This morning I found myself getting much more annoyed about the Cass report and the treatment of feminists over trans issues than I've allowed myself to feel before (I don't think I'm alone in this). The trigger was something incredibly trivial. >

I saw a news report which mentioned an author visiting a conference near me. It wasn't an author who'd been particularly horrible to me or anyone else. It was just someone who'd once tweeted, as one does, in that arse-covering way, that they were really sad about mean terfs >

It was done in that thoughtless 'I know I'll get loads of abuse for this, but I must make a stand for kindness' way, where actually all you're actually doing is distancing yourself from women who are taking abuse. >

There was no consideration of the issues, just 'I'm nice and they're not', plus the standard follow-up, when the women you've denounced argue back, of 'I've had horrendous bullying but I'm just glad to take it instead of trans people for once'. >

Absolutely standard, and nowhere near as bad as death or rape threats. But today I found myself thinking 'you go to any conferences you like, make any speeches you like, and no feminists threaten or denounce you. There's zero cost to you. You're oblivious' >

And I felt so angry at just how *casual* it's all been. Women such as RachelRooney or Julie Bindel have been put through so much, and people who haven't thought about the issue for five minutes just drop in to throw the odd stone, then wander off again. >

They don't think they're part of the 'toxic culture' or 'polarisation', but they absolutely are. Because they look at women being screamed at, think 'I don't want to be one of those women' and issue a little statement to make those screaming feel that bit more entitled. >

Their lives haven't been affected in any way and while I don't want them to feel every room *they* enter to talk about their books is one in which they risk being accused of genocide, I want them to think about how that might feel. >