You know that 0-31 record on gay marriage being bandied about? As in, we’ve lost 31 state marriage battles across America? That sounds like a terrible batting average when it comes to gays securing their marriage rights. So what if we forget about the states that banned same-sex marriage, via constitutional amendment or state law, and focus only on the losses in states that we chose to battle in. As in, Maine and California. On that front, we’ve really only failed twice. Sounds like fuzzier, albeit happier math to us!
How to Goose Up the Math to Make It Sound Like We’ve Lost Fewer Marriage Battles
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Alan
WTF? We didn’t choose to do battle in either Maine or California. Both of those measures were put on the ballot by christianist homo-haters.
QueerToday
About 100 million dollars lost, many queer lives lost, and still our “leaders” and funders want one thing – marriage. Time for a new direction.
Andrew
What always bothers me is that the record is not 0-31, it’s 1-31. Unless the statistic is referring to how many states have passed restriction of marriage amendments in states where they have been placed on the ballot, it must include both Arizona ballot measures: a 2006 amendment that failed and a 2008 amendment that passed.
Mike in Brooklyn
The premise of this article to just stupid.
Before 1989, gays/lesbians could not enter marriage anywhere in the world. In the US, we could not marry until 2004 when Massachusetts began its marriage equality. Today, marriage equality is now legal throughout (not everywhere) Europe, Canada, several in roads in South America (and apparently now in Argentina), and Iowa, Vermont, New Hampshire and Connecticut.
Certainly there have been major league setbacks. Maggie Cunt and the Wingnuts have succeeded in repeals in California and Maine; yet have failed in their efforts to have marriage equality repealed elsewhere. Indeed, the Massachusetts legislature has twice brought up the issue and turned back the repeal efforts both times. Also, Connecticut’s legislature codified marriage equality so ruled by their Supreme Court.
While it is degrading and insulting, treating gays/lesbians as second class citizens, and be to so vilified by Maggie Cunt and the Wingnuts, the reality is that we are going to lose more battles before we will the war. Soon enough prudes, cunts and wingnuts will just die and let the rest of us pursue our happiness.
Steve
Mike in Brooklyn wrote, “Before 1989, gays/lesbians could not enter marriage anywhere in the world.”
Actually, that’s not true. Reference (John Boswell, 1994, “Same-sex unions in premodern Europe”, Vintage Books, New York.) http://www.amazon.com/Same-Sex-Unions-Premodern-Europe-Boswell/dp/0679751645/ref=sr_1_1
The restriction against marriage is relatively recent — just a few hundred years. The Catholic church even has liturgy for same-sex marriages, though it has not been practiced since the 18th century.
Mike in Brooklyn
Re: No. 5 & No. 6, I was referring to state sanctioned same-sex marriages.
Indeed centuries ago the Catholic Church allowed same-sex relationships. So to in American Indian culture, and other cultures around the world.
But there is a distinction between what an individual church might approve of and having a sanction under the laws of a national interest.
Personally, I don’t give a fuck what Catholics, Muslims, Jews, Mormons, or even the Metropolitan Churches believe. And, obviously, no one needs a state sanctioning of a loving relationship. BUT, I do want the rights, privileges, and recognition of the 24 years of loving commitment with my chosen boyfriend, now husband, thanks to Massachusetts respected here in North Carolina and the rest of the country.
Mike in Brooklyn
Oops, still haven’t changed my Mike in Brooklyn to Mike in Asheville,