As the father of a gay son, living with a partner of 14 years in a major metro area, I defend gay marriage in civil law. Orientation is not a choice, one is born with it, thus orientation is neither moral nor immoral because it simply 'is.' No religious entity is obliged to marry anyone it doesn't want to marry. But marriage is also a contract in civil law between two individuals. There is no rational reason for the civil law to discriminate on the basis of gender or sexual orientation.
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Name : Joe C., Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 69, City : Quincy, State : IL Country : United States, Occupation : Retired, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, This is my first time posting or responding. In the USA marriage is looked at as a religious thing. In that respect, if there is an objection to gay marriage then that should also apply to the marriage of atheists or even possibly agnostics. In some countries, a marriage is not legal until it has been accepted by a civil authority meaning a civil union first and then religious ceremony if so desired. Why, should not all Christians or Muslims, etc. be required to make the first step to a long term union be a civil ceremony and those who so desire let them enjoy a full blown religious ceremony to entertain all the friends and relatives.
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Name : George Bjorkman, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 76, City : Palm Beach Gardens, State : FL Country : United States, Occupation : Semi-Retired, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Lower middle class, I find it amazing, the USA has always claimed that there is a distinction between Church and State. One should not influence the other. Why is it as soon as Gay Rights come up people start looking at specific parts of the bible (and ignoring others) and saying that homosexuality is wrong, we should not give people equal rights and we should force their will on other people. People keep quoting the Bible stating that it is wriiten that homosexuality is wrong. Are these same people not drinking alcohol? stoning women who commit adultry? That is stated in there as well. I feel that the Church should only sanction Gay marriage if they choose to BUT if the gay couple decides to get married at City Hall it should be okay. I do not believe in forcing the Church to change its archaic view but I do expect the government to hand out equal rights to its citezens. One thing I am happy about living in Canada is that we have equal rights for everyone. No one is treated differently for being black or white, rich or poor, gay or straight.
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Name : Derek, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Gay, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Catholic, Age : 28, City : Toronto, State : NA Country : Canada, Occupation : classified, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, I'm not sure why this topic has to even be an issue in our society in this day and age. It all comes down to one thing...DISCRIMINATION. I have still heard no compelling argument explaining how gay marriage will affect society as a whole or how it will affect people's personal lives. Allowing gays/lesbians to marry will in no way, shape, or form affect the average American's life. Over half of all marriages end in divorce. Is that not desecrating the 'sanctity of marriage', as the opponents of gay marriage claim will happen if gays are allowed to marry? The United States was founded on the ideal that there is a separation of church and state. Our forefathers came to this country to escape the religious persecution that was running rampant in Europe. Opponents of gay-marriage claim that it is a 'sin' and 'immoral'. Why are we allowing religion to dictate the laws made in the United States then? Passing laws to make society better as a whole I can understand. But again, I have heard no compelling arguments to show that gay marriage will harm our society. It frightens me to think about the fact that these extreme religious 'nuts' are the ones dictating what we should all believe and feel(look at the FCC for example). Please don't get me wrong, I do believe that we all have a right to choose any religion to follow. But once people start pushing their religion on others, that's where the problem comes in. I am a firm believer that homosexuals are born homosexual. Thier sexual preference is a part of who they are...it cannot be changed no matter what they and/or other people do. Just as the blacks could not help being black in the days of segregation and the Jews could not help being Jewish during Hitlers reign. It is 2004....why are we still discriminating?
