Gay marriage going national?

Bigwig lawyers Ted Olsen and David Boies are talking about taking gay marriage national, putting together a case that could speed its way to the Supreme Court rather than continuing this state-by-state grind.

Slate ran a column talking about why it's a bad idea, and I'd say I'd have to agree. If you oppose gay marriage, be pleased that they're bidding high on the cart before they've got the horse. And if you agree with gay marriage, brace yourself, because the worst thing you can do is try to get an idea accepted before its time has come; you're only dooming it to never have a chance to happen.

One interesting point in the Slate article was where it talked about civil rights, which is what gay activists often compare their cause to. The Supreme Court didn't make big moves on the civil rights front until the country's attitude had shifted, and there were majorities in certain circles. A lot went on in the states before the federal arm intervened.

(Note to abortion activitists, the pro-lifers who think they can just elect a president and flip Roe v. Wade on its back: this argument applies to your case, too. Any time the government imposes a mandate that the vast majority of people don't agree with, you're going to have serious issues. It may be right, but democracy is about reaching a consensus among the people that the view is right, not imposing ideological views on other people by winning a majority on a powerful court. (With power, comes corruption, too...which means even if you did swing the big Court, it could easily be swung back against you.) Study Prohibition for a minute. People's hearts have to change, otherwise it's oppression.)

Basically, the country's not ready for a federal move on gay marriage right now. Whether it will be, and if it is, when, is not the purpose of this discussion. The point is, when the most liberal pockets of the country (minus the Iowa aberration) are the only ones putting a serious fight up, you've got a lot of work to do. Don't try to blindside the people; they'll just dislike that the whole picture changed because nine cloked lawyers said it was that way.

If gay marriage is going to be a lasting concept, it's going to have to spread through the country and win the consensus. For now, that means state-by-state.

And the flip side: if gay marriage isn't meant to be, the nation will say so. California is an interesting case study on this point; many people say the Mormons swept the vote by pumping tons of money into fear-motivated voting.

But consider this: religious voters often stay at home, yet they have specific opinions about how this country is supposed to be. With such a small gay population in the U.S., and a proportionally small percentage of supporters for them, it's a wonder any state could pull out a vote favoring gay marriage unless it was an overwhelmingly popular decision (which is still yet to be seen if it is). The mobilization of those who voted for Proposition 8 was just getting normal people to get up and vote; the vast majority of America is still not ready to link arms, face dogs, charge tear gas and stage mass rallies for the small percentage of America that is gay. It's just a numbers thing.