LGBT

Maher too often paints with a broad brush and throws shade in his smug condescending way.

On Friday I did not think he exhibited "transphobia," and in fact expressed support for LGBTQ folks to live their lives. What he came out against was medical procedures and puberty blockers for children, arguing that kids go through phases and life altering procedures at a young age are not a good idea. He also pointed to statistics showing a steep rise in the LGBTQ percent among young people, calling it "trendy "

The only thing I partially agreed with has to do with life altering procedures for pre pubescent children. I don't know enough about it and would not say it should never be done. Among some children cross gender identity is so strong and evidently unalterable that early medical procedures may be necessary a happy adulthood. But in other cases, it may be wise to hold off on procedures.

This really is a decision for the family, their counselor, and their physician. Bill Maher is at best unhelpful and more likely part of the problem when he thrusts his political proposals into such intensely private matters.

Years ago I enjoyed his show even when I disagreed, but what infuriated me was how ill prepared he was to counter the rapid fire BS of guests like Steve Bannon. When Maher couldn't effectively rebut Bannon's false rhetoric he just said OK and moved on to the next point he failed to make.

And yes, Maher's frequent rants against "cancel culture" and what he views as the lunatic left all too often lacks nuance and context, giving the impression that the left -- and by extension the Democratic Party -- is just as much off the rails as the dangerous nutjobs on the right (who are much more mainstream in the Republican Party than his targets on the left are with the Democratic Party).