Its the Right Thing to Do

Look, all of us differ on what we think is rightI get that. But I also hope we agree on some stuff: namely that no-one should have to put up with shit just for being different, and that the government has no damn business discriminating against anyone, for any reason. If that also falls under your definition of right, then thats great; I think we can reach an understanding. If notwell, thats your call, and its nothing to do with me. But the tide is turning, and one day our grandkids and great-grandkids will look back at this time and wonder why the hell this whole legalisation business took such a ridiculously long time to prevail.

Itll Boost the Economy

hesitated to include this, because this shouldnt be about money. But then I thought, why the hell not? Put simply, a decade of research has concluded that gay marriage will raise billions of dollars in tax and help businesses boost productivity. It sounds insane, but actually makes sense when you look more closely: Firstly, marriage isnt really rewarded in the tax system. By getting gay couples paying the same penalties as straight folk, economists estimate that the government will raise an additional $34 million per year. Secondly, a country-wide legalization would likely result in an explosion of weddings, all of which will require taxable spending. How much would that raise? According to that link in the last paragraph, over a billion dollars. Thats serious moneyand we havent even turned our sights yet to the money it will save businesses. Thought Disney, Nike and Viacom were pro-gay marriage out of altruism? Well, maybebut it will also give their workforce greater flexibility in moving between states, and save them the headache of applying different tax rates to health benefits for same- and opposite-sex couples. So are you pro-business? Then you should be pro-gay marriage.

It Gives Children Loving Families

The whole idea of defending marriage is based on ensuring that children are given a nice, stable environment to grow up in. The argument goes that children need parents in a firm,

committed relationshipa relationship they cant walk out of after one argument over the toilet seat, for example. Well, guess what: right now, literally thousands of children are being denied that opportunity. In 2010, the census revealed that a quarter of same-sex couples are raising children, with 65,000 children being adopted by homosexual partners alone. Thats a heckload of kids who wouldnt otherwise have anywhere to goand nothing could be better for them than allowing their two moms or dads to settle down and get on with the job of being responsible parents. Right now, these kids are stuck in a legal limboand its a disgrace were not doing more to help them.

It Doesnt Harm Heterosexual Marriage

No matter what decision the Supreme Court comes to, heterosexual marriage is safe. Even if they decide to allow men to marry men and women to marry women, that wont change things for the straight majority. The same rights will still apply; the same tax benefits (or lack thereof) will keep rolling in and no heterosexuals will be forced to married gay people. Even the argument that it will damage the institution of marriage falls flat on its face when you take a closer look. Divorce rates are pretty high in America: in 2005, the New York Times put the rate at around forty percent of all marriages. In other words, the institution of marriage is already drowning, big time. Rather than deliver the killing blow to marriage, gay matrimony will likely save it as all those long-term couples scramble to get legally hitched. As for the slippery slope argumentthat legalizing gay marriage will lead to polygamy and to cats marrying dogs the Netherlands signed it into law thirteen years ago. Know how many people are wedded to pigs there? Probably less than there are here.

Equality
Speaking of the Constitution, the Fourteenth Amendment is pretty clearwhen it comes to equal rights. Put simply, it says we should all be the same in the eyes of the law. Currently, that isnt happening. At the moment of writing, millions of gay couples are denied the right to make life-or-death decisions for a partner in a medical emergency. Instead, the hospital is required to call the injured persons familyeven if they live five States away and hate their guts.

Can you imagine your how youd feel if your wife was admitted to hospital and you had literally no say in her care? Id personally get mad enough to go and protest outside Congress every single goddamn daybut the restrictions dont stop there. Gay couples are denied access to over one thousand federal rights, including the rights to share property or to take time off work to care for an ill partner. Does that sound like America, or like some tin-pot dictatorship? As someone once put it: until we are all free, none of us are.

Religion Doesnt Prohibit It

Believe it or not, there is literally nothing in the Bible about gay weddings. Jesus doesnt even mention gay peopleunless you accept the liberal interpretation of Matthew 19:12, in which case hes cool with it. The only clear, absolute references to same-sex desire that cant be translated any other way come in Genesis 19, Leviticus 17-26, Pauls first letter to the Corinthians and his letter to the Romans. Since modern Christians routinely ignore huge chunks of the Old Testament (stoning people for picking up sticks on the Sabbath, not eating shellfish and so on), the first two basically dont matter. That leaves only Paul. And guess what? He doesnt specifically mention marriage. The Romans letter describes how idolatry led to sinful lust, while the Corinthians letter puts homosexuality on a level with prostitution and adultery. While that isnt exactly progress ive, remember Jesus compared divorce to adultery in Mark 10:1. Unless youre prepared to argue that divorce should also be illegal, its probably wise to leave God out of it.

Are my Pro-Same Sex Marriage arguments good?

If you think it's suppose to be between a man & woman then - who defines marriage? and a definition from an online dictionary is "the legal or religious ceremony that formalizes the decision of two people to live as a married couple" no man or women in that sentence (That is not the official definition of marriage. i just wanted to make a point :P) . If you think that Gay partners won't be able to raise children then - MURDERERS, CHILD MOLESTERS, SEXUAL OFFENDERS, AND RAPISTS can get married and have children without a worry from the same critics that say Gays can't raise children properly. But two men/two women can't raise foster children or adopt? If you think that it is immoral - Says who? the bible? I think that the right "Freedom of Religion" also means freedom FROM religion. The bible is no american law. you can't choose laws from the stinking bible. The bible is thousands of years old. It is 2010 people. I am a christian I just don't like the argument of "The Bible Says So That's Why!"

If you think that Gay marriage is setting off balance the reproduction process then - Did you know that children are starving in africa...and if 10% of the human race can't have children then I don't see the problem. One of the biggest problems in this world is WORLD HUNGER AND OVER POPULATION. You will have a hard time convincing me and others that 10% of the population being infertile is a big problem. If you think that Gay marriage will threaten the institution of marriage - What the heck?! Threaten the institution of marriage by letting two people that love each other marry? If gays are allowed to marry then they won''t feel pressured to marry someone they aren't attracted too, now that sounds like lack of institution to me. If you think that marriage should be traditionally institutional then - So was slavery 200 years ago. That is the weakest argument. It was traditional for women to be only baby makers and wear dresses. It was traditional for people to BURN young women for "witchcraft". If you think that Gay sex is unnatural or repulsive then - tell that to the 450 animal species whose behavior has been extensively studied and that have been dubbed as homosexual. Last time I checked, teenage girls were getting pregnant and ruining there chances at a good life if they keep him/her. Unlike gay couples. As a matter of fact most gay couples find straight sex to be disgusting. Do you see them trying to ban your marriage rights?? If you think that it is a "social experiment" then - Look at Denmark, gay marriage has been legal since 1989. A survey conducted at the time said that 72% of the dutch didn't agree with the law. Then another survey in 1995 said that 89% of the dutch were ok with the law because it had many benefits like a drop in the suicide numbers, a reduction in STD's and promiscuity and infidelity among gays. If it is a "experiment" then it is highly effective. If you think that gay marriage would start us down a "slippery slope" towards legalized incest, bestial marriage, polygamy and all manner of other horrible consequences then - wouldn't have other countries that have already aproved of homosexual marriage been sliding down the "slope"? A great strategy, trying to install fear into the mind. But that statement is FALSE.