Tax-funded sex changes? Are you shitting me?

I won't bother prefacing this with an "I'm not transphobic, but...", because I'm not, and there are no buts involved. I'm not even going to cite the friends I have who are transgender as proof of my acceptance of transsexual people.

...except I kind of just totally did. Oops.

Anyway, out in that wild, wonderful land of California (or Kahleefawnyah, if you're the Governator), there's been talk of sex change operations being paid for with public funding under that whole universal health care thing. I won't go into my feelings about socialized medicine right now (hint: I don't like it), but even if there were to be some sort of basic healthcare available for the uninsured...sex change operations? Seriously?

Apparently the argument for it is that the transgendered have the right to feel comfortable in their own bodies, so ungodly amounts of money should be spent removing the breasts and penises that make them hate themselves (or adding them, depending on the situation, I suppose) so they can live like the rest of us. Which is utter bullshit. We all have things we hate about our bodies -- should tax dollars be spent to help people lose weight, or on plastic surgery for middle-aged women who can't bear the thought of aging? How about on boob jobs, or high heels for short people? If you seriously suggested such a thing, even the most open-minded of people would laugh you down the street and around a corner into a bus station locker. But when it comes to transsexual people, they're ~*special flowers*~ who need costly surgery at our expense so they can feel human.

I'm actually trying to figure out how I can get in on this. I wasn't born with purple hair, but I know I was meant to have it, because coloring my hair purple makes me feel more like me, so Mr. Fed, would y'all mind picking up the tab for my monthly can of Manic Panic? Paying someone to apply it for me would be nice too - I can't afford that, and it's a bit of a pain to do it myself. Also, I feel more spiritually aware when I'm cosplaying Motoko Kusanagi, so can I get some bread for shoes and outfits? Thanks a bunch. Oh yeah, and if my employer objects to me doing either of these things, I have your blessing to sue their ass, right? Cool.

What a country we live in.