

Klaus Baudelaire vs. Hunter De Vil

Skylar White vs. Peeta Mellark

Miles O'brien vs. Chloe

Alicent Hightower vs. White Out

Gwen Cooper vs. Sera

Sadness vs. Logan Sanders

Steve Harrington vs. USA

Will Byers vs. gary gergich

Papyrus vs. Hunter

Hooty vs. Nico Di Angelo

Raine Whispers vs. Sally Acorn

Shadow vs. Zuko

Ken (The Bee Movie) vs. Mike Hanlon

Mammon vs. Frodo

Boromir vs. Castiel

Juzo Sakakura vs. Tasha Yar

Klavier Gavin vs. Faramir

Ellie vs. Skoodge

Vanessa vs. Anders

Asgore Dreemurr vs. Malyen Oretsev

Sara vs. Derek Hale

Dylan Dalmatian vs Sansa Stark

Luis Cabrera vs. Chara Dreemurr

Lance McClain vs. Guillermo de la Cruz

Ian Rider vs. Ezreal Leasra

Yumena Kyusaku vs. Asriel Dreemurr

Denji vs. Rachel

Bain vs. Colin Robinson

Noel Levine vs. Sakura Haruno

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Julianne McShane at Mother Jones:

On Sunday, former President Donald Trump posted on X a video he had debuted a few days earlier at a rally: A montage decrying the “woke” military, showing clips of Stanley Kubrick’s Full Metal Jacket—a film, famously, about the dark cost to the human soul of creating a war machine—as an example of the halcyon days of a battle-hardened Army to which we must return. “WE WILL NOT HAVE A WOKE MILITARY!” Trump wrote. His post was accompanied by a 94-second edited video alternating clips of a screaming general from the film Full Metal Jacket with shots of Assistant Secretary for Health for the Department of Health and Human Services Rachel Levine—the first openly transgender Senate-confirmed federal official—and TikTok videos of people changing from military garb into drag queen ensembles. The clips from Full Metal Jacket are labeled “President Trump,” while those featuring LGBTQ people are labeled “Comrade Kamala.” The video ends with a Trumpian exhortation: “LET’S MAKE OUR MILITARY GREAT AGAIN.” “Absolutely,” Elon Musk, right-wing owner of X, replied to Trump’s post. “The military’s job is to defend America, not engage in social activism.”

Donald Trump released a bigoted anti-LGBTQ+/anti-drag/anti-trans ad alternating images of Full Metal Jacket with drag performers and Dr. Rachel Levine as part of his war on the “woke” military.

Ad:

See Also:

TMZ: Donald Trump Plays Anti-LGBTQ+ Military Personnel Video at Rally… Wants to Get Back to 'Full Metal Jacket'

[beardedmrbean]

Biden DOJ attempt to block Alabama sex change ban for minors forces Rachel Levine into litigation: 'Reckless'

The Department of Justice's attempt to stop Alabama's ban on sex change procedures and medications for transgender minors has forced Assistant Secretary for Health and Human Services Dr. Rachel Levine into litigation after a judge recently compelled the transgender official to become a custodian in the case. 

Alabama's attorney general, Steve Marshall, is in the process of defending litigation against an Alabama law that made it a felony, punishable by up to 10 years in prison, to prescribe puberty blockers or hormones to transgender children for a sex change. 

The Department of Justice requested to be a party in a lawsuit against the Alabama law blocking sex changes for minors, making some federal officials subject to discovery. Discovery is a procedure during litigation in which parties present and request evidence before trial. 

Marshall then requested Levine's records, believing she is one of the primary voices in the federal government — and relevantly in the Health and Human Services Department — who is advocating for sex changes in children with gender dysphoria. 

The DOJ then tried to block the request, and offered Levine's former subordinate instead for discovery and also offered a FOIA response with unrelated search terms, the filing continued. 

However, a court ruled on Nov. 17 that it "finds that Admiral Levine’s emails are relevant… Given that Admiral Levine is a public official." 

"I am glad the court granted our motion to require HHS to search Admiral Levine’s emails for documents relevant to our defense of Alabama’s law," Alabama Attorney General Marshall told Fox News Digital. "We look forward to reviewing the documents HHS produces as we continue to defend Alabama’s children."

The DOJ declined to comment and the HHS has yet to respond for comment. 

Levine has been one of the most vocal voices in the federal government when it comes to transgender issues, the attorney general continued.

"Levine has been at the forefront of the Biden Administration’s reckless promotion of sex-modification procedures for children. There is no doubt about that, nor about the Admiral’s close involvement with radical organizations like WPATH whose ‘Standards of Care’ mandate the use of sterilizing hormones and surgeries to ‘treat’ vulnerable children suffering from gender dysphoria," he said. 

