Land of Lincoln -- er, Kerry
How about that Massachusetts?
Not only is our next president, Sen. John Kerry, from there, but yesterday the progressive Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled that same-sex couples must be allowed to legally marry in the state -- and that "civil unions" or other cheesy marriage substitutes for same-sex couples are as unconstitutional as are "separate but equal" facilities for blacks and whites.
("The history of our nation has demonstrated that separate is seldom, if ever, equal," four justices wrote in the 4-3 ruling that has rankled the right wing. "For no rational reason the marriage laws of the Commonwealth discriminate against a defined class; no amount of tinkering with language will eradicate that stain.")
Kerry, because he wants to be the next president of the United States, unfortunately has little choice but to publicly support civil unions but not same-sex marriage. Not even former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean, the darling of the gay community, publicly supports same-sex marriage, because he also would like to be president -- and polls show that more than half of Americans oppose same-sex marriage. (I suspect that both Kerry and Dean are OK with same-sex marriage -- privately.)
There is no getting around the "separate but equal" comparison in the discussion of civil unions vs. full-fledged marriage for same-sex couples. I first heard the "separate but equal" comparison during National Public Radio's Democratic presidential debate on Jan. 6 and was surprised that I hadn't thought of it myself. I knew that something was wrong with the concept of civil unions for same-sex couples and full-fledged marriage for opposite-sex couples, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it.
So I was ecstatic to hear that Massachusetts' highest court ruled that civil unions for same-sex couples are unconstitutional because they are a form of "separate but equal." There is no reason to create a separate type of legal union for same-sex couples except for homophobia -- none.
Massachusetts will be in the news again, this summer, when Boston hosts the Democratic National Convention, at which Kerry will formally receive the Democratic presidential nomination.
Some pundits say that all of the Massachusetts connections -- Kerry being from there, the Democratic National Convention being held there, and the state's highest court ruling that same-sex couples must be allowed to legally marry there -- will allow the Bush regime's "re"-election campaign to paint Kerry as "a Massachusetts liberal," a la Michael Dukakis, for whom Kerry was lieutenant governor.
The right wing wants a culture war?
I say: BRING IT ON, MOTHERFUCKERS!
Future generations -- and there might not be future generations if "President" Bush gets another term -- will look back upon those who now oppose same-sex marriage as most of us today look upon those who owned slaves and who supported segregation: As ignorant, hateful bigots.
The culture war has been brewing for years now. Why don't we progressives just bring it to an end by kicking the right-wingers' asses in November? We are smarter than and braver than the ignorant, cowardly right-wingers; we should own our power and kick their fucking asses. On the gay marriage issue (and on so many more issues), we are right and the right is wrong, just as the right was wrong on segregation.
Why should we wait? I want equal rights for everyone right now -- I don't want to have to wait for the stupid old white men who are in charge of this country to drop dead before I get to see equal rights for everyone.
So when they call us "liberals," like it's a bad thing to be progressive instead of regressive, we need to tell them, "Damned fucking right I'm a liberal!" Not shrink away, but throw it right back in their faces. Because for all of their bluster, when we throw it right back in their faces -- like how "President" Bush dons a flight suit like he's Tom Fucking Cruise in "Top Gun" but we point out that he actually was a fucking deserter -- they piss their pants. They're so used to us progressives putting our tails between our legs that when we bite back it shocks the holy shit out of them.
It's time to bite back -- and to draw blood.
(OK, my Howard Dean Moment is over.)
Speaking of Massachusetts and fucking deserters, it was The Boston Globe that first reported, in May 2000, that "President" Bush went AWOL from the National Guard for at least a year in the early 1970s -- a piece of history that the corporately controlled mainstream media mostly ignored in 2000 but that is now haunting Bush's "re"-election campaign. (See awolbush.com for lots of information on this topic.)
I'm thinking that when George W. Bush returns to Crawford, Texas for good in January 2005, and when any two people who love each other and wish to get married may do so, we'll have Massachusetts to thank.
Massachusetts rocks.
10:04:36 PM 
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