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.
5.31.2009
Tex? Good. Gardner? Errr....
Mark Teixeira did his job again today, driving in four runs with a double and a homer, but some shoddy play by the Yanks with runners on base (I'm thinking Brett Gardner at the plate) doomed the Bombers to a 5-4 walk-off loss to the Tribe.
Gardner was up in the top of the ninth with a speedy teammate on second, but all he could do was hit a bouncer that set up a double play from the next batter.
Chien-Ming Wang gave another solid relief performance, tossing three perfect innings, and the top three Yankee batters all went 2-for-4 (although there was quite a dispute over one play at first that could have easily been another Derek Jeter hit). But New York never got rolling, and it was more entertaining watching the seagulls fly in and stroll around the field than sit through all nine innings of this game.
New York can grab another W tomorrow before heading back to the Bronx and facing the American League-leading Texas Rangers. I hope Melky's back by then; they need his hot bat.
(Notes: Tex's home run ties him for the home run lead in the American League; the Yankees tied the Major League record for games without an error with 17 straight, which equals the Red Sox's 2006 mark.)
Other Yankees posts
Gardner was up in the top of the ninth with a speedy teammate on second, but all he could do was hit a bouncer that set up a double play from the next batter.
Chien-Ming Wang gave another solid relief performance, tossing three perfect innings, and the top three Yankee batters all went 2-for-4 (although there was quite a dispute over one play at first that could have easily been another Derek Jeter hit). But New York never got rolling, and it was more entertaining watching the seagulls fly in and stroll around the field than sit through all nine innings of this game.
New York can grab another W tomorrow before heading back to the Bronx and facing the American League-leading Texas Rangers. I hope Melky's back by then; they need his hot bat.
(Notes: Tex's home run ties him for the home run lead in the American League; the Yankees tied the Major League record for games without an error with 17 straight, which equals the Red Sox's 2006 mark.)
Other Yankees posts
Take it back, Shaq
Sure, the NBA Finals matchup of Lakers-Magic is disappointing to some, but if you're looking for hidden storylines, consider the cactus.
The "Big Cactus," that is, or whatever Shaquille O'Neal is calling himself these days. Shaq has been very vocal about two things: (1) Kobe hasn't won a championship without him and (2) that Dwight Howard isn't as good as people think, and isn't as great for the Magic as he was, and isn't anything but a copycat of his moves, blah blah blah.
One team is going to win, with its star turning around to point a bony finger at Shaq and say, "Told you I could do it." The best Shaq can hope for, besides a Tweeting championship now that his playing days are fading, is that a team wins despite the poor play of its star.
The "Big Cactus," that is, or whatever Shaquille O'Neal is calling himself these days. Shaq has been very vocal about two things: (1) Kobe hasn't won a championship without him and (2) that Dwight Howard isn't as good as people think, and isn't as great for the Magic as he was, and isn't anything but a copycat of his moves, blah blah blah.
One team is going to win, with its star turning around to point a bony finger at Shaq and say, "Told you I could do it." The best Shaq can hope for, besides a Tweeting championship now that his playing days are fading, is that a team wins despite the poor play of its star.
5.30.2009
CC gets settled
CC Sabathia seems to be getting settled in his new digs, going 4-0 with a 2.08 ERA in his last four starts. Tonight he led the Yankees past his former team, the Cleveland Indians, 10-5.
At 29-20, the Yankees have the third-best record in the league, and are on top of the American League East.
Other Yankees posts
At 29-20, the Yankees have the third-best record in the league, and are on top of the American League East.
Other Yankees posts
People who take animal pain a little too seriously
Slate has an awesome article about whether fish feel pain or not when they're hooked, and the people who get really wound up about people who fish. Note especially the comments from those who formed a mob in Great Britain, and those who asked if carrots feel pain when they're peeled. The whole article is great.
History of the credit card
Slate has a nice little slideshow presenting different credit cards throughout the years. For someone who is always interested to see things from the past, I thought it was fun to look through.
First Place
The Yankees are in sole possession of first place in the American League East for the first time since the end of 2006. They beat the Indians 3-1 today on the arms of Andy Pettitte and Mariano Rivera, who combined for their 58th start-save combination, the most since saves became an official statistic.
Another Yankee veteran, stalwart Jorge Posada, came back from the disabled list and had two hits. He's batting .325 this season, a team-high.
Other Yankees posts
Another Yankee veteran, stalwart Jorge Posada, came back from the disabled list and had two hits. He's batting .325 this season, a team-high.
Other Yankees posts
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