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Name : Stephanie27778, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Atheist, Age : 25, City : Costa Mesa, State : CA Country : United States, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, I'd be very surprised if a big part of wanting same-sex marriage isn't related to health and insurance benefits, as well as other couple-related advantages. But I don't agree that it's wrong to want that. I'm covered by wife's employer-sponsored health and life insurance plans, but her same-sex coworker couples must pay for two separate, and more expensive premiums. Now that Mr. Bush's tax programs give married couples a break, it shouldn't matter if they are same-sex or not. But he doesn't see it that way
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Name : Tom Wilson, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Agnostic, City : Hot Springs, State : AR Country : United States, Occupation : Retired, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Upper middle class, I would like you to consider the scenario of the two gay men that have a relationship for many years. I am fortunate to know gay couples that have been together for 20, 30 or one couple I am personally acquainted with has just celebrated their 57th anniversary. The sad thing is that at this moment they have absolutely none of the legal protections that are afforded a straight couple that is married. It is more than health benefits - among many other things, it is the right to make medical decisions for their partner if someone is incapacitated, or the right to inherit ownership of the property or possessions that they have worked a lifetime amassing together. There are still instances of a partner dying only to have family move in and strip the other person in the relationship of everything that they had jointly worked for. It seems that there is so much talk of marriage that is a religious ceremony that it is clouding the real issue here. As a gay man in a long term relationship, all I want to do is protect my partner in the ways that "marriage" protects a straight couple. We work hard, we pay taxes, and together we add to society as much as anyone else does. It is time that we were afforded the same entitlements that come with a 'marriage', be it a religious ceremony, or a civil ceremony.
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Name : Jim, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Gay, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 51, City : Tucson, State : AZ Country : United States, Occupation : Business Owner, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, Why does the whole, entire definition of marriage have to be changed because 2% of our society wants to get married? Simply ridiculous. They consider themselves as an alternative part of the society so why not choose an alternative way to define yourself?
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Name : Lucy, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Christian, Age : 26, City : Key West, State : FL Country : United States, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, I'm sure this is a very stupid question to you all, but I'm just not sure what's the big deal in the word 'Marriage' It's basically something based in religion so common sense indicates, if you marry another person of same sex, you are out of the bounds of religion because no matter how hard you try to twist the Word of God, you can't.
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Name : Distrotion2, Gender : M, Race : Asian, Religion : Muslim, Age : 19, City : Malé, State : NA Country : Maldives, Occupation : Design Layout, Education level : High School Diploma, Social class : Middle class, All the animals on earth seek out the opposite sex to reproduce, its a natural thing to do. That is how the marriage factor was born. Any other union, partnership, arrangement is just that, but not a marriage.
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Name : Chuck Ranger, Age : 59, City : Brenham, State : TX Country : United States, As someone who considers herself a Christian, but is offended by the religious right's treatment of homosexuals, let me try to explain the opposition to gay marriage. Most people in the religious right believe that marriage is a religious term. Most people in the religious right also consider homosexuality a sin because there are passages in the bible condemning homosexuality. Therefore, they are offended by the use of a religious term like marriage being applied to something they consider a sin, like homosexuality. However, I have several problems with this. First of all, there is a separation of church and state in the United States. This means that there should be NO state sanctioned marriage. Gay or straight. This is because 'marriage' SHOULD be viewed as a purely religious term. A 'civil union' or 'union' should be recognized by the state and if a couple wants the union to be recognized by the church that should be a different subject entirely.
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Name : Alexa, Gender : F, Religion : Christian, Age : 25, City : Columbia, State : MO Country : United States, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, I fail to see how allowing civil unions between gays and lesbians leads to allowing polygamy. I also fail to see why it would be wrong to allow for the same rights for healthcare, social security, and so on. I do not understand why this issue is so threatening to so many people. If you (or I for that matter) fell in love with someone of the same gender, and were in a lifelong relationship with them. If something happened to them and they were dying in a hospital wouldn't you like the same treatment and rights as the heterosexual couple in the next bed? Personally I would.
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Name : Heather21469, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Bisexual, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 29, City : Gulf Shores, State : AL Country : United States, Occupation : Student, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Lower middle class, The major effect I see with acceptance of the homosexual lifestyle is the degradation of women's position in society. If guys can get together with other guys -- and they don't have to try to figure out we women, where does that leave the ladies? As third-class members. In Greece, the warrior's homosexual lover was more important to him than his wife. And you have to admit, guys, it's easier to figure out what another guy likes/wants than we ladies. We're not known as the 'mysterious sex' for no reason. The other aspect that disturbs me is the disease aspect, how the AIDS virus was introduced into the heterosexual community through the homosexual one. Now it's throughout all our societies, and needs to be addressed as a public health issue, not a political one, which is how it's been handled since the disease's recognition. (The movie, 'And the Band Played On,' seems to have made this point pretty well.) I understand that pedophilia is not associated with homosexuality, but that is a deep concern in our societies, especially by the ladies. If guys are free to associate with other guys, who will stop them from soliciting younger and younger boys? I heard Tom Leykis interview the founder of that Man-Boy Love association one time, and NOT ONE man who called in condemned the practice or philosophy. EVERY woman who got through did. This, to me, was very telling. Many men seem to follow just their libido, regardless of its consequences to themselves or others. Especially when they're younger.
