What is “marriage,” and why did society create it in the first place?
What business is it of society to interfere with people’s wants, needs or whims?
First of all, we should realize marriage is not a contract to benefit either the man or the woman, (or as in current vogue) parties who choose to become “participants.” It is the state’s contract to guarantee offspring some basic security against the outside world.
Marriage was for the children!
Therefore it became a matter for the state to determine that little children were able to get the security of a family, without which society would have no basis and the state would have no foundation.
Since it is impossible for same-sex marriage to produce such offspring, using the term marriage for such a union is detrimental to the very meaning of the word and corrupts the purpose of the state’s right or responsibility for such a contract.
If so-called gays wish to pledge some sort of allegiance of fealty to one another, let them write their own contracts (much as corporations do when they merge), but to allow the marriage contract to be used for every willy-nilly union that anyone can imagine is corrupting the initial intent of the contract and can only hurt the very ones it was created to protect.
If government can deny multiple marriages and marriage to one’s cow or dog or rosebush or whatever else comes along, then why should it be the right of some minority or even some majority to destroy a tradition that has fared society well since the beginning of history?
Excellent comment.
Do you ever watch the marriage shows on TV? It’s amazing how a wedding is all about a “happy” bride.
I keep thinking, of course marriage is in trouble. People have forgotten what it is. It really has nothing to do with romantic love or happiness. Those are simply fortunate byproducts of correct choices.
You know that is absolutely right. There is no reason why they cannot go to a lawyer and form some kind of legal “union” much as heterosexual couples do when they draft prenuptual agreements. Gays can list all of the requirements such as hospital visitation rights, funeral arangements, wills, bank accounts etc. They can do this all at once in a lawyers office.