Society/Culture Marriage equality debate - Part 1

[camsmith]

Get with it, Australian politicians. Opinion polls consistently point to majority support for gay marriage. It is inevitable, whether you agree with it or not. Do we need someone like Justice Kennedy above to remind us what's at stake here?

There wasn't support in California. But who needs democracy anyway when you have nine unelected judges.

“Today’s decree says that my Ruler, and the Ruler of 320 million Americans coast-to-coast, is a majority of the nine lawyers on the Supreme Court. The opinion in these cases is the furthest extension in fact—and the furthest extension one can even imagine—of the Court’s claimed power to create “liberties” that the Constitution and its Amendments neglect to mention. This practice of constitutional revision by an unelected committee of nine, always accompanied (as it is today) by extravagant praise of liberty, robs the People of the most important liberty they asserted in the Declaration of Independence and won in the Revolution of 1776: the freedom to govern themselves,”

- Justice Antonin Scalia.

 

[Forward Press]

There wasn't support in California. But who needs democracy anyway when you have nine unelected judges.

- Justice Antonin Scalia.

It is now clear that the challenged laws burden the liberty of same-sex couples, and it must be further acknowledged that they abridge central precepts of equality . . . Especially against a long history of disapproval of their relationships, this denial to same-sex couples of the right to marry works a grave and continuing harm. The imposition of this disability on gays and lesbians serves to disrespect and subordinate them. And the Equal Protection Clause, like the Due Process Clause, prohibits this unjustified infringement of the fundamental right to marry.

The tyranny of the majority and all that. Issues of equality and fundamental rights and liberties must never be left exclusively to the popular vote.

 

[CM86]

There wasn't support in California. But who needs democracy anyway when you have nine unelected judges.

- Justice Antonin Scalia.

You're part of that reclaim Australia thing, right?

 

[Chief]

"The justices noted how marriage has been transformed from a union arranged by a couple's parents for financial reasons to a voluntary contract, and from a male-dominated relationship to an agreement where women have "equal dignity." These changes, the majority wrote, have strengthened the institution of marriage. "
http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/7470036

 

[Forward Press]

The nature of injustice is that we may not always see it in our own times. The generations that wrote and ratified the Bill of Rights and the Fourteenth Amendment did not presume to know the extent of freedom in all of its dimensions, and so they entrusted to future generations a charter protecting the right of all persons to enjoy liberty as we learn its meaning. When new insight reveals discord between the Constitution’s central protections and a received legal stricture, a claim to liberty must be addressed.

You may call it judicial activism but SCOTUS (and our High Court) have never been strictly about the original intent of the founding fathers, with zero variation for modern times.

Many who deem same-sex marriage to be wrong reach that conclusion based on decent and honorable religious or philosophical premises, and neither they nor their beliefs are disparaged here. But when that sincere, personal opposition becomes enacted law and public policy, the necessary consequence is to put the imprimatur of the State itself on an exclusion that soon demeans or stigmatizes those whose own liberty is then denied.

Another good passage that helps explain the majority opinion.

 

[Forward Press]

You're part of that reclaim Australia thing, right?

I just found it amusing he's relying on Justice Scalia of all people. His dissent reads quite...poorly, to put it nicely.

 

[Chief]

I just found it amusing he's relying on Justice Scalia of all people. His dissent reads quite...poorly, to put it nicely.

It reads like a Tesseract post.

 

[Showbags]

Neanderthal Abbort left behind again. Uganda will legalise gay marriage before Tony ever will.

 

[Lebbo73]

Congratulations to the U.S.

We're an embarrassment.

Haha. People on here are usually complaining if we copy what the US does.

 

[Crow54]

The tyranny of the majority and all that. Issues of equality and fundamental rights and liberties must never be left exclusively to the popular vote.

Yes to this!

It reads like a Tesseract post.

I was so thrilled to hear the news this morning! It won't be long now.

 

[Gough]

Silly buggers, now society will forever be damaged, Sodom, and Gomorah revisited, and the chooks will go off the lay. This is what gay marriages will do people!!!! China, Russia, and our leftist, Muslim enemies have won. Vale America.

 

[Barry_Badrinath]

We are socially behind all of America. Let that sink in for a few moments...[/B]

Just because America does something, doesn't make it right or forward thinking.

You're talking about a country that thinks Caitlin Jenner is brave and spends all it's time reporting on race hate stories.

Having said that, good for gay Americans (well, the ~10% of them that are actually monogomous).

 

[Crow54]

Just because America does something, doesn't make it right or forward thinking.

You're talking about a country that thinks Caitlin Jenner is brave and spends all it's time reporting on race hate stories.

Having said that, good for gay Americans (well, the ~10% of them that are actually monogomous).

Are you serious? If so, you're living up to your profile photo.

You should be off celebrating your fabulous win last night, not coming here to rain on the parade.

 

[Barry_Badrinath]

Are you serious? If so, you're living up to your profile photo.

You should be off celebrating your fabulous win last night, not coming here to rain on the parade.

Sorry, I forgot that that this thread was titled "Marriage Equality Parade" rather than "Marriage Equality Debate".

 

[Gough]

Just because America does something, doesn't make it right or forward thinking.

You're talking about a country that thinks Caitlin Jenner is brave and spends all it's time reporting on race hate stories.

Having said that, good for gay Americans (well, the ~10% of them that are actually monogomous).

Caitlin Jenner is brave. The increased awareness, and understanding of trans people over the past couple years has been really good to see. What will be great is when we no longer have to describe them as brave, just for being themselves.

 

[Crow54]

Sorry, I forgot that that this thread was titled "Marriage Equality Parade" rather than "Marriage Equality Debate".

The debate has almost run its course. You can continue if you like, but I'm off to read all the positive, joyful responses on social media.

 

[Big Sauce 21]

Obamaaa obamaa changeeeeeeee

 

[Maggie5]

There wasn't support in California. But who needs democracy anyway when you have nine unelected judges.

- Justice Antonin Scalia.

Oh No, does that mean we have to let everybody out of jail as I don't think any of our judges or magistrates have been elected.

 

[Gough]

46th anniversary of the anniversary of the Stonewall riots this weekend too, apt.

 

[Forward Press]

Oh No, does that mean we have to let everybody out of jail as I don't think any of our judges or magistrates have been elected.

"Separation of powers? Is this like when I have to separate my whites from my colours?"

 

[Gough]

"Separation of powers? Is this like when I have to separate my whites from my colours?"

They tried that in South Africa, it didn't end well.

 

[Lester Burnham]

There wasn't support in California. But who needs democracy anyway when you have nine unelected judges

Two thirds of the states prohibit gay marriage. Before he was elected Obama said he opposed gay marriage.

Four out of the five judges opposed the decision so effectively it comes down to one judge. Democracy is not well served when unelected officials determine the law instead of elected representatives.

 

[Gough]

So having exhausted the society will collapse, won't someone think of the children sort of arguments, it's now undemocratic, $10 to the first person who starts crapping on about judicial activism.

 

[Forward Press]

So having exhausted the society will collapse, won't someone think of the children sort of arguments, it's now undemocratic, $10 to the first person who starts crapping on about judicial activism.

In fairness to Lester, it was actually camsmith that first mentioned 'undemocratic'.

I also like how Lester left out what is the elected President's current official view on gay marriage.

 

[NarniMagic]

Which one is it Abbott?