Not Amending the Constitution

The same-sex marriage amendment is set to fail in the Senate.

This is a truly embarrassing episode in Washington. This amendment was doomed to failure from the word go. So, why pursue it? Political posturing, pure and simple. Elections are looming, so drag this amendment out, gin up the conservative base, win an election, then put the amendment away until the next election.

When did conservatives stop being conservatives? When I was coming of age politically, to be conservative meant to believe in limited government. Now it means to use the government to try and enforce a particular moral code on anyone and everyone in this nation. Today's religious right wing GOP has become a group of modern day Pharisees.

We would do well to remember that a major motivation behind the first amendment's separation of church and state is to protect the church from government interference. People on the religious right should be careful what they wish for. Some day a resurgent religious left may begin to force morality on them that they don't support.

Morality does, without question, come into play in government. This being the case, religion will also come into play. But, we should be cautious, and set the bar high- making sure there is a compelling public interest involved before using the government to intervene in what may be a private moral decision. If that standard is met, then act. When it is not, government should stay out.

In this case, the standard is not met. As I said in my earlier post, this amendment does not protect marriage because marriage is not threatened. Same-sex unions are no threat to the nation or its people, and, furthermore, homosexuals do not deserve to be treated, whether married or single, as if they pose such a threat.

GP