In August, Levine praised an Alaska gender clinic that promoted revisionist ideas about biological sex, including eliminating the word mother from K-12 science classes. 

The gender-inclusive biology curriculum – catered for science teachers – recommended "child-friendly definitions" of terms relating to gender and sexuality.

In July, Levine argued that medical interventions such as hormone therapy could be necessary for children who are experiencing the "wrong puberty."

In March, Levine promised that medically changing kids’ genders will soon be normalized. 

"But I'm a positive and optimistic person, and I choose to be positive, optimistic. And I think that the wheels will turn on this," Levine said.

[batboyblog]

Hi, I was wondering if you could tell us some of the things Doug Emhoff has done in his role as Second Gentleman? I know the First and Second Spouses aren’t really involved in the policy and rulemaking side of things, but has he had any of his own projects, diplomacy missions or other accomplishments?

So usually First and Second Spouses pick some issues that are meaningful to them to highlight and support

for Doug Emhoff clearly trans rights as been an issue close to him, this is part of a wider youth mental health focus, he's meet with LGBT youth at the White House he's done a lot of joint appearances with Dr. Admiral Rachel Levine the highest ranking trans person in the US government, he also did an event against book banning

As one of the most well known Jewish in American political public life he's also done a lot on antisemitism 1 2 3 4 as well as trying to spot light Jewish culture 1 2

hope that helps.

[celebritieswhosupportgenocide]

Abdul, Paula Accardi, Gimena Aniston, Jennifer Apatow, Judd Baddiel, David Baron Cohen, Sacha Bass, Lance Bayer, Vanessa Beckham, Sara Benson, Ashley Bialik, Mayim Bieber, Justin Biel, Jessica Black, Jack Bloom, Orlando Braun, Scott Brie, Alison Brolin, Josh Cain, Dean Carr, Jimmy Chastain, Jessica Chenoweth, Kristen Cohen, Andy Collins, Lily Condor, Lana Cooper, Bradley Cox, Courtney Crystal, Billie Curtis, Jamie Lee David, Cazzie Davis, Viola Debose, Ariana Del Rey, Lana Deschanel, Zooey Deutch, Zoey Dewan, Jenna Diddy Combs, Sean Dobrev, Nina Douglas, Michael Dr. Phil Eric, Andre Fanning, Dakota Ferrell, Will Fisher, Isla Foster, Chelsea Fry, Stephen Gad, Josh Gadot, Gal Gage, Lukas Garner, Jennifer Garner, Julia Garrix, Martin Gellar, Sarah Michelle Gelman, Brett Gilmour, David Gomez, Sarah Goodblum, Jason Groban, Josh Groff, Jonathan Haddish, Tiffany Hamil, Mark Hamm, Jon Handler, Selena Hargitay, Mariska Hewitt, Jennifer Love Hudgens, Vanessa Hyland, Sarah Imbruglia, Natalia Jackson, Paris Jenner, Kris Jenner, Taylor Judge Judy Kailing, Mindy Kardashian ,Amy Kardashian, Khloe Kardashian, Kourtney Kemsley, Dorit King, Joey Kiyoko, Hayley Kloss, Karlie Kunis, Mila Lautner, Nicole Leggero, Natasha Levine, Adam Levy, Eugene Levy, Shawn Lohan, Lindsay Lohan, Lindsay Longoria, Eva Lucas, Matt LuPone, Patti Madonna Mamet, Zosia Marguiles, Julianna McGregor, Ewan Mendel, Howie Messing, Debra Meyers, Seth Mia, Pia Michele, Lea Miguel Milano, Alyssa Mirren, Helen Moore, Mandy Morrone, Camila Munn, Olivia Norris, Chuck O'Donnel, Rosie Oberman, Tracy-Ann Ora, Rita Osbourne, Kelly Osbourne, Sharon Oyelowo, David Pascal, Amy Paulson, Sarah Peck, Josh Peele, Jordan Peltz, Kim Perry, Katy Phillipps, Busy Plaza, Aubrey Pompeo, Ellen Portman, Natalie Prisloo, Behati Richie, Sofia Riley, Rachel Rock, Chris Rock, Chris Rose, Ruby Rosenthal, Phil Roth, Ellie Rowling, JK Saldaña, Zoe Sandler, Adam Savage, Ben Schnapp, Noah Schreiber, Liev Schumer, Kylie Schwartz, Lorraine Schwarzenegger, Patrick Schwimmer, David Segel, Jason\ Seinfeld, Jerry Seinfeld, Jessica Shannon, Molly Shields, Brooke Short, Martin Silverman, Brooklyn Snyder, Zach Sommerhalder, Ian Spears, Lynn Jamie Spektor, Regina Stiller, Ben Sting Stone, Sharon Sudeikis, Jason Theroux, Justin Thorne, Bella Timberlake, Justin Tisdale, Ashley Waititi, Taika Walsh, Kate Washington, Kerry Whiterspoon, Reese Wilde, Olivia Williams, Tyler James Wu, Constance Yatra, Sebastian Zimmer, Constance Zinchenko Zoe, Rachel Zuckerman, Jeremy

[jules-has-notes]

Aca Top 10: Summer Hits 2015 — VoicePlay music video

VoicePlay had kicked off their "Aca Top 10" series with the hits of summer 2014, and the next year gave them just as much good fodder to draw from. Their continued busy schedule provided the same impetus for another medley they could record in a way that didn't require much editing, but that doesn't mean they cut corners on their musicality or the party vibes.

