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Posted on Tue, Jul. 20, 2004 Lesbians sue to have all states recognize Massachusetts marriage MITCH STACY Associated Press TAMPA, Fla. - A lesbian couple from Bradenton who were married in Massachusetts sued the federal government Tuesday to have their union legally recognized in the rest of the country. The suit was filed against U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft in federal court in Tampa. The couple's attorney, Ellis Rubin, has filed five previous suits in state and federal courts challenging the ban, but Tuesday's was believed to be the first to attempt to compel the federal government and other states...

Advocates of "gay marriage" or homosexual civil unions argue that promiscuity will be reduced. Such an argument overlooks two key points. First, a embracing homosexual unions is more likely to undermine the institution of marriage and produce other negative effects than it is to make fidelity and longevity the norm for homosexual unions. Second, homosexual unions are not wrong primarily because of their disproportionately high rate of promiscuity and breakups. They are wrong because "gay marriage" is a contradiction in terms. As with consensual adult incest and polyamory, considerations of commitment and fidelity factor only after certain structural prerequisites are...

<p>Photo Essays:•Battle Over Gay MarriageSTORIES BACKGROUND •Mass. AG: Gay Marriage for Residents Only•Marriage Debate Builds Steam in Senate•Bush Wants Amendment to Ban Gay Marriage•Senate to Debate Banning Gay Marriage•Gay Activists Rally Against Virginia Law•Mayors to Vote on Gay Marriage Resolution•Romney Urges Amendment Against Gay Marriage BOSTON — A 1913 Massachusetts law that is being used to prevent out-of-state gays from getting married here is discriminatory and should be struck down, a lawyer for eight same-sex couples (search) told a judge Tuesday.</p>

In "De-Lovely," the new film about songwriter Cole Porter’s life, Porter tells his wife, Linda, about his homosexuality. Linda, who is the inspiration behind his genius, tells him that his music comes from his talent not from his destructive behavior. But she does beg Porter to give up his scandalous behavior so as “not to put us at jeopardy,” a promise Porter isn’t prepared to make. The prospect of a marriage where children, permanence, and fidelity are in doubt is supposed to make us pity Linda Porter, even if she was complicit in her own plight. After all, who would...

WASHINGTON (Talon News) -- Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle (D-SD) faces a difficult vote in the Senate when Republicans bring the Federal Marriage Amendment to the floor in the next two weeks. Sponsors of the bill say the constitutional amendment to preserve traditional marriage as the union of one man and one woman is necessary to counter activist judges who have allowed homosexual unions in Massachusetts. Passage of the FMA is uncertain in the Senate, since it will require 67 votes. Daschle will have to decide whether to allow a floor vote or prevent it with a filibuster. The choice...

I want to throw out a question to fellow FReepers out there: Now that Massachusetts courts have forced homosexual/perverted "marriage" on that state--and the fact that the "full faith and credit" clause of the Constitution will force every other state to deal with it--what will your reaction be? I'm assuming, of course, that consistant conservatives (please shut-up libertarians, this question is not for you, OK?) will fight it, hopefully with a constitutional ammendment. There is however, a lot of doubt that such an ammendment will ever pass, and even if it does, it will take several years. Surely other states...

According to today's Boston Herald, here is what the very first recipient of a Provincetown MA same-sex marriage license has to say about marriage: "[Jonathan Yarbrough] says the concept of forever is 'overrated' and that he, as a bisexual, and [his partner Cody] Rogahn, who is gay, have chosen to enjoy an open marriage. `I think it's possible to love more than one person and have more than one partner, not in the polygamist sense,' he said. `In our case, it is, we have, an open marriage...'"

Northampton, Massachusetts-AP -- A different sort of educational experience for a group of fourth- through sixth-graders in Northampton, Massachusetts. The students from the Solomon Schechter Day School went to Town Hall today to witness the first day of legal gay and lesbian marriages in Massachusetts. The students have been studying the civil rights movement. One of their teachers said today's proceedings offered a chance to see a bit of history in the making. Among those applying for their marriage licenses were several sets of parents from the school. The kids cheered as couples emerged from City Hall with their documents...

