California's Proposition 8 Status (Gay Marriage Related)

[Aeridus]

Supposedly there's still a million or so votes left to be counted, but right now Proposition 8 is winning by 500k votes out of millions of cast votes. It seeks to ban gay marriage once more in the state of California.

More info:
http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=93497470583

Online petition:
http://www.petitiononline.com/seg5130/petition.html

[ManaUser]

Yep. It sucks. Not a huge surprise but I was really hoping it would fail. I'd have been proud of my state for a change.

I understand that there's a legal case to challenge it as being a constitutional "revision" as opposed to an "amendment" (i.e. a more drastic change) which would mean it didn't belong on the ballot without being approved by the legislature, but I don't really see that going anywhere. The only consolation is that it didn't pass by much so it might be reversible in the future, but that's going to be harder than just voting this down would have been.

[Wilmo]

Yep. It sucks. Not a huge surprise but I was really hoping it would fail. I'd have been proud of my state for a change.

I understand that there's a legal case to challenge it as being a constitutional "revision" as opposed to an "amendment" (i.e. a more drastic change) which would mean it didn't belong on the ballot without being approved by the legislature, but I don't really see that going anywhere. The only consolation is that it didn't pass by much so it might be reversible in the future, but that's going to be harder than just voting this down would have been.

I totally agree

[Prettydragoon]

This sucks like a totally sucking thing. Also, I always thought the idea with a constitution was that it is more difficult to change than ordinary laws.

[ManaUser]

This sucks like a totally sucking thing. Also, I always thought the idea with a constitution was that it is more difficult to change than ordinary laws.

Definitely. I do think it's kind neat that it can be amended by a popular vote in this state, but it should require 2/3 or 3/4 vote, not just usual 50%.

[Aeridus]

Yeah, Florida required a 60% of the vote (which succeeded, unfortunately), so I was surprised that it was only 50% for California considering there was already something in place to approve of same sex marriage.

[RevChris77]

http://www.youtube.com/v/XkzwJXDZ7aU&hl=en&fs=1

[ManaUser]

http://www.youtube.com/v/XkzwJXDZ7aU&hl=en&fs=1

Wow.

[Ce6]

http://www.youtube.com/v/XkzwJXDZ7aU&hl=en&fs=1

Wow.

Indeed.
Keith's comments are usually pretty good, and this is no exception.
If only he'd taken a look at the potential consequences and done this before election night, it might have helped. Now it's going back into the hands of the courts, you know, those "activists judges" who are doing their job of determining the constitutionality of the law.
I'd like to see a proposition to prohibit the right of marriage between two people of the same congregation. That'll teach those meddling Mormons.
Seriously. We need some politicians with the balls to clarify the difference between the two definitions of marriage: Civil and Religious. Let the churches do what they want, but it's not a legally binding contract in the eyes of the State. Civil would be the contract that is used for tax and other legal purposes.
And for those supporters who say "It's the will of the people, we need to get over it and move on." I say FUCK YOU. If the Proposition had failed, I'm sure as hell you wouldn't "get over it and move on," you'd be frothing at the mouth demanding the ban anyway, most likely hiding behind some flimsy 'freedom of religion' argument just because you're afraid of having to tell your kid that "some boys just don't like girls, and vice versa".

At least now there's some serious national attention being paid to the issue, and there needs to be some serious answers on the status of marriage (civil and/or religious) as to whether or not it's a fundamental civil right in this country.
We may have lost on this proposition, but the war is far from over on this one.

edit: adding some links
Dan Savage is making the rounds and some good points:
http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/hea ... ins-over-p
http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/hea ... oreilly-ne

and in case anyone feels like joining in some civil disobedience (peaceful protests/rallies scheduled for this saturday 11/15):
http://jointheimpact.wetpaint.com/?t=anon

[Aeridus]

Apparently my dad is of the opinion that two people shouldn't marry if they are too different or if it's socially unacceptable, because then the marriage wouldn't be as stable. -_-

Personally, I think love is worth fighting for no matter what society says.

[Kittyboymuffin]

Apparently my dad is of the opinion that two people shouldn't marry if they are too different or if it's socially unacceptable, because then the marriage wouldn't be as stable. -_-

So ... he's saying that the marriage between two people who love each other wouldn't be stable because of what other people would think about it? Theoretical other people?

[Aeridus]

...yes. >.<

[Aeridus]

The nationwide protests today should be interesting.

[LeftTentacleGreen]

In related news, thanks to all the money they spent on trying to get Prop 8 passed, gay-bashing group Focus on the Family has been forced to lay off 20% of its workforce (about 200 people). HA!

I hope it was worth it you homophobic sacks of shit!

[Ce6]

The nationwide protests today should be interesting.

It was pretty good. I missed the local march, but I did go to the rally afterwards to hear the speakers (somehow I don't think all of the estimated 20,000 protesters stayed for that, the crowd did seem pretty thinned out by then). Gave a bit of money to the ACLU, signed the thankyou poster that the Human Rights Campaign was sending to Keith Olbermann, and endorsed the petition to repeal Prop 8 the next time we get to vote.
Hopefully the courts will take care of things before it gets that far. Now we just have to wait and see.

[Fnyunj]

So - I was getting fired up to go downtown and march, and I come downstairs, and my tenant is sitting on her ass watching tv and eating ribs, and she's like - "where the fuck are you going?"

And I said "nowhere", and went down to the garage to work on my bike. Screw it if she can't get off her lazy ass and march for her own damn cause.

[Leeloo]

I just found this link on slashdot:

http://www.drizzle.com/~slmndr/salamand ... s/opt3.htm

Proof that gay marriage took place in churches over much of the last two millennia.

[Vedius Pollio]

It should be noted that some critics of gay marriage are gay themselves and don't want "the lifestyle" suburbanised.

Hell, I'm straight and I'm not sure if I approve of straight people marrying.

Marriage leads to children, and children lead to exploitation, pester power, "think of the children" and other cheapness that degrades humanity's potential. It leads to censorship laws, money wasted to "filter" the internet (the Howard government spent $90 million dollars to create a filter which a 13-year-old child cracked in 15 minutes; Rudd is planning some kind of firewall as we speak), ethnic minorities being stigmatised by the bourgeois DEA crackheads who script public service announcements, idiotic urban legends being spread around like oral Herpes, and last but not least, the BOVINE ADORATION OF TAX-CUTS BY BREEDER TRAILER-TRASH.

Straight marriage is the start of a slippery slope to gay marriage!

A person who can look at a very cute child and then kick that child around and brutalise it with no mercy... ...is a hero.

Children are enemy vermin. I repeat, children are enemy vermin.

I've posted this advertisement before, but I think it sums up perfectly the nauseating maudlin evil of childolatry:
http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=gvaMIjVC76Q

Listen to that syrupy voice, that syrupy message trying to stuff itself into the decent throats of the citizenry! It sounds like the same patronising Child Welfare abomination that organised the Stolen Generation! Do not believe its lies! Children are enemy vermin!

Homosexuals should be kicking children around instead of wanting to raise them. Fight back against your child enslavers! The cane! The cane!

[RavenxDrake]

I just found this link on slashdot:

http://www.drizzle.com/~slmndr/salamand ... s/opt3.htm

Proof that gay marriage took place in churches over much of the last two millennia.

I've got an older page (only available, for the moment, through Wayback) that details similar:
http://web.archive.org/web/200703190024 ... oswell.htm

[Aeridus]

I somewhat agree, Vedius. Either legalize gay marriage or ban marriage for everyone. Civil unions should be the only thing that have legal standing.