Details:

title: Aca Top 10 — Summer Hits 2015

original songs / performers: "Time of Our Lives" by Pitbull & Ne-Yo; [0:23] "Want To Want Me" by Jason Derulo; [0:40] "Honey, I'm Good" by Andy Grammer; [0:56] "Sugar" by Maroon 5; [1:09] "Fight Song" by Rachel Platten; [1:20] "Bad Blood" by Taylor Swift, featuring Kendrick Lamar; [1:30] "See You Again" by Wiz Khalifa featuring Charlie Puth; [1:40] "Watch Me" by Silentó; [1:52] "Can't Feel My Face" by The Weeknd; [2:07] "Shut Up and Dance" by Walk the Moon

written by: "Time of Our Lives" by Armando "Pitbull" Pérez, Lukasz "Dr. Luke" Gottwald, Henry "Cirkut" Walter, Shaffer "Ne-Yo" Smith, Vinay Rao, Stephan Taft, & Michael "Freakin" Everett; "Want To Want Me" by Jason Derulo, Ian Kirkpatrick, Samuel Denison Martin, Lindy Robbins, & Mitch Allan; "Honey, I'm Good" by Andy Grammer & Nolan Sipe; "Sugar" by Mike Posner, Adam Levine, Joshua "Ammo" Coleman, Lukasz "Dr. Luke" Gottwald, Jacob Kasher Hindlin, & Henry "Cirkut" Walter; "Fight Song" by Rachel Platten & Dave Bassett; "Bad Blood" by Taylor Swift, Max Martin, Karl "Shellback" Schuster, & Kendrick Lamar; "See You Again" by Cameron "Wiz Khalifa" Thomaz, Charlie Puth, Justin "DJ Frank E" Franks, Andrew Cedar, Dann Hume, Josh Hardy, & Phoebe Cockburn; "Watch Me" by Ricky "Silentó" Hawk & Timothy Mingo; "Can't Feel My Face" by Ali Payami, Savan Kotecha, Max Martin, Abel "The Weeknd" Tesfaye, & Peter Svensson; "Shut Up and Dance" by Ben Berger, Eli Maiman, Ryan McMahon, Nicholas Petricca, Kevin Ray, & Sean Waugaman

arranged by: Geoff Castellucci

release date: 3 September 2015

My favorite bits:

the cool percussion riff Layne puts in as a radio edit during "Time of Our Lives"

the breakdown moment in "Honey, I'm Good"

Tony's fantastic side-eye as he sips his coffee during Earl's solo on the first two lines of "Bad Blood"

Eli leaning on Earl's shoulder, and Geoff and Layne gazing fondly at each other during "See You Again"

once again giving the most attention-seeking lyrics to Tony, who's actually quite shy (but performs it well, nevertheless)

Geoff's concerned expression as he makes sure that he can, in fact, feel his face

everyone else cutting out the first time Tony sings ♫ "shut up and dance with me" ♫

Layne gleefully tossing the final sign at the end of a successful take

Trivia:

A full arrangement of "Shut Up and Dance" was part of the Disney Sessions collaborations VoicePlay did with the cast of Newsies as part of the 20th anniversary celebration for Disney On Broadway earlier in the year.

They also included a snippet of "Bad Blood" in their Patreon launch video.

It seems as though the arrangement process happened about a month before they released the video, possibly during their downtime on a cruise ship.

[karagin22]

NEVER

[religion-is-a-mental-illness]

By: Jesse Singal

Published: Jun 25, 2024

When the World Professional Association for Transgender Health’s Standards of Care Version 8 was released in September 2022, a very strange thing happened: WPATH removed references to minimum age requirements for various medical interventions, describing the change as a “correction” in a notice that now reads, weirdly: “This correction notice has been removed as it referred to a previous version of the article, which was published in error.” Whatever happened, exactly, it’s clear that until late in the game the document did have age minimums until, suddenly, it did not.

The SoC 8 was supposed to have been created via something called the Delphi process. As the document itself explains: “Consensus on the final recommendations was attained using the Delphi process that included all members of the guidelines committee and required that recommendation statements were approved by at least 75% of members.” Suffice it to say that making a sudden, major change so late in the game calls into question whether that process was fully adhered to.

