DEFENDING MARRIAGE: “I just finished reading your recent posts and I felt compelled to write you and just simply say thank you.
Not that it matters, but I’m not gay. I am, however, recently and happily married. (In fact, it’s my husband who follows your daily blog and sent me your “Why The M Word Matters To Me” article last week.) I LOVE being married. It’s fulfilled a part of me that I never knew could be fulfilled. And it’s funny how when you suddenly have a state certified document that says you’re together, people treat you differently. They take you more seriously. You suddenly become “real and true” in the eyes of your family and even strangers. And I think that’s why now more than ever, I’ve been trying to find ways to express my outrage that there are people who don’t believe EVERYONE should have the right to do this. I just finished reading your recent posts in response to President Bush’s announcement and I just felt I had to tell you that I not only agree with you, but I respect what you’re doing so much.
I also grew up Catholic… in a large, close knit Irish Catholic family as a matter of fact. And my cousin happens to be gay. I think many in my family thought for years that he was and at least with me, it was painful to know he felt he had to keep it a secret. Fortunately, my family embraced him with love and support when he came out a couple of years ago. Even better, when he brought home his first boyfriend. That article really resonated with me… not to be overly dramatic but it brought me to tears. My cousin and I are extremely close and the thought that one day he can’t just go out and get married when he wants to is depressing and utterly frustrating. He is a wonderful, beautiful person who should have the RIGHT to share his life with whomever he chooses. Actually, even if he were a terrible person he should still have that RIGHT. Everyone should.”
INNER CONFLICTS: “First off, I am sorry for the president’s recent comments. I can only imagine how crushing they must be for someone of your preference and integrity. I, like many other Americans (perhaps even you) are now left with several inner conflicts regarding the upcoming election. I am a conservative who, though angry at the president for his fiscal recklessness, is incredibly proud of this president in regard to the war on terror. And now this. I have no doubt in my mind that there are few men in this nation (much less politics) who would be able to conduct the war on terror in the fashion (one of principled war rather than law enforcement) and with the bravery that this president has done. As you said, this is one of the great benefits of a president who can make value judgments between good and evil so clearly. But this amendment issue has left me, for the first time, questioning where he draws those lines and the ease with which he does so. I will still vote for Bush in November, but not with the same pride with which I would have done so just one day ago. I will vote for him out of fear – not any fear instilled by the GOP or campaign rhetoric, but fear of a very real threat to liberty in this world. The stakes are too high, and, unfortunately, I am now stuck with no choice but to eat crow at home for the sake of my own protection from the fanatical acts of a few foreigners.”
OFF THE WAGON: “I am an independent voter who was supporting Bush for re-election, primarily due to his actions in the war on terror. But no longer. His disgraceful support for altering the nation’s constitution, in order to enshrine bigotry, division and scorn is the last straw. I was willing to overlook so many of his deficiencies: fiscal irresponsibilty, enlarging the size and scope of the federal government, inability to communicate effectively, etc., due to his determined pursuit of those terrorists and fanatics attempting to harm America and the West. However, I am now going to support the Democratic nominee and rely on the public to vociferously support and demand that a newly-elected Democratic president continue the war on terror. I do not believe the public will allow a Democratic president to be soft on the terror war. Simply, I can no longer in good conscience support President Bush. He has gone too far.”
IN SHOCK: “I am just in shock and sick to my stomach right now. I won’t pretend that I was ever a Bush supporter, but I always felt willing to give him the benefit of the doubt on certain issues, to give credit where credit was due on others. And even though he has been threatening to support this, I guess I just never believed that he really would. But when I heard him support this amendment, I truly felt a sense of despair that I can’t quite express. I pray that this act of hate unites gays, lesbians, and other people of conscience against this administration; as a percentage of the population, I think we must outnumber the extremists on the religious right who have been demanding that Bush support this amendment in exchange for their continued support. I really do believe that, over time, right triumphs over wrong in America.”
TWO BY FOUR: “Seriously, when they have to hit you with the speech equivalent of a two by four to get your attention as to how they feel about you, you might want to rethink your party affiliation.”
OUTTA HERE: “Simply put, if the United States Constitution were amended to define marriage as between a man and a woman, whatever its form, I would leave the country. I just couldn’t stay…just couldn’t.”
TIME TO UNITE: “I’ve always tried very hard not to criticize gays who support Bush because I think that we need to try and understand the reasons why people have certain opinions rather than to just criticize them immediately. I think that gays are some of the most intolerant people when it comes to politics, but Bush has just today made this intolerance something that is clearly justified. As you have pointed out so well on your site, it is now impossible for a gay person to support this President or even to feel that the President does not actively discriminate against you personally. He’s made the decision easy this year, I will vote for the most likely person to defeat him, regardless of the state of affairs at the election. I hope that gay people can make this a positive rather than a negative and work together to show Bush he cannot discriminate against Americans openly and get a pass. We need to all forget about our past opinions and drop any desire to say “I told you so” to the millions of gay Americans who have supported Bush. I know I will.”
WRONG, ANDREW: “President Bush didn’t ‘declare war’ on the civil rights of homosexuals; left-wing activist judges, mayors, city bureaucrats and the gay movement have declared war on the rule of law and the institution of marriage. President Bush has merely responded to what others have started. The battle is now joined and I believe that the overwhelming majority of the country will be in the President’s army, as you’ll soon find out.”
The Dish 