The Opposing sections of the blurb are:

1.) the Author of the article being critiqued, saying "how do we know this trans thing isn't just a phase for these kids?"

2.) The science, and the medical community clearly saying "This is not the sort of thing that is a 'phase'"

Like the article said, "going goth" is (for some, not all), just a phase. being a trans person is not just a phase.

For the record, the APA has a great PDF all about trans people.

regarding the questions off your gourd:

1.) biological markers - not as yet, though there was some interesting work that suggested that it may have to do with the amount of estrogen in the womb (in reference to MtF trans people, idunno if the study considered FtM trans people). We also know that the brains of trans people tend to have resemblances to those of the gender with which they associate. AS that citation mentions, it's the sort of area where "More research is needed".

2.) No, it's not always the best choice. There are many trans people who are "Non-OP", meaning not that they "haven't had 'the' surgery," but that they do not need or desire the surgery. It's also dangerous, invasive, and expensive if it's not covered by your health plan.

what HAS been shown to be the best choice for most trans people is HRT, or hormone replacement therapy. When we are talking about "Trans Teens", that is usually what is taking place - taking hormones of the opposite gender (and in the case of MtF trans people, testosterone blockers) to generate a puberty of the opposite gender. For most trans people, this is a "second" puberty, but for trans teens, this is usually not the case. children and teens who identify as transgender are usually put on puberty blockers until they are at LEAST 16, at which point they can choose to stop taking them and not transition, or stop taking them and start taking HRT.

The problem with all of this is that there are many places where, for a trans person to have a drivers license which has the correct gender marker on it, they must have had gender reassignment surgery.

3.) Can dysphoria be so entranched [...] continue experiencing it even after going through transition?

YES. The biggest way that this comes to the forefront is in people who are continually mis-gendered in public.

Let's put it this way - who doesn't want to be accepted for who they are? And how would you feel if you tried to be the person you are, but everyone was like "naw dawg. go do that other thing we're more comfortable with." Over and over. With everyone you met. constantly. Every day of your life.

For most people, "being who they are", means something simple like wearing different clothes, or outwardly associating with a fandom. It's a big part of who you are, but the fundamental "you" that people see every day isn't that different. People go out on a limb and get teased for wearing their patched-up punk jeans, and may not wear them again for years out of shame. Transition is generally accepted as being a significantly larger change than a clothing swap. So imagine how trans people feel when you say "Why can't you just be a girl and not a boy? Girls can have short hair and wear t-shirts too. I'm going to keep calling you Becky, not Beckett."