Same-Sex Marriage: Conservatives' Last Stand

The Losing Conservative Argument Against Marriage Equality

By John Winfield

We all know why same-sex marriage bans violate the United States Constitution. We know how the Destruction of Marriage Act violates the United States Constitution. Conservatives know this, as well, and that is why they are desperately searching for new reasoning to uphold the bans on marriage equality. Conservatives know that public opinion is shifting toward marriage equality, even among some Republicans and Christians, another reason for them to find new arguments against marriage equality.

[See my post: The Constitutional Argument for Same-Sex Marriage Equality]

The problem with their new arguments is that they are all based on the slippery slope fallacy. Example: if gays are allowed to marry members of their own gender, then humans will begin marrying animals, adults will be marrying children, polygamy would become rampant, people will start marrying burgers (Thomas Peters’, NOM, reaction to Jack In The Box Commercial), religious freedoms will be trampled, the heterosexual divorce rate will rise, and the Earth will split open, releasing the bowels of Hell upon us all.

There is also the argument that Christian conservatives simply do not want marriage to be redefined; they like to argue that marriage has been defined by God and the church, since the dawn of time, between one man and one woman for the purpose of procreation. The truth is that there is no such thing as traditional marriage. Marriage has always evolved to fit the needs, and wants, of society. Marriage has never been created by any god, goddess, or fairy princess; it was created by man, for man. Originally, marriage was about the transfer of property and wealth, procreation came long before marriage. If someone wants to argue against this, just remind them that God was not created until less than two-thousand years ago and the gods and goddesses who preceded God never frowned upon the occasional Greek or Roman same-sex marriage. The truth is marriage has been continually redefined, and more recently, it was redefined to allow divorce for petty means (think Henry VIII), when women became more independent and no longer had to marry for financial security, when white citizens were allowed to married non-white citizens, and when men were allowed to marry men and women allowed to marry women. Marriage evolves and is evolving, whether conservatives like this fact, or not.

By law, the actual description of a contract is a “meeting of the minds.” A meeting of the minds is needed to sign a legally binding contract; marriage is a contract. A meeting of the minds can only take place between two sentient adults. Because of the adult part of the rule, an adult cannot legally sign a marriage contract with a child. Humans are the only sentient species on Earth and in the United States, so, sorry animals, you cannot marry your masters. Only Thomas Peters from NOMblog.com would actually think marriage equality would lead to men marrying the bacon in their burgers; this shows the depth of their knowledge.

The polygamy argument is perhaps the toughest to fight against, which is why it is used so often by opponents to marriage equality, including Republican presidential candidate, a napkin is not a straw idiot, and bigot, Rick Santorum. Truthfully, this seems like a logical argument to make, at least until we look closely at the word “equality.” Equal treatment under the law is the reason gay couples are seeking marriage equality in the first place and it is this equal treatment mantra that will forbid legally recognized polygamy. The current tax system, healthcare system, and many other state benefits would be equally distributed among two-person marriages. When another person is added to the marriage, it then creates an unfair advantage specifically for that group. Finally; if polygamy is the problem, why go through the impossible task of trying to ban same-sex marriage equality when passing a constitutional ban on polygamy would meet much less resistance?

The only religious freedoms being trampled in this nation are non-Christian religions, agnosticism, and atheism. Every single day, we are bombarded by religious material, which, by a constitutional standard, should offend us! Same-sex marriage is not a threat to the Christian religion; logic is the Christians’ only threat. For every person in an opposite-sex marriage, marriage to you will still be between one man and one woman; we are not seeking to redefine marriage for you or to destroy your marriage, so why do that to us?

My Platform

Instead of writing this out, I'll just provide a chart of my platform if I were running for president.  What would you change?  Would you add anything?  Comments are more than welcome!

