Nov 06 2008
Shame on you California! Life is Not a Movie Set!
First they can’t, then they can, then they can’t, and then they can - and now they can’t. It’s like a tedious movie plot where the characters are trying to get to their hearts desire whilst the world around them keeps throwing obstacles in their way. Does the state of California, with its movie star governor realize that real life should not imitate that which is captured on camera? Does it realize that with every amendment, revote and decision reversed there are real people who are caught up in the mess?
The gay marriage issue is the point in question. Why it was this ever thought suitable for a public vote is beyond me. Only the people who are affected by something should be given a say in it, and even then only those directly involved - otherwise the world would have wanted to vote in the US Presidential election. - Those people in California however thought “we’re not happy with the idea of gay marriage, and we know a lot of straight folks here don’t like it, so we’ll put it on the ballot alongside the Presidential choices because then more people like us will turn up and vote”. Despite approving gay marriage twice now, they followed the trail of the Republican presidential campaign and changed their minds on decisions previously made.
The only reason I can see for this is that some narrow minded officials of California don’t like the idea and so they have brought it to a ballot where conservative people would turn out to vote in high numbers. McCain may not have won the election in California, but the Republican governor supports what he stands for, and McCain’s idea on gay marriage was made clear in his appearance on the Ellen show. I thought that California was better than that, and was prepared to break ground for the rest of the US - apparently the state isn’t mature enough yet to get to grips with forward thinking decisions.
California needs to get a grip. All people are supposedly created equal. In America all people are supposed to be equal under the constitution. No-one has the right to tell you marry a certain person, or gender. You have a right for the pursuit of happiness - how can you pursue happiness if it’s always going to be controlled by the local government who can manipulate public opinion to suit their own purpose? Shame on you California for showing that despite the industry you promote, you are intolerant and immature in regard to social issues. You ban gay marriage but don’t turn a hair at your divorce statistics amongst straight people. The straight people who divorced once made a oath before god “till death do us part” and then show how much they believed in their religion by filing papers down at the courthouse. Some of these people are the hypocrites who are saying “Gay marriage is against the God.” How screwed up is that?
Reading the outcome of this vote today I’m saddened and a little stunned that a state that breeds such erratic and bizarre behavior as California, has taken a vote to once again reduce the rights of people who don’t want to hold cocaine parties, have 20 minute marriages, or stalk celebrities in LA, they simply want the right to marry the person they love. It’s about time the US realized that this isn’t a game show, or a movie set, it’s real people’s lives that are being messed around here on the whims and belief system of others, and a federal law should be brought into force that allows gay couples the same rights and options that straight couples enjoy.
7 Responses to “Shame on you California! Life is Not a Movie Set!”
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As far as I’m concerned, people either believe in democracy (i.e. equality for ALL citizens in every respect) or they believe in tyranny.
Funny, the “family values” types voting to destroy families. Especially funded by the Mormon church, that historical bastion of “traditional” marriage, of one man-twenty women. (It’s still in their scriptures.)
52% of California proved on Tuesday that it believes in tyranny. I wish they’d all move to their spiritual homeland — Iran — and leave all my beautiful gay and lesbian friends down there in California to enjoy a real democracy.
Yeah you’re right. We should allow gay marriage. Better yet, we should promote it. We should teach the kids that it is okay to have sex with people that have body parts like them. Should every time we promote a union of one man and one woman to the kids we should also tell them to go ahead and experiment with homosexuality?
Nobody is denying anybody the right to be gay. Marriage has and will continue to be a religious ceremony that unites one man and one woman. Marriage isn’t just a fad like huge sunglasses and designer purses. It is a privelage set forth by God, who doesn’t want people of the same sex to have relations.
It’s not an issue of freedom, nobody is being persecuted for being gay, rather it is an issue of religion and a moral responsibility.
While the Mormon Church is to blame for funding Prop. Hate, there is another factor that we need to be aware of regarding the measure passing. The high turnout of African American voters helped pass prop. hate. So did the low turout of voters in San Fran. and Oakland. There is a quiet but large majority of African American voters that abhor equality for the GLBT community, and those voters made up for 350,000 of the 418,000 votes that put prop hate over the top.
As always, bigotry is on the wrong side of history, and this too will fade into obscurity, whether it be two years, four years, or more.
On a funny side note, there was call for a large contingent of the GLBT community to vacation in Utah on the same weekend to freak out the LDS church responsible for funding ignorance. I hope they do.
As you know, I also think it is seriously screwed up that people are celebrating a civil rights victory in the election of Obama while denying rights to other citizens. FUBAR
It’s completely crazy, in one hand you say, it’s CALIFORNIA for goodness sake, LALA land where everyone is paid millions of dollars to be something they’re not, and then you say it’s CALIFORNIA for crying out loud, if they are narrow minded, equality only for those who fit their “norm” bigots, then how can the US ever get to live up to it’s flag? GRRRR!
@unchosen Being gay isn’t a right, or a lifestyle choice. Until people become educated enough to recognize that people don’t “become” gay by watching two men holding hands. Or by drinking from the same glass that a gay person drank out of. That you are either born gay or not. Then the civil rights of those who were born with a different genetic make-up will be violated.
I think that the divorce statistics prove that to many straight people marriage is more like the passing fad situation. One season of a series on TV lasts longer than some marriages where people stood before God and promised till death do us part.
It’s a sad fact of life that mis-information and bigotry go hand-in-hand - and unfortunately there are too many people can testify to the fact that they are persecuted by society simply because they don’t have the same sexual preferences as straight people.
Great post, katieanne. With all the excitement with Obama’s win, I didn’t here about this until yesterday and when I did, my heart sunk. I have many gay friends who were hoping California’s approval of gay marriage was going to be a stepping stone for the rest of the country.
One good thing is that keeping Palin out of office means that there won’t be an attempt to change the constitution on this issue as she stated she wanted to do.
As with everything involving gay rights, it’s 1 step forward, 2 steps back.
~Kelly
http://30somethingandsearching.today.com