Sequester nation: furlough air traffic controllers to pay for transgender voice therapy

Gator Doug continues to find amazing examples of Your Tax Dollars At Work. Yes, even in these austere times some federal programs are too important to cut.

Here's two:

Government Spending $152,500 To Study Voice Therapy For Transgenders

"This study will illuminate the capabilities of the human larynx and inform the relationship between voice production and perception," states a National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant, awarded to George Washington University. "The long term goal of this research is to inform and provide new directions for Transgender (TG) voice care, thereby improving the lives of TG people who feel their voice is a great obstacle to living as their preferred gender."

Presumably, improving the lives of the traveling public is less important. So if you're stuck in an airport waiting for the sequester to end, and you happen to encounter a transgender person, please by all means feel free to ask how the voice lessons are going.

Only in San Francisco! Taxpayer funded Penis Mascot

The health department sparked some controversy when it debuted the three characters, all penises but in different hues, back in 2002. But the penis costumes — worn by health department staff and aimed at encouraging gay and bisexual men to get tested for sexually transmitted diseases — became popular and have been copied in San Jose and Cleveland.

You'll have to click-through for a picture. Because it ain't a parade without a 6 foot penis leading the band. Did I mention they pass out penis-shaped "stress relievers" too? You know, those squishy things you can pick up at trade shows, emblazoned with a company's logo, except, uh, anatomically correct.

Well hey, if you're gonna screw the taxpayer, you might as well do it with your very own souvenir rubber penis. Bring it along on your next trip to the airport, to relieve the stress of waiting while your flight's delayed.

Posted at 15:06 by Chris Wysocki   [/news]   Comments | Perm Link |
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