Apparently this week I've decided to share all my political commentary with you guys.
By the way - I LOVED reading all of your responses to my post on Monday about abortion and parental notification. There was NO name calling and SO many well-thought out and well-articulated responses. Thank you!!! A lot of you expressed my opinion in the comments better than I did in the original post! Haha. I have the best readers evahhh!
So today I'm moving on to gay marriage. (side note: The more I write on this blog the more liberal I sound.... if I write next week that I bought a pair of Birkenstocks or Toms, someone please hold an intervention! hahaha).
Tuesday night voters in Maine voted to reject a state law that would have allowed same-sex marriage.
I understand why people disagree with the death penalty. I understand why people want universal health care. I understand why people are pro-choice. I understand why people want to raise taxes on the wealthy. I don't agree with those views, but I really do understand why people feel the way that they do. Those things have a direct impact on people's lives.
WHY do people feel so strongly against gay marriage?
I even understand why people don't care... if it doesn't affect you, then who cares?
What I just DO NOT understand is why people feel so strongly AGAINST gay marriage.
My thoughts on gay marriage can basically be summed up by the facebook group "Against gay marriage? Then don't get one and shut the fuck up."
Can anyone please explain to me WHY people care?
50% of heterosexual marriages end in divorce anyway, maybe we should ban all marriages? Or ban divorces? Or here's an idea - let's repeal the marriage tax break. That would help out with the enormous budget problems we have. Or maybe we should give single people a tax break to discourage marriage? Maybe then there wouldn't be so many divorces.
Would love to hear your thoughts... feel free to agree or disagree with me. And as always - please no name calling. We're all entitled to our opinions.
It seems like all these family values people would want to encourage marriage in all forms- therefore more families. I really don't get it. I was really excited to get married, and think everyone should have that option.
ReplyDeleteAgain, I am with you. I think the huge issue with gay marriage is that it directly involves the government. With abortion it really is a personal choice if you choose to have one you don't march yourself down to the court house to have it recognized by the government but rather you make a private choice and see a private dr. that is not associated with the governement. But with marriage the government is directly involved they have to recognize you as a legal couple in order for you to have the benefits that heterosexual couples have by joining in marriage. I think that freaks people out. It is one of those issues that just cant be separated from the government and with all the different party lines and different beliefs i'm not sure it will ever get through the red tape. But I do think everyone should have equal rights!
ReplyDeleteI think the issue comes to down to religion and the definition of "marriage." "Marriage" in the Bible is the union between and man and a women in they eyes of God. Period. No gay marriage. I think that's what trips a lot of people up. I for one, am a Christian and do not agree with gay "marriage" from a religious connotation. However, I know gay people, am related to one and do agree that gay people who want to united should have all the rights that a man/women union should have. Drop the word marriage, call it a union and be done with it. Ask the gay people if they want to be married in the eyes of the Lord, or in the eyes of the gov't? It's in the eyes of the Lord I have issue with, not the eyes of the gov't.
ReplyDeleteDoes that make any sense? I know it may sound contradictory, but like you said, no name calling here - just nice opinions. :-)
when I say "rights" I meant gov't rights to tax deductions, insurance rights etc. Sorry! Left that out. It's only fair and as our constitution says, all men are created equal (meaning all humans).
ReplyDeleteYou know how I feel on this issue. We've discussed it many times. For the sake of contributing to an open forum, I'll share with others. :)
ReplyDeleteI'm a pretty hard-core conservative when it comes to fiscal matters and foreign policy. However, I tend to skew far into the "individual liberties" category when it comes to matters like abortion, gun control, euthanasia, and gay rights. Individuals -- private citizens-- making informed and responsible choices should be guaranteed certain liberties. I'm a pretty hard-core Lockean and believe that we are all entitled to the natural rights of "life, liberty and property." Each of the issues I've described above (guns, gay rights, etc.) falls under the category of "quietly enjoy your own liberties; leave others the fuck alone and expect them to to do the same" in my own personal philosophy. As a trained political philosopher, I fail to see how this emphasis strays at all from the beliefs of classical conservatism. Sadly, my political party seldom agrees. For that reason, I tend to classify myself as a "Laissez-faire capitalist/conservative" when people ask my affiliation. ;)
I am a very spiritual person, attend church, and consider myself in line with Christian morality. However, I believe that many people's fundamental inability to synthesize religious doctrine in a systematic manner is to blame for a lot of the hypocrisy toward gays. I grew up in a household that was extremely fundamentalist in its Protestantism. I have been indoctrinated with the "marriage = one man + one woman forever and ever" viewpoint my entire life. I know that many people believe that marriage is a sacred covenant; I personally think this argument is more than a bit of a straw man, as so few heterosexual couples treat it as such. (Also, marriage was only between heteros of the same race until 41 years ago, see Loving v. VA, 388 U.S. 1, 19-freaking-67.) I understand that many religious people feel that it is imperative to spread their beliefs in every aspect of their lives. However, it seems ridiculously ironic and un-self-aware that people want to spread religious dogma in a hateful manner in the political arena when the very basis of our nation is religious freedom. To me, it all comes back to individual liberty. We are supposed to be the beacon of democracy for the entire world. We should grant our citizens as much freedom from sexual orientation discrimination as we do from racial or religious persecution.
