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Voters in CA recently amended their State Constitution to define marriage between a male and a female. Voting Yes meant that you wanted the amendment, voting No meant you opposed it. On the Yes side, you had the millions from big churches such as The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons) and on the No side, you had most of the state's major newspapers and even big tech firms such as Google and Apple. The amendment passed by a slight margin, bringing the Yes total to 52.3% and the No total to 47.7%.
The history of same-sex marriage in California is a long one. Multiple court battles and back & forth marriage equality initiatives have been going on since the 1970's. As you can imagine, this has been a divisive issue in California. The blow to the supporters of State-recognized same-sex marriage must be devastating. While the other side looks at it as a victory for traditional family values. As we speak, opposition groups are rallying to challenge the vote. This is what happens when you use the aggression of the State to get what you want. There are always unintended consequences.
What does each group actually want? Fundamentally, marriage equality is one of acceptance. The same-sex marriage crowd wants all of us to recognize their status and give them the same legal rights. If you don't agree, they are going to use the force of the state to make you recognize them. The anti same-sex marriage crowd does not want to recognize the fact that same-sex couples do love each other and want to be legally married. If you don't agree, they are going to use the force of the state to make you. Both groups are perfectly willing to get behind the guns of Government and force you into submission.
If the state was not involved in marriage at all, there would still be two vastly opposing views, but neither group would be forced to accept the other. Only when the individuals of each view truly learn that acceptance does not come from the barrel of a gun, will these people be able to live in harmony. Until that day, we will see continued ballot fights, court cases and the trampling of everyone's rights. It is a sad fact, at the end of 2008, people still care what consenting adults do in the privacy of their own lives. Unfortunately, when State imposed aggression is viewed as a moral good, we will never live in peace.
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did you write this frank? i like it. one point i want to challenge is the idea that "the anti same-sex marriage crowd does not want to recognize the fact that same-sex couples do love each other and want to be legally married". I think they DO recognize and some really understand that, they just want to keep traditional marriage reinforced.