Nevertheless, it was a referendum by popular vote. Not a referendum on
rights, but on the definition of a word that many hold sacred. The
Mormons aren't fundamentalist radicals. They're Mormons, and we have
to respect their beliefs and their right to express them at the ballot
box and elsewhere. And, yes, Barack Obama has said that he wants
marriage to continue to be defined as a union between a man and a
woman -- as it has been for five thousand years or more. He's repeated
that on numerous occasions. But that's not the issue. The issue is
simply that the people have spoken. Personally, I don't give a hoot
about what's considered "marriage" and what is not. But I do care
about the democratic process, and the right of the people to decide.
It's interesting that the left is very supportive of democracy until
things don't go their way. Then they demonstrate. And turn to violence.
Paul
On Nov 16, 2008, at 4:51 PM, Godfrey DiGiorgi wrote:
On Nov 16, 2008, at 1:07 PM, PN Stenquist wrote:
Silliness. The law is based on a majority vote. That's how it works
in a democracy. And it isn't about rights, it's about terminology.
"Marriage" vs. "Civil Union." Much ado about nothing.
Without want to delve too deeply into the politics of the thing,
Proposition 8 is posed as an amendment to the California State
Constitution. It's passage by a (slim) simple majority contradicts
the due process by which an amendment to the state constitution is
permitted, and a well-founded legal action against it on that basis
is now making its way through the California State courts.
(The government of the United States and its member States is not a
democracy either ... it's a representative republic ... but that's
more technical political science than I feel like going to the books
and studying up on at the moment. :-)
Which is all beside the point anyway. Your notion of "terminology"
citing that "Marriage" and "Civil Union" are synonymous is a
simplistic and ill-founded judgement, not supported by the facts. A
"Civil Union" does not carry the civil rights, provisos and
protections of "Marriage" in the eye of the law ... that's why the
LBGT community is so up in arms about this issue. Were I to be taken
terminally ill, simple things like my partner's capability to assist
me in the hospital in my dying days are not provided by a Civil
Union because, under the law, he would not be granted the rights and
capabilities as a member of my family. In some cases, he might not
even be permitted to be at my bedside until a brother or other
family member arrived and provided a legal release for his presence.
Or even not at all. That is unconscionable discrimination in my view.
So to characterize this issue as 'much ado about nothing', given the
difference in status and rights conferred on supposedly equal
citizens under the law by Civil Union and Marriage, is wholly
incorrect. If you feel that these two instruments of the law are
equal synonyms, put your money where your mouth is by obtaining a
divorce and engaging your partner in a Civil Union instead. I'm sure
you will be less than delighted with the difference in taxation,
benefits and rights you receive from doing that.
Proposition 8 was presented by its proponents in salacious fashion
as an attack upon the "holy sacrament of marriage", which has
nothing to do with the LEGAL entity of Marriage under the civil law.
Massive contributions to its promotion were funded by the Mormon
Church and other fundamentalist radicals who felt it a *political*
threat in the name of religious jurisprudence. It won its slim
majority vote by a combination of subterfuge and scurrilous
promotion practices ... like thousands of 'bot calls in the 24 hours
of election day which presented misinformation and misdirection (I
know this for a fact ... I received 13 of these 'bot calls myself on
Election Day many of which used carefully edited clips from Barack
Obama's campaign speeches spliced together to seem like he supported
the passage of Prop 8, which he most certainly did not). It is
discrimination by the politically fearful against a minority
community. These facts and the fact that it is an attempt yet once
again to overthrow the due process of constitutional governance by
jimmying the rules of the game show just how afraid, desperate and
hateful these so-called "religious" political institutions are...
It will fail, they will fail. It may take more years of those
affected by this discrimination suffering pain, greed, stupidity and
hate, but it will fail.
Getting back to photography, I think I need to do some adjustment to
the rendering of my photo. Looked at 24 hours later, it seems a bit
too harsh on the bright end of the spectrum. I'll be working on it a
bit more... along with a few other snaps from the event.
Godfrey
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