On Wednesday, July 26th, President Trump announced that transgender people will not be allowed to openly serve in the military.

That's right — because someone identifies with a gender other than the one society has given them they will not have the right to serve their country like everyone else. This already sounds ridiculous enough, but POTUS's reasoning — a sorry excuse of "reasoning" at that — takes the ridiculous cake.

President Trump stated that his reasoning behind this decision is that the military cannot be "burdened with the tremendous medical costs and disruption that transgender in the military would entail." Not only did he use the term "transgender" incorrectly instead of something like "transgender community," not even taking the time to get someone to check his tweet, but he actually called transgender people a "burden" and a "distraction."

Because someone identifies as a different gender than the one society gave them, the President of the United States believes they are a burden.

It gets even better. The Rand Corporation estimates that the cost of transgender soldiers' medical bills would be between $2.4 million and $8.4 million annually. That is a lot of money, but it's nothing compared to the amount of money the military spends on Viagra. Yes, you read that right: Viagra.

The military spends up to five times more on Viagra than they would on hormones for trans soldiers. Treating erectile dysfunction is worth funding but actual people are not.

Besides the obvious, there are a lot of flaws with this argument. The estimated medical costs are only for trans soldiers on hormones or who undergo surgeries, which is not everyone. There are quite a few trans people who choose to steer away from any medical changes. There are also people who would've already undergone surgeries or who are no longer on hormones. They would add absolutely nothing to the existing medical spending.

In addition to that error, there are openly trans active soldiers right now. I've seen several different numbers estimating exactly how many there are, ranging from 250 to 15,000. The Rand Corporation claims that right now there are 1,320 to 6,630 openly trans active soldiers. Either way, there are already people who are transgender that are serving the country just like every other cis-gender soldier.

It's not an issue.

I've seen plenty of other arguments backing President Trump's decision. The most ridiculous one, in my opinion, and the one that truly peeves me the most, is the excuse that trans people would not be as safe. Whether or not this is trying to imply that trans soldiers are somehow less competent than cis ones has little to do with why this irks me.

The argument I'm seeing the most backing this statement is that trans people would be in danger of being sexually assaulted. It seems as if people only care about the safety of trans individuals when it fits their agenda. No one on this side of the spectrum ever seems worried about trans people being the victim of hate crimes, which happens far too often.

Usually, people with this mindset are claiming trans people are perverted or sexual deviants who can't be trusted in bathrooms with people of their identifying gender. It is rather peculiar to me that now, once it fits the president's plan, people are suddenly worried about the safety and well-being of the group they so frequently discriminate against.

My level of irritation with this "reasoning" surpasses that even of "Transgender people are mentally ill so they shouldn't serve in the military" and "The military isn't the place for a social experiment," even though those still infuriate me plenty.

I have also seen people argue that in boot camp there are physical requirements that differ for each gender and that a trans man might not be able to pass the male requirements. This also seems like a lame cop-out to me. Trans people are just that: people.

A trans soldier should be treated like any other soldier. If he/she doesn't make it through boot camp, then they don't make the cut. I understand that there is an argument to be had about whether or not we taxpayers should be responsible for paying for someone's transition, but if we are paying for someone's Viagra I think it's perfectly fair that we contribute to their transition.

That being said, discriminating against this group is a frequent occurrence. In the first 24 hours of his presidency, the Trump administration removed all content on LGBT civil rights from the main White House website.

In February, President Trump rescinded the protections President Obama made to protect trans students in restrooms. In March, President Trump revoked the protections for the LGBT community in the work force and the prevention of them being discriminated against in hiring. In April, he dropped the federal lawsuit over North Carolina's statewide prohibition on LGBT equality. He has an agenda.

I have no experience in the military, and some may argue that makes my opinion less valid. Let's not forget that our own Commander in Chief, President Trump, has as little military experience as I do as he deferred his draft from Vietnam five times. I don't think you need to be a military expert to see through the excuses. This is nothing but an attack on the trans community.

It breaks my heart to think that my best friend—someone whose transition I've already written an article about — now will not have the right to serve in the military. I can't even imagine being brave enough to come out, transition, and enlist, all of which I am positive I would never have the courage to do, pass the physical and psychological tests and being rejected because of your gender identity.

I can't imagine willing to give my life for my country that is led by a man who considers me a "burden" and a "distraction." These trans soldiers are American citizens, brave as they come, who are being told they cannot serve their country in this capacity. My heart breaks for them.

I am a proud American, and because of that I firmly believe that veterans, never mind their gender, are heroes. People are not burdens. Heroes are heroes. Trans rights are human rights. With that, I hope you understand my outrage.