Please get over yourself.

Stop being so ignorant and treat people with respect.

As a resident of “America’s Dairyland”, I’m proud that my state is taking steps to ensure that people are treated with as much respect and dignity as possible. Having the right to visit a loved one in the hospital (especially when that loved on wants to see you) shouldn’t require headaches and mounds of paperwork.

“Homosexuals always inflate their figures. I remember Homosexuals said 10% of the population is gay.”

First of all, 10% is not a statistic made up by gays. It was derived from a study by Alfred Kinsey in 1948 — a time where there was considerably less tolerance for homosexuality. Quite frankly, I suspect that if a similar study was run today, the percentage would be significantly higher.

Second of all, YOU are the one inflating statistics!!! Immediately above you said “Around the world 99% of the people define marriage as one man and one woman.”

99%???? You do realize that in many countries around the world — Canada, the Netherlands, and Spain to name a few — gay marriage is legal right? Further, in your lovely state of California, Prop 8 only passed by a narrow 2% margin. So almost half of your home state thinks gays should be allowed to marry. Most polls show that the country as a whole is split on the issue. So that 99% stat you reference is merely a figment of your embittered imagination.

Further Alan Keyes is wrong (like he is on so many other issues) when it comes to the historical purpose marriage. Marriage — say back in the Dark Ages — was a method of controlling women and tracking lineage. Woman were considered property and marriage was the method of trade. Further, back in those times, there was no technology to keep track of history and no DNA tests to confirm paternity. So marriage was used an attempt to keep track of family lineage.

Luckily, times have changed. Women are no longer considered property and science and technology enable us to track heritage. So Alan Keyes’ argument that marriage should still be defined by the inherent ability to procreate — in light of all the progressions in science and technology — is moronic. Marriage has evolved throughout history. Anyone who does not acknowledge this blatant fact is simply an idiot. “Traditional” marriages used to be arranged. Now, luckily, most of us have the freedom to choose our life partners based on who we actually love. The definition of marriage is ever changing according to the society in which it exists. Marriage in the US and in a tribal community in Kenya are hardly comparable.

I suggest you read something other than Ms. Schlussel’s site. All this hysterical right wing rhetoric is impairing your ability to think.

When did I say that you couldn’t?

“As a culture if we decide at the ballot box to keep one man and one woman that is the definition of marriage.”

Here is where your proposition becomes dicey. As a culture we decided long ago to abide by certain principles enshrined in the Constitution. One of these is freedom of religion and equal access/protection under the law. Contrary to what you may believe, you do NOT have the right to deny the civil rights of your fellow Americans whether through the ballot box or other means especially because of your personal religious views. You are no more entitled to have your religious views become public policy than I am.

“As for the 14th Amendment, Homosexuals are allowed to marry just like Heterosexuals.”

Then we no longer have any argument.

“Everyone’s marriage is recognized as long as they are married to someone of the opposite sex. Any person cannot have their marriage recognized if it is someone of the same sex, regardless of their sexuality.”

And here is where you violate the 14th Amendment and resurrect more odious portions of our nation’s history. The same argument was made in favor of segregation and anti-miscenegation laws. Blacks and whites were free to marry, as long as it was to someone of their own race since after all interracial marriage was against the customs, norms, traditions and the laws of much this country at the same.

“I am heterosexual and I cannot get a married recognized if I am to be married to someone of the same sex.”

Actually you can now in 8 states, though since you are heterosexual I wouldn’t recommend it anymore than I would a gay person being fooled by religious “ex-gay” groups into marrying someone of the opposite sex. By what right or falsely assumed power does the Federal government persist in denying legally married same-sex couples the same rights and benefits as heterosexual ones?

As for the 14th Amendment, Homosexuals are allowed to marry just like Heterosexuals. Everyone’s marriage is recognized as long as they are married to someone of the opposite sex. Any person cannot have their marriage recognized if it is someone of the same sex, regardless of their sexuality. I am heterosexual and I cannot get a married recognized if I am to be married to someone of the same sex. A homosexual can get their marriage recognized as long it is of the opposite. We are both being treated equally. We both can have our marriages recognized as long it is of the opposite sex and we both cant have our marriages recognized as long as it is of the same sex. Both treated equally.

Then you should be happy the Census Bureau is counting same-sex couples, even imperfectly, because we will soon get more accurate figures.