Saturday, June 07, 2014

Gay marriage in Wisconsin

By fiat, not ballot:
 A federal judge in Madison on Friday overturned Wisconsin's gay marriage ban, striking down an amendment to the state constitution approved overwhelmingly by voters in 2006 and prompting an emergency action by the state to halt the scores of weddings that began in the state's two largest cities.
Pretty simple, really. A few observations:

  • We've decided that marriage isn't about the desirability of heterosexual couples to form stable environments for the upbringing of children. Instead, marriage is now about personal self-fulfillment and "love," apparently. In that case, there's no reason to oppose gay marriage. However, the larger issues about the instability of marriage and its effect on the upbringing of children, which predate the gay marriage issue by a half century or more, aren't going away.
  • We have gay marriage in Minnesota, but we have it because the legislature passed it and the governor signed it into law. That's a lot better scenario. One year on, the sky hasn't fallen, and unless I miss my guess, it won't be a major issue in this election.
  • At this point, gay marriage advocates had better hope that Anthony Kennedy wakes up on their side the day the matter gets to the Supreme Court. Kennedy's previous rulings on the matter are the basis for the ruling the judge in Wisconsin made. Do you trust Anthony Kennedy? I wouldn't be so sure.
  • If you trust your freedom to the federal judiciary, you're making a big mistake. If you doubt me, I'd suggest that you study the Kelo decision in particular. 




2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm now waiting for the Equal Protection Clause to used for other groups who find themselves victims of discrimination such as Young Adult in the 18-21 Age Group who find themselves being expected to hold up all of the responsibilities of being an adult, but are unable to legally consume alcoholic beverages until they are 21. How about marijuana users outside of states where it is considered legal not being able to legally light up? Where does it end?

Gino said...

nobody expects 18-21's to hold up all the responsibilities of adults. instead, we see them attending college until their 30, and not starting families until their 35.

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i could go on.