Australia's top court recognizes 'gender neutral' sex category

Interesting how one group of people look down upon another group of people claiming they deny science and at the same time are in denial over basic biology when it does to a topic that does not suit their ideological inclinations. One could call this a sort of schizophrenia. One's DNA and chromosomes tell the story of every persons sex "biologically" speaking. Hermaphrodites are the only people with a scientifically factual case to make about being neither male or female. All others are simply in denial of science and intellectually confused - much like this guy Norrie.

John Galt,

Wow, thumbs-down for stating scientific fact. Cool! Shall we just modify the gender thingy to "innie or outie"? No, DNA doesn't change by cosmetic surgery. FACT!

I think you're getting thumbed down for lacking awareness that genetic anomalies exist, while being snarky about 'scientific fact'.

If you are actually interested in understanding how sometimes DNA and physical presentation do not match, I recommend the book, "Mutants: On Genetic Variety and the Human Body" by Armand Marie Leroi. A good readable science book for the layman.

Can't fight nature (and win) folks. Natural born hermaphrodites (very very few in number and most usually biologically leaning towards male or female.) can claim this title and have all rights to do so. For those that have to go through artificial tinkering to become a hermaphrodite... nature didn't give it to you for a reason. Another case of trying to become something you're not.

I'm waiting for the day when people with GID will be able to have a clone from their genes of the opposite sex, surgically place their brains in the other body and have to deal with the real full blown hormonal situations like menopause, pregnancy, menstruation/ or for men testosterone fluctuations, nocturnal emissions, random aggression etc. Then we'll really see some true reactions to changing one's sex.

And "biologically" a male would only be sexually interested in females and such. And schizophrenia or anything of the sorts wouldn't exist. Such are the arguments of the conservatives.

It is time to create people in a lab.. make drones.. or cyborgs... are these people a category as well? The Matrix is here and soon the internet will become self aware..

Germany has recently allowed a third gender registry at birth for hermaphrodites, I believe.

Time for the Olympic games to create a new set of games? ... Neutralympics...?

Biologically you are either male, female, or hermaphrodite. There are very few that are hermaphrodite but they do exist and should be treated with respect and allowed an option for themselves if they do not choose to live their life as either a male or female. As for this person, he was born male and has male chromosomes. Apparently he is not able to accept that but reality is reality. It is a shame that political correctness has gotten to the point of actually denying science but such is the state of the world these days.

Why is Oz worried about the state of some Japanese marriages?

I guess I'm not sure how gender neutral works though. For instance, how does one dress? Can one have a liaison? With whom? The mind boggles.

All species are divided into male and female. Its been like that since the Beginning. Courts and governments cannot decide these things. Itsdecided by Nature. While there are a few mixed up people around, this decision by an Australian Court is one of the most nonsensical I have ever heard. What next from the "gay" agenda? This is quite disgusting. Our human society is going down the plughole when governments and courts are legislating sickening political correctness to make the unnatural the norm, even trying to remove words from our vocabulary. Genesis 1:27 ..."male and female He created them." Sorry, but there just is no "third gender" in that list.

Thunderbird2 - The term third gender is somewhat difficult to understand within western conceptual categories. Besides describing individuals who are categorized by their will or by social consensus as neither man or women it can also represent a state between man and women, a state of being both such as the spirit of man or the state of being neither or neuter. The ability to cross or swap genders which is another category altogether independent of men and women. Thus gender is far more complicated because in reality biological gender occurs across a continuum of possibilities beyond anatomy. There are multiple domain of defining gender with a rich texture of biology, gender expression, and gender identity that intersects in multidimensional array of possibilities. Therefore the gender spectrum represents a more nuanced, and ultimately truly authentic model of human gender. In any case all these characterizations are defining gender and not the sex that biology gives to livings beings.

You do realize that (subjective sense of) gender is also determined by the brain.

Wow, thumbs-down for stating scientific fact. Cool! Shall we just modify the gender thingy to "innie or outie"?

No, DNA doesn't change by cosmetic surgery. FACT!

Ridiculous political correctness.

Ridiculous and a waste of public money.

Novechama... are you suggesting: Male, mostly male, neutral, mostly female, and female? Very strange.

I believe our cultural conception affects our understanding of sex and we need to be much more careful about sex classifications and rethink what sex amounts to. More specifically, intersex people illustrate that sex traits associated with females and males need not always go together and that individuals can have some mixture of these traits. Therefore sex is a cluster concept. It is sufficient to satisfy enough of the sex feature that tend to cluster together in order to count as being a particular sex. But, one need not satisfy all of those features or some arbitrarily chosen supposedly necessary sex features, like chromosomes. This would make sex a matter of degree and sex characteristics should take place on a spectrum. In other words one can be more or less female or male but there is no sharp distinction between the two. Further intersexes along with transgendered people are looked at the entire spectrum and in many cases they will be indeterminate. However if people are classified in sexes, some biologists and gender theorists would argue that at least five sexes, rather than two would be needed.

New nickname could be shobber or keela.......

The courts can decide whatever they deem politically correct at the time, but DNA isn't changed. A Corvette can never be a Ferrari regardless of modifications.

Does that mean either options for the toilet room is allowed? Sign us up!

You a bloke? Nope. You a Sheila? Nope. Strewth... you're gender neutral? Aussies will have to find a new nickname now, lol