Faith Can Bring Justice on Gay Marriage Issue

From the Badger Herald:

There is, then, ample precedent to support the idea that God and faith have a place in American government and politics. It is my belief that government has a mandate from God to ensure that its citizens’ rights are protected, and to provide an environment where one can lay claim to the inalienable rights as spelled out by Jefferson.

Christianity, for the most part, holds that homosexuality is a sin. The anachronistic ideas espoused in Leviticus are often cited as precedence for this, but it is in the New Testament that Christians ground their faith. Paul, in the first chapter of Romans, speaks disparagingly and damningly of the homosexual practices of the residents of Rome.

Government, however, does not have a religion, but a mandate from the Almighty to protect its citizen’s rights. As long as the main arguments against same-sex marriage are predicated on the religious belief that homosexuality is sin, government has no business upholding bans on same- sex marriage.

Read the entire article by clicking here.

Is Vermont Ready for Gay Marriage?

Is another New England state looking to do the right thing and legalize gay marriage?

Eight years ago, Vermont became a leader in gay rights as it was the first state in the U.S. to recognize same-sex civil unions.

Earlier this year, the Vermont Commission on Family Recognition and Protection released a report based on eight separate hearings held in the state which urges the Vermont legislature to “take seriously the difference between civil marriage and civil union,” and that “providing statutory access to marriage would be a clearer and more direct statement of full equality by the state a statement of full inclusion of its gay and lesbian residents.”

The commission who released the report was created by the Vermont legislature to assess whether Vermont residents were “ready” to offer marriage rights to same-sex couples. The Commission interviewed hundreds of Vermont residents in eight public forums. The Commission found that the majority of Vermont residents who testified at these hearings supported gay marriage.

Beth Robinson, an attorney with the Vermont Freedom to Marry Task Force stated:

“The commission spent a lot of time listening to what Vermonters had to say. They did all the heavy lifting and it will make the Legislature’s job that much easier. There are all sorts of reasons why [gay marriage] makes sense. Vermonters are ready to take this up.”

The next legislative session in Vermont starts soon. We’ll see if they take action on the commission’s report.

LA County Stops Issuing Gay Marriage Licenses

The Los Angeles County Registrar’s Office stopped issuing same-sex marriage licenses after Proposition 8, the ballot measure that eliminated the right of gay couples to marry, passed.

The amendment to the state constitution overrides a state Supreme Court ruling in May that legalized same-sex marriage.

According to the County Clerk, Dean Logan, The decision to stop issuing same sex marriage licenses was based on the Secretary of State’s semi-official canvass results from Election Night and a California State Constitutional provision that says a proposed amendment “shall be submitted to the electors and if approved by a majority of votes thereon takes effect the day after the election.”

An Open Letter to GLBT’s Supporting McCain

“Marriage is under attack by those who are creating substitutes to marriage,” said Rep. Warde Nichols, R-Gilbert. “I think when this passes it’s going to put to bed this debate once and for all.”

Opponents of Proposition 102, however, say voters have already had their say and it’s an insult to put it on the ballot again.

Two years ago, they narrowly defeated a gay-marriage amendment, becoming the first state to do so. Twenty-seven states have constitutional bans on gay marriage.

“They chose not to change the constitution,” said Rep. Kyrsten Sinema, D-Phoenix. “One of the reasons why they said no is because we already have a law.”

When I read this article on eastvalleytribune.com, It unleashed the dragon and I am up on my soap-box.  So, here it goes.

As much as I value diversity and freedom of choice, I also have a full understanding of how this election will change our lives (the GLBT community) for many years to come.  There are “Christian” groups raising millions (over $50 million in California alone) to take rights away from people…forever!  States that want to amend their constitutions to ban same-sex marriage, so judges can’t rule otherwise.  Arizona’s 102 and Florida’s 2 are on that list.

Now, as much I as realize those who are fighting these people have raised money too, it’s been done in defense of a right we don’t have in most states, marriage.  So, I asked these “Christian” groups (who also back Palin & McCain), how many hungry could you feed for $50 million?  How many homeless could you house for $50 million?  How many people could you send to college for $50 million dollars?  Or better yet, If Jesus had $50 million, what would he do with it?  Come on now, Christians know Jesus well to know he hates gay-marriage (and they can’t blame the Bible because Jesus didn’t write it), so they should know the answer to that question.  However, they have made the “choice” to spend tens of millions of dollars on oppression, all in the name of God.

Same sex marriage is legal in four countries: Spain, The Netherlands, Belgium, and Canada. In the U.S., 45 states have barred it.  A little off topic but worth mentioning, it is still legal in 33 states to fire someone for being gay. Then there’s the other states, who again are trying to amend their constitutions to ban it as well, so the courts can not overturn the decision. This is why McCain believes it should be left up to the states.  Now I realize, he alone won’t make that decision, but he will be likely to appoint 2 or 3 U.S. Supreme Court Justices if elected.  What do you think is going to happen? Let’s also not forget to mention that if John McCain dies, then Ms. Palin steps in. Do you think someone who still thinks it’s a “choice” and “tolerates” gay people is going to push for any legislation that provides us with equality?