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Name : Kathy, City : Cypress, State : CA Country : United States, i can't believe gays will do more damage to the 'institution' of marriage than straights already have. the divorce rate is well over 50% and rising. come one, it's just fear. ok, i respect the views of the christian man (mark, i think?), who can state where he stands, but at least is open to listening to other opinions. i hate it when people close their minds to the rest of the universe. yes, i am from vermont, the state of civil unions. however, what i want, as a gay male in an 11 year relationship, is full rights with my partner. while we have a lot at the state level, civil unions does not guarantee us any of the federal benefits. i am for marriage, but why does it have to be from a religious perspective? i wouldn't force my viewpoints on any church that objects to this, they shouldn't object to my getting married if it's from a secular perspective. if i can get married and receive the same benefits that you as a straight person automatically receive when you marry, and it's not in your church, does this really affect you in any way? and for those that say it's against the bible, and immoral, remember, that's your perspective. not everyone believes in your god or your bible. and because they don't believe in what you believe does not make them wrong. here's a question for the Y? forum: how come upper middle class is the highest class level listed as a choice? do not upper class people visit this site?
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Name : Christopher, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Gay, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Secular Humanist, Age : 41, City : Jericho, State : VT Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Upper middle class, I can't remember the name of the comedian that said this... Marriage for Gays...haven't they suffered enough? The Holier Than Thous are threatened by us, and if they 'allow' us to marry that might mean we're finally accepted? I love the people that say it's a sacred institution, and at the same time they're screwing around with someone else.
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Name : Dwanny, Gender : F, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Pagan, Age : 53, City : Springtown, State : TX Country : United States, Gay marriage will never become a reality if it continues to be called marriage. Gay people shouldn't be given some half-measure like civil unions instead of a full-fledged marriage, just that in calling it such calls up strong emotions for people that I don't think we'll see broad support in the U.S. for 'gay marriage'. Opponents think that children should not be exposed to a situation where two people of the same sex love one another, and where the child would see the relationship as normal, healthy or otherwise acceptable. They realize "gay marriage" is the institutionalized recognition of gay people, and would constitute state-sanctioned approval of the so-called 'gay lifestyle.' I think any insinuation that in legitimizing gay relationships as a society would somehow lead to our downfall as a country is absolutely ridiculous. We saw this argument again and again from the reactionary element in this country. Undoubtedly it was trotted out to support the continued enslavement of African-Americans, the opposition to womens' suffrage, to interracial marriage, desegregation of schools. It strikes me as odd that people would think that one of the oldest human institutions would be threatened by an expansion of its membership. I suppose the argument could be made that marriage is under attack in this country, but not by gay people, but by rising prosperity, rising expectations, social and physical mobility; essentially all of the things that make the modern world modern, but certainly not by the concerted effort of a minority. Beyond any of this, when gay marriage is an acceptable, legal institution in most of the state, we can begin talking about polyamorous marriages, and group marriages. I can't believe some of you can feel so smug in your recognized minority status that you would out-group us by saying, 'where does it stop, will we allow polygamous marriage?' I can only say that as two men and two women are legally entitled to enter into a contract for business, there should be no reason that two men and two women (or many more) could enter into marriage. I see no reason that groups bound by personal commitment and common interest if they became the norm in this society wouldn't strengthen the society as a whole. That these groups might be bound by sexual interest as well, is a sticking point for many who are against 'gay marriage', and any progressive marriage arrangement.
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Name : Rich, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Bisexual, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Agnostic, Age : 32, City : Lubbock, State : TX Country : United States, Social class : Upper class, 
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