An Obadiah Slope Column
So glad you are here: Christmas, the real Christmas, can be found in commercial or secular places, and it lifts Obadiah’s Spirits as he comes across a little part of the Christmas story when he is hurrying, harried, through a shopping centre, or looks out the bus window.
So here’s what is in Ashfield Mall, Inner West Sydney, his local Coles/Woollies/Aldi/KMart place.
And outdoors at Burwood Park.
Obadiah spotted the same wise men in Parramatta Westfield, but got lost trying to find them again. But the Wise men seem to be doing better than the shepherds.
And just because it is over the top and weird, but not particularly Christian, here’s the special Christmas bus that Obadiah randomly caught.
###
“Aussie Rules” footy really has rules: Obadiah engaged in a relatively fierce controversy this week over a campaign about trans players in sport, decided to take a peek at how his favourite football code, the AFL, runs things. And for a footy group, they are quite nuanced.
They have two sets of Gender Diversity rules, albeit a bit hidden away, for community football and a separate one for elite football. They take a bit of finding, but they are accessible if you search.
The AFL explains why two policies: “It is the AFL’s view that, in Community Football, considerations of social inclusion have greater priority than concerns that may exist with respect to competitive advantage in relation to the participation of gender diverse players. That is not to say that competitive fairness is not
important in Community Football, but rather the balance between social inclusion and competitive fairness is different in Community Football than it is in Elite Football.”
The community footy policy provides that for trans players, the local league has to refer the player’s application to the AFL Gender Diversity Policy committee, which then takes into account anti-doping policy regarding non-endogenous testosterone and safety concerns. “The risk assessment must, amongst other things, consider whether the rules applicable to the relevant Community Football competition are unable to safely manage the risks arising from the potential or ongoing participation
of the gender diverse person.”
For Elite Comps, strength testing and the level of testosterone are the crucial criteria.
Elite comps for women are defined as VFLW, WAFLW, SANFLW, QAFLW, AFL Sydney Women’s Premier Division, AFL Canberra Women’s First Grade, NTFL Women’s
Premier League and TSL Women’s.
For each level of comp, strict anti-vilification rules apply.
It seems to Obadiah that Aussie Rules is making a reasonable effort to deal fairly with the issue of trans sportspeople.
Obadiah is not a fan of things like pride rounds, thinking of Haneen Zreika, playing for the mighty GWS, but having to sit out pride rounds in 2022, 2023 and 2024 because she is muslim. (She’ll be back next year after taking 2025 off to have her first child. And good on the club for keeping her on the team.) But these rules appear to be a good balance between fairness, free access, and safety.
###
Too polite: Obadiah is fine with the Aussie feminist anthem “Don’t be too polite, girls,” but does not think it always works on a site titled “The Other Cheek”. So he tries to answer criticism, if at all, mildly. This week it has been the trans issue, where Obadiah wants to be polite. Thinking through how he would treat (and has treated) a trans workmate with their/her chosen name, pronouns, and referring to them around the office as a woman, is how he writes about individuals, while supporting the Bible’s stance that God made two sexes, and that people are better off to stick with that, especially children, with a small caveat for DSD. But at the same time, he wants to treat people with gender dysphoria with respect.
###
It’s Advent, so it’s Tearfund time: Time to peruse the useful gifts catalogue from Tearfund. Chickens cost $5, safe water $50 and a toilet is a real bargain at $70. Buy a present for someone who will never buy one for you!