Yea for California

The California Supreme Court overturned its ban on gay marriage today.

Then there is my crazy state of Florida. In November there will be a constitutional Amendment to ban gay marriage on the ballot. It apparently isn’t enough that we already have a law against gay marriage, we must now have it written into the constitution. It’s called the Marriage Protection Act and many are raising the question that it might also outlaw all sorts of other things, such as domestic partner benefits or legal arrangements made among long-time companions. This has to do with the wording of the amendment which says:

Inasmuch as marriage is the legal union of only one man and one woman as husband and wife, no other legal union that is treated as marriage or the substantial equivalent thereof shall be valid or recognized.

The question is - what does “substantial equivalent thereof” mean?

Does it mean any kind of rights that married people have? Would it take away insurance benefits for non-married couples or the ability to visit loved ones in the hospital, etc?

I don’t know. What I do know is that what other people do with their private lives is none of my business or anyone else’s. If two people want to live together and they aren’t hurting anyone else, they should be given the same benefits as everyone else.

Unfortunately, it will probably pass. Florida is a rather right wing state. You mention "gay marriage" to the old folks here and they almost have a cornary.