Governor Kathy Hochul signed a bill last year that will compel certain speech be used when addressing or referring to LGBTQ or trans people. It is not constitutional and will be overturned.

Legislation S.5325/A.6193 is very strange because it mandates that utility companies "allow customers to use what preferred name and pronoun they want." I was not aware that utility companies ever forbade customers their silly pronouns and preferred names, but apparently Kathy believes this has been the case. That is just a red herring. Here is the disturbing part. She clearly thinks that failing to use the right pronouns is a problem. Where is she really going with this tyrannical diktat and her other ones that forbid, mandate, require and otherwise annoy people?

Hochul states:

“This is what we just call common sense legislation that is long overdue. For a transgender individual, being misgendered, it’s traumatic. These are people with feelings and individuals who just deserve more than that. And to know that this is going on and causing them anguish, therefore, it causes me anguish. This is how I feel so deeply and passionately about the people of this state. We have an opportunity to bring back New York City, New York State. We value individuals, we value people, and we show love, respect, and dignity to all. It’s that simple, and I know that we can do this.”

I must ask: How "traumatic" is being "misgendered"? People get bent out of shape and "anguished" because someone called them sir instead of madam? "Anguish"?  Is wrongly addressing an invoice to "Mr." instead of "Ms." something that causes pain and suffering? People truly get traumatized by such things? Is everyone a snowflake? Does the entire LGBTQ population and all the college-student-ninnies utterly lack backbone? The hardest thing these people probably ever had to do was to say no to the next serving of Hot Pockets, so grow up, people, and for God's sake and for everyone else's sake get a life and stop shoving your ego down everyone's throat. We don't care. You are not the center of the universe. But Kathy says you are. So where does that leave sane people?

In the past, Hochul has mandated that the word "inmate" be replaced by "incarcerated individual." What inmates are harmed by "inmate" and helped by "incarcerated individual"? Does it shave two years off their sentence or what?  

She is worrisome. From a church pulpit last year, she spoke of vaccinated people as "her apostles" who are obligated to "evangelize [the] unvaccinated who 'aren't listening to God." So you see, her apostles listen to God and so should you.

She has also created a special police unit to monitor the internet for "extremist" hate speech, which will mean anything conservatives say online. What is it with her and her dictatorial mindset? She has also erroneously stated (as did Joe Biden) that you "cannot yell fire in a crowded theater." Actually you can, if there is a fire. She is all wet on so many levels, it's becoming a flood. Politicians like Hochul need to be rode hard and put up wet just to show her that she doesn't run people's mouths. Only her own, and far too often.

A few years back, psychologist and mega-podcaster Dr. Jordan B. Peterson shot into national fame in Canada and in the USA for refusing to have his speech compelled by Bill C-16, which mandated exactly what Hochul's bill does -- it mandates that people use certain words or get fined or imprisoned. He left his professorship, but he prevailed and still refuses to have his speech compelled. He set the bar very high and we must do likewise. No one has the right to compel people to speak certain words, titles, or phrases. Our First Amendment demands we be free to address anyone by any titles or words we choose. You are not libeled simply because you don't like how you are addressed. If you have a problem, you can take it to Court and see how far you get.

There's a difference between prohibited speech and compelled speech. There is no law prohibiting offensive speech. No one is prohibited from insulting someone else and no one is prohibited from being obnoxious.  We do have the First Amendment. However, it is one thing to say something offensive but it's a different animal entirely to have a law that compels a certain word, phrase, or title on pain of exorbitant fees or possible jail time for non-payment. That's what Hochul's bill does and that is the stuff of China, Iran, Russia and Venezuela, not America. Not yet.

Kathy's slippery slope in New York was an opening salvo to destroy the First Amendment. She has been clear that she does not consider "hate speech" to be free speech. She is dead wrong. This law of hers should not be permitted to stand. But if the people of New York think it's okay, then hey, buttercups, you voted for the Cuomo/Hochul team, and now you must live with her tyrannical mindset.

As for me and mine, let 'er rip. We can take it. I live in a Snowflake-free zone and the climate is magnificent here.

UPDATE: This article has been updated to reflect the fact that New Yorkers did not vote directly for Hochul to sit as governor, and that  Jordan Peterson resigned his professorship and was not fired.

Image: Metropolitan Transit Authority of NY