Gay Anglican Bishop Says He'd Like to Marry Tue Mar 16,10:24 AM ET Add Oddly Enough - Reuters to My Yahoo! NEW YORK (Reuters) - The U.S. Episcopal Church's first openly gay bishop said on Monday he would like to marry his longtime partner, but only if it becomes legal in New Hampshire, where they live. Gene Robinson, who became the ninth bishop of New Hampshire last week, said he and partner Mark Andrew hoped they could wed someday, but they did not plan to go to parts of Canada or to Massachusetts -- if same-sex marriage became legal there...

Seeing Rosie O’Donnell condemn President Bush just after she “married” her girlfriend, Kelli Carpenter, was bizarre in a tiresome sort of way. O’Donnell claimed, “We were inspired to come here by the sitting president and the vile and vicious and hateful comments he made.”If O’Donnell had any sense of humor or irony, she would look at herself and say, “Gee, for such a tolerant, open-minded person, I sure do condemn and vituperate an awful lot, especially on what should have been the happiest day of my life.”Maybe I’m some sort of pervert, but I don’t recall bearing anyone in the...

Sunday, March 14, 2004 Same Sex Marriages In New Jersey By KYW's Ed Kasuba With same-sex marriages back in the news in New Jersey, a law professor at Rutgers-Camden says it will be interesting to see how the courts rule on the issues raised by Asbury Park. Asbury Park performed one same-sex marriage, then stopped when the state attorney general said the ceremony was illegal. Law professor Sally Goldfarb says even though a judge in Mercer County has ruled same sex marriages are not legal, another judge could rule differently: "New Jersey laws, unlike that of many other states, does...

Gay Marriages Continue After A.G. Decision PORTLAND - The American Civil Liberties Union may file its own lawsuit to uphold the right of same-sex couples to get married. ACLU's Executive Director David Fidanque told the media in a press conference not to be surprised. He says the organization is considering a variety of legal avenues. One is to sue for damages on behalf of couples who are being turned down in counties other than Multnomah County. He said that county officials are required by law to follow the Constitution. And so far, he says, all credible legal opinions have...

NEW PALTZ, N.Y. (AP) — Twenty-one gay couples exchanged wedding vows on the steps of village hall Friday in a spirited ceremony that opened another front on the growing national debate over gay marriage. As the ceremonies by 26-year-old Mayor Jason West were ending, the state Health Department asked the attorney general to seek an injunction "to prevent further illegal conduct by the mayor," a department spokesman said. A call to Attorney General Eliot Spitzer's office was not immediately returned. West, elected on the Green Party ticket last year in this village 75 miles north of New York City, joined...

The bride said, "I do." Then Rosie did, too. Angered by President Bush's crusade to make it illegal for them to marry, Rosie O'Donnell and her lesbian partner, Kelli Carpenter, joined the rush down the aisle in San Francisco yesterday. "We were inspired to come here by the sitting President and the vile and vicious and hateful comments he made," the former talk-show host proclaimed after planting a kiss on her longtime love. In tying the knot, the country's most famous lesbian couple took center stage in the debate over gay marriage sparked by Bush's call Tuesday for a constitutional...

<p>SAN FRANCISCO, California (AP) -- Former television talk show host Rosie O'Donnell said she planned to marry her longtime girlfriend Thursday in San Francisco, where more than 3,300 other same-sex couples have tied the knot since February 12.</p> <p>Appearing on ABC's "Good Morning America," O'Donnell announced she would wed Kelli Carpenter -- two days after President Bush called for a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage.</p>

California Gay Marriages in Legal Limbo 2 hours, 11 minutes ago By DAVID KRAVETS, Associated Press Writer SAN FRANCISCO - Many of the more than 3,000 same-sex couples who obtained marriage licenses from the city said getting married was among the most joyous events in their lives. But because of legal uncertainty and political controversy, the certificates don't appear to be worth much more than sentimental value at this point. Until the legal fog lifts, businesses being contacted by gays and lesbians seeking new benefits probably won't acknowledge their marriages. Corporate counsels, employment law consultants and human resource departments already...