What This World Is Coming To

Some years back, when Marriage Equality came to the forefront of the political scene, if you’d asked me my opinion I would have just shrugged.  It didn’t matter to me.  I didn’t think it effected me personally.  But I guess, over the years, as I’ve come to know gay and lesbian couples, it has begun to matter quite a lot.  It must, because yesterday’s SCOTUS decision made me so very happy.

As I was telling a friend, I work with two men, both of whom had to leave their home states to marry their beloved.

I also have wonderful neighbors who have been living together for over 20 years.  They are both in their 70’s and one of the ladies is very ill, without insurance.  How wonderful would it be if they decided to marry and her spouse could make end-of-life decisions for her?  Or even get her insured so her end of life doesn’t have to come so fast?

There are two arguments I keep hearing against this ruling:

1. This should be a state decision and the Supreme Court should not be able to over rule it.
2. Clergy all across the country are got to suffer/be arrested/be attacked because they won’t marry same-sex couples.

I cry bullshit on both of these.

1. The Supreme Court is there to uphold the Constitution and federal laws.  I believe the pursuit of happiness is mentioned in the Declaration of Independence as an inalienable right.
2. My father is an ordained minister. (Yeah, it is hilarious.) A while back he told me he was sad because he had met with a young couple who had asked him to marry them and he had to refuse.  Were they gay? No.  He refused because in his heart he believed there to be problems in the relationship.  Apparently, he’s done this more than once.  Now, to me, this is wrong.  Which is why I would never be a member of his church.  But he’s not going to get arrested for doing what he believes is the right thing.  And knowing how he felt, I would never go to him to marry me.  Nor would I go to a Catholic Church, because I know they wouldn’t welcome my divorced husband.  But I know Catholic people who are perfectly adorable.  I love some of them.  Just like I know gay people I love, but I wouldn’t expect them to trot to my Dad’s bible thumping church for a wedding.

Also, in the news, the Confederate flag is being taken down all across the South. Hell, Walmart is even taking it off the shelves and those are their people!!  I understand that the flag is a symbol to the South, but the Confederate Flag belongs in a museum right next the the flag with 13 stars.  It’s okay to teach about it.  It’s okay by me if you want to fly it off your porch.  (If you did, however, I would also assume you have camouflage and several automatic weapons.)  (Or that you were my stepbrother.)  But it shouldn’t be flying anywhere on government property.  Just like we wouldn’t fly the Mexican flag or the English flag.  That war was lost.  Move on.

Sidebar:  I really have no problem with the Ten Commandments being a feature in court houses across the land.  Where do we think laws came from.  That’s history, too.

I think it’s the worst kind of unfortunate that nine people had to die in order for this to happen.  I think the racial events of the last year will prove a catalyst to greater change in the future, but I don’t know if we’ll ever see the kind of racial equality that I would like to see.  The kind that is blind to color and everyone is judged by who they are.

But then I never thought I’d live to see yesterday.  So, who knows?  It gives me hope, at least.