Dear Abby Supports Gay Marriage

posted on 10/10/2007 4:16 PM
firsttube.com
http://www.firsttube.com/read/Dear-Abby-Supports-Gay-Marriage

Quite a bit of noise was generated when the beneficiary of the monniker "Dear Abby" announced she supported gay marriage [http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071010/ap_en_ot/dear_abby_gay_marriage]. But for the life of me, I just can't see why this is an issue for people. What is the big deal?? Who are the people who feel so threated by this prospect that this is an important issue to them?

The divorce rate in the United States [http://www.divorcereform.org/rates.html] is somewhere between 40% and 60%, Wikipedia has a thorough statistic review [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Divorce#Statistics]. Marriage, as a general institution, may in trouble. The family unit may be in trouble. But it's not because of gay marriage. No, Americans have f'ed this one up all by themselves without the help of the gays.

So why would anyone care at all if two gay people want to commit to each other and enjoy the same tax and governmental benefits? How is this anything but defying the Judeo-Christian "Live and let live" doctrine; how is this anything but boldly defying the "love your neighbor" adage? The world needs more peace, but obviously, those who oppose this on religious grounds feel they are worthy of passing judgement.

Then there are those who oppose it on political grounds. They favor a ban on gay marriage via an amendment that defines marriage as a union between a man and a woman, and thereby excludes gay couples from such a practice. What is the motivation for this? Do we not have enough problems in this once great nation? I just can't see how you can favor a constitutional ban on gay marriage and claim to be a patriotic American at the same time. Nothing could be more anti-American than intentional discrimination. Remember, that is exactly that from which our forefathers were fleeing! But then, as a nation, we have little respect for the vision the forefathers actually had. In fact, too often it is argued that they meant something other than what they eloquently and laboriously detailed.

Look back at the 18th amendment, which reads

[...] The importation thereof into, or the exportation thereof from the United States and all territory subject to the jurisdiction thereof for beverage purposes is hereby prohibited.

It seemed like what the United States wanted at the time, but what is perceived as more American in this century than a man enjoying a cold Budweiser? Just a few short years later, we had to alter the constituion of the nation once again just to repeal this crazy knee-jerk amendment. Gay marriage will, in my lifetime, be permitted and seen as normal. It's inevitable.

It's foolish of us to think that if we build a discriminitory amendment into the constitution, future generations won't look back and us and laugh. It's amazing that there are actually old curmudgeons who care enough, who suggest they feel threatened by gays getting married. I can't find anything more ridiculous, particularly when Larry Craig and Mark Foley and a host of other elected officials campaign strongly against homosexual rights, only to go home to their gay hooker boyfriend for a good bathroom-stall shagging. I think it's amazing that there exist bigots like this (read the comments) [http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1091531/posts] in this country and that they dare call themselves Christian. If there is indeed an afterlife, they will face their long overdue judgment.

Thank God "Dear Abby" is enlightened. Hopefully, she can change even just one narrow, dogma-fed mind. Too bad there are others who sit in judgment who believe they are qualified to judge their fellow man. So -- who are the people who most vocally and actively oppose gay marriage? I'll tell you who: self-hating closeted homosexual men.