Making your bed, and lying in it too.

I wrote this the day after the elections, and I just felt like posting it here before it became an ultimately obsolete topic. Forgive the intro paragraph, then; as I said, this was posted when it was current and "new" news. :)

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For those who don't know yet, the ballots are in and Proposition 8 has passed, and Proposition 4 did not. For even more added information, Proposition 8 was a proposition to re-instate the ban on gay marriage, declaring that only man-woman marriages will be recognized in the state of California (therefore, voting yes on prop8 is against gay marriage); whereas Proposition 4 was about putting limits on abortion; a.k.a., minors (those under 18) will need parental consent at least 48 hours prior to getting an operation to terminate pregnancy.

The voters have spoken, and while they do not resonate with gay marriage (cue the simpson's character shouting "What about the chilruuun?!", for a summary of their argument), they, by the same margin of victory, condone abortion for all ages.


Of course, you could say that I oversimplify the issues at hand, and the consequences of the victory or loss of the two propositions. However, I cannot help but feel that this was a standstill-decision, especially when people everywhere are celebrating the groundbreaking and groundshaking victory of Sen. Obama in becoming the 44th president of the United States. Then again, you cannot really fault the people for cheering for change, but not being ready to swallow its jagged little pill just yet, right?


I feel strongly about proposition 4. I wanted this proposition to be passed. The opposers argued mostly about the poor girls who got pregnant either through incest or rape, or those who are in an abusive family, wherein the declaration of "mom, dad, I'm pregnant. please sign these papers so i can get an abortion" would spell trouble.

Firstly, it surprises me that underage pregnancies are so rampant now that laws are being passed wherein numbers, by the hundreds of thousands, claim direct repurcussions to the decisions passed. Secondly, I am still loathe to believe that victims of rape or incest are at a staggering, or maybe even just statistically significant number to warrant an argument such as the one proposed. The third demographic the nay-sayer's are trying to protect, in my opinion, should not even count. To be succinct, it's so easy to tell these children to not have sex in the first place; and, in the even that they do get pregnant, face the consequences of their actions.

It strikes me as surprising that, in a totally sensitive irony, the voters are allowing this proposition to not go through because children who were stupid enough to get pregnant before the age of 18 shouldn't get hurt; but are, at the same time, allowing and condoning, even preferring the death of an unborn child to 'save face' for the teenager.

when put into simple terms such as that, it puzzles me how any rational adult can consider such a law being passed. And, to address those affected by incest and rape; there are so many more alternatives for them than are now being presented to all those thrown-out fetuses. yes. thrown out, mangled, dismembered fetuses. But now i'm resorting to appealing to gross emotion.


Proposition 8, I feel even more strongly about. Being at the front-seat of this campaign trail (I paid attention to the Prop 8 campagins. ha ha), I was able to see the commercials put out by both pro and anti gay marriage supporters. I won't go into detail about the Church stand on this, aside from my saying that 1.) there should definitely be a distinct separation between church and state, although this in itself is blurry because of the Church's right to an opinion and to counsel its members, but more importantly, 2.) marriage in the church sense should be totally autonomous of marriage in the civil sense; and the sanctity of the second should be independent of moral pressures as dictated by a single (although admittedly nearly omnipresent) religion.

Rather, I want to address the main argument that seems to be pulled by the naysayers. It revolves around the notion of 'ill-teaching' our children, making them have to go to school learning about marriage being a contract between two parties, rather than it being a contract between a man and a woman. This supposedly would have severe negative effects on the children.

hogwash, if you ask me.

I might be a little avant garde for saying this, but I can't help but hear their "but they'll to learn marriage as between two people!!!" argument sounding rather like the past arguments of "but they'll have to learn that voting is for people!!!" this sounds, silly, yes, but that's what it sounds like. And really, do they believe that marriage as a teaching is that major on children that it will scar them for life or otherwise stunt them in their psychological, emotional or mental growth? If anything, this large hulaballoo on voting yes or no for prop.8 has probably instilled whatever "evil" notion of gay marriage there is on these children than if they had learned it from an unbiased, morally objective discussion in the classroom.

remember, before this prop.8 issue arose, gay marriage was recognized in California! And were children flinging themselves off of buildings in horror? no. Were children under the age of 18 getting into more crime, fighting more, or recreating the atmosphere of hate crimes more to oppose homosexuality? no. And even more than that, by recognizing gay marriage, were same sex couples dressed in leather bondage gear running up and down the streets publicly performing acts of sodomy as they tossed mardis gras beads at aghast and bweildered onlookers? no.

Instead, what happened? Personalities such as Ellen deGeneres, George Takei and Neil Patrick Harris were able to publicly profess their love. Numerous (by the thousands) same-sex couples were able to do the same in varying degrees of privacy or public announcements of love and commitment. If that isn't an excercise and simultaneous lesson in equality, which I'm sure we'd all like to teach our children, then I would like to go back to my elementary days to contest why I had to share an apple with jimmy, or why it was wrong to hate on Shaniqua because she was black, or why I wasn't right in punching Jimmy because he preffered gummy bears to sour-worms.

And in fact, to again be in the kidergarten, if not the Church, angle, same-sex marriage possess so little harm and malevolence in them as, say, the still ever-present, and ever-condoned realities of divorce, separation, and other things which plague heterosexual marriages. I dont mean to say that same-sex marriages will not be plagued with the same problems, but my point is that it is not correct, nor fair, to assume that same-sex marriages are the epitome of immoral union, whereas heterosexual unions which may be sanctioned by either, or both the state and the Church, is the opposite epitome of pure love, romanticism and everlasting union.

There is a common misconception, and wrong idea that was propagated through the campaign to say yes on 8. Same-sex marriages are not an act condoning or actively encouraging sodomy, promiscuity or HIV/AIDS. There is simply a wish to grant equal rights of union to heterosexual and homosexual couples who, i'm sure we agree, are able to possess, partake and provide the same kind and quality of love as everyone else.


This isn't nearly the end of the battle, nor is this the end of the impassioned reactions of people who think that proposition 4 being ignored and proposition 8 being passed were silly decisions. I am loathe to equate, but if Barack Obama really stands for change, and this desire for change is echoed by the majority of the people who showed up to vote for him, then it should only a matter of time before we are one step closer to the ever-elusive goal of equality.


For now, however, the people will have to make our beds and lie in it. Children may choose to have sex in it and to kill their babies afterwards, just as same-sex couples will still (defiantly?) choose to express their love for each other in ways not even the government can stop. And the rest of us, just like those directly affected, will have to lie in this bed and reap the consequences of the votes, and of our collective voice.