Equality

The next two days may become a historical moment, a further step forward of the USA recognizing all people are equal. One of our founding tenets, continuing to be realized even centuries later. Until the day everyone is treated equal, the fight will continue.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-21932682

* tenets

But, on topic, I'm a bit confused about the state of play. The BBC news article uses a bunch of double-negatives. Is gay marriage currently allowed in California? If not, why not? Who's appealing what? What's getting overturned?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_Proposition_8

BBC also has a good Q&A here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-21943292

Today the court is hearing the case about Prop 8 in California. Tomorrow they will be hearing the case about DOMA, a 1996 law blocking federal recognition of gay marriages from a state allowing it. DOMA for example blocks a state recognized gay couple from filing as married on their federal taxes.

I aggress with the point about equal rights but I have always disagreed about everyone being equal. We are not. Some people confuse equal rights with being equal.

For example: I was in the gym a couple weeks ago and a dude in there was bench pressing over 400 lbs. My weak and unequal to his bones would have just snapped if my mussels even could do that.

Fortunately we are all a little different so our individual strengths can enhance our society and each of our talents (god given or evolution given, whatever you believe) can help all of us.

What also annoys me is when kids are told they are all equal and can do anything they want. This is true for the most part but we really should help to guide kids to their desire while taking into account their talent.

Equal rights. Not equal abs.

If you believe that the modern-day Supreme Court is averse to setting earthshattering precedent (and there's much ado about this topic), then one likely outcome is that they will say that the plaintiffs in the Prop 8 case lack standing in the case. Since the appellate court already upheld that law being overturned, this would mean that California would once again allow gay marriage. I think.

The DOMA case is a bit more interesting. Maybe the Supreme Court could find a narrow technicality to throw out the law, in a vain attempt not to establish a fundamental right to gay marriage. Let's take that as a given, for the sake of discussion, and ponder what the outcome would be.

In effect, you'd have full Federal recognition of gay marriages, which would then be legal to get in a minority of states. In other states, however, you wouldn't be able to get married. But what if you got married in another state and moved into a state that refused to recognize those marriages? That will set the ground for yet another lawsuit which would inevitably find its way up to the Supreme Court. *That* case would be harder to skip on a technicality, and would probably settle things once and for good.

Maybe.

The federal government here just needs to do what the Canadian government did... just knuckle down and say this is the way it's going to be. I still love PM Paul Martin's speech in support of C-38.