Here is my follow-up piece that responds to some of the questions you pose. In particular:

“Is there any chance that these trans people are young Americans who are looking for a way to stand out, and be special? Or are being lured into a warped view of themselves because of a unhealthy influence of popular culture? I have seen many people who claim they are transgender.”

In regard to the last point you make in this paragraph about trans people “talking to a camera” or being in the media, an individual or group can have a degree of visibility in the media while still experiencing oppression on a larger societal level. That trans people are starting to have a platform in the media does not automatically negate the barriers to community faces to equality and acceptance.

In sum, I think if people “claim they are transgender,” then we should take them at their word and validate their identities as such.

Thanks, again, for your comment and for giving me the opportunity to expand upon some of the issues you raise.