Gay Marriage is Legal in California

Finally, same-sex couples that choose to tie the knot are now able to do so in the great State of California. Of course, gay marriage opponents (or homophobes) have succeeded in adding a measure to the November ballot that would amend the State's constitution to define marriage to be strictly between a man and a woman. Now it's up to the voters to decide whether or not their compatriots have a right to pursue their happiness, which is one of the unalienable rights granted to them by the Constitution.

The last survey I read suggested that a bit over half of all Californians rejected a constitution amendment that bans gay marriage. That's great news and shows how far the State has come in the tolerance department. Having said that, I believe we cannot put the fate of others in the hands of voters and call that Democracy. If we had put the fate of African-Americans in the hands of the voters back in the 60's, Black folks would still be treated as second-class citizens today.

The judges have spoken and they law is on the gays' side. Voters cannot decide the fate of a minority because the mob mentality will take over and almost always the minority ends up getting victimized .. again.

Let the gays get married and let's move on to more important, rather urgent, issues like the devalued dollar and the crumbling economy. Now those are issues that the American voters have a chance to correct come November and I pray to God that we collectively make the right choice since we failed to do so back in 2004 and 2000. With a vote track record like this, the only thing I can trust the voters with is American Idol.

Comments

[Jeremy]

I'm with you, Somah. And if there's a wedding I should be saving the date for, please let me know. ;-)

The judicial branch is supposed to keep an eye on the executive and legislative branches of government. It is their job to uphold the constitution. This is a fundamental aspect of our government's system of checks and balances. A judge who strikes down laws which violate the constitution (state or federal), in defense of citizens' liberties, is not an activist! They're just doing their job! If we fill the courts with conservative judges who are unwilling to challenge accepted dogma, then we are negating the mechanisms our founding fathers put in place to keep the government in check.

I also agree with you about the last couple elections. Though technically Gore did win in 2000... he just wasn't given the presidency (I guess that's what you call a bloodless coup). I'm a little concerned, however, that the first Google ad on the right side of this page is titled "Support McCain-Palin Now." In order to counteract that, let me include this link to the Barack Obama website. Obama is an inspiring candidate who is more than capable of leading this country and we should all donate to his campaign. Hopefully that will help Google get its act together.

[Ismail]

I couldn't have said it better, Jeremy. Barack Obama is the man we so desperately need to lead the country in the right direction. It will be hard and it will be painful, but I think we can turn it around.