Comments on: C'mon, Get Happy! And Married!

C'mon, Get Happy! And Married!

grapefruitmoon — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 15:32:34 -0800

The Massachusetts House of Representatives voted to repeal a ban on out of state marriages that has been on the books since 1913. The up-shot? Out of state gay and lesbian couples may soon wed in Massachusetts. The vote goes next to governor Deval Patrick, who has already indicate that he is in favor of repealing the law.

NY Times Article Guardian UK Article

By: Malor

Malor — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 15:36:14 -0800

Shockingly, even straight couples might benefit from being able to marry on vacation. Does everything have to be about gays?

By: Malor

Malor — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 15:37:28 -0800

Strike that, I misunderstood the meaning of the law; this lets people COME TO Massachusetts and get married. So yeah, it is about gays.

By: ornate insect

ornate insect — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 15:41:58 -0800

Does everything have to be about gays? According to Orson Scott Card, Jim D. Adkisson, and other homophobes, yes. The GOP must be loving how gay marriage has once again re-surfaced in time for an election: it was just four years ago that the same issue managed to serve as a major distraction from the issues (the economy, the war, health care) that matter.

By: ericb

ericb — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 15:51:21 -0800

Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 207, Section 11 (aka the 1913 law).

"Some legal experts have argued that the original purpose of the legislation was to block interracial couples from states that banned interracial marriages from going to Massachusetts to get married. These experts note that the law was enacted at the height of a public scandal over black heavyweight boxer Jack Johnson's interracial marriages and suggest that the law was partially a reaction to the Jack Johnson affair. The Massachusetts law of 1913 was enacted after the proposed introduction in the United States House of Representatives in 1912 of an Anti-Miscegenation Amendment to the Constitution. This proposed nation-wide ban on interracial marriage sparked a movement among state legislatures to ban interracial marriage. By 1913, half of the 18 states that had lacked anti-miscegenation laws in 1910 introduced legislation banning interracial marriage in their state. However, Wyoming was the only state without such a ban that actually enacted an anti-miscegenation law during that time period. Massachusetts had legalized interracial marriage in 1843."

History suggests race was the basis.

By: ornate insect

ornate insect — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 15:51:21 -0800

(Note that I am not saying gay marriage does not matter; rather that it's a wedge-issue that manages to distract certain socially conservative swing or disgruntled GOP voters who might actually vote Democrat this year)

By: telstar

telstar — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 16:10:32 -0800

Deval Patrick I knew the deval was involved!

By: DU

DU — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 16:23:25 -0800

something something MITT ROMNEY something MCCAIN

By: rollbiz

rollbiz — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 16:42:03 -0800

Not a chance that this doesn't get signed by the governor, and that's fantastic news. This was a law which was (likely) born of racial intolerance, and trotted out by Mitt Romney to try to cut losses after the Goodrich decision.

By: SeizeTheDay

SeizeTheDay — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 16:44:01 -0800

Why do gays get all these special privileges?

By: KirkJobSluder

KirkJobSluder — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 16:46:40 -0800

Old news. Conservatives have been working to push the issue for the last year in multiple states including Florida, Indiana, and Arizona, while the Republican presidential campaigns have been rumbling about holding back the queers since before Iowa. It was going to be an election-year issue even if we wore the gags and sat on our hands. If you really want to do something about it, donate to the Arizona campaign, donate to the Florida campaign, and donate to the California campaign.

By: smackfu

smackfu — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 16:47:52 -0800

Who need Massachusetts when you have California?

By: jonmc

jonmc — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 16:49:46 -0800

If Trailways or Greyhound is smart, they'll start offering 'couples rates' on trips to Boston. *contemplates buying bus himself and making a fortune*

By: inthe80s

inthe80s — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 17:03:39 -0800

Well, Springfield (MA) Is For Gay Lovers Of Marriage sure to be a top tourist destination soon.

By: ornate insect

ornate insect — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 17:06:01 -0800

in multiple states including Florida, Indiana, and Arizona In other words, in swing states.

By: Blazecock Pileon

Blazecock Pileon — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 17:06:42 -0800

Why do gays get all these special privileges? It's on our membership card. You should join. Wednesdays are Member Appreciation Days, where we get 10% fewer bashings. Just show the card to the man with the baseball bat.

By: jonmc

jonmc — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 17:08:28 -0800

Wow. I just figured you slipped a twenty to the maitre'd.

By: ericb

ericb — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 17:11:51 -0800

Deval Patrick Regarding the governor of our Commonwealth ... With Love and Pride, Governor Deval Patrick's Daughter Comes Out Publicly (June 12, 2008). Deval Patrick's Daughter Comes Out in Time for Pride Parade

"Bay Windows has the exclusive scoop on the sexual orientation of Deval Patrick's daughter, Katherine. She's come out as a lesbian just in time for this weekend's Pride Parade and related Pride Week festivities. Deval and his wife are being appropriately supportive, for which we commend them. In the interview, Katherine reveals that watching her father cheer the defeat of same-sex marriage ban in June 2007 was a moment of pride for her, especially as Deval didn't know of her sexual orientation at the time. Katherine came out her parents in July of last year. It was a 'nonevent' in her parents' eyes: they felt it was a given that they'd be supportive of their daughter no matter what. ...With regard to the whole situation, Deval poses the interesting question, 'Would we give an interview to announce one of our kids was straight?' It will truly be a great day for civil rights when no announcement of anyone's sexual orientation is needed. The Patricks didn't even want to give an interview, but felt it necessary to go public before any publications latched onto the story and tried to inject a sense of scandal into the news."

By: DU

DU — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 18:05:38 -0800

Blazecock Pile-on. I should have known!

