Tag: same-sex marriage

#rsrh We all look alike to the WaPo.

You can practically see the bafflement on the page:

While many conservative organizations immediately decried a federal judge’s decision last week to invalidate the federal ban on recognizing gay marriages, tea party groups have been conspicuously silent on the issue.

The silence is by design, activists with the loosely affiliated movement said, because it is held together by an exclusive focus on fiscal matters and its avoidance of divisive social issues such as abortion and gay marriage. Privately, though, many said they back the decision because it emphasizes the legal philosophy of states’ rights.

Before we go any further: if you look at what happened last week, what happened was that the judge declared Section 3 unconstitutional, and did not address Section 2. Essentially, that means that if the ruling is not appealed then the federal government is no longer obligated to treat only opposite-sex marriages as legitimate. It does not mean that states are now obligated to recognize other states’ same-sex marriage licenses – and, at any rate, the ruling is expected to be appealed anyway. Continue reading #rsrh We all look alike to the WaPo.

NY GOP blamed for SSM loss in NY Senate.

Wait, what?

The New York Times is as predictable as the sunrise, frankly:

ALBANY — The State Senate defeated a bill on Wednesday that would legalize same-sex marriage, after an emotional debate that touched on civil rights, family and history. The vote means that the bill, pushed by Gov. David A. Paterson, is effectively dead for the year and destroys the optimism of gay advocates.

The bill was defeated by a decisive margin of 38 to 24. The Democrats, who have a bare, one-seat majority, did not have enough votes to pass the bill without some Republican support, but not a single Republican senator voted for the measure.

Actually, by definition the Democrats had enough votes to pass the bill in the state Senate: they just lost roughly 25% of their caucus to the opposition. Which is about the proportion that it looks like Democrats lost in the Assembly vote – but NY’s Assembly is more lopsidedly Democratic than the Senate, so it didn’t matter there.

Personally, I wish that they had passed the damned thing – but I’ll likewise be damned if I let the NYT blame the GOP for something that they ought to be blaming the Democrats for.  The GOP does not control the NY state Senate.  The Old Grey Lady can stop pretending that it does, thanks.   Even if it means admitting that the Democrats are rampaging hypocrites on gay right issues.

Moe Lane

Crossposted to RedState.

Prop 1 succeeds in Maine.

Unfortunately*.

Voters in Maine on Tuesday overturned a law allowing same-sex couples to wed, dealing a fresh setback to the U.S. gay marriage movement in a race that attracted national attention.

The law was approved by Maine’s Legislature in May but was not implemented after opponents gathered enough signatures to put the issue to a “people’s veto.”

With 87 percent of precincts reporting, votes to reject the law were running at 52.75 percent to 47.25 percent, according to unofficial tallies from the Bangor Daily News.

Owing to the lack of convenient Mormons to demonize, John Aravosis is actually off complaining about OFA and the DNC for not supporting efforts to defeat Proposition 1. He even says he wants an explanation, which is something that I frankly doubt. I think that Aravosis knows why the two groups in question – both of which are fully-own subsidiaries of POTUS, Inc these days – didn’t help; he just doesn’t want to think about the implications, or the way that the current leaders of the SSM movement have more or less permanently made enemies of mainstream conservatives for the ultimate benefit of the Democratic party.

Moe Lane

*I wish that they hadn’t succeeded, but it’s their state.

Crossposted to RedState.

So. Pew finds the populace favors civil unions 57/37…

…and that while they also opposes gay marriage 53/39, the numbers are increasing after the dip from last year*; and, at any rate, the movement since 2006 seems to be mostly coming from Republicans.  Full details here, and it’s ostensibly good news for same-sex marriage supporters (like Instapundit, GayPatriot and, well, myself).  It’d be reasonable to expect that this administration might be trying to work on some sort of compromise, right?

Nope.  Not any time soon.  There’s going to be no significant movement on same-sex marriage on the federal level before at least 2013.  You can forget about ending Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, too: it’s too tied to the same-sex marriage issue to be repealed.

