Tuesday, August 28, 2018

Curb Your Judgement?



Mrs. H. is a strong-willed woman who likes to stay in shape. While living here in western Maine, she fought off a man who tried to assault her sexually as she was jogging. She avoided rape but emerged bruised, battered, and traumatized, which is why she wants anonymity. She lives in Florida now where she is suing Planet Fitness for revoking her membership after she complained about a man ogling women in the locker room. She contacted me recently about the situation.


Attorney Mathew Staver describes the case: “‘Mrs. H.’ is a survivor of a violent rape attempt. On May 29, 2018, staff at the Leesburg location revoked ‘Mrs. H.’s’ membership after she was intimidated by and complained about the behavior of Jordan Rich in the women’s locker room. Rich claims to be ‘transgender,’ but is obviously a man and his behavior indicates he derives enjoyment from depriving women of privacy.”

Eric Stagno
Planet Fitness declares itself a “judgement-free zone” which has been problematic in at least two other cases. Last month, Eric Stagno was arrested in the Plaistow, New Hampshire Planet Fitness facility and charged with indecent exposure, lewdness and disorderly conduct because he was walking back and forth and doing poses on a yoga mat in the nude. The Lawrence Eagle Tribune reported: “The only statement police said Stagno made during the arrest was that he thought the gym was a ‘judgement free zone,’ apparently referencing the workout chain's slogan.”

CNN reported that Yvette Cormier of Michigan lost her Planet Fitness membership after warning other women about a man who called himself “Carlotta” in the locker room. “If you have male parts you don't need to be in the women's locker room,” said Cormier. “I don't care what you are; I don't care if you're gay lesbian, transgender or transvestite. I am uncomfortable with you as a male in my locker room, in my restroom.” Planet Fitness got support from the Michigan ACLU and the Human Rights Campaign — a national homosexual lobbying group, as well other LGBT pressure groups. Cormier’s lawsuit was dismissed in two lower courts but then upheld by the Michigan Supreme Court last month.

Cormier and "Carlotta"
Jordan Rich is a man who says he’s a woman and Mrs. H. was uncomfortable changing while he watched her in a big locker room mirror two feet away. She politely asked him to leave, but he refused. When she left, he chased her into the parking lot, then called 911 as she drove off to report that she had sexually harassed him. Police responded, but evidently didn’t take Mr. Rich’s charge seriously.
Jordan Rich
Mainstream media habitually champion “transgenders” who say they feel uncomfortable in the locker rooms or bathrooms corresponding to their actual sex. Such people comprise less than 1% of the population but don’t seem to mind making others uncomfortable when they take either their clothes off in the presence of women, or watch women undress in women’s locker rooms. Yvette Cormier won her case in Michigan, but will it be appealed to federal courts? Will Eric Stagno sue the Plaistow, New Hampshire police who arrested him? Will Jordan Rich file suit against Mrs. H. for sexual harassment? Will more women file suits like these?



Planet Fitness is a private company and they can make any policies they want, but they should state them in their contracts so women who are joining know that men are allowed in women’s locker rooms. As stories like that of Mrs. H. and others get out there, profits may decline and they might consider changing their policies.


Meanwhile, government schools have been allowing girls in boys’ locker rooms — and mandating that boys and parents accept it. A group of parents filed suit in federal court against an Oregon school declaring the presence of a girl in the boys’ locker room was causing their sons “embarrassment, humiliation, anxiety, intimidation, fear, apprehension, and stress.”


Obama-appointed Judge Marco Hernandez threw out the suite last month declaring that: “High school students do not have a fundamental privacy right to not share school restrooms, lockers, and showers with transgender students whose biological sex is different than theirs.” He said the stress the boys felt was not "comparable to the plight of transgender students who are not allowed to use facilities consistent with their gender identity.”


Hernandez’s ruling will stand unless it’s overturned in a federal court of appeals, and that won’t likely be quick if it happens at all. What can we expect when schools open this fall? Will boys be allowed in girls’s shower rooms? After that ruling, public schools won’t be able to stop it. It’s one thing for private entities like Planet Fitness gyms to allow it; people can go to another gym — but now the federal government can force it on public schools.


I don’t believe I have to ask Mrs. H. what she thinks of this development.

37 comments:

Alfie said...

You know what also made people uncomfortable. When blacks were first allowed to use locker rooms that had been previously restricted to whites. I'm sure a handful of them assaulted whites in the locker room over the years.

Reality Check said...

"A group of parents filed suit in federal court against an Oregon school declaring the presence of a girl in the boys’ locker room was causing their sons “embarrassment, humiliation, anxiety, intimidation, fear, apprehension, and stress.”

Talk about snowflakes!

Anonymous said...

(Show Low Yaqui said...)

