I got this in my email today from a political activist. So I have decided to let you all know about "Marriage Equality" by Paul Dion. In case you are wondering whether or not I am going to pull out my moral stance on the subject - I am, but just a little bit. But I do have one. A very stubborn one as well as a nuanced one. Much too complicated for 500 words. So this is going to be reality based sarcasm.
There are several fundamental non-equalities in a same-sex marriage. Just for starters, I issue a few.
1. Everyone knows that there is no marriage without a daily quibble or outright spat about the toilet seat being left up.
2. Everyone knows that there is no marriage without a clearly defined owner of who gets the last word.
3. Everyone knows that there is no marriage without the remote possibility of engendering offspring. (I offer Sarah and Abraham as examples.)
4. Everyone knows that there is no marriage in "gender." SEX is where it's at, not "gender" for crying out loud!
5. So, when all these things add up to "no marriage" then the "gender" of marriage = neuter. (You can look it up in any grammar book where there is no sex, just gender.) Gender = no marriage.
5a. The question that I have is: "With all this talk about "gender" why do we even bother talking about same SEX marriage?
6. Everyone knows that for a true marriage to exist, the ensuing divorce has to be a vicious battle of wills between a man and a woman fighting over money, property and custody of children. What's going to happen to that? Will the lawyers go hungry?
7. Everyone knows that it takes testosterone and estrogen go have a real newsworthy, headline grabbing divorce. That's why "gender" unions won't work. The tabloids will go broke because they won't have any more real marriages to denigrate.
I must say, to be fair, that I am solidly convinced that the government can grant marriage licenses to whomever it pleases, provided, of course, that the recipients are human. That does not mean that I think that what the government does is moral. Not at all. In fact I know that it is immoral. It goes from one bribe source to another to the detriment of the common good. That is immoral because it contributes to the preparation of the nation for its downfall. I do know, according to the moral principles of the relationship between law and virtue, that the lawmaker should never make a law that countervails virtue. Laws that are counter basic morality are not enforceable laws and are therefore not real laws at all. The law must always make it easier to practice virtue. I don't think that anybody should put the Constitution of the United States of America before the fundamental natural law that governs right human conduct which is in commonality with the Law of God.
We hear a lot about same-sex marriage being an attack on the institution of marriage. The wise-crack answer is usually, "It's not attacking my marriage." You're right, except for one thing. It is an attack on your children's perception of human morality and over time it will erode the moral fiber of this democratic republic...all the way to its downfall. Remember Greece? Remember Rome? Remember Constantinople?
Therefore, every time the lawmaker caves in to a special interest, the greater good suffers at the hands of individual greed and the republic gets weaker and weaker every time.
Remember, you read it here. That way you won't be tempted to cry at my funeral.
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| St. Martin of Tours |
I have been mulling this over in my mind for a long time. I know what I want to say. I was blocked for a while, until I thought of this fellow who lived some 1,700 years ago. He is one of the famous people who gave up a life of luxury and comfort for a life of shared love and compassion for his fellow humans.
We tend to go through life wondering if there are any of these people left. We go through life hearing that the "redistribution of wealth" is not right. We live with the legality of abortion; we live with the legality of alcohol and the unlawful use of marijuana; we live with the "blind eye" towards employers who hire the people for whom it is illegal to be here and therefore illegal to be hired. We hear of usurious practices that enslave the borrowers, enrich the lenders but nevertheless are legal. So many times we also hear "I am going to abide by the law. My religion is one thing, the law of the land is another." That's the rub.
I am not talking religion here. I am talking morality. There is morality outside of religion. There is a morality that belongs to all of us as human beings. We do not need a law to tell us that it is wrong to kill another person. We do not need a law to tell us that it is wrong to steal the widow's last dollar. We do not need laws to tell us a lot of things. We have conscience and virtue to guide us through life. We do need law to help us resist the temptation to be nasty now and then. We need law to support and guide our conscience and our virtue. Law is the external force that is meant to make us all abide by the common expectations of the community in which we live.
In a democracy we give the people whom we elect the delegated authority to underpin morality and virtue with "obeyable" and enforceable laws. The people we elect are expected to know how to do this. They are expected to legislate in such a way that morality and virtue will be sustained, not demolished. They are expected to legislate in such a way that the common good will be assured. They are not expected to legislate in such a way that their personal comfort will be assured before that of the community. They are not expected to compromise the morality of the community by their legislation. They are not expected to be so venal in their life style that their personal morality will be so weak that their moral authority will be demolished. When that happens, they abdicate the trust of the electorate and therefore the right to continue governing. So, yes, morality and law do go together. No matter what anyone says, that is the truth.
When morality and law part ways, humans degenerate into a lower species. When morality and law part ways, democracies fail. Not only democracies, I might add, Empires, Kingdoms, Dictatorships, you name it.
So, yes, that is my thought for the day.
I will therefore leave you to your devices, since I have been burdened with some remunerative work that has to be done in the next three hours.
Peace and joy to you all.
