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Showing posts with the label Gold Coast

Transgender weightlifter's injury exit may be a blessing in disguise - but it is still cheating

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The New Zealand athlete, Gavin Hubbard, who now pretends he is a she, and calls himself Laurel Hubbard, was to have competed today in a weightlifting event. But an elbow injury has meant he was forced to withdraw from competing. And that is a good thing too. Born in New Zealand in 1978, he lived as a biological birth male until his early thirties as Gavin, the child of a former mayor of Auckland. Then he decided to transition to become female and to compete as an elite athlete using her reassigned gender. Totally unfair! This doesn't work the other way. The upshot? A labyrinthine legal and ethical mess, for which the Commonwealth Games offer just a fleeting platform. Come the Tokyo Olympics in 2020 , Gavin Hubbard is likely to present such an insoluble dilemma for those who support hte non-scientific view of transgenderism. . Here in Australia , he didn't escaped a full trial in the court of public opinion by dubious virtue of injuring himself.   Just as Hubbard tri...

Australian Christian Lobby welcomes gay marriage delay

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The Australian Christian Lobby has welcomed a significant delay in the introduction of same-sex marriage in the country. It's after Australian politicians refused to let the people decide whether same-sex marriage should be legalised. The Upper House voted down the ruling government's motion of a referendum on whether to amend current Australian marriage laws. It means a potential referendum cannot be voted on until the next parliamentary term which could be in 2019. Given that Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull 's ruling Liberal-National Coalition has consistently stated it wants to hold a referendum on the issue rather than pass it in parliament, it's unlikely a change in marriage law will now happen for the foreseeable future. Critics of the referendum proposal say the move is unnecessarily expensive when politicians can vote through the legislation themselves, and the debates surrounding the referendum could be divisive. Lyle Shelton , Managing Direct...