The Right Side of History

I know that it's fashionable these days to "tag your triggers," but seeing as how I founded this blog for the ultimate purpose of subverting trends in the twittersphere, I shall skip the trigger tagging and simply say that, if anyone reading these rambling rants has been making it a point to avoid the trending topic of marriage equality (which I fervently recommend against considering it will undoubtedly prove to be one of the defining Supreme Court cases of my generation), please, read at your own risk.

     For those of you sensible enough to stay well informed, you can continue at your leisure. 

      First off, welcome back. This is my first post in a while. I haven't really been maintaining this blog particularly carefully, but I feel that my two cents, for what they're worth (which I believe is considerably less than two cents) must be tossed onto the growing pile of loose change on the Internet in the past week. 

     If you've just awaken from a coma, I'm referring to the ongoing deliberations of the Supreme Court regarding Proposition Eight and the Defense of Marriage Act. These two bits of legislature infamously restrict the marriage rights of same sex couples and, due to the current discussion in the Supreme Court, have become targets of widespread criticism and protest (which, as always, provide some pretty clever protest signs). 

All the ladies that no longer want to be legally classified as single...

No, that's not catchy at all. We need a new chant...

     I'm not a huge fan of broadcasting my political affiliations or beliefs, as it invokes a maelstrom of hate mail from total strangers (and my immediate family, the latter of which becomes a little embarrassing.) However, this sort of thing, in addition to being an unavoidable topic of Internet conversation, I think, is not a political matter at all. Some people will inevitably try to construe it as a head-to-head battle between the Down-To-Earth if unfair Right Wing and the starry-eyed, impractical dreamers on the Left, but I don't think that an issue of this magnitude is really a matter of Right versus Left.While it is true that, generally, conservatives are opposed to equal marriage rights and liberals tend to lean more to the equality side of the debate, there are conservatives that believe in marriage equality and I know some liberals that think it should be decided on a state-by-state scale. 

     To establish my position: I am entirely on the side of federally mandated equal rights for same sex couples. Not only are we already decades behind in creating equality in America, but the opposition has virtually no logic in their argument. When reading the news, one tends to see phrases from the "marriage is a bond between a man and a woman" side like "Historically, marriage has always existed between a male and a female." 

     "That's a valid point," I can hear my more cynical readers protesting. "It's true, isn't it? Why go passing federal mandates to change history?" 

     Well, More Cynical Readers, not only do you really need to find a more concise name for yourselves, I shall answer your question with a question: Why did we pass the Fourteenth Amendment? Why did we pass the Nineteenth Amendment? Didn't they radically change the way the county was run in the past? Granting African Americans and Women (Gynae-Americans?) the full rights of citizenship were unheard of in America at the time, but the government granted them equality under the laws of the country. Why? Because it's wrong to treat any group of people as second-class citizens, regardless of race, ethnicity, nationality, religion, gender, or sexual orientation. 

     "Wait a minute," the More Cynical Readers cry out again. "Same-sex couples aren't treated like second class citizens! It's not like they can't vote or anything. It's just that they have to get a civil partnership instead of an official marriage. What's the big whoop?" 

     Seriously, More Cynical Readers, you need to just calm the f**k down, okay? I was getting to that part. You see, when states prohibit couples from becoming officially married in a state-recognized ceremony,   or even if same sex couples are married in a state that recognizes their partnership, their federal marriage benefits (hospital visitation rights, next of kin status, inheritance tax exemption, etc.) are revoked also. Revoking the rights of citizens due to sexual identity-- before you go to say that there is nothing unconstitutional about repealing the rights of same sex couples-- violates their first amendment right to Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness. 

And I'm not talking about the shitty Will Smith movie. 

     So, if you disagree with me, please, leave your comments and I will be happy to engage in intellectual discourse on the subject. Or you could send me hate mail. I'll still be happy to talk to you about it.