California's Supreme Court upheld Proposition 8, barring any new gay marriages from happening, but deemed legally binding the 18,000 or so that have already occurred. It makes perfect sense. Only in California could something be socially recognized as the basic right of a private citizen, but only for the first 18,000 lucky contestants.
I guess the government can come out and say that it's only legally recognizing marriages between a man and a woman. It's hard not to view that as a tool used by the pious to say God likes it that way, so that's the way we're doing it.
The Constitution tells me I don't have to live my life the way my weird neighbor and his Bible think I should. That choice is mine. Often the only reason people get militant against gay rights is on behalf of Jesus - incidentally, a dude who preached acceptance. If not for the Bible, no one would care if gays got married. Some of us might think it a bit odd, but we'd have a chuckle and get on with our lives. The Constitution is designed to outline the rights we have. While it sometimes imposes limitations on those rights, it's not designed to tell us what rights we don't have. If we were going to do that, we'd have to make an amendment that says people can't show up unannounced to your home and swim naked and drunk in your bathtub.
I can understand the law insisting that a marriage be between two people, because anything more starts getting out of control. That's not a marriage. It's a corporation or something. It's a brood. Polygamy might have a chance if it wasn't always some middle-aged sexual deviant marrying five of his 13-year-old nieces.
I know this is crazy talk, but imagine that religion is nothing more than a means of controlling the weak-minded peasantry. There are no consequences to punching someone for having a stupid face, eating from the tree of life or one gay marrying another. Now ask yourself who the gays are hurting by getting married. If that's too much for you, imagine that the Bible is just a misrepresented bunch of letters and stories totally unsanctioned by God, written by exiled nutcases and the followers of a gypsy carpenter moonlighting as the Messiah. Do you really think God cares who you marry? If you're to the right of Dick Cheney - who said he has no problem with gay marriage - then there may be no convincing you that the Bible didn't unfold in reality, word-for-word, in literal fashion. To you I ask, even if it's all true, why should the government have a say as to who a person marries? It's none of their business. We should be able to assume the benefits of legally recognized marriage, if all legal obligations are met and both participants are human, should be available to anyone. Instead, ask yourself who you've helped lately. Ask yourself what good works you've done to make the world better - to make your community better.
The notion that gay people should be denied the right to marry is utterly ridiculous on every level of law, morality and common sense. Some of us are trying to behave like enlightened folk and break the shackles of outdated ways of thinking while the rest are having a neo-con tantrum. They'd love to drag us back to the 18th century. If you believe in God, you probably understand the concept of free will - something he gave people to do with as they please. The core of Christian ideals is to refrain from judging others, as only God holds that authority. So, why do these religious head cases insist on judging anyone who is different? They always have. The pious judge anyone they see as abnormal and they aren't usually nice about it.
As I recall, we all have the freedom to burn in hell.
The people who can't seem to keep their annoying little noses out of the business of private citizens need to lodge themselves between Rush Limbaugh's buttocks and ride the next narcotic-ridden wave of flatulence to the nearest bigot rally.
Write to John at jrfrees@bsu.edu
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