Gay Marriage Legalized in Iowa: Both Sides of the Debate

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After listening to all the religious garbage of the right and played out emotional hype of the left I have only one question for homosexuals seeking a piece of paper to tell them their married. Why do you want to even get tangled up in this mess anyway?
If you're looking for insurance, retirement benefits, etc. then why haven't we as a nation already granted these citizens these things?
If your looking for equality (and this comes with the utmost respect) look elsewhere. This is America. We are free to be who we are and who we think we are. We are free to be as bigoted and biased as we please. We are free to be ignorant and force-fed whatever comes from the pulpit 57 rows deep.
Yes we are a nation of many freedoms, but we will always be enslaved to our own culture. Unfourtunatly for the GLBT community that means a quasi-christan culture complete with its own definition of marriage.
Don't get the wrong idea. Many of us want to abolish the fence between us but to do so would require the deconstuction of our current cultural climate. (I personally think a revolution and a little fighting in the streets is exactly what this nation needs right now but that would seem somewhat extreme to most)
If however, what you want is a confirmation from you community that you and your spouse are truly 'one of the Jones' then the answer is simply to wait.
Ignorance, like disease, is most easily cured with time.

steve of OH 11:07AM April 23, 2009

I am a lesbian, and i am engaged. Having something more then a commitment ceremony would be amazing. I believe that i deserve to have the same rights as heterosexual couple. Marriage opens doors for insurance purposes, plus makes things like adoption easier. I am very exited that Iowa is taking a step to the future, and hope that Illinois (my home state) will soon follow. Many other countries have lagalized gay marriage, and hopefully the United Stated will become more progressive as well.

Cassandra of IL 3:41AM April 08, 2009

I have a feeling most Iowans aren't going to be bothered by relationship decisions that don't affect them (we tend to have a live-and-let-live attitude) nor will they they respond to alarmist propaganda (we have a pretty high leve of education, too). As for "activist judges," I think Iowans understand and respect the role of the courts enough that they won't really fall for the theory that Justice Cady, appointed by Terry Branstad, is somehow part of a leftist attempt to legislate from the bench. Finally, Iowans are fairly independent and proud (if you couldn't tell) and won't respond well to folks from California, Florida, or New York trying to change their minds.

Carl of IA 12:56AM April 06, 2009

So, maybe there's hope for that story circulating about Charles Grassley and that Iowan sheep!

GTFOOH of CA 2:25PM April 05, 2009

We don't worry when two 18-year-olds want to get married and say "well, this is just one step away from someone marrying a 15-year-old, or someone marrying their cat."
To argue that this is one step away from something more sinister is ridiculous!

Jacob Goldman of MI 11:52AM April 05, 2009

Even if they went with these "settle for what we give you and like it" civil unions the benefits are in no way equal to those of marriage.All United States Citizens are equal.The benefits allowed to two consenting opposite sex Adults who enter into the legal contract of marriage should be the exact same for a same sex couple who enter into the same contract on a federal level.Marriage is a legal contract making the two people responsible for each other legally, financially.The 1100+ benefits allowed a Married opposite sex couples are denied same sex couples federally.Imagine your own life being treated less than by your government, the same government that takes your taxes without giving you equal treatment.The gay couple next door or down the street pays more in taxes than you ever will because they are viewed less than.But expected to pay more than you and you spouse.They can be denied work, health care benefits etc.In a gay couples lives they will have to battle the courts in the event of death.Not to mention the family who comes back in the picture magically once someone dies who can then toss you out on the street if you haven't spent the money to take care of any legal paperwork.It is much more expensive for a gay person to do anything legally binding because what you get with a single fee and a signature takes big money for a homosexual.Even if you fill out all the paperwork pay all the legal fees you still will not be allowed to file joint income tax, get all those tax breaks, ever get the Social Security of your deceased partner etc.Instead you will know that all that money that you and your partner have payed into the Social Security Fund will go to your opposite sex neighbor just because some people feel the need to make sure that whatever you do in life, however much you work to benefit your community, donate your time, generally be a good person, it will never be good enough for you to treated equally because some people are so concerned with what happens in your bedroom that you don't matter as a equal because it makes them uncomfortable or is against personal religious views.So even when the US Constitution states that all people have the same rights equally it only applies to certain people never you and you have to just shut up like it and keep on paying and paying and paying. Now that I think about it I wonder if that is the reason the Gay used to mean happy, but now it means miserable in America..This is step in the right direction but it still leaves the homosexual a second class citizen.

