EHRC

Dear MP,

I write to you in LGBT+ history month about the EHRC and the news of the leaked guidance today.

https://www.vice.com/en/article/3ab5my/leaked-ehrc-guidance-trans-people-gender-recognition-certificates

This is very worrying and seems at odds with the Equality Act 2010. A point of view backed up in both statute and case law over the last ten years.

https://www.lawcentres.org.uk/policy/news/news/kirklees-law-centre-wins-landmark-transgender-discrimination-case

https://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/Admin/2021/1623.html

As a trans woman if this guidance became official. Removing my existing rights. I would be at risk in both genders’ toilets outside my home. Limiting my options of participating in society. This is all against a backdrop of increased attacks on LGBT+ people. Something I have experienced myself.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/dec/03/recorded-homophobic-hate-crimes-soared-in-pandemic-figures-show

and the news of the EHRC holding meetings with anti-trans groups

https://www.vice.com/en/article/wxdzwn/ehrc-trans-rights-leaked-emails

I’m sure you have seen the recent Council of Europe report. Naming the UK alongside Hungary, Poland, Russia and Turkey. As countries with “extensive and often virulent attacks on the rights of LGBT+ people”.

https://www.itv.com/news/2022-01-26/uk-named-alongside-russia-in-lgbt-hate-report-due-to-transphobia

Seeing the Labour party come out is a small positive light, against all this worrying news

https://www.vice.com/en/article/3abq78/we-need-to-make-the-uk-safer-for-trans-people-labour-says

Being a dual citizen of Ireland and the UK. I can’t help comparing the two countries. The difference is quite stark.

On Trans rights. Ireland brought in their own Gender recognition act 2015. Without the secretive, discriminatory and medicalised process we have in the UK. In the UK, we had a consultation in 2018, with the finding delayed for years and then ignored.

I hope you can receive from the Government and EHRC an explanation for the very dramatic change by the EHRC

https://www.equalityhumanrights.com/en/our-work/news/our-statement-sex-and-gender-reassignment-legal-protections-and-language

Yours sincerely,

Zoe

USB Controlled Relay

As noted in my look at the ScreenBar. Not being able to control the light from my PC was one of the downsides. Since then I’ve got to some Elgato Key Lights. Since I spend an increasing amount of time on video calls. This moved lack of USB control from a minor point to something a little more annoying. That prompted me to go look for a solution. USB relays do seem to be a thing. Which gave me an idea.
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A SNES Themed Retropie Build

With the recent launch of the SNES Mini. Now seems a good time to post some details of the SNES themed Retropie box I recently built. People had seen my retropie setup and enjoyed playing the old games again. With a friends birthday coming up, I thought it would be
nice to build them their own setup to play at home.
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Building an Animatronic Tail

My friend Rah and I were chatting and she happened to mention how cool it would be to have a tail. I joked that I bet someone had built one using an Arduino. A quick search showed that indeed a few people had and even a tentacle. Rah’s next question was would I built one, fast forward a couple of years and I’ve finally got around to starting. Taking a 3D printable design as my starting point.

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