Disclaimer: As a heterosexual believer in the Christian faith, raised in a traditionally religious household, the following is to provoke thought and where necessary, conviction to the general population and is not a denouncing of my faith. I am aware that this commentary will raise eyebrows among family, friends and associates. However, one of the attributes of this beloved country is freedom of speech and I well intend on exercising this freedom regarding the topic of Same-Sex Marriage.
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Now that’s out of the way, I ask the question, did we vote on your marriage? And I’m not asking that question only to people who believe in God or profess any type of faith. I’m asking the atheists, agnostics, liars, adulterers, pimps, alcoholics, pedophiles, rapists, murderers, drunkards, drug abusers, thieves and robbers; all of whom may currently be married, divorced or separated? Anyone who does not have a moral compass such as the Bible, Koran, Buddha, or anything else, did we vote on your marriage? When you entered into that legally, binding contract, did we require that you bear children from that union as a continuous contribution to the survival of the human race? Did we, as voters, require that you raise those children with morals and values in order to prove the silly notion that in marrying each other, they will become productive citizens?
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In a few short weeks, Chief US District Judge Vaughn Walker will rule on the very controversial Proposition 8 in California that bans same-sex marriages. But what I found interesting during the hearings held last week in San Franscico were the questions the judge posed to each side of the argument. The two main arguments of the supporting side of Prop 8 were 1) It will preserve the historical and traditional definition of marriage which promotes child bearing and guarantees the survival of the human race and 2) Children fare better in families with two opposite sex parents. Well, my issue with those arguments are simple. What about those who marry and are barren and can’t afford expensive fertility treatments? Oh, what about the couples who just don’t want children and are happy with 1+1? And not to mention the staggering number of children being born out of wedlock or married couples who willingly aborted unwanted pregnancies? Does preventing two consenting adults, who happen to be the same gender, from entering into a legal contract really preserve the human race? I think not.
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Now, if you look at the above list of people whose marriage we DIDN”T vote on, I’m sure either themselves or their offspring fell into one of those categories. All without intervention from some conservative religious group forcing its citizens to pull the trigger on morality. At the end of the day, marriage in this country (in my opinion) is a legal, binding contract between two people for the purpose of establishing a family (however that may be defined by the individuals), providing financial security and healthcare, transferring generational wealth and upon death or dissolution, can distribute acquired property through proper estate planning. I’m just saying, let’s get out of othe
