Gays should have a new type of civil union as a major option.

I have a problem with my opponents counter plan approach. Lets say he finds a solution to the problem. Witch in this debate is the religious and traditional aspects witch people use to oppose same sex marriage. Secondly the issue of gay rights. Now pro says lets just allow them to marry. Even though my view on this should be irrelevant because this debate is about civil unions I support same sex marriage. If same sex marriage was allowed in all states then it would fix the problem. The only issue is the that though public opinion is starting to accept gay marriage now it's still illegal in most states."Besides California, 28 states have constitutional amendments that ban same-sex marriage, and 12 others have laws that restrict unions to one man and one woman." [1] . In 2008 California passed a ban on same sex marriage.[1]In north Carolina we just passed amendment one.[2] This is pure evidence that even though the surveys say people are starting to accept gay marriage the voters are still having a negative vote on this issue and is making the opposite statement from what the polls say. Maybe people are not voting enough but that's a different issue. So what I am saying here is my opponents proposal would work only if gay marriage was legal on a federal level. Since is not and most likely will not cons counter plan argument isnt a valid standpoint because the conditions for his plan cannot be met.Gay people should have the right to pursue happiness via marriage or civil unions. Lets remember this debate is about if civil unions should be a major option to pursue happiness for everyone. We wont meet the conditions of cons counter plan. So if gay marriage is being denied to gays witch it is another option needs to be available. That option is civil unions.Religion and traditionYes I am aware that marriage is not exclusively religious. That's not my argument. my point for a gay person to not be married is if that person getting married is religious. In that case they should not get married because it contradicts their own beliefs. My argument is this, majority of people oppose same sex marriages because of traditional values based on religion and traditional beliefs where people use the gay marriage isnt natural argument. Or they use the bible or other religion as their defense. These two are the major arguments against same sex marriage. One is because of religion and the other is because of traditional values. I don't agree with those but it cannot be ignored that the majority that denies same sex marriages deny it for these major reasons. It seems majority of American voters support those beliefs. Witch is why marriage wont be approved on a federal level unless we eliminate that kind of thinking. Witch seems impossible because the battle of this right has gone on for so long and it seems the opposers seem to win the argument. Witch hinders gay rights.My opponent seems to agree with bot of my gay rights contention so I see no need to further discuss it.It seems we have turned this debate into a gay marriage debate. It was kind of necessary because cons counterargument depends on it. As we can see the conditions for cons counterargument will not happen. so gay people need to have a second option to pursue happiness. Lets go a step further and say one day possibly gay marriage might be approved on a federal level. Those conditions will take decades or even thousands of years. Gays should not sit idle and expect that tomorrow the ban on whatever state their in will be lifted. That is highly unlikely. As for the present gays need to have a second option until or if the day comes when the conditions for cons counter plan are met. So civil unions need to be a major option in order for America to not contradict its principles of equality.Sources[1]....http://www.washingtonpost.com...[2]....http://www.huffingtonpost.com...