Category	Items	Federal	State	Private	Total
Infrastructure	Aviation Bridges Dams Drinking Water Energy Hazardous Waste Inland Waterways Levees Public Parks & Recreation Rail Roads Schools Solid Waste Transit Wastewater Cover 90% at federal level, 7% at state level and 3% from private funding	$ 1,980B	$ 154B	$ 66B	$ 2,200B
Student Loans	Forgive federal student loans	$ 830B			$ 830B
R & D	Increase subsidies for research and development for universities, medical research, non-profits, and for-profit commercial businesses making less than $ 1 M per year.	Increase Deficit
Trade	Eliminate taxes on exports	Increase
Welfare	Continue unemployment insurance Fund job training programs	Increase
Bush Tax Cuts	Eliminate Bush tax cuts for incomes of $ 250 K+ Phase out Bush tax cuts for incomes of $ 175 K + over next three years Phase out Bush tax cuts for incomes of $100 K + over next six years Phase out remaining Bush tax cuts for incomes under $100 K over next ten years	-$1,400B			-$1,400B
Corporations	Close tax loopholes and simplify the tax code Reduce corporate tax rate Subsidize corporations who operate completely in America Eliminate subsidies to oil and gas Eliminate tax cuts for corporate jets Print more money Tax corporate savings Institute a tax penalty on American-based companies who sell foreign built products in America	Decrease
USPS	Eliminate regulations that drain the postal service of funds	Increase
Defense	Cut spending by 30% as suggested by Robert Gates	-$ .800B			-$ .800B
Social Security	Social Security is actually in the least amount of danger when compared to the rest of the social safety net Do not change Social Security for people age 40 and up Ages 30 - 39:  Raise retirement age by two years Below age 30:  Raise retirement age by four years Reduce amount of benefits based on earnings and retirement Increase FICA deduction but cut the amount employers have to match (55 employees/45 employers for companies making less than $ 1 M; no change for companies making higher than $ 1 M) Eliminate income tax cap on Social Security payroll tax without burdening employers				-$ 0.0B
Medicare	Lower eligibility age by fifteen years every three years to include a healthier population Require higher copayments for wealthy seniors Eliminate Medicare Advantage plans Do not repeal the ACA Negotiate drug prices with pharmaceutical companies (Act of Congress)
Wages	Increase minimum wage to $ 10 per hour				-$ 0.0B
Sales Tax	Ban the use of national sales taxes and internet sales taxes				-$ 0.0B
Main Street	Bail out Main Street by forgiving underwater mortgages Rescind the stimulus given to big banks who withhold lending Limit debit card fees Match interest on college or trade school savings accounts Continue payroll tax holiday for middle and lower class	Increase
Education	Eliminate national testing Eliminate attendance discouragements by outlawing bullying with a clear and defined comprehensive non-biased anti-bullying program that includes training for instructors, principals, and students Expand broadband to rural areas	Increase
Laws & Elections	Stop defending DOMA with taxpayer funds by repealing it Legalize same-sex marriage across the nation Pass the DREAM Act Pass ENDA Eliminate the debt ceiling Limit influence of Super PAC's in elections & investigate voter suppression Institute a non-partisan fact checking organization to fact check claims made by legislators and the executive Balance the Supreme Court by appointing one more Liberal justice and a true independent justice (there is no limit to the number of justices on the bench) Pass fair pay legislation Require companies consider American citizens for any job before workers in nation on a work Visa Expedite citizenship for foreign students here on a Student Visa after graduation				-$ 0.0B
Tax the Rich	Tax capital gains as if it were regular income	Decrease
Discretionary	Reduce DOD spending (-71.5 B) Reduce War on Terror Spending (-26.3 B) Increase spending on VA (+12.3 B) Increase disaster spending bank (+14.0 B)	-$ 71.5B			-$ 71.5B
The Dollar	Use interest rates for borrowing and lending to stabilize the domestic economy and strengthen the dollar				-$ 0.0B

Opposing Same-Sex Marriage is un-American

The Constitutional Argument for Same-Sex Marriage Equality

Banning marriage equality for same-sex couples is and will likely always be unconstitutional in the United States.  State statutes and constitutional amendments banning same-sex marriage violate the first, fifth, and fourteenth amendments.  The first amendment promises the right to freedom of speech, same-sex marriage bans curtail that right.  The fifth amendment states, "No person shall be...deprived of life, liberty...without due process of law[...]"; allowing a public vote on banning same-sex marriage is a violation of the due process clause of those people adversely affected by the law that deprives those people of life and liberty.

The fourteenth amendment is the most obviously violated of them all when marriage equality is denied to same-sex couples.  The fourteenth amendment is broken up into four parts, or sections, less the enforcement section.  Bans on same-sex marriage easily violate the first section of the fourteenth amendment, which states, "No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws."  In this amendment, the due process clause is viewed as so important to the fabric of the United States and for the protection of its citizens, the clause is reiterated.

As for the actual body of the constitution, the so-called "'Defense' of Marriage Act" (DOMA) is a major violation of Article Four.  Article Four states, "Full Faith and Credit shall be given in each State to the public Acts, Records, and judicial Proceedings of every other State. And the Congress may by general Laws prescribe the Manner in which such Acts, Records and Proceedings shall be proved, and the Effect thereof" and "The Citizens of each State shall be entitled to all Privileges and Immunities of Citizens in the several States".  DOMA gives permission to the states to ignore these clauses completely in the case of same-sex marriage.

I am gay and therefore will always support marriage equality for same-sex couples, but as a supporter of the United States constitution and as an American, even if I was personally against this, I would still feel compelled to support marriage equality for same-sex couples on the basis of the law.  I do believe it would be un-American to take action contrary to the support of marriage equality for same-sex couples.