So this morning I was listening to NJ 101.5 and the Dennis show was on, he was discussing Marriage, and Gay people. Melissa Etheridge is protesting Prop 8 by not paying her state taxes any longer.

Okay. So Prop 8 passed. Alright, I get it. 51% of you think that I am a second class citizen. Alright then. So my wife, uh I mean, roommate? Girlfriend? Special lady friend? You are gonna have to help me here because I am not sure what to call her now. Anyways, she and I are not allowed the same right under the state constitution as any other citizen. Okay, so I am taking that to mean I do not have to pay my state taxes because I am not a full citizen. I mean that would just be wrong, to make someone pay taxes and not give them the same rights, sounds sort of like that taxation without representation thing from the history books. (More)

So this started a discussion of Marriage and Gay People and whether or not they should get married. What this particular Radio Personality was saying was that they should have all the same rights, but give it a different name. Because Marriage is a tradition between a man and a woman. And while that was more progressive than some of his callers, who were comparing it to marriage between a person and a canine, I still don’t think it is good enough.

Tradition is such an odd thing. Sometime in the year 342 Christianity stepped into Rome and declared that same-sex marriage was illegal. So, we were actually more progressive pre-342 than we are now. And of course at some point religion has to step into government and create morality laws.

The first recorded use of the word “marriage” for the union of same-sex couples also occurs during the Roman Empire. The term, however, was rarely associated with same-sex relationships, even though the relationships themselves were common.[12] In the year 342, the Christian emperors Constantius and Constans declared same-sex marriage to be illegal. (Source)

Being Gay is nothing new, this is old news. There’s been Gay people since the dawn of time. Heck, there’s probably more than our census or our surveys even tell us because some people are still, sadly enough, hiding who they are for fear of how they will be treated. People hide behind the fact that this is a “new thing” and should be treated “differently” than the tradition. But it’s not.

Tradition is steeped in how society defines its members. Tradition used to state that a Man goes to work & takes care of the woman. Laws were shaped so that a Man would be able to provide for & support his family under the umbrella of his benefits and his salary. A lot of the tradition afforded to heterosexual married couples is predicated on this. But that tradition has changed. Often you have a situation where both members of the marriage are working or where the woman is in the position to have a better job. Does that mean we should change those laws too? I mean that tradition is breaking, but we certainly can’t vote on a Prop to ban that kind of progress.

I am of the opinion that a “good reason” for Gay marriage to be illegal does not exist. Sure, people have good personal reasons for believing that it is wrong. I cannot argue against every religious belief that exists in this world and tell them that they are wrong. One truth that we should all agree on, however, is that this type of morality has no place in our lawmaking procedures.

The thing about laws. They’re typically made to protect people. Sure there’s other laws steeped in morality such as the abortion debate. That’s a little harder to be black & white about since there is possibly a “life at stake”. But with Gay Marriage, who is in trouble? Who are you protecting? What this is really is morality sneaking it’s way into our law making process and hiding itself with “Well this is the tradition why change it now?”

It makes me sad that we still have this kind of thinking in society. And I certainly don’t expect my opinions to be put into law. If that was the case the “No talking in the bathroom ever” law would be the first on my own personal legislature. But you have to admit that’s a good one.

I wish I could accomplish more with my little corner of the internet that the 3 of you read, I wish there was something I could do to just shake people out of their own little bubbles and have them get over themselves. I really do. But, I can’t. I’ve donated to some organizations and I try to spread the word when I can. It’s just so sad to me that people really truly feel the need to make laws governing other people’s happiness. But hey, this is America.