Dignified Sex Change

(Largo, Florida) Forty-eight-year-old Steve Stanton, Largo city manager, announced yesterday that he will undergo a sex change operation and is currently being counseled and taking hormones to prepare. He originally intended to make the announcement in June so his teenage son could be out of town but changed his plans after being questioned by a reporter.

Now, this is all well and good even if I don't understand what his son's geographical location has to do with his sex change. However, I'm most intrigued by one quote from Stanton.

"I want to do this with a sense of dignity and worth."

Frankly, I haven't the foggiest idea what the hell that means. Since the sex change involves going into an operating room and having the genitalia removed by slicing with a razor-sharp scalpel followed by cauterizing, suturing, sponging up blood and the fabrication of pretend female parts, at what point is it possible to introduce dignity and worth?

According to my dictionary, dignity is defined as "the quality or state of being worthy, honored or esteemed" which means that it is bestowed. Therefore, Stanton desires to be honored and esteemed by the people around him before, during and after the operation. My thoughts are that it can be attempted.

As a suggestion, Stanton's relatives, friends and acquaintances could schedule pre-lop and post-lop ceremonies to establish a continuous sense of decorum about his transition. During the operation, an honor guard could stand at attention immediately outside. The operating room staff could be dressed in formal attire underneath their hospital gowns.

While the operation is in progress, the Mormon Tabernacle Choir singing Ave Maria could be piped into the OR audio system. Afterward, a formation of marching band members playing softly, along with the honor guard, could escort Stanton on his gurney through the hospital halls to the intensive care unit.

Later, local, county and state officials could schedule audiences with Stanton during his recovery to present gifts of honor. Meanwhile, a formal ceremony could precede the farewell, be it burial or incineration, of Stanton's cleaved pubic parts. And, lastly, in-depth reports of the ceremonies and pomp of Stanton's anatomical restructuring could be published in hoity-toity journals and periodicals.

Okay, so some are questioning why so much attention is being paid to Stanton and his desires. Simple answer is, his words, to me, are nonsensical and, as a public figure, Stanton deserves to have his pronouncements widely disseminated. Is it possible to find dignity in bloody elective surgery which severs a man's penis and testicles from the body? Stanton thinks so. I don't. As described above, even trying to dignify castration is ridiculous.


[Update 03/01/07]

City Commission fires Stanton. They were heard to comment that they could no longer trust his judgment nor his integrity.