Monday, October 24, 2005

Prop 2 bans HETEROsexual marriage (Texas electoral edition)

Early voting is going on in Texas right now, from what I understand, and there is a proposed amendment to the state constitution banning gay marriage on the ballot. Not only is such an amendment superfluous, ineffective, and bigoted, but it's also poorly worded such that, so some say, it technically bans all marriage, heterosexual and otherwise. I'll let you do the math on this one, but I have to admit the language is ambiguous:
Sec. 32. (a) Marriage in this state shall consist only of the union of one man and one woman.

(b) This state or a political subdivision of this state may not create or recognize any legal status identical or similar to marriage.

Burnt Orange Report explains:
...But Section (b) says that nobody in Texas can recognize any status identical to marriage. Wha? That's right: if this amendment passes, marriage is outlawed in Texas. Other states had the good sense to say that no status involving "unmarried persons" or "any other status" in order to make it clear that marriage still existed. Not here in Texas! The same guys who couldn't fix our schools, couldn't figure out how to take care of sick kids and can't seem to figure out how to obey the law can't even screw over gay people correctly. Thanks Republicans!

Not sure how this would actually work out legally, and if such semantic snafus really derail the legislation's intent like this would, but hey, here's yet another reason to vote against prop 2. Oh, and by the way, nearly every major paper in Texas has panned it as well.

2 comments:

TioChuy said...

The only tired I was, was tired of giving in. - Rosa Parks

TioChuy said...

Ooops put that in the wrong topic. Anyway as far as the gay marriage thing I really think it's just more Republican crap to take everyones "eye off the ball." Like we really need to make a law stating that we don't accept gay marriage as legal in Texas, it's already not legal, if anything I would add an amendment that says that in certain rural areas it may be dangerous, if we are going to be redundant.