I Finally Got Hold of a Person

at Google. Google doesn't want to offer tech support for "free applications" (like Gmail, Blogger, and YouTube) because of "liability concerns." I asked, but the answer was incoherent. But I can now get in to Gmail, Blogger, and YouTube, after deleting not only my Google-related cookies, but my entire browsing history. Which means I'm going to have to re-log in to everything else.

So, in what is undoubtedly one of the most eventful weeks in gay marriage ever, I wasn't able to blog. Here's a couple of posts I did at Live Journal as stop-gaps:

The first:

"Marriage"

I usually reserve posts on political events and news stories at my blog, Hunter at Random, but you may have noticed that I don't have access to post there for the past few days, and this is sort of important:  The Supreme Court has refused to grant certoriari in any of the seven cases concerning marriage equality that had been appealed by the states.  The marriage bans had all been found unconsitutional by district courts, decisions that were upheld by panels in the Fourth, Seventh, and Tenth Circuits.  What the Supreme Court's decision to not hear those appeals means is that in Virginia, Indiana, Wisconsin, Oklahoma and Utah, same-sex marriage is now the law of the land.  (And marriages havbe begun in all but Wisconsin, which will follow suit shortly.)  Most observers expect that within a few weeks, the remainder of the states within those circuits will have those rulings applied to them as well, which will make same-sex marriage legally recognized in West Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Colorado, Kansas and Wyoming, bringing to total of states with same-sex marriage recognition to thirty.

Timothy Kincaid has a good summary of the state of affairs as of last night at Box Turtle Bulletin, where, if you run down the posts from yesterday, you can get highlights, statements from state Attorneys General and Governors, and whining from the usual suspects.  Also worth checking out on this is Joe.My.God., which also has the news that Colorado, although not directly affected by yesterday's decision, will begin issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples immediately.  (And lots of whining and vows of civil disobedience -- how do you do civil disobedience about same-sex marriage, anyway -- refuse to marry someone of the same sex?  No one's asking you to.)  And Towleroad has a some interesting analysis and speculation by Ari Ezra Waldman, as well as news reports.

Two points:  First, Anti-Gay, Inc., is screaming about this being this generation's Roe v. Wade, trying to generate some traction for what most observers see as a losing battle.  That's not going to fly -- there's no similarity in the two cases whatsoever, and public opinion has steadily been trending toward acceptance of same-sex marriage over the past couple of years, with a clear majority of the country in favor.

Second, look for increased attempts to pass "religious freedom" laws at the state level.  These are basically nothing but a license to discriminate; Arizona passed one, which was vetoed by Gov. Jan Brewer, and Mississippi passed one, which is facing backlash from businesses and other organizations in the state.  There will be more of these, giving business owners the right to refuse service to anyone based on "religious belief."  Talk about unintended consequences. 

 

The second:

"Sex, drugs, and rock and roll."

 

 That's the money quote from the 9th Circuit's decision striking down marriage bans in Nevada and Idaho, in response to a ridiculous contention by the governor of Idaho, Butch Otter.  (Seriously -- that's his name.)  The full quote, which is footnote 12 on page 21:

He also states, in conclusory fashion, that allowing same-sex marriage will lead opposite-sex couples to abuse alcohol and drugs, engage in extramarital affairs, take on demanding work schedules, and participate in time-consuming hobbies. We seriously doubt that allowing committed same-sex couples to settle down in legally recognized marriages will drive opposite-sex couples to sex, drugs, and   rock-and-roll.

The decision was unanimous.  The full order is here.

A footnote:  At present, all states with marriage bans have had suits filed to overturn them.  The 9th Circuit also includes Alaska, Montana, and Arizona (it also includes Washington, Oregon, Hawaii and California, which already recognize same-sex marriages), so any decisions on those suits are pretty much a foregone conclusion, since it's obvious a decision supporting the bans will not survive appeal.

 

The third:

"About that stay"

 

 Jimi Burroway has a good analysis at Box Turtle Bulletin of the screw-up that led Justice Kennedy to stay the implementation of marriages in both Idaho and Utah.  It's been resolved and marriages are once again happening in Nevada, but it wasn't without a few more wrinkles.

Here's the marriage map as of yesterday afternoon:

Purple denotes those states with marriage equality, light blue (lavender? Depends on your monitor, I guess) those that are affected by recent circuit court decisions (i.e., will probably have marriage equality within a few weeks at most), and white those that are still in the Eleventh Century with Rick Santorum.

And a note:  apparently those responsible for issuing marriage licenses in South Carolina and Kansas have begun doing so.  (At least, county clerks in Kansas have been ordered to do so by the court.)

 

And this morning:

 

"Twenty-seven states and counting."  

 

Add West Virginia to the list.

The updated map:

Dark purple – states which have marriage equality
Light purple – states in which the circuit court has ruled for equality but which have not yet been ordered to provide marriage equality

 

And now that I'm back in the saddle, expect me to resume regular programming.