Thanks to a rather remarkable document just unsealed as part of Boe v. Marshall, one of the many American lawsuits over youth gender medicine, we now have a potential explanation for why the age guidelines were removed: direct pressure from assistant secretary for health of the Department of Health and Human Services Admiral Rachel Levine (who is a trans woman herself) and the American Academy of Pediatrics.

The document is titled “Appendix A To Supplemental Expert Report Of James Cantor, Ph.D. In it Cantor, a Canadian sex researcher, critic of youth gender medicine, and frequent expert witness on behalf of those attempting to ban or restrict it (including in this case), claims that “Assistant Secretary for Health Dr. Rachel Levine strongly pressured WPATH leadership to rush the development and issuance of SOC-8, in order to assist with Administration political strategy.”

He backs this claim up with the following internal communications from WPATH members involved with the creation of the SoC 8 (here and elsewhere in the document, the names of the people who wrote the words in question are redacted):

I have just spoken to Admiral Levine today, who—as always is extremely supportive of the SOC 8, but also very eager for its release—so to ensure integration in the US health policies of the Biden government. So, let’s crack on with the job!!! 

I am meeting with Rachel Levine and her team next week, as the US Department of Health is very keen to bring the trans health agenda forward.

The failure of WPATH to be ready with SOC 8 is proving a barrier to optimal policy progress and she [Dr. Levine] was eager to learn when SOC 8 might be published. 

[T]his should be taken as a charge from the United States government to do what is required to complete the project immediately. 

More worryingly, Cantor charges that “Assistant Secretary Levine also attempted to and did influence the substantive content of SOC-8, based on political goals rather than science. Specifically, Assistant Secretary Levine, though [sic] a staff member, pressured WPATH to remove recommended minimum ages for medical transition treatments from SOC-8.”

Here, too, he has evidence from anonymized emails written by those involved in the SoC 8:

Sarah Boateng, who is Adm. Levine’s chief of staff [said the] biggest concern is the section below in the Adolescent Chapter that lists specific minimum ages for treatment, she is confident, based on the rhetoric she is hearing in DC, and from what we have already seen, that these specific listings of ages, under 18, will result in devastating legislation for trans care. She wonders if the specific ages can be taken out and perhaps an adjunct document could be created that is published or distributed in a way that is less visible than the SOC8, is the way to go. 

The issue of ages and treatment has been quite controversial (mainly for surgery) and it has come up again. We sent the document to Admiral Levine. . . She like [sic] the SOC-8 very much but she was very concerned that having ages (mainly for surgery) will affect access to health care for trans youth and maybe adults too. Apparently the situation in the USA is terrible and she and the Biden administration worried that having ages in the document will make matters worse. She asked us to remove them. We have the WPATH executive committee in this meeting and we explained to her that we could not just remove them at this stage. 

[W]e heard your [Dr. Levine’s] comments regarding the minimal age criteria for transgender healthcare adolescents; the potential negative outcome of these minimal ages as recommendations in the US [. . . ] Consequently, we have changes to the SOC 8 in this respect. Given that the recommendations for minimal ages for the various gender affirming medical and surgical intervention are consensus-based, we could not remove them from the document. Therefore, we have made changes as to how the minimal ages are presented in the documents. [Note: “your” may well refer to an aide of Levine’s rather than the Secretary herself, though it’s unclear.] 

Cantor also includes emails from SoC 8 contributors expressing surprise at the sudden change, including this one making. . . well, the same point everyone else made after news of the late-stage “correction” broke:

I don’t see how we can simply remove something that important from the document—without going through a Delphi—at this final stage of the game [. . . ] I realize that those in favor of the bans are going to go right to the age criteria and ignore the fact that we actually strengthened the strictness of the criteria to help clinicians better discern appropriate surgical candidates from those who are inappropriate [. . . ] It’s all about messaging and marketing. 

I’m actually crashing on a different but related freelance story at the moment. Check out Leor Sapir’s Twitter timeline for more details about this and another just-unsealed document. Next week, when I’ve caught my breath, I’ll write a little bit more about this as well as yet another damning claim Cantor makes, that the American Academy of Pediatrics “issued an ultimatum to WPATH: Should WPATH not delete the age minimums, AAP would not only withhold endorsement of SOC-8, but would publicly oppose the document.” 

But I wanted to at least get this short piece up, because the Levine angle is important and alarming. It demonstrates an indisputable conflict between how WPATH has portrayed the SoC 8 — as a document steeped in evidence and careful deliberation on the part of experts — and how the guidelines were actually formulated.

==

This is rather remarkable political interference in what WPATH have pretended is both appropriate and evidence-based.