Are we taking this too far?

It's strange. We went to the Town Clerk of our town to apply for a marriage license last Tuesday. That same day, President Bush makes an announcement that he will support an amendment to the Constitution of the United States banning gay marriages. The timing of this is bizarre.

Some have asked if we are taking this too far. I'm been thinking a lot about that. Maybe we are going to fast. I don't have all the answers for sure. I only know what I feel inside (typing this as I listen to Maria Callas sing Madame Butterfly).

We have demanded to be treated as equal citizens, and now we have the President asking for an amendment. Some are thinking that we should just accept civil unions where we can get them, and be happy with that. It's understandable. These are scary times for our community and for America. It will take great resolve to see this through. But this is not the first time this has happened in this country, and I doubt it will be the last.

If we really want to analyze the argument of gay marriage and if we've gone too far, all we really have to do is to answer a few questions. Let's take the emotion out of it.

We can pull back and stop asking to be like everyone else. We won't have marriage benefits and we might have civil union benefits in the states or counties/cities/towns within the states that have been generous enough to give us some rights of marriage (assuming the state doesn't override those local ordnances with a statewide Defense of Marriage Act, as 38 states have already done).

Will we be okay with that, emotion aside. I won't even call us second-class citizens (an emotional term). Let just ask the question, would we be happy not having the same rights as other straight citizens? Maybe I'm wrong. I've focused on saying that we are the same as our straight citizens in that we are the same in terms of families that we have. Maybe I'm wrong on that. We are gay. Should we be separate from the rest of society? Should African Americans be separate because that have a characteristic that makes them different.

I'm totally serious and not being sarcastic. You see, I've never stepped back and looked at it from a non-emotional view because to me, my family is everything so I tend to react emotionally when someone else tells me that my relationship is worth less in the eyes of the law.

If a Constitution Amendment passes, would we regret it, or would our fight still be a just fight? I think the answer to that is yes. Even if an amendment passes, the fight was just and we should not compromise. I know what such an amendment would do and I agree that it would probably take a very long time to get rid of it. It is just as hard to get rid of an amendment as it is to get one added.

How long should we have to wait for our rights? Are they worth the fight? That's something each of us can only answer for ourselves. But, in my view, those who do not fight for rights that they deserve, do not deserve those rights.

Was freedom ever easy? We have the Constitution of the United States providing freedom for our citizens. Do you know how many lives and how much blood was spilled at the hands of achieving that freedom?

Not to be corny, but I'm suddenly reminded of a scene in a movie. It is from First Contact, the Star Trek movie (follow me on this).... The scene is where Lilly (from 20th century Earth) is trying to convince Piccard to blow up the Enterprise and the Borg who are on it in and effort to keep the Borg from taking over Earth. The parallel here is that the Borg are trying to destroy the future of mankind (read, our civil rights that we are fighting for. The Borg are all of those who want a Constitutional Amendment passed. Hummm, that would make President Bush the "Borg Queen"?). Lilly says to Piccard, “Jean Luc, blow up the damn ship!” Piccard turns to Lilly and says, "NO! We've given up too much already. We've made too many compromises. They advance... we pull back. The line must be drawn HERE, AND NO FURTHER!"

"The line", is... where does it end? How many states will pass DOMA's before we say ENOUGH!? How many rights and privileges will be stripped away before we say "The line must be drawn HERE, AND NO FURTHER!"? How many compromises do we accept and walk away from, saying, "thank you for what little you gave me... I guess as a gay citizen I should be thankful that you let me live here."

Is our fight for equality just? Do we risk everything and go forward demanding equality, even in the face of the leader of our country promising his support for an amendment to abolish what we seek? If they accomplish this, what's next?

My opinion (and now for the emotion); CIVIL RIGHTS ARE NOT NEGOTIABLE! They are not compromises for something that we hope we can have someday. This is simple. This is an absolute. You have them, or you do not. You are first-class, or you are less than first-class. It is that simple.

As for me, I want to be very clear on this: I WILL NOT WAIVER ON THIS ISSUE. I WILL NOT PULL BACK. I WILL NOT COMPROMISE.

The President has drawn the line. So be it. Now we know where we stand and where he stands. Let him "bring it on". This amendment will not happen. Only 40% (according to the latest poll) are in favor of it. It won't even make it out of Congress. The ONLY reason he is doing this actually has nothing to do with us, which is what pisses me off all the more. This is pure politics.

The lack or weapons of mass destruction in Iraq and the lack of capturing Osama bin Laden are huge problems for this president. He needs a diversion. The anti-gay marriage amendment is all he has. It carries with it a lot of emotion and he's playing on that. He's trying to mobilize the radical right of his party. He will do that, but at the expense of much of his more moderate center. This is a grave error on his part. They will be able to see this "compassionate conservative" for what he is; a self serving coward who couldn't find his way to serve the greatest principle of the Constitution; freedom. He will do anything to save his ass. The American people get very squeamish when it comes to messing with the Constitution, as well they should.

Of course, the irony in all of this is that the Republican Party has always boasted about being for state's rights and having a less intrusive Federal Government. Now look at what they are doing. This amendment would dictate to the states what they can and can not do.

He has the amendment and the anti-gay rhetoric. We have ourselves and the truth. The truth has never changed; freedom is always right and is a just fight. We need to keep our eyes on the target. We need to show his true motivation behind this action, and that has nothing to do with marriage.

And now for the President's real legacy: $500 BILLION DEFICIT (projected this year).