'The Miss Universe pageant had become a valuable asset for Trump, but it also served another function for him. He loved beautiful women. And, as the owner of the pageant, Trump told shock jock Howard Stern, he was entitled to do as he pleased. "I'll go backstage before a show, and everyone's getting dressed and ready and everything else," he said. "You know, no men are anywhere. And I'm allowed to go in because I'm the owner of the pageant. And therefore I'm inspecting it....Is everyone OK? You know, they're standing there with no clothes. And you see these incredible looking women. And so I sort of get away with things like that."

Not that the contestants approved...' page 211 House of Trump, House of Putin by Craig Unger Dutton/Penguin Random House copyright 2018

Brian said...

Oh come on Aqui, the extremely rare sexual assault by a transgender person is much more important than the bragged about (and verified by multiple women) sexual assaults by the President of the United States. Who cares how sleazy the representative of our country is? Who needs role models? Who needs human decency, morals, or the truth from our leaders. Let's worry about this grody transexual problem.

Reality Check said...

I find it fascinating how Tom cannot suppress his bizarre sexual hang-ups. And why is it that his ilk always seem to make light of sexual assault by the likes of Roger Ailes, Roy Moore and Donald Trump, but get oh so outraged if a gay or a transgender might be involved? You could almost take Tom seriously if you only read him in print form, but when you see the insertion of his juvenile "titillating" photos, you see the real workings of his sex obsessed brain. I can only imagine the weird sites he visits online to get his creepy photos.

Anonymous said...

(Show Low Yaqui said)

Just to clarify: Evidently two of the posters have failed to grasp the larger message and intent of this article. It is quite effective and points out the problems with topsy-turvy laws recently developed. I live in the Portland area, and keep up with current events as much as possible. Not a pretty picture.

Reality Check said...

This entire column is a red herring trying to distract us from the sexual assaults of his political heroes.

And "homo harpie"! Thanks for the additional revealing of your true nasty nature!

Tom McLaughlin said...

I figured you for an Indian lived in Arizona, Show Low.

The left, especially the homosexual left, does all it can to blur our understanding of humanity. They use government, especially the courts, to further their agenda. I don't know what their destination is and I'm not sure they do either.

Donald Trump's very existence seems to short-circuit them. Their entire worldview now seems to revolve around getting rid of him.

Rose Robinson said...

Very well written article Tom...I have been following this story and all it’s implications. I had planned on joining Planet Fitness when I came to FL this winter, but now I will not do so. The idea of a man in the locker room where women habitually disrobe and enjoy the freedom of showering, it is a total invasion of our privacy! But more upsetting is the fact that our safety could be impaired. I would not want to use these types of facilities with a man present. Neither would I want to see a vulnerable young girl in there! The transgenders should lobby for another way to get their way...perhaps their own bathroom? I am not in favor of this tiny segment of the population dictating our school policies and our bathroom behaviors. Not to mention the religious implications which I won’t get into here.
Mrs. H is a courageous and strong woman to take this on. The transgender narrative is being supported by a left leaning ACLU and others who are intent on destroying the very fabric of our values. They are relentless and ruthless, will stop at nothing to further their agenda. I pray for Mrs. H and victims like her who are being ostracized and condemned by the media; Planet Fitness unjustly punished her by revoking her membership. Shame on you Planet &itness! Make some changes to your abysmal policies now before someone gets hurt in your locker rooms.

Anonymous said...

Thanks Tom for posting this! Great article. People trying to make this similar to racism have no logical understanding of the problem. A black woman in a locker room has the same female parts as a white woman. The only difference is color. That is NOT THE SAME when you encounter a man (black or white) in a woman's locker room. They DO NOT have the same parts.

After this went public it was clear that public opinion is very much against men in the locker rooms. Even those who are pro-trans gender seem to want to draw a line at the bathroom/locker room doors. This is not rocket science. Why is this so hard?

To think otherwise is just plain ludicrous. There are many women who have suffered at the hands of men physically, sexually and emotionally. For them to come out of the shower or in any forms of undress in a locker room is horrible to them. I had one woman say after having a mastectomy she struggled with taking off her shirt around woman. The thought of a man in the locker room terrified her.

Planet Fitness committed fraud. There is nothing in their contract. There are no signs posted outside the locker rooms to advise women of their "unwritten policy." They refuse to put signs up. It's clear in our dealings with them that they have thrown women under the bus in favor of the "trans women." They have a policy that if you ask them they will tell you. I never gave that a thought. The sign outside the locker room not only say "women," but the gender sign on top of the door is that for women. Why would I ask? I can read signs.

This is not about gender. This is clearly all about an agenda. And people need to start waking up and get into this battle. It's time we speak up and push back.

Reality Check said...

Not the same "parts", not the same "color". Not that much a difference there.