Let’s put Obama in office, and let him pick those same 2 or 3 spots and see what happens. Now, I’ve heard it before, and have addressed it before, but let me repeat it.  Some criticize Obama’s lack of fully supporting gay marriage, but I’m not going to buy that point.  Any presidential candidate who would openly endorse gay-marriage would be committing political suicide.  We don’t need a martyr, we need a gay friendly president. So, WAKE UP PEOPLE!

And I know, some of you who are GLBT and support McCain may claim there are other issues (and there are, and Obama is a much better choice to handle those as well), but this is the one issue that affects all of our lives, whether you are G, L, B or T.  And if it’s not an issue for you, then be open-minded enough to realize it is for most of us, and do the right thing.

A president who wants to leave those decisions up to the states is not a supporter. It’s not that difficult to see. Obama is our friend. This election is about so much more than so many realize. It’s about our future, and not our distant future, our very real, and very near future.

Please, do the right thing for all of us in the GLBT community. Vote for Obama!

Why The Religious Right Really Hates Gay Marriage

Reading news and about events that affect the GLBT community fills most of my waking hours.  Yes, I do have a life outside of this, but hey, when you find your passion, (or in my case one of my passions) then you usually latch onto them with relative ease and it becomes a lifestyle, not a job or chore.

Because of this however, I do find myself in thought, and quite often, my thoughts change as quickly as the news, the world, or for that matter, the time.  In other words, I think a great deal about a great many things.

Of course with the election only a few days away, I will admit, I am obsessed. I have yet to figure out one good reason anyone would vote for the McCain/Palin ticket. Notice I said “good” reason. Now there are plenty of people out there who are hiding behind their true feelings and are offering substitute reasons for voting for McCain. Truth of it is however, if you’re voting for McCain, you’re either a racist, a bigot, make over $250,000.00 a year and are too selfish to want to pay taxes, or you’re perhaps just not very well educated. What ever the case, there is NO good reason to vote for McCain, and if you offer me an excuse as to why you are, I’ll shoot you down quicker than Palin can kill a coyote from a helicopter.

Now, as we all know, a very important reason to not vote for McCain is his stance on GLBT issues. The man simply thinks we are not equal citizens and would like to keep up that way (and let’s not mention his running mate who thinks being gay is a choice and favors and federal ban on gay marriage).

This brings me to my point. I have wondered why it matters to anyone whether or not gay marriage is legal. Why have the so called “Christians” in this country spent millions of dollars fighting to keep the GLBT community from having equal rights? Much like my stance on someone voting for McCain, I’ve yet to hear one valid reason to prevent gay marriage. So again, what is it about this issue that has so many fired up against it? Well, now there are plenty of reasons, and many along the same lines as I mentioned above, bigotry, hate, you know the excuses. It is very similar to the reasons people wanted to maintain segregation back during the civil rights movement (they’ll take our jobs, and move into our neighborhoods and look at us). But, what is the real reason? I think I may have just figured something out.

Historically, gay relationships have not held up to the longevity of heterosexual relationships. Now I realize there are some that have, but as a general rule, gay relationships typically don’t last as long as the relationships of our straight counterparts. This is pretty simple to understand however. One reason gay relationships don’t last as long is the instability of our relationship structures. You see, our relationships are not permitted to be committed, therefore they are much easier to walk away from. Also, there is a high extremely high degree of disapproval for us being in a relationship. If you haven’t noticed, a lot of straight people will claim they don’t have a “problem” with gay people, but they don’t want to see it or hear about it. Well not seeing it means there are no gay relationships, just single gay people.

Now, if there were no such thing as marriage for anyone, I have a very strong inclination to believe straight relationships wouldn’t last any longer. But, put all the elements of a marriage into the mix by adding up the $25,000.00 you spend on a wedding (and I’m estimating very modestly here) along with a legal commitment which takes legal action to dissolve, throw in blended finances along with a couple kids and yes…I would dare say your relationship would outlast one that does not include those particular elements.

Now, we all know (even though opponents of gay marriage aren’t talking about it) that the divorce rate among straight couples has been holding steady around 36% for decades. It has declined slightly in the past several years, but the rate of spousal abuse has risen…so, I guess that’s the trade-off.

Here-in lies the fear of gay marriage. Straight people are scared to death that gay people will marry, and stay married. They are afraid our divorce rate will be so much lower than theirs, that it make them all losers. Gay people will then be permitted to “pass judgment” on straight people, because we can make a marriage last, provide more stable homes for our children and realistically show them how a married couple is suppose to act. The problem is, we’re not in a competition.

Yes the straight people who oppose gay marriage claim first and foremost that gay marriage will somehow ruin the “sanctity” of marriage and take away the “sacredness” of it. Well, what they are really afraid of is loosing, and not only loosing their right to throw stones, but loosing their facade of being holy, Christian and right.

Just as gay people can move into a ghetto and somehow make it fabulous and raise the roof on property values, we can do the same for marriage. We can set the standard! That is why they (the religious right) fear gay marriage!

Thoughts?

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