Arkansas’ Republican-controlled state legislature on Tuesday voted to override Gov. Asa Hutchinson’s veto of a bill barring physicians from providing gender-affirming procedures for transgender people under age 18. The vote came shortly after Hutchinson, a Republican, tried to block the legislation, calling it “vast government overreach.” The state House voted 71-24 to override the veto, and the Senate promptly followed with a 25-8 vote. Arkansas now will be the first state in the United States to prohibit doctors from providing such care as so-called cross-hormone therapy, a gender-affirming therapy that lets trans people make their physical appearance more consistent with their gender identity. LGBTQ supporters condemned the action by lawmakers, calling it harmful and vowing to challenge the law in court. [ABC News, CNN]

My comment: I have no horse in this race, but if a teenager regards him or herself as a member of the opposite sex, and if the parents approve of the intervention by a doctor, then it’s no damn business of busybody politicians, who are only too quick to spout religious doctrine and invoke individual rights in other contexts. Epicureans seek the happiness (preferably) of everyone, but this, being unachievable, at least are satisfied with the happiness of the greatest many.