All this fuss about Obama saying that he doesn’t have an issue with gay marriage had me thinking about the real issue of marriage. It seems that the religious right are hung up about same sex couples getting it on in the bedroom or where ever else they copulate! But since most couples, straight or gay, have sex before tying the knot and really don’t give a shit about having a marriage certificate before they join their sex organs, where does that leave the issue of sex in marriage? In other words, what really is the purpose of getting married in the first place?
To me, it has been always about the legal benefits and recognition from the government one gets when one is married versus being a single person. From tax benefits, to death benefits, to inheritance rights, legal rights in a court of law, marriage is about what you do as a two person entity in the eyes of the law.
So how about if the gays declared that they will NOT have sex when they marry, would that satisfy the religious nut cases? Probably not but the point about gay marriage should be about treating all persons who want to enter into a marriage contract the same whether they are a heterosexual couple or a homosexual couple. It shouldn’t make any difference about what they do sexually. It’s about their legal standing.
If marriage is restricted to just heterosexual couples, then we create a two class system where one group (straights) enjoy rights that another group (gays) don’t have. The foundation of this country is about equality. That’s why slavery was abolished and why blacks pressed for many, many years for equal treatment under the law. That’s why women fought and won the right to vote and are still fighting to be treated equally in the workplace.
But I know that the Pat Robertson’s of the world will trot out their Bible and quote some insane verse saying that God doesn’t approve of gay sex. My response to God is, find something else to do like stop wars, disease, famine, earthquakes, etc. I’m sure God could find something else to occupy his time.