Gay Marriage

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ACLU sues over gay marriage in PA

During the Bill Clinton campaign, James Carville called Pennsylvania “Philadelphia and Pittsburgh with Alabama inbetween.”

Well, it’s changed a bit since that quote was given. The east coast of Pennsylvania (where I live, just a few miles from New Jersey) has become strongly democratic as people from Jersey and New York move away from the city.

Overall, Pennsylvanians always vote for Democrats for President and mostly for Democrats in the state races. In the last election, more people voted for Democrats for the House, but because of gerrymandering, more Republicans got elected.

I bring this up because the ACLU yesterday filed a lawsuit to try to bring Pennsylvania into line with all of the other northeastern states to allow gay marriage. The ACLU acknowledged that it was bringing suit in Pennsylvania because overturning the state’s gay marriage ban in the Republican-controlled legislature is a near-term impossibility. This is despite the fact a recent study found that 54% of Pennsylvania residents are in favor of it.

They are basing this suit primarily on Equal Protection lines apparently (I haven’t read the actual Complaint) and are using Justice Kennedy’s recent opinion in the DOMA cause to argue that discrimination of gay parents harms the children and is thus destructive and so on.

While I would much rather have our elected representatives do the right thing, I don’t expect that to happen any time soon. And while I support this suit, I also don’t expect it to get anywhere with the current Pennsylvania Supreme Court, which has whittled away our basic rights tremendously in the fifteen years or so I’ve lived here.

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Sex with animals

What is it with these religious conservatives and sex with animals? Whenever people want to have a reasonable debate about gay marriage, it always degenerates into that. “If you allow gays to get married, then you have to also allow people to marry their dogs!”

Why don’t they ever use animals for other laws they’ve opposed over the years? “If you allow women to vote, then you’ll also have to allow turtles!” “If we allow schools to use affirmative action to admit minorities, then they’ll have to also admit squirrels!” “If you have to read rights to someone who committed a crime, then clearly you’ll also have to read rights to a cow before you slaughter it!”

Well, no. Those of us who are not crazy understand this.

I guess it’s because these people hate sex so much. I mean, these are also the same people who think that birth control, sex education, and oral sex are evil and should be illegal. To them, sex between two consenting men or women is just as evil as sex with a non-consenting animal. And so, like many of the more conservative right, they want to force their religious views on the rest of us.

The problem is that the faulty logic that works in their minds looks completely crazy to everyone else.

Editorial cartoon of the day

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DOMA Arigato

The defeat of DOMA is an important step, but the battle for justice and equality is never-ending. Thanks to the Court, someone can now get married in a state that doesn’t discriminate, move elsewhere, and still be able to get federal benefits such as joint tax filing and so on.

I’m sure I’ll have more to say about it later, but for now, I’m celebrating. After all, I have to — according to many religious fanatics, my 30 year heterosexual marriage is in danger of collapse because of this.

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I don’t have to respect your views

When I criticize someone who has a religious view that, for instance, claims that marriage between anything other than a man and woman should be illegal, they sometimes come back at me and say that I am being anti-Christian and disrespectful to them.

Well, no, I am not being disrespectful to them. I am being disrespectful to their views.

Sometimes these people claim I am violating their rights by “not respecting” their views. This is ridiculous. No one has the right to not be criticized. (Let’s not veer off into a discussion about discrimination based on views — totally different topic.)

I will always respect everyone’s right to have unpopular and even stupid views. I even supported Westboro Baptist Church‘s right to spout their nonsense.

But I’m sorry — if you believe that the world is 6,000 years old and evolution is a lie, I have no respect for your beliefs. Why should I? You obviously don’t know anything about science. The fact that you believe something really, really strongly because of your religion doesn’t mean it should get treated any different from someone who believes that unicorns and fairies are playing in his backyard. Silly beliefs should be challenged no matter where they come from.

Some religions also believe that women should cover themselves from head to toe, never talk to a man, and be treated as subhuman. This is another belief that I have no respect for, and, ironically, many Christians will gladly speak out against that view too, while turning around and complaining whenever anyone challenges their own religious views.

I can distinguish these views about beliefs from views I have about people. Many have these silly beliefs but otherwise are honest, friendly, and wonderful people. After all, there are also people I disagree with politically who are some of my closest friends. I can respect them as people while not respecting their views.

No one’s views should be beyond question or criticism.

Editorial cartoon of the day

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Rhode Island joins the 21st Century

I’m happy to see little Rhode Island has just passed a bill extending marriage to all loving couples.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/24/rhode-island-gay-marriage_n_3149877.html

This is democracy. This is not “unelected judges imposing their will on the people.” And this is the future.

I am embarrassed to be in a state that still discriminates, and hope that Pennsylvania will one day join the rest of the civilized world.

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My 30-year marriage is illegitimate

My wife and I have been happily married for more than thirty years now. We’ve helped each other out through thick and thin, including years of cancer treatments and a current handicap because of it. We’ve never needed counseling, never cheated, and never separated. I’d like to think we are an example of what all good, loving marriages should be.

So imagine my surprise when I discover that, according to Catholic League president Bill Donohue, our marriage is a sham because we have no children. “The whole purpose of marriage is to have a family,” he said, while arguing against gay marriage. “It’s not about making people happy. It’s not about love.”

This would apparently include those who get married later in life, past child-bearing age — so for all of you seniors who are reading this: Forget about marriage. Love, according to the Catholic League, has nothing to do with it. You are doomed to live the rest of your life sad and alone if you wish to be a good Catholic, apparently.

From what I can see, plenty of kids are being born now without parents being married at all. Somehow, that happens. Apparently, being married doesn’t seem to have anything to do with that.

I do admit that I am confused by those who stand Grinch-like above it all, sneering down haughtily while trying to prevent others from having joy. Why does it hurt these Grinches in the slightest? What, does someone else’s happiness cause you pain? Shouldn’t we be encouraging happy couples in stable relationships?

But what do I know? My marriage is apparently a scam.

Editorial cartoon of the day

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The stupidest argument against gay marriage

There are many stupid arguments against gay marriage. In fact, most of them are stupid, especially since there are no good arguments against it.

But the one that has to take the cake is the one that an actual lawyer argued last week before — get this — the United States Supreme Court.gay+marriage+generic081612

“Marriage has to be between only men and women because, you know, kids. Gays can’t make kids and so their marriage can’t be real.”

How bad do your legal arguments have to be if you’re relying on that? Or, alternatively, how bad of a lawyer must you be?

And how much of an insult is that to people like me and my wife, happily married now for 30 years and childless by choice? What, our marriage isn’t real? It’s not legitimate?

Fortunately, there are some actual smart people on the Supreme Court who are very good at cutting through this bullshit. Let’s all hope they can get through the heads of the bigots that are there, too.