Maryland Senate President Mike Miller (a Democrat) on same-sex marriage:
I’m a historian and I look at civilizations, I study civilizations, I read history every night. And I see it’s an attack on the family, I think it’s an attack on traditional families. That’s the way I see it.
NOM is delighted, of course, and gives their readers a link to send him messages of support. But guess what happened when one of their devoted followers tried to use it?
Data error, indeed. Even NOM’s own computer system knows they’re wrong.
Rob–they fixed the link. Since I found myself on the part of their site where I was being urged to send Senator Miller an email, I sent the one, below:
Dear Senator Miller,
In your recent statement on same-sex marriage, you implied that such marriages were an attack on the traditional family.
When I married my same-sex spouse, my parents did not feel that way at all. They were in their late seventies at the time and they fully supported my decision to marry my same-sex spouse. Both my parents died in 2011. In her last days, my mother referred to us as her “two handsome sons.” In his last days, my father told me, “You and Aaron were very fortunate to find each other.
My parents understood that my choice of spouse was an affirmation of family values, not an attack upon the family. Because of people like you, and organizations like NOM, however, far too many people labor under the misapprehension that by denying marriage equality, they are somehow protecting families.
Because of people who believe as you do, our legal marriage is not recognized in our home state. Because of people who believe as you do, my spouse does not have such basic protections as health insurance or an ability to receive my pension benefits after my death. Because of people who believe as you do, my spouse and I carry an envelope full of envelopes full of documents in our cars so that, in case of emergency, we can hopefully be admitted to each other’s bedsides and cleared to make medical decisions for each other.
I urge you to reconsider your decision on marriage. You are not protecting families; you are endangering them.
P.S. Excuse the editing errors.
If he’s a historian, he’s a piss-poor one. I have to constantly point out to people who claim the Roman Empire fell because of homosexuality that it was a Christian Empire for more than a hundred years when it “fell”, and that the
Eastern Empire continued for another 1000 years. The British Empire didn’t allow homosexuals any rights so how come it’s no longer with us? The Greeks never had an empire, so trying to attribute a downfall to same-sex relationships is asinine. In Egypt the Old Kingdom fell because of drought, not sex, the Middle Kingdom from invasion, not sex, the same for the New Kingdom. There is not one iota of evidence to support the claim that tolerance of homosexuality leads to the fall of empire, period!
Does he mean traditional families as described in Genesis – where women were considered property?
Quite, Scott.
And, no country, society or individual EVER suffered ill effects from the expansion of equal civil rights, justice and protections either.
Especially minorities previously denied all of that. As I always say, Jim Crow didn’t make white people better or more moral or intelligent. So any form of discrimination against gays won’t make hetero people better either.
The failures of individual marriages, the disintegration of families through divorce, domestic violence, poverty, economic downturns, addiction and adultery are what will compromise stability in relationships.
Blaming gay people, as blaming WOMEN for the downfall of mankind is an example of intellectual and moral dishonesty to the core. And primitive barbarism, dressed up as religious moral principle.
@Will J: And don’t forget Solomon: 300 wives, 700 concubines. My favorite example of “traditional, Biblical family” to bring up whenever those particular buzzwords are bandied about.
Hey Rob-
I wish people like him could meet my friends. My partner and I spent time with them this past Oct. Their names are Jay and Bryan. They were married in CA before the whole Prop. 8 debacle. They adopted two amazing children. Their son Daniel has some physical disabilities due to the mother’s drug abuse while he was in utero. No straight couples wanted Daniel. Their children are flourishing in an environment of love and happiness. They are exceeding in school.
It makes me sick to think of where these two kids would be had Jay and Bryan not adopted them. Would they still be in foster care? Probably. The state of California has thousands of children just waiting for a loving couple to adopt them.
The George Lucas studios just did a documentary on my friends. The premier will be at the Castro Theater on Feb. 6 in San Francisco. My partner and I are flying out from Cleveland to support them on their big day! Their message is so important-especially in this election year with politicians wearing their homophobia proudly on their sleeves.
Jim from Ohio
Here is the trailer from the movie:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RclFT71GmVc