Gay Marriage

My Opponent:I have reviewed the Instigator's profile, and it turns out he is not a Christian. As such, he cannot be fully trusted to accurately represent the Bible and its view on homosexuality. ) To avoid any confusion on this subject. I will not argue the bible oppositions to gay marriage, even though I believe there are none. Now to begin. My opponent asked. .. Which states allow gay marriage. I will give him the history. The first civil unions in the United States were offered by the state of Vermont in 2000. The federal government does not recognize these unions, and under the U. S. Defense of Marriage Act of 1996 (DOMA), other U. S. states are not obliged to recognize them. By the end of 2006, Connecticut and New Jersey had also enacted civil union laws; New Hampshire followed in 2007. In 2010 Illinois passed a civil unions law. Furthermore, California's domestic partnership law had been expanded to the point that it became practically a civil union law, as well. The same might be said from 2007 for domestic partnership in Maine, domestic partnerships in District of Columbia, domestic partnership in Washington, and domestic partnership in Oregon. In 2005, the Connecticut legislature became the first state in the United States to legalize civil unions without a court order. The law took effect on October 1, 2008 and was signed into law by Connecticut governor Jodi Rell. Gay rights groups subsequently sued to legalize same-sex marriage, with the Connecticut Supreme Court deciding in their favor in 2008. Same-sex marriages have been performed since November 12, 2008. On October 1, 2010, all existing civil unions were automatically transformed into marriages. . http://www.ask.com... My opponent stated my second contention, to be irrelevant. Gay marriage advocates argue that this is an equal rights issue. But what is it that a married hetero couple can "do" that an unmarried gay couple cannot "do"? Under current law, gays can commit themselves to one another. .. they can live together. .. what can't they do that married people can do? Nothing, as far as I can tell. So why is it so important for these gay (and lesbian) couples flocking to San Francisco to be able to hold up an "official" marriage certificate after their one-minute wedding? I surmise that it's about validation: gay and lesbian marriage is about their relationship being recognized precisely as a marriage. But my question is this: why am I being forced to acknowledge gay relationship as marriage? That is, after all, what marriage is: a political (i. e. public, on behalf of the people) stamp of recognition. Hence, my conclusion: in many ways (albeit not for all those involved), gay marriage is about forcing the body-politic to recognize homosexual unions as legitimate. Burgwald is right — and he is wrong, and all on the very same point. He is right that being married is about achieving a sort of validation for gay couple; he is wrong that there is nothing that a married heterosexual couple can "do" that an unmarried gay couple cannot do — and it is precisely this point of asserting social validation for their relationship. Finally, he is further wrong that he is being forced to acknowledge a gay relationship on a personal level. It is worth noting that there is nothing in these questions about gay marriage which could not be asked about marriage generally. What is it that a married heterosexual couple can do that any couple living together can't do — especially if we imagine changing a few contract laws to allow for things like property sharing? What is so important about a marriage certificate that any couple, gay or straight, would want to hold it up? What do they hope to gain by having society acknowledge their relationship as a marriage? . http://atheism.about.com... I will explain: Homosexual couples, are no different, than a heterosexaul couple. There is no difference, in a same sex marriage, then there is in a tradintional marriage. Because they both seek the same things. To be publicly recoginzied as being in a union with their partner. ETC. . Both groups are exactly the same aside from there sexuality. Society just gives one more trouble about it, because society views it as different. We also viewed African Americans, as different at one point in time as well. My opponent also has a problem with contention 3. He asked for evidence proving that children raised by gay partners turned out healthy. While I can not provide, an accurate list. I will give what I can to prove, that there is no difference. Notice below there is a link please read the article within it. . http://www.post-gazette.com... Contention 4: My opponent forgot to add this> Medical and scientific organizations do NOT list homosexuality as a mental disorder. It used to be listed as a disorder by the American Psychiatric Association, but it was removed as a disorder in 1973. There are certain groups and religious organizations that refuse to accept this position. . http://wiki.answers.com... Above is the whole article my opponent used against me. Now my refutation. My opponent clearly states,it appears that in contrast to the results of the vote, the majority of the APA membership continued to view homosexuality as a pathology. Can this not be aquired to Religous groups and Origanizations, that the full article speaks of? Also see this link: . http://psychology.ucdavis.edu...