A Big, Gay Hurricane

I'm sure you have all seen this video, from a group called the National Organization for Marriage (or NOM.) The one that tries to make a case that homosexuality is raising the chance of precipitation on your "opposite marriage" wedding day. Or something equally arbitrary and absurd.

In case you haven't, here is the video:



Don't let the California doctor and almost-attractive ethnically ambiguous girl fool you, bigots come in all forms of education levels and attractiveness. As a matter of fact, guess who NOM's newest role model is? Little miss "opposite marriage" herself!




Thanks to a modern, enlightened cyber generation there has been a litany of parodies making fun of said bigots, but what this issue really comes down to is "freedom."

The theory of the Big Gay Storm, is that, by giving gay couples their Constitutionally Protected rights (re: the 14th Amendment) we are taking away the rights of hate-mongers to practice their hatred.

Don't worry, hate-mongers! We have this thing called the 1st amendment too! And if you have studied your constitutional law (ha!) you would know that anybody can hate whoever they want. When a gay-married couple rolls in on their "just-gay-married" Prius, you can choose NOT to honk in celebration.

Speaking of lil'miss "opposite marriage" here is the most recent add from NOM



Internal ugly will keep you from winning a beauty contest, but my favorite part about this commercial is that the only, actual, legal reasoning backing their hate campaign is: "will create widespread and unnecessary legal conflict..."

I really do want to see where the rest of that sentence goes, but from a legal standpoint, essentially, it is saying that it will cause an "annoyance" bureaucratically. The Brooklyn post office causes widespread and unnecessary legal conflict. Getting all freaked out about heading back to kinkos to change a few words on legal-sized paper, is not enough baggage to finally make sure everyone is equally protected under the law.

This past election cycle, prop 8 passed with a slim majority of the vote. It is, and always has been my stern opinion that the matter of basic rights should not ever have to be put up for a vote. Some things, a simple majority should have no power to decide, and that is why we have a constitutional system. The 14th amendment exists already, and it gives us all equal protection under the law. Haters have a right to hate, lovers have a right to love, and states (MA, CT, ME, RI, IA) are finally realizing that equal protection extends beyond irrational fear.