There is a trend: Via Pam's House Blend, this report from Maine:
"We're pulling the plug," said Michael Heath, executive director of the Christian Civic League of Maine. Heath said the evangelical group failed to attract voter, volunteer and financial support it needed to continue its campaign.
The group collected only a third of the 15,000 voters' signatures it had set as a goal for primary election day June 10, said Heath. He added said that potential volunteers "don't want to be aligned with bigotry and homophobia and hatred," tags their opponents had applied to the initiative backers.
Well, as I always say, if the shoe fits, wear it.
Same thing happened to Peter LaBarbera's anti-gay group here in Illinois this year -- they couldn't get enough signatures on their anti-marriage petitions, even with the bogus ones.
Update: Add Oregon to the list, per this report from Box Turtle Bulletin:
The fact that the initiatives are stalled offers more evidence that opponents are losing support, say gay rights activists, who were also celebrating the legalization of same-sex marriages in California on Monday.
But conservatives and church groups that are pushing the Oregon initiatives say their support is growing. “We’re just getting stronger,” said Marylin Shannon of Brooks, a former Republican state senator and chief petitioner in the initiative drives. “The network is growing daily.”
If they say they're support is growing, you know that means they're losing ground.And, according to a commenter at BTB, Pennsylvania is getting fed up as well.
I'm sick of this, too: Via Queerty, Obama on marriage -- again
I'm just as angry as Sara Whitman, quoted in Queerty and at Pam's House Blend:
If I hear “Marriage is between one man and one woman” one more time from Obama’s mouth- or any Democrat’s mouth- I’m going to scream. Last night, while being questioned on California’s decision, Obama just had to say it. One man, one woman.
How is this change? Leadership? Hope?
Or do only straight people get to hope?
…
As historical as having an African-American man run for the highest office in this nation is, it is not the only history being made. The fact that the second state in this country- and a fairly big state- has laid claim to the belief that separate is not equal is just as historically significant.
Sorry, Barack, but your answer's just not acceptable.
There may be more later. Here's a pretty to tide you over:
2 comments:
Honest to god, if I hear that whining about what Obama says about marriage (at this point) one more time I'm going to try to tear out what's left of my hair. Does anyone with a grain of intelligence actually believe that ANY candidate for national public office could get away with saying s/he believes "marriage" for gay people is acceptable, and get elected? Instead of being fixated on "marriage" as a concept, why are we not fixated on recapturing the definition of marriage as a civil procedure, taking the word and its newly twisted re-definition away from the fundamentalists and giving it back to the civil authorities where it belongs? Is that too much of a stretch for the American intelligence? "Marriage" is not religious; "matrimony" is religious. "Marriage" is civil and always has been. It's a contract, not a sacrament of the church. If we had a truly secular society, or a society arranged with secular ideals like that of France, for example, we wouldn't be having this discussion. The only way a religious figure in the U.S. is able to perform a marriage is as a secular deputy of the County Clerk. People who refuse to recognize that in their eagerness to have their marriages recognized do us all a disservice. Take back the word, enough with the whining, and for heaven's sake do not -- DO NOT -- stamp your feet like a child and say you won't vote for Obama until he changes his verbiage. That's a really excellent way to ensure that McCain takes the White House in November.
I'm hardly going to stamp my feet and vote for McCain, but there's a little more to this than childishness. I think you're absolutely right about reclaiming "marriage" as a term, and about clergy as deputies to the civil authorities, and I have little patience for the far left and their temper tantrums.
But -- that doesn't alter the fact that Obama's answer is not acceptable: I don't care what he believes, and I'm not voting for Obama so that the lessons of Jeremiah Wright can govern the country. I'm really tired of the candidates of both parties trying to out-holy each other, but no one's going to pay attention unless some of us start yelling.
So, even though David Benkof never heard of me, I'm yelling.
Post a Comment