The fear is that somebody might LOOK at you? The fact remains that doing anything indecent is still not allowed. Get over your hang-ups, stop worrying if somebody was born with a certain part or not, stop being a snowflake, and live your own life.

Reality Check said...

Let me get this straight. You would be more ok with a big burly, looking person looking very much like a man, walking around women's lockers and bathrooms so long as underneath they don't have a certain "part"? Why wouldn't that freak out the tender snowflakes just as much, or more? They don't know for sure what is going on under the pants, so the "trauma" remains.

Mrs. H. said...

Men do not belong in women's locker/bathrooms. Plain and simple. What's not to understand?

Reality Check said...

Mrs. H, can you answer the question above your comment?

Mrs. H. said...

Another point not brought up but I think something to think about. The above picture of the transgender in question posing as a black woman in dreadlocks is interesting. Our society says that a white person posing as a black person is racist and not acceptable. It's been noticed that no one seriously thinks or has made a comment to the fact that he's black. He's not. He's white. Yet, why isn't it sexist to think a man can believe and pose as a woman?

Why is posing as a black considered racist but posing as a woman not sexist? Why is one not accepted but the other is?

Reality Check said...

As to your question, Mrs. H, there is a lot to understand and a lot that is not fully understood by science yet. Keep an open mind and keep up on what scientific studies have to say....

http://sitn.hms.harvard.edu/flash/2016/gender-lines-science-transgender-identity/

Tom McLaughlin said...

I won't delete the anonymous poster above because I can see by the way you write that you're new here. If you don't want to post under your own name, make up one and use it consistently, please.

Unknown said...

I am the anonymous poster. I don't know what happened. I put Mrs. H. but it showed anonymous.

To RC:

It's already been proven. This is not a Science issue. It's a mental health one. There are some who have come out of this lifestyle whether it be gay or transgender and spoken against this.

What is to stop a 40 year old man getting too close to a 5 year old little girl saying he really feels like a kindergärtner? What's to stop a 16 year old from saying he's mature enough to feel like a 21 year old so he should be able to drink alcohol? The list goes on.

I can feel like whatever I want. My son in first grade thought he was a dog. He barked on all fours for a week after his dog died. Obviously there was trauma involved. I think the same for these transgenders. I think there's some sort of trauma involved and we are being made to go along with it. Sorry. I can't do that.

Reality Check said...

Mrs. H show me the "proof". "Some" people speaking about this is not proof. There are way, way more people who have spoken about their own experiences saying the opposite. Their ARE mentally challenged people who feel like a 5 year old. They should be monitored. If you can't see the differences with your goofy examples of "what if" then you may not be thinking this through enough. Yes, I imagine it is very traumatic to be born as they opposite gender as your "parts". That is why we should be considerate, they are going through a lot.

But don't forget to show me the "proof". And you still haven't answered the question about the manly looking burly individual in the women's room.

Mrs. H. said...

RC....what's to answer? I already did. A MAN DOES NOT BELONG IN THE WOMEN'S LOCKER ROOM. What don't you understand? Manly looking? What is that supposed to mean? I've been going to the gym now for five some years and have never seen a manly looking burly person in the locker room until this episode with the transgender. I don't really like to answer hypothetical questions. I deal with reality.

A Ph'D Scientist/doctor in the 1970's opened up a lab to work with trans at John Hopkins. He eventually shut it down because he saw that this was NOT A SCIENCE issue but a mental health one. Other such labs came up with the same conclusion. They are going to reopen...but guess what? They will come up with the same conclusion eventually.


http://www.baltimoresun.com/health/bal-johns-hopkins-transgender-20170406-story.html

Reality Check said...

I don't think you understood my question. I asked about a transgender person that was born with female parts, but has transitioned into living as a man. You are ok with this burly looking person in the women's room? By manly looking I mean a beard and typical men's clothing. Maybe you haven't seen such people, but they do exist. THAT is reality, not just what you have personally experienced. In your years in women's locker rooms you may very well have seen some women that actually had male "parts". You wouldn't know. They don't tend to ogle others and disrobe to show their parts.

As for proof, you provided none, especially as the article you provided even states that "Many scientists subsequently challenged the methodology behind Meyer's study, as well as his interpretation of the results"

So this one guy is FAR from proof.

The article also says the "majority" have pysch issues instead of biological. So, what about the rest?

Keep an open mind, and don't automatically disregard studies and facts that go against your pre-conceived notions.

Mrs. H said...

Believe me you can spot a trans a mile away. It's unnatural. It's very obvious. Science is on our side here. You can take a skin test or a saliva swab and it will tell you (in case you're confused) as to what sex you are. Basically the male/female parts line up with the testing. The rules,studies and facts go along with... if you're born with male parts you are a male. If you are born with female parts you are a female. We need to be treating the brain...not cutting off body parts. This is beyond crazy. Now the state of CA is forcing therapists NOT to counsel these confused people. Why is that? What are they afraid of? Go deeper!