By: rmd1023

rmd1023 — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 19:13:22 -0800

smackfu: hey! we had it first! and we would've gotten away with it for tourists, too, if it wasn't for those meddling racists and the mitteny fuckwits who dig up the old laws. GAY MARRIAGE TOURIST DOLLARS! COME TO ME! COME TO MY STATE!

By: jock@law

jock@law — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 19:19:27 -0800

The ban only applies if your home state prohibits that marriage. An Indiana couple couldn't get married in MA; a RI couple could (RI has no law against gay marriage, though they don't explicitly recognize it either).

By: HotPatatta

HotPatatta — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 19:24:32 -0800

It's on our membership card. You should join. You got a membership card when you joined? All I got was a used Cher album and a coupon for a free pair of boxer-briefs.

By: jonmc

jonmc — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 20:11:27 -0800

What do bisexuals get? a copie of Bowie's Greatest Hits?

By: KirkJobSluder

KirkJobSluder — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 20:53:35 -0800

In other words, in swing states. Well, Indiana is probably not going to be a swing-state, and the constitutional amendment was killed in committee. I had not heard that Arizona was a potential swing state, and Florida may not be either.

By: lullaby

lullaby — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 21:10:44 -0800

In other words, in swing states. Arizona's a swing state? Do they not like McCain there?

By: Knappster

Knappster — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 21:18:05 -0800

Arizona's a swing state? Do they not like McCain there? "[A] variety of factors have made Mr. McCain's chances in Arizona less assured than they ordinarily would seem, which his campaign has acknowledged."

By: allen.spaulding

allen.spaulding — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 21:37:12 -0800

Deval Patrick is my president.

By: grapefruitmoon

grapefruitmoon — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 22:45:11 -0800

What do bisexuals get? a copie of Bowie's Greatest Hits? That, and a copy of The Ethical Slut. I traded mine in for a nice fruit basket.

By: Sidhedevil

Sidhedevil — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 23:24:38 -0800

You got Bowie? Damn it, all I got was a volume of Edna St. Vincent Millay. ::ripoff::

By: Brandon Blatcher

Brandon Blatcher — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 04:06:31 -0800

What do bisexuals get? Aren't their hands already full?

By: ROU_Xenophobe

ROU_Xenophobe — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 06:00:58 -0800

What do bisexuals get? THIS! *rips off stripper clothes to a Window ta-da noise* *poses "enticingly," with 100% sexyface (tongue-out leer)* *the audience screams* *not in delight*

By: kirkaracha

kirkaracha — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 07:29:54 -0800

2008 Arizona Presidential General Election: McCain vs Obama.

By: kirkaracha

kirkaracha — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 07:30:45 -0800

*rips off stripper clothes to a Window ta-da noise* My eyes! The goggles do nothing!

By: klangklangston

klangklangston — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 10:11:20 -0800

Heh. I have a gay pal in Michigan whose mother keeps after him to move to a state where he can get married and come up with some grandchildren (either adopted or surrogate or whatever). He's already put her off about Canada, saying that the ceremony won't count, but if Mass. gets their act together, he's gonna have a whole ton of parental pressure on him again. It was one of those reasons he gave half-hearted support to the ban on gay marriage in Michigan. I can't wait to be like, "Haha, homo, now you have to put up with same shit from your mom as I do from mine." Seriously, equality is great.

By: digaman

digaman — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 10:19:49 -0800

...which reminds me of the only credible objection to gay marriage that I've ever heard, from Jon Stewart: "No one should have two Jewish mothers."

By: ericb

ericb — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 10:19:50 -0800

Effective immediately, same-sex couples can marry in Massachusetts! Deval Patrick has signed the bill repealing the 1913 law. Due to a technical change made by the House, same-sex couples from out-of-state will not have to wait the standard 90 days before the repeal of the law takes effect. They will be able to be married immediately.

By: smackfu

smackfu — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 10:59:03 -0800

I made an oblique reference to this above, but isn't gay marriage legal in California AND don't they allow out-of-state couples to marriage? If someone was willing to travel, wouldn't they have gone to California?

By: Faint of Butt

Faint of Butt — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 11:28:52 -0800

David Bowie is my president.

By: Partial Law

Partial Law — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 11:35:44 -0800

If someone was willing to travel, wouldn't they have gone to California? Some would: "But, he predicted 'a lot of Jet Blue cancellations from LaGuardia to Laguna and some Amtrak purchases from New York to Boston,' adding, 'Tanglewood, the Red Lion Inn, how do you say no?'"

By: KirkJobSluder

KirkJobSluder — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 12:23:02 -0800

smackfu: Who need Massachusetts when you have California? Well, California is still an electoral battleground on this issue, albeit one that is still very winable. MA is still important because: 1: the end goal is marriage equality in all 50 states. 2: since Goodridge v. Department of Public Health the issue has been in the hands of the State Legislature, which has blocked the amendment process. MA defies the conservative talking point that same-sex marriage is only supported by the actions of "activist judges." (Goodridge was decided in November 2003, demonstrating that there is no "good" season for legislative activism on this issue.)

By: jonmc

jonmc — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 16:33:30 -0800

...which reminds me of the only credible objection to gay marriage that I've ever heard, from Jon Stewart: "No one should have two Jewish mothers." or *shudder* soccer moms.

By: Alex930

Alex930 — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 17:25:41 -0800

...which reminds me of the only credible objection to gay marriage that I've ever heard, from Jon Stewart: "No one should have two Jewish mothers." or *shudder* soccer moms. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- As a gay man, I'm offended! The nerve! My children will have two STAGE MOMS, not soccer moms! haha.

By: klangklangston

klangklangston — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 22:16:34 -0800

As the aforementioned pal says, "I got into being gay to have sex with men, not to marry them."