So, my mind just wanders off into "What if...?" territory a lot. The last couple of days, here's what I've been wondering.
Several states have amended their constitutions or enacted laws saying that they will not only not allow homosexual marriages or civil unions, but also that they won't recognize such marriages performed in other states.
Are we really at that point? Where a state tells the citizenry of another state "We don't agree with your system of marriage licensing, and we won't acknowledge your marriage"?
If so, then what's to stop a retaliation? For example, Massachusetts could now say "Fine. We also won't recognize any marriage performed in North Carolina as valid in our state, so if you marry in NC and move here, you won't be allowed to visit your 'life partner' in Intensive Care or make critical medical decisions for him/her in a crisis."
And then, where does it end? Refusing insurance bought in other states? Not acknowledging driver's licenses from other states? Invalidating birth certificates? High school diplomas?
All this stems from imposing religion onto law, backed up by intentional ignorance, and bigotry.
that's pretty much what our founders wanted. if you don't like what one state rules, move. i don't agree with the federal government changing the constitution with illegal "acts" a whole lot more than what a state says about what constitutes marriage. i'd rather be free in all states than a police state prisoner, gay or not.
ReplyDeleteI understand the issue of powers and authority reserved for individual states. I have some thoughts about that which will appear here in the future. However, there are a couple of other things going on here. First, is the blatant bigotry. Second is the issue of recognizing other states' licensing, whether it be marriage, driving, or whatever. How about divorce? What if you wandered into a state that decided it didn't want to acknowledge divorces, and they found out you were on wife number two, so they arrested you for bigamy? I'm just saying that a whole can of worms has been opened here with the refusal to accept a marriage which is 100% legal in the state where it was performed.
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