by Tony Gray
posted: 7 May 2021

A Canadian child born February 21, 1987 was named Ellen Page by her parents. She became an actress at 10-years old, landing a role in the tv series Pit Pony. She has acted in many shows and movies since.

Ellen Page described herself as a gay woman, in February 2014, and later declared she was transgender, in December 2020 according to Wikipedia. She said she had transitioned from female to male; her name was now Elliot Page; and, she should be addressed and referred to by male pronouns.

Something that happened in December is relevant now because of a recent interview with Oprah Winfrey .

I'm sorry but I don't think Page can turn from a man to a woman by saying, "I am man, now hear me roar."

I don't have a problem calling her Elliot. Americans are allowed to use whatever name they want as long as it isn't for fraudulent purposes. So, Elliot it is.

Changing a name doesn't change biology, though. She is committed enough to changing that she had top surgery but her chromosones and reproductive organs are still female. So, she is still a woman. "How many legs does a dog have if you call his tail a leg?" asked Abraham Lincoln. "Four. Saying that a tail is a leg doesn't make it a leg."

I understand she may not be happy with her lot in life. It must be tough to be a misunderstood millionaire movie star but life is what it is. Like Henry Thoureau said, most men lead lives of quiet desperation.

Demanding the world to view, treat and refer to her as male seems like the ultimate act of narcissm, to me. Can she change her mind next year and tell the world she's a woman again? And flip flop as often as the news cycle will keep her name in the public eye?

Another thing about this puzzles me. When she identified as a female, she said she was gay. Is she now having sex exclusively with men? Or, Is she still having sex with women? Aren't men who have sex exclusively with women heterosexual? Does this mean she is no longer gay?

Before you say that's a reduction to absurdity, think about it. The best argument gay rights activits had for promoting legislation barring discrimination against homosexuals was the argument that gays deserve extra protection because they have no choice about being gay, so punishing them for something they can't change is wrong. But didn't Page do just that? Choose not be gay by opting to become male and having sex with women? Is that why Page divorced her spouse, Emma, earlier this year? Maybe.

I feel sorry for her pain. I do, but it's her pain, not mine. She should deal with it like the rest of us. She's not the only one who wishes they were different. Many people think their life would be better if only they were thinner/younger/richer/smarter/stronger/whatever. That, somehow -- magically-- the world would like us better, treat us better, make us feel better if only...

Most of us don't get to redefine ourselves like Page is asking. If I declare myself 7-feet tall, will NBA teams fight to shower me in millions? Will Oprah interview me to salute redifining myself "to make my outside match my inside?" Or, will people just laugh and tell me not to act so stupid?