Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof;
This ALL the Constitution says about religion..... Exactly where is separation of Church and State ?? On Jan 13, 10:28 am, Tommy News <[email protected]> wrote: > It’s time end prejudice against gays > > -by Steve Lachman > > I’m in a mixed marriage. That is, my wife is left-handed, and I, as > God intended, am right-handed. > > A couple hundred years ago, many people believed that left-handed > people were possessed by the devil. So left-handedness was literally > beaten out of this unfortunate minority — with resulting negative > consequences on mental performance and dexterity. Because we now know > that left-handedness is merely a genetic abnormality, and not a > spiritual one, my wife and I can enjoy wedded bliss. > > Not that long ago, mixed marriages between races were also forbidden > but, fortunately, miscegenation laws in the United States have been > declared unconstitutional. > > Despite some societal movement toward tolerance and inclusion, due to > our irrational prejudices, we still outlaw another form of marriage: > homosexual marriage. Opponents of gay marriage give a number of > reasons gay marriage should remain unlawful, such as: The Bible says > so (Leviticus 18:22-23: “You shall not lie with a male as one lies > with a female; it is an abomination”). The Quran has similar > prohibitions. Or AIDS is more easily spread through gay sex; > homosexual relationships cannot produce offspring; it’s costly to > employers and the government to pay health and survivor’s benefits to > gay partners; and marriage is by its nature a union between a man and > a woman. > > I’ll briefly address each of these objections. > > As individuals, we are free to follow our religion’s admonitions > against homosexual relationships. However, constitutionally, we have > separated church and state. The legal prohibition should not be > founded in religion unless it can be shown that it somehow otherwise > furthers the public welfare. > > If we want to limit the spread of HIV through gay men, encouraging > stable monogamous relationships is a step in the right direction. The > absence of gay marriage did not stem the spread of AIDS in the 1980s > and ’90s. > > There are about 6.5 billion people in this overpopulated, > resource-stressed lifeboat called Earth, and you’re worried that 4 > percent of them won’t reproduce? Plenty of married heterosexuals don’t > have children, and we don’t nullify their marriages. And an increasing > number of same-sex couples adopt, and many lesbian women have children > through artificial insemination. > > Benefits are costly regardless of the sexual orientation of the > recipient. It’s a price we pay for encouraging stable relationships > and ensuring that as many people as possible have health care and are > not left destitute. > > Marriage has traditionally been between a man and a woman. It need not > stay that way. Because of anatomy and temperament, there is a > difference between a heterosexual relationship and a homosexual > relationship. If you want to call the homosexual partnership something > else, such as a “civil union,” so be it, though some people will say > that by calling it a different name, we are denigrating it — and maybe > they’re right. The point is to grant homosexuals the same rights of > economic security, emotional stability and societal acceptance as > heterosexuals. Why? Because we’re all just people. > > At long last, we have abolished “don’t ask, don’t tell.” Let’s abandon > our prejudices and take the logical next step: Legalize gay marriage. > It’s time to stop forcing square pegs into round holes. I hope our own > state representatives will lead the charge. > > Steve Lachman is an assistant professor of legal writing at the > Dickinson School of Law. He can be reached at [email protected]. > > More:http://www.centredaily.com/2011/01/13/2451567/its-time-end-prejudice-... > > -- > Together, we can change the world, one mind at a time. > Have a great day, > Tommy -- Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum * Visit our other community at http://www.PoliticalForum.com/ * It's active and moderated. Register and vote in our polls. * Read the latest breaking news, and more.
