Sure, it bothers me that we’ve torn the United States constitution to shreds to justify political agenda, but why the hell is Marriage Equality, of all things, still an issue?
On one side, you have arguments founded on the Fourteenth Amendment’s declaration that we’re all created equal and that no State shall pass any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States. Furthermore, no State shall deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law, nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.
Obviously, nobody cares, so let’s just tear that part out since, like the rest of the Constitution, it’s obviously a joke. El-oh-el, did you get it? Don’t sweat it; neither did I.
Opponents of Marriage Equality say that it’s a religious institution. Sure, I’ll buy that. I’m even willing to concede marriage as union between one man and one woman. All I ask for in return is that all the legal privileges and rights, federal and state associated with it be redacted. Am I not merciful? The very First Amendment in our constitution prohibits Congress from creating any legislation respecting an establishment of religion. If marriage is a religious institution then it should be nothing more than a solemn, yet trivial, promise before a shared perception of a higher power. Creating any legal protection and privilege for it on the basis of religion is a complete reversal on the very foundation of this entire country.
When our forefathers wrote the damn thing, their were seeking to establish a government that wasn’t defined by religion. That’s not to say our laws and ideals aren’t guided by some of the common sense doctrine in religious scripture, but I’m not about to advocate there’s not at least some degree of common sense in the bible. Anyway, it was this exclusion that made this country what it is today. Excluding foreign, internal revolutions, we’re among the youngest of developed nations and the most powerful country in the world. The fact is, we didn’t get where we are by paralyzing and stagnating our country with these ridiculous, archaic arguments.
We’ve tried, though. I am not about to go through the list of setbacks for this country because we tried to gyp people out of their civil rights. Let’s just agree that it had never gotten us anywhere.
Now, look at us. Even Portugal is about to permit gay marriage. That country is almost entirely Roman Catholic. Are we so backwards that we are no longer the leader of civil rights? At this point, we should just be ashamed of ourselves.
So, back to my point. Why is this an issue? Why is there even a focus of energy on civil rights within this country? What do these other countries have that we don’t? Are we so obnoxious that we think that just because we weren’t the first to recognize it as a basic civil right, that it isn’t one at all? I’m seriously baffled.
Marriage Equality is largely a grass roots movement. The opposition, the religious and conservative institutions broadcasting all their nonsense propaganda, are spending hundreds of millions of dollars to defeat legislation to protect our civil rights. Do you have any idea what those hundreds of millions of dollars could have done instead? Who is god really going to punish? The gays for loving, or the churches for hating?
I think of the money, time, and energy spent on both sides and I wonder if it’s even worth it anymore. The opposition has invested so much in this already that they know they have to win so they’ll never stop. It’s only a matter of time before the churches are just as bankrupt as the rest of us.
I’m worried about this going all the way to the Supreme Court, but what if we win? The justices aren’t propaganda sponges and the appointment process somewhat separates them from the lobbyists, so I suppose it’s possible. Will we, finally, be able to move on?
Then again, what if we lose?
