Bet-cha heard this one before..."The constitution (should) specifically state(s) that a marriage shall be between a man and a woman..."
REALLY... I consider myself of relative intelligence... So I decided to "go to the source, and ask the horse", I mean, the National Archives Experience Online. This here's the full Monty - The Declaration Of Independence, The Constitution, and The Bill Of Rights... full, searchable text versions of all of the documents that our forefathers drafted way back in 1776. Well, I searched the documents, and came up with (drum roll please.......) NOTHING ABOUT MARRIAGE! So, I wonder just where that little misconception came from... So I decide to head on over to a document that deals with all of the additions and arguments to these documents... The US Constitution, Analysis and Interpretation - WOW, this sucker is huge, and confusing as hell!! But it is searchable also.
Go ahead - YOU search it and tell me if YOU find anything of relevance to hetro/gay marriage thang! Good Luck!!!!
So, to help his simple-minded person figure just what marriage is - I asked Mr. Google to define it for me...
...Hmmmmm, definition 1a) Legal union of a Man and a Woman... Husband and wife.... inplications of legal force...
Hey wait ... Look at 1d) A union between 2 people... WHAT - customary but no legal force??? THAT'S a "same sex marriage"???
And what's with 1c) A-common-law marriage? You mean to tell me that 2 people can "live in sin" long enough, and it'll be considered a legal marriage... As long as they happen to be a man and a woman? What's wrong with this picture? I know - it's the state trying to decree morality, and regulate who someone is to spend their life with.
WOW - I sure am glad I happen to be straight - because of this, I get state approval of my legal union... the state allows me to live with the one I love!!
Remember when I did my searches on marriage and came up empty-handed? There's a real reason for that - marriage is as much, and probably more a moral issue and less a legal issue - and our country needs to get totally away from the morality side of this. Our forfathers were pretty-darned smart in staying away from it... I bet it was intentional. People who are against gay marriage usually cite the word of god, or the bible - the state has no business dealing with these types of issues. Now, I'm Christian - I do my best to follow the word of (my) God - I want to be a good person and go to heaven, these are MY choices - I choose to believe in Christ, I choose to have a life partner of the opposite sex - this is what's right for me, but I can't imagine imposing my values overtly on anyone else.
"W", in past speeches, claims he wants to protect and preserve the sanctity of marriage... Problem with that, is the definition of sanctity is "The state or quality of being sacred or holy". Does anyone else have a problem with the head of our government talking like a priest?
I lied a the top of his entry (I've SINNED!!!) - I received a very eloquent response VIA email from a great friend, who's name shall remain anonymous (I'm inserting this without their permission... PLEASE don't sue me!) - here's what she, or he said...
Now; some religions; primarily the (edited) Church; consider homosexuality
an abomination, and I guess from their standpoint, they are indeed allowed
to do so.
I don't know that God feels that way, but I haven't personally
heard from him on the subject. In any event, the (edited) Church will do
anything to ensure that their will prevails. But wait a minute; if we
outlaw gay marriage because the "church" says to do so, isn't that a case
of the "state" legalizing a tennent of a particular religion? Isn't that
NOT a separation of church and state?
If there are churches that do not wish to recognize homosexual unions in
what they feel are the eyes of God; that is their religious business, and
it is ONLY religious business!
BRAVO!!!
In a nutshell - our government needs to get off of the pulpit and back to running this great country of ours!
Now - I've already stated my feelings on the actual label we use to call unions of persons of the same sex, that's not what's important here - what IS important, is that all couples of devotion to each other, must be treated with equal respect, and have equal force of law in the eyes of our government.
So There!
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