CA Proposition 8

Living here in California, every day brings more news related to the passage of Proposition 8, which took away the right of same sex couples to marry in this state, ending marriage equality. Seeing this unfold over the past several weeks has been fascinating. I've come to a few conclusions.

1. No matter which side of the issue you fall on, you must find some "mild entertainment," if not sheer disgust in the fact that the Mormon church, which donated $25 million of the total $35 million raised to oppose marriage equality, would feel it had a dog in this fight. After all, defining a marriage as one woman married to one man flies in the face of polygamy, which is rampant in "them parts," even with young teenage girls being forced to marry older men! The hypocrisy, let alone the pedophilia, begs to be pointed out in stark terms--a clear example of those with power inflicting their will on those without power to suit their own selfish agenda.
2. I have always taken huge issue with churches injecting themselves into political matters. In my opinion, such organizations should lose their tax exempt status in accordance with federal law.
3. Our nation was founded to escape religious persecution. I think we just witnessed yet another example of what the founding fathers vigorously opposed: religion imposing its will on the people of a free society--in this case a minority group, a group without political power.
4. Since when did marriage become about sex? I, perhaps naively, thought people got married because of love and a shared willingness to commit to one another for better or worse. Can the law control two adult hearts? To suppose such a thing is a bit ludicrous.
5. I've decided the advertisement campaign of anti marriage equality is typical of the extreme conservative movement: whatever they say--the exact opposite is the truth. I think these people took a lesson or two out of the Karl Rovian school of lie and deceit, of fear and manipulation. This proposition wasn't about "redefining marriage," as the ads repeatedly said. This proposition was about trying to institutionalize and legitimize hatred and civil discrimination. It was about having something the church-goer could hate in good conscience and try to defeat with zealous, thoughtless, reckless abandon, because "that's what god wants." It was about having something to keep the money flowing in as times got hard.
   
   I'm beginning to believe that love can not exist in our world without hate. Good can not exist without evil. Angels can not exist without demons. White can not exist without black. Fear makes organized religion wealthy, gives it purpose, grants it permission to know god: demonizing some group of people. Fear ensures a steady funding source. First, the late Jerry Falwell mailed out millions of fliers begging "god fearing people" everywhere to enrich his always "almost bankrupt" coffers (yeah, right! lying thief) "to fight the 'godless' communists." Then, when the USSR fell, a new enemy had to be found, one even more insidious than the last, for it quietly lurked in our very midst, with its "godless agenda:" the pinko faggot communist liberals.
6. If the extremist conservatives really wanted to protect the sanctity of marriage, Proposition 8 would have outlawed straight people getting divorced. Why not? Because of selfish, lying, abusive, hypocrites.

I'm certain this issue will not go quietly into the night. People on both sides have very emotionally held beliefs. Civil rights has become a centerpiece in our national conscience as a result of the election of an amazing black man to the highest office in the land. I suspect the majority can not long persecute any minority. Time will tell.