Plus, I know a few fabulous couples for whom I'm dying to be Flower Girl...
Of course, I'm not at all opposed to creating an argument for all hot-button sociopolitical/legal issues to be interpreted on a case-by-case basis. So long as I'm the one doing the interpreting... ;)
ReplyDeleteI agree with mint juleps - there are those that "use" religion as a means to an end and then there are others of us that actually are faithful and have come to conclusions (such as mint juleps and I would say myself). I still struggle with it daily on the religious level, it's a faith thing, not to get all spiritual here. But, I do think it is WRONG for someone who's never stepped foot in a church or cracked a Bible to play against gay people in the gov't arena. Go away! Those of us that are in a spiritual dilemma, generally keep it quiet, like me...well, until now. I may disagree with mint juleps but I still adore her and like you legally fab, understand where they're coming from, just don't agree.
ReplyDeleteI think the best argument that I have heard for gay marriage is that if that Lamar Odom and the impregnated Kardashian woman can get married after only dating for a month then gay couples should be given the same opportunity. Why should their "commitment" be given recognition over the commitment of other couples?
ReplyDeleteAll men/women are created equal (supposedly stated by our constitution) but this is one subject that really blows that statement out of the water. It shouldn’t matter if it’s labeled a “marriage” or “union” those are after all just words & both mean the joining of two souls to become one. (Isn’t that the same no matter what sort of plumbing you have below the belt?) Who are we as a society to judge if one humans love is real, correct or not?
ReplyDeleteAs Mint Julep & Magnolias pointed out – until 1967 MY own personal marriage would not have even been allowed!?!?! & how does the color of my skin & my husbands make anymore of a difference in deciding who I marry then what’s below/above the belt? (It’s the pot calling the kettle black if you ask me.)
Love is love no matter who you are. & personally with the way our world is going these days i think if you can find the rare gem (true love)in the big ole world you should be allowed to enter into it without the gov't controlling everything. :)
Here is my stance: I could care less if Tom and Joe or Sally and Sue want to get married. I'm happy for them. I'm all for it. I have a cousin who is gay and if he wants to marry his partner of 20 years, I think he should have every right to. Also, I think they deserve the same legal rights as a married heterosexual couple.
ReplyDeleteHowever, although I think it's completely 100% fine for gay marriage to be acknowledged in the legislative sense, I don't think gay marriage should be recognized by the church (and when I say "church," I mean the Catholic church. I can't speak for other religions). If the church were to recognize gay marriages, it would go against many of the church teachings such as why God created man and woman, etc.
So, after all of my rambling, I don't care if gay's marry. If the wedding is going to be a party, invite me and I'll be there with bells on. But I don't think it should be recognized in the Catholic church.
p.s. love the posts lately.
Popped in to say hello! I think as long as there's no health or safety issues (like family marrying family or domestic violence), people should marry who they please.
ReplyDeleteI think this sums it up best: "Against gay marriage? Then don't get one and shut the fuck up."
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your post and all the comments. I always enjoy a good political discussion. I am conservative in most political subject matters, but this IS NOT one of them!
ReplyDeleteFor now, I just want to say that I live in NH and I get a few Maine channels on my TV...and some of the commercials for anti-gay marriage lately have just been RIDICULOUS. I was at the gym on the treadmill the other day and actually burst out laughing when I saw one of the ads. Coincidentally, the guy on the treadmill next to me was gay. I told him, I was laughing at the ridiculous logic and ignorance of the ad...not agreeing with it!
i'm so with you!
ReplyDeletethis is such a fabulous blog... i can't wait to read more!
100% agree with you. Seriously.
ReplyDeleteI think the facebook group pretty much sums up my thoughts, too.
ReplyDeleteI love the post and seem to follow MInt Juleps and Magnolias in our political party issues. I was all for unions and equal rights but somehow the term marriage was something I was against. Then I heard the agrument of there is enough hate in the world, if people want to love why not and in our not to distance history people of different religious beliefs or ethnicities would not have been allowed to marry. And a light went off, my hubby and I are of different religions, I couldn't of married him. Friends we have that are of different races couldn't of married. Love isn't based in rules and laws it's simple found and given. Who knows maybe a gay married couple could teach us straight couples a thing or two about how to make a marriage work :)
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