Are we witnessing a rise of the Cult of the Chromosome?

[ck4829]

I was wondering about this when I see some of these religious conscience laws.

Take Mississippi for example:

Male (man) or female (woman) refer to an individual’s immutable biological sex as objectively determined by anatomy and genetics at time of birth.
-HB 1523

And there's more...

Linking religious beliefs to believing an "individual's immutable biological sex as objectively determined by anatomy and genetics of the individual at the time of birth"
-HB 773 in Virginia

"The terms male or man and female or woman refer to distinct and immutable biological sexes that are determined by anatomy and genetics by the time of birth."
-HB 1107 in North Dakota

"For the purposes of this section “biological sex” means the physical condition of being male or female, which is determined by a person’s chromosomes, and is identified at birth by a person’s anatomy and indicated on their birth certificate."
-SB 720 in Missouri

Taking a look at these bills, I don't know about anyone else, but I am seeing something start to stick out.

Items of interest:
* Dichotomies (Often seen in religious fundamentalism. God and Satan. Believer and unbeliever. Heaven and Hell. Faithful and heretic. And in this case... Male and female.)
* "At birth" and "immutable", more and more it sounds like one's genetic code is not just that, but actually something on par with scripture, something divinely inspired and set in stone
* The fact that these bills share the space with religious accommodation merits mention as well.
* These bills make it seem like gender is purely ascribed, that it's 'your place' and not conforming to your gender role as assigned by your birth and your 'sacred and unchanging genetics' is heresy

Now is it bad enough to call it all an establishment of religion? I don't think so, but with the right crazy enough to give Trump the nomination, you can never know for sure just far they will jump off the deep end.

[meow2u3]

1. Which bill mill is behind these proposed laws?

And why do rethugs want to discriminate against intersex individuals, whose chromosomal makeup might not match their apparent sex?

[Ilsa]

2. And what if there is a variation in the sex chromosomes?

They all are not perfect XX's and XY's. Sometimes there are extras, and anatomy may not precisely follow genetics.

[ck4829]

3. That's what concerns me as well

Are they 'unpeople' according to the people who push these bills? That never ends well.

[hedgehog]

4. What about Chimeras?

A genetic chimerism or chimera (also spelled chimaera) (not to be confused with the cartilaginous fish called Chimaera) (from the creature Chimera in Greek mythology) is a single organism composed of cells from different zygotes. This can result in male and female organs, two blood types, or subtle variations in form



The existence of chimerism is problematic for DNA testing, a fact with implications for family and criminal law. The Lydia Fairchild case, for example, was brought to court after DNA testing apparently showed that her children could not be hers. Fraud charges were filed against her and her custody of her children was challenged. The charge against her was dismissed when it became clear that Lydia was a chimera, with the matching DNA being found in her cervical tissue. Another case was that of Karen Keegan, who was also suspected (initially) of not being her children's biological mother, after DNA tests on her adult sons for a kidney transplant she needed seemed to show she wasn't their mother.

The Dutch sprinter Foekje Dillema was expelled from the 1950 national team after she refused a mandatory sex test in July 1950; later investigations revealed a Y-chromosome in her body cells, and the analysis showed that she probably was a 46,XX/46,XY mosaic female.[14]
In 1953 a human chimera was reported in the British Medical Journal. A woman was found to have blood containing two different blood types. Apparently this resulted from her twin brother's cells living in her body.[15] More recently, a study found that such blood group chimerism is not rare.[16]
Another report of a human chimera was published in 1998, where a male human had some partially developed female organs due to chimerism. He had been conceived by in-vitro fertilization.[3]
In 2002, Lydia Fairchild was denied public assistance in Washington state when DNA evidence showed that she was not related to her children. A lawyer for the prosecution heard of a human chimera in New England, Karen Keegan, and suggested the possibility to the defense, who were able to show that Fairchild, too, was a chimera with two sets of DNA.

[LostOne4Ever]

5. You honestly expect repugs to know or understand real science? nt