I going to cut through the bullshit right now. You have bogged this matter down in this "structure and purpose of marriage" thing which has obfuscated and buried the real issue.FailThat is not an appropriate or adequate response to what I just said. Read it again .Hint: the structure of marriage then vs. The issue of whether or not the BANS ON SAME SEX MARRIAGE NOW were arbitrary.If, as you admit that at the time the institution was developed, that the structure of it made sense,
then the structure was not arbitrary.
THe place to have a discussion about whether and/or how to adjust laws due to changes in society, is in the legislature, not the courts.
YOu don't get to just declare the discussion over, and anyone that disagrees is a bigot.
Well you do, but dont' be surprised when those you marginalize, get pissed off at your tactics.
There is a price to paid.
You also need to make a case for why the issue should have been legislated vs. litigated. Just repeating the same shit over again does not make for an argument
Grade: Fail
Because if an institution worked at some point, and the environment the institution was in, changed enough that changes to the institution seemed reasonable to some people,
that is just the type of issue that legislatures are FOR.
AND you already agree that the rules made sense at some point (ie not arbitrary) and that the taking the issue to the courts was based on the structure being arbitrary.
And by this time, we have gone over this point, at least dozens of times. For you to challenge me to make the point AGAIN, is just you stonewalling. EXTREMELY DISHONESTLY.
You refuse to deal with or accept the fact that same sex marriage is a civil rights issue and subject to judicial review
Thus far you have dealt with ZERO % of the issues that I covered in my lengthy post in any meaningful way
As I said , the pissing match is over.
YOu agreed that it was claimed to be a civil rights issue, because the "restrictions" were supposedly arbitrary.
Later you agreed that the structure of marriage, worked for quite some time, at least until society changed.
If a structure WORKS, then claiming the rules of the structure is arbitrary is extremely difficult.
It is almost a truism that something arbitrary, ie without reasons, is not going to work, or at least not work well.
And you had to be dragged kicking and screaming to discuss the development of the structure of marriage.
Because you know that the structure was not arbitrary.
That is the crux of your argument. THe rest is noise and fury signifying nothing.
The real issue is the fact that we had two groups- heterosexuals and homosexuals- who for not discernable or rational reason-were being treated differently under the law. The states failed to establish a rational basis let along a compelling government interest for the discrimination and therefore the courts rightfully ruled on it as a civil rights issue.
You've admitted that there was a reason for the different treatment.