Why?

why
African-Americans are 40/52 against civil unions.

That’s why.

Moe Lane

PS: Hey, it’s not my fault.

*I personally blame the fight against Proposition 8 for that.

Crossposted to RedState.

Just to add to Kevin Jennings’ bad day.

So, by Jennings’ formula Mary Cheney is a conscientious objector and he’s collaborating with the occupying government.  Wait, what?

I was emailed a link to this 2007 article by getting-to-be-beleaguered ‘safe schools czar’ Kevin Jennings:

This isn’t a fight where neutrality is an option, Mary. As Nobel Prize winner Elie Wiesel has said, “Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.” Whether you like it or not, politics does play a role here. So get with the program.

I wish Mary’s fantasy, that we could ignore politics, were true. But her baby will find out that her Mom is just deluded soon enough. Children of the “Greatest Generation” routinely asked their Dads “What did you do during the war?” As Antonin Scalia and Pat Buchanan are so fond of pointing out, we’re in a cultural war right now over whether or not LGBT people are entitled to the same level of dignity and respect as other Americans. Some day little Cheney is going to ask, “What did you do during the war, Mom?” Mary (to date) has sat on the sidelines – helping the oppressor. Too bad some day little Cheney will realize her Mom could have been part of the solution, but instead obstinately stuck her head in the sand over and over and thus was just part of the problem. I hope little Cheney can some day forgive her.

Smug fellow, isn’t he?  Since then, of course, Mary Cheney’s father former Vice President Dick Cheney has forthrightly and openly repeated* his support for same-sex marriage; while Kevin Jennings went on to serve a man who’s too much of a coward to follow suit.  The term ‘irony’ is often misused in this culture, but I believe that we have a legitimate opportunity here to use it.’

Also ‘hypocrisy,’ but that’s common with the Democrats on this issue.  Right down the line.

Moe Lane Continue reading Just to add to Kevin Jennings’ bad day.

New York Senate Drama! Showdown! Conflict! Pay Raises!

And nary a word on the subject of same-sex marriage bills.

And here I thought that opportunities to report on the NY Senate’s shenanigans had passed, once Espada flip-flopped back to being a Democrat.  I was wrong:

Elite get fat pay hikes amid Senate stalemate
Democrats reward key staff with up to $32,000 while hitting GOP

ALBANY — Eleven of the state Senate’s highest-paid staffers received raises of up to $32,000 when it appeared likely Democrats would lose control of the chamber during the five-week leadership fight.

The combined increases will cost taxpayers $200,000 annually.

[snip]

Because many of the raises were backdated, staffers are paid the additional cash in a lump sum, said Jennifer Freeman, spokeswoman to state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli. As a result, staffers expected fat paychecks of thousands of dollars in backdated raises at the exact time that Sampson was accusing Senate Republicans of stalling legislation in an attempt to seize the spoils of majority leadership.

I’d like to note two things about this: Continue reading New York Senate Drama! Showdown! Conflict! Pay Raises!

Gay rights apologetics, versus reality.

Susan Estrich used six hundred and six words to convey the argument that gay rights activists really can still get meaningful action from this administration.

I can rebut that argument in four: Proposition 8 exit poll.

Moe Lane

PS: No, not happy about it.  I support same-sex marriage.  You know, like Dick Cheney.

Crossposted to RedState.

I understand that AmericaBlog was speaking rhetorically…

…but the administration’s answer to this question:

With all due respect, don’t our civil rights deserve a bit more attention than some kluge thrown together at the last minute to save a cocktail party?

…would be “Not particularly, no.”

Moe Lane

PS: That being said – and speaking as an ex-Democrat (neocon edition) myself – Stacy McCain’s onto something here when he talks about the joys of voting as an act of revenge. It certainly spiced up the 2004 elections for me.

Crossposted to RedState.