From: gadson@zeus.tamu.edu
Newsgroups: alt.politics.homosexuality,alt.rush-limbaugh,alt.politics.clinton
Subject: Re: Gay marriage
Date: 22 Jan 1993 12:47 CST
Organization: Texas A&M University, College Station, TX
Distribution: world
NNTP-Posting-Host: zeus.tamu.edu

In article <1221@bug.UUCP>, stevef@bug.UUCP (Steven R Fordyce) writes...
| 
|These are justifications* for you wanting to marry, not justifications
|for the marriage laws in general, nor for expanding legal "marriage" to
|include same-sex couples.

	Though, children are no more a justification for allowing marriage
than are property rights, health care, family leave, adoption, etc.


|*I said that homosexuals have the same rights we all have.  Others said,
|*what about marriage?  Well, as has been pointed out, homosexuals can marry,
|*so they are treated in this regard just like everyone else.  However, this
|*isn't what those who object mean.  They want legal marriage redefinited to
|*include same sex couples.  But why stop there?  Why not arbitrary groups?
|*Why not a man and his favorite sheep, etc.?  Indeed, why not?  Wouldn't
|*that be more fair?

	So far, no sheep are suing for the right to marry.  Regardless,
allowing same-sex couples to marry no more implies that people and animals
should marry than does allowing opposite-sex couples to marry.  Why stop
ar only marriage between humans?  Well, why stop at only marriage between
members of the opposite gender?  It's simply an arbitration.  



|*What is the purpose of legal marriage?  That is the question you have to
|*answer first before you can deal with any of the above.  There is only one
|*justification for the legal institution of marriage: children.  History and
|*recent experience shows that on average the best way to raise children, to
|*socialize them and pass our culture on to them, is in intact families with
|*the mother and father present.  This is not to run down single parents or
|*other arrangements, it is just a fact.  Therefore society has a profound
|*interest in promoting marriage and keeping them together.  In fact, I don't
|*think we are doing nearly enough.* Society simply has no like interest in
|*keeping homosexual couples together.

	Then we should not allow people to marry unless they intend to have
children.

	Your above argument is simply your supposition.  It doesn't not
warrant lengthy refutation.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|*Homosexuals are free to make whatever vows to each other they like.  They
|*can enter contracts with each other, and put each other in their wills.  As
|*for the tax benefits (which aren't that large and don't always exist -- my
|*wife and I paid a large tax penalty to get married), society simply has no
|*interest either way in homosexuals' continued union.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Well, yes, actually, your grand Society is founded on individuals.
The fundamental unit /of/ Society is the individual.  The happiness of the
individual can promote the individual's productivity.  Society has an 
interest in keeping its members happy.  Homosexuals are a productive,
usually highly intellegent, and potentially wealthy group.  They can offer
quite a bit to your Society unless that Society degrades them.


|*(or all) parties want to stay together, surely they will.  So the question
|*isn't why shouldn't gay couples be able to (legally) marry each other, but
|*why should they?

	Legally (socially) sanctioned marraige helps to curb sexual 
promiscuity.  And, sexual promiscuity, as we all know, leads to social
diseases.  A society has an interest in promoting sexual fidelity among its 
members.  And, homosexuals, like it or not, are members of your Society.


|*The legal aspects of marriage exist mainly to protect children, and those
|*are fine.  Tax and other benefits of marriage are there to encourage
|*couples to marry and stay together for the benefit of children.

	Perhaps in your mind.

Gadson


Xref: sparky alt.politics.homosexuality:10229 alt.rush-limbaugh:15064 alt.fan.rush-limbaugh:13742