Quickies: 1/27/2012
By Mother Jones reports that, since 1972, Sweden has requrired trans people to get sterilized in order to change their gender on their official documents. Although liberal politicians have been trying to repeal the rule, conservatives have recently expanded it to require sterilization before marriage.
On a slightly happier note, Blizzard, maker of the blockbuster MMORPG World of Warcraft has officially removed “transsexual” and “homosexual” from their list of words censored by the profanity filter. The ongoing discussion about how the gaming industry has embraced (or ignored) gay players continues at IGN, with the slightly controversial “A Gay History of Gaming.”
The Center for Disease Control has released a long-awaited study on Morgellons, a disease that sufferers claim is caused by parasites under the skin that produce unique fibers. Previous studies have suggested the disease was psychosomatic, and the CDC reached a similar conclusion. Many Morgellons advocacy organizations have rejected the results. Respectful Insolence has a great run down of the study, and some background here.
Image from World of Warcraft Insider.
