Jessica, I agree with what you are saying to a point. There is always a "but" or "however" in most of our threads. I like the idea of using transgender as the simple collecting term for all who fall under the umbrella as defined by this site. yes, there is always a lot of debate about terms and definitions, but on a site like this with members from all over the place, different cultures and opinions, some type of fixed definition tries to help pull us altogether. I, as many other also believe, that labels are good when talking about general things and then get trickier in their usage as we get more detailed in those same conversations. Us in the business or lifestyle and falling under that umbrella term mostly understand when someone is talking details and/or nuances of their or somebody else's identity.
Now, for those newbies and those outside of our part of life, see our segment of life as something newer. Thus simply identifying oneself as being transgender or trans is enough for them to grasp the general meaning of what that represents, without getting into the conflicting and numerous other labels and which one is better than another. If that outsider really wants more detailed information and explanation, then the use of the other labels becomes appropriate for that conversation. I have found that too much detail too soon may be unwanted and distracting for others to understand the answer to a simple question from them.
When I came out to everyone over a period of about 6 months a few short years ago, I just said I was trans or transgender, and that I liked to present as a woman when I wanted. Later when time and their true interest aligned, we would get into deeper conversations, and that detailed conversation was rare for most of them. So my mantra when talking about myself and others like myself is to "keep it simple" until they ask more detailed questions.