Recently a nurse wrote that a woman gave birth to a child but wants to trans into a male. She's having her uterus and her breasts removed to become a man. She's in a relationship with a male, and the hospital is forcing the nurses to call this woman (who just gave birth mind you) a he. How screwed up is that? I feel like we're living in the Twilight Zone.

Sami Gay said...

"Believe me you can spot a trans a mile away". LOL. Why should I believe you? You talk like someone with mental health issues yourself.

Reality Check said...

Mrs. H...you still haven't said if you are ok with the manly looking person with female body parts in the women's room.

Should I assume that you are also ok with the horrible, ineffective "gay conversion" camps?

And why does it bother you so that somebody, such as the mother you mentioned, has a transition? What's it matter to YOU?

I am fine with whatever people do with their lives so long as they are not harming anybody. There are many, many very fine upstanding citizens both gay and transsexual throughout our society, and no, you can not easily identify them. They are not all cartoonish caricatures like many of the photos Tom likes.

It is not PC of me to say this, but nature makes "mistakes" all the time. (as most gays and transsexuals would not want to be considered "mistakes") Two headed snakes, three armed humans....is having the wrong body part really more unbelievable than an extra head?

Tom McLaughlin said...

RC: the photos I put up for this column are of the actual three men who went into women's locker rooms at the various Planet Fitness gyms.

Reality Check said...

I was mainly judging by many past columns but it is interesting that for some diddly little thing like this you respond, but when ever any real questions are posed you become "too busy on your book" or some hogwash.

Tom McLaughlin said...

There are day and night, good and bad, yin and yang, and male and female. Your ilk insists humanity is not binary and I'm not buying it. Never will.

And I do have a few other things to do in my life than argue ludicrous contentions like yours.

Reality Check said...

There is dawn, morning, noon, afternoon, twilight, dusk, night, etc. Your ilk insists everything is black or white, no shades of gray and I'm not buying that. Of course there are shades of gray, and countless colors in between. Of course there is middle, murky areas between "good" and "bad". How shallow to think otherwise.

And avoiding discussing/arguing a tough question (such as "is having the wrong body part really more unbelievable than an extra head?") by claiming a contention is "ludicrous" is the cheap, cowardly way out.

Anthony said...

I generally try and read any columns like this with an open mind (although when I see "Obama appointed judge" I feel that is an unfortunate attempt to plant a seed of bias). Ultimately, this issue comes down to people feeling safe, it seems (I don't think being 'uncomfortable' is enough of an argument). If someone (anyone!) makes you feel unsafe, in any environment, you have the right to report that person. If you could peel back the layers of WHY you might feel unsafe with a transgender person present in a locker room, it might help articulate your argument. It seems people exclaim a feeling or emotion, and then have no desire to ask themselves why they feel that way, or where does that emotion come from. I would imagine some are very legitimate emotions. But I would guess just as many stem from some sort of prejudice.

Anthony said...

And just to clarify, I'm using terms like "you" & "your" in a general sense.

Tom McLaughlin said...

Ok, Anthony. Consider this with your open mind:

There is no such thing as a "transgender person." There are men, women, and people who have psychological disorders causing them to be confused about their sex.

Reality Check said...

"no such thing"...says the man who can't respond to "is having the wrong body part really more unbelievable than having an extra head?"

Open YOUR mind and consider the other side.

Reality Check said...

I also wonder if Tom and his ilk believe that there are no pyschological/brain differences between men and women, an that it is solely a matter of physical "parts".

Reality Check said...

More scientific studies for you to pretend don't exist:

https://www.the-scientist.com/features/are-the-brains-of-transgender-people-different-from-those-of-cisgender-people-30027

Reality Check said...

Something else for Tom and Co. to ponder and short circuit their heads: what about hermaphrodites? How do they fit into your black/white, male/female point of view. I can hear the heads exploding.

Reality Check said...

Glad to see that reason, evidence and common sense put an end to this argument!

Greg Vander Veer said...

What I find most disappointing is that The Conway Daily Sun publishes all this hateful rhetoric that Tom writes. I wish he would understand that as a gay man living in this community, I just want to work hard, be good to my family and neigbhors and live peacefully in The Valley. I enjoy reading the paper and I'm always shocked when I see yet another article of Tom's declaring that I am "disordered" , mentally disturbed and bad for society. Tom, I'm your neighbor. I wish you no harm and can tell that you have many interests beyond your hateful views of the LGBT community. Can't you just give it a rest? Let us live in peace. We aren't going away. Your articles are not violent but not the notions behind them can lead to violence. This is a peaceful, quiet mountain community and your beliefs are personal. I don't need to read about them in the paper. Your blog is yours and I guess you can write all the hate you want there. But the paper is for all of us. - Greg Vander Veer