Gay Marriage

Gay marriage is in the spotlight here in Washington state, thanks to a surprise move from our Governor, followed by an historic vote in Olympia. I'm still kind of blinking the sleep from my eyes, wondering how this has all moved along so quickly. Gay marriage being a subject I'm personally very passionate about, I wanted to organize my thoughts a little, because they're kind of scattered right now.

Someone close to me recently pronounced that gay marriage was a "right". Me being the flaming liberal that I am, I cheered, but also... I wondered if it was worth pointing out that I disagree.

Am I crazy??? No. Americans have "certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." Some people like to ignore that word "among", creating a very literal translation of what "rights" an American citizen enjoys. Usually, I'm not one of those people. Mostly, because I think a whole bunch of things fall under the definitions of "Life" - stuff like food and clothing and shelter and health care.

But where would you put "marriage" into that trifecta? Under the pursuit of "happiness"? Really? Have you seen our divorce rate?

That's my problem with gay marriage in a nutshell: I think marriage itself is kind of... how to say this gently... Um, a con? Rip-off? How about just plain unnecessary? Yes, unnecessary is the best description I think. It's necessary to nothing, let alone to Life, Liberty, and Happiness. So how can it be a right?

In the strictest terms, it's not. It's an agreement, a contract, a religious rite/observance, a piece of paper, a piece of insurance for your own peace of mind. It's a lot of things, but a right? Not really.

So... why all the fuss?

Because someone decided to make it a right the moment our government said "you guys can do it, but you guys can't." They made it an extra bonus, a privilege, an honor bestowed on a class of people but denied to another class. WHAM! Our government created a second class of citizens that were not allowed to do something that people in the first class could. And not only that, but once those people were married, they were given benefits that could not be achieved in any other way. Now there are two classes where not only does one get to do something the other can't, but then they are rewarded and favored for going through with it.

Someone speaking before the legislature today expounded how this is very much not about civil rights. Hello?! Could this be any more about civil rights? Our government has created a second class of citizens for the sole purpose of denying something to them. That sounds pretty much exactly like a civil rights issue to me.

Marriage is silly. It's frivolous. But in America, there are financial and civil considerations involved. People get married for the "wrong" reasons all the time. There is a small minority who would actually like to get married for the only right one: love. It's time to keep your religion in your churches, your laws out of my love life, and let us all enjoy a little equality for a change. That's what America's supposed to be founded on, right?