Whatever of TX 10:25PM April 04, 2009

Sandra Day O'Connor says that an activist judge is a judge that gets out of bed in the morning.

Pam of IA 10:23PM April 04, 2009

Gay rights advocates are NOT DENIED equal protection under the law. They have ALL THE LEGAL RIGHTS of Marriage through CIVIL UNIONS.
What is "really" at the crux of the issue is Gay Shame and their desire to co-opt the "term", Marriage, in order to absolve their guilt.
Gay rights advocates display a total lack of respect for their fellow Citizens in their attempts to FORCE OTHERS to accept their beliefs and practices.
Marriage is a TERM. It has a definition describing that term. Gays DESIRE to CHANGE THE MEANING OF THE TERM. This IS NOT ABOUT LEGAL RIGHTS!
We could advocate switching the meaning of 'right to wrong' and 'wrong to right'. But we don't. Even if a vocal minority group wish it to be so.
We call Girls a girl and Boys a boy for cultural reasons. We could change those terms too, if we want. But we don't.
We could change the side of the road we drive on from the Right Lane to the Left Lane. But we don't.
Gay rights advocates are the single most Militant Fascist minority groups in the country. And their 'cause' is corrosive to our society in many ways. This is NOT to suggest that they do not deserve equal protection under the law. They do.
Many of these issues are NOT ABOUT LAW but GAY GUILT AND SHAME.

Does it Matter of PA 9:51PM April 04, 2009

Gay rights advocates are NOT DENIED equal protection under the law. They have ALL THE LEGAL RIGHTS of Marriage through CIVIL UNIONS.
What is "really" at the crux of the issue is Gay Shame and their desire to co-opt the "term", Marriage, in order to absolve their guilt.
Gay rights advocates display a total lack of respect for their fellow Citizens in their attempts to FORCE OTHERS to accept their beliefs and practices.
Marriage is a TERM. It has a definition describing that term. Gays DESIRE to CHANGE THE MEANING OF THE TERM. This IS NOT ABOUT LEGAL RIGHTS!
We could advocate switching the meaning of 'right to wrong' and 'wrong to right'. But we don't. Even if a vocal minority group wish it to be so.
We call Girls a girl and Boys a boy for cultural reasons. We could change those terms too, if we want. But we don't.
We could change the side of the road we drive on from the Right Lane to the Left Lane. But we don't.
Gay rights advocates are the single most Militant Fascist minority groups in the country. And their 'cause' is corrosive to our society in many ways. This is NOT to suggest that they do not deserve equal protection under the law. They do.
Many of these issues are NOT ABOUT LAW but GAY GUILT AND SHAME.

Patrick of FL 9:48PM April 04, 2009

Gay rights advocates are NOT DENIED equal protection under the law. They have ALL THE LEGAL RIGHTS of Marriage through CIVIL UNIONS.
What is "really" at the crux of the issue is Gay Shame and their desire to co-opt the "term", Marriage, in order to absolve their guilt.
Gay rights advocates display a total lack of respect for their fellow Citizens in their attempts to FORCE OTHERS to accept their beliefs and practices.
Marriage is a TERM. It has a definition describing that term. Gays DESIRE to CHANGE THE MEANING OF THE TERM. This IS NOT ABOUT LEGAL RIGHTS!
We could advocate switching the meaning of 'right to wrong' and 'wrong to right'. But we don't. Even if a vocal minority group wish it to be so.
We call Girls a girl and Boys a boy for cultural reasons. We could change those terms too, if we want. But we don't.
We could change the side of the road we drive on from the Right Lane to the Left Lane. But we don't.
Gay rights advocates are the single most Militant Fascist minority groups in the country. And their 'cause' is corrosive to our society in many ways. This is NOT to suggest that they do not deserve equal protection under the law. They do.
Many of these issues are NOT ABOUT LAW but GAY GUILT AND SHAME.

Patrick of FL 9:45PM April 04, 2009