Gay Marriage - poll added

[NoHall]

By eliminating legal rights for spouses, you also would be eliminating a person's legal right to make medical decisions for his or her spouse, decisions that would then fall to either the parent or child of the stricken one, whether or not that person is religiously and/or happily married.

Sorry, but it's not even worth debating.

May I ask in what ways you are discriminated against, by law, as a single person? That is something worth discussion. I understand that single people can get dumped on at work etc but how does the law affect you in a negative way?

I thought Terry Schiavo made this point for me. Her darling husband overrode her parents. And what if my parents/sibs were raving lunatics and I would rather have a trusted friend make these decisions? I should be able to determine who makes these decisions if I am incapacitated.

I'm not just pi$$ing and moaning about my life; if I'm getting "dumped on" it's not enough to keep me from sleeping at night. I just think that the government's inclusions for married people causes a lot of exclusions for single people and the gay community, since they're basically seen as single and un-marriageable by the government.

 

[NoHall]

But are you saying that people who get married should NOT be then viewed by
the government as each others' next of kin? Because that's the whole point of the governmental involvement. Married people legally become family. And that is useful in countless ways. Marriage is or should be more than just a piece of paper, but that paper is very important.

A person should have the right to determine his/her next of kin.

I have a test. Gotta go.

 

[TooFarTampa]

A person should have the right to determine his/her next of kin.

Thanks for clearing that up. It is an interesting point, and I mean that in all seriousness!

(Re the Schiavo reference: For those who don't know of the autopsy results, it was determined that most of her brain had atrophied and it is not possible that she was, in fact, following that balloon with her eyes on purpose. )

 

[Alicia Leonard]

I thought Terry Schiavo made this point for me. Her darling husband overrode her parents. And what if my parents/sibs were raving lunatics and I would rather have a trusted friend make these decisions? I should be able to determine who makes these decisions if I am incapacitated.

I'm not just pi$$ing and moaning about my life; if I'm getting "dumped on" it's not enough to keep me from sleeping at night. I just think that the government's inclusions for married people causes a lot of exclusions for single people and the gay community, since they're basically seen as single and un-marriageable by the government.

Wouldn't this be considered "power of attorney" or by having a living will

 

[scooterbug44]

Does the government have the right for force religious institutions to adopt that view?

You really need to give some examples of what you think this might entail because all I am thinking is that you have been brainwashed into thinking that legalizing gay marriage means you will be forced to have 2 drag queens sashaying down the aisle of your church in boas and leopard print arseless chaps. :roll:

The whole text of the Quindlen article is very cool. It's a very logical and well thought out article that sort of sums up bigotry and isms. Basically once people get to know the individual people who make up the group, they are forced to think of them as people rather than sterotypes.

Yes, it is possible to spend a lot of money and time and get legal documents drafted to cover every situation that is instantly covered by a marriage license, but why should you have to?

 

[elgordoboy]

Maybe SWGB could define "gay marriage" for the purposes of this discussion? Are we talking equal legal rights and protections for gay and hetero "spouses"under the law or is the gay community wanting to rush to their local mosques and demand that their commitment be blessed by Allah? I am thinking the former.......?

 

[Alicia Leonard]

You really need to give some examples of what you think this might entail because all I am thinking is that you have been brainwashed into thinking that legalizing gay marriage means you will be forced to have 2 drag queens sashaying down the aisle of your church in boas and leopard print arseless chaps. :roll:

The whole text of the Quindlen article is very cool. It's a very logical and well thought out article that sort of sums up bigotry and isms. Basically once people get to know the individual people who make up the group, they are forced to think of them as people rather than sterotypes.

Yes, it is possible to spend a lot of money and time and get legal documents drafted to cover every situation that is instantly covered by a marriage license, but why should you have to?

Because in the Schivo case a living will would have helped much more than a marriage document. Living wills are free to download, most health care providers also provide them for free and having one notarized is about 12 bucks.
I think everyone should be able to get married as long as they are consenting adults, but other legal documents can help until everyone is afforded the same rights.

 

[Miss Critter]

A

nd what if my parents/sibs were raving lunatics and I would rather have a trusted friend make these decisions?

If your spouse is not your most trusted friend, IMHO you are married to the wrong person.

 

[scooterbug44]

Some tactless fool called me last week because he was after my job. I was nice enough to commiserate with him over the scarcity of jobs in his field, and then he piped up with, "But you don't have to provide for your family. What does your husband do, anyway?" I told him that when I meet my husband, I'll let him know. Meanwhile I pay all of the mortgage, utilities, repair bills and everything else all by myself.

I just had to clip this because it cracked me up! :rofl: Shock that Mr. Butthead is unemployed!

Nohall, all of the weddings I have attended in my life were of people who expected to be together for the rest of their lives.

The two couples that have gotten divorced were easy ones to predict - married young, met in basic training, and didn't date long before tying the knot and two previously divorced people whose marriage disintegrated after the husband's mental problems and inability to properly medicate made the home unsafe. I'm not so concerned that the couples who had already been together for 5-9 years before they got married.

 

[Bobby J]

I do not feel we should deny anyone the personal hell that marriage can offer! We should all have a right to it! Now my wife will kill me....