Op-ed:
Three Issues Soon to be Decided...Part 1 of 3
By: Diane Sori / The Patriot Factor / Right Side Patriots on CPR Worldwide Media
cprworldwidemedia.net
And so we wait.
Three important issues will be coming to a head within the next week,
two will be decided by the Supreme Court, and one basically by the pen
of our traitor-in-chief. In this 3-part series I will go into depth
about each possible decision, starting today with how I believe the Supreme Court
will rule on the legalities...and it is all about legalities...of
'same-sex marriage'.
The nine justices have been given the daunting task of ruling in regards
to marriage rights specifically if prohibiting 'same-sex marriage'
violates equal-protection guarantees. And if they follow the words of
law, as in
“...all men are created equal...” people better get used to
NOT the reinterpretation of marriage in the biblical sense but the
redefinition of what constitutes a marriage in the legal sense.
And this issue of 'same-sex marriage' has divided we Conservatives into
two camps as a red-line of sorts has been drawn between we 'secular'
Conservatives (Conservatives who believe as per Thomas Jefferson in
'separation of church and state') who have NO problem with 'same-sex
marriage' and religious Conservatives who find 'same-sex marriage' an
affront to the words of God. And know that first, the left will use that
division to try and hurt us come November 2016 and second, some state
legislators who will assuredly be unhappy with a pro 'same-sex
'marriage' ruling will work to find other ways to discourage same-sex
couples from marrying, thus dividing us even more.
And with the media generated, focused, and fueled brouhaha over wedding
cakes and pizza parlors now in full operational attack mode, many
religious Conservatives have lost sight of the all-important fact that
the SCOTUS decision on 'same-sex marriage' is in regards to whether the
14th Amendment requires all states to perform 'same-sex marriages', the
power of the states to ban 'same-sex marriages', and/or to refuse to
recognize such marriages performed in another state in their state.
So again, it is about legalities and legalities alone...as in benefits,
protections, security, and responsibilities...leaving the religious interpretation of
'marriage' as is. The biblical interpretation of marriage being between
'one man and one woman' (even the SCOTUS would NOT dare tamper with the
word of God) remains intact, as well as the fact that NO clergy member
will be forced to perform a 'same-sex marriage' ceremony if 'same-sex
marriage' does indeed become of law of the land.
And with this being an issue that most definitely should have stayed on
the state NOT federal level...what with 37 states and the District of
Columbia already having marriage equality laws in place...as in
recognizing 'same-sex marriage' or 'unions' to some degree through
legislative developments, ballot initiatives, or rulings from their
state courts...it must be understood by all that the word 'marriage' is
but a legal term granting legal status alone to couples by a state
government...period...and that 'marriage' by definition is nowhere
mentioned in the Constitution, and the Constitution alone...NOT the Holy
Bible (or we would be a theocracy and NOT a republic)...is the
definitive law of our land.
And while most same-sex couples would be just as happy with the words
'domestic partnership' or 'civil union' being used to describe their
relationship... even while knowing that both terms confer something of a
second-class status...as long as their commitment to each other was viewed
as 'equal' under the eyes of the law...there are legally valid reasons
as to why the word 'marriage' must be used in describing such unions,
and it has NOTHING at all to do with infringing upon the beliefs or
practices of the religious.
For example, if the term 'domestic partnership' was used to describe
same-sex unions the couple would legally only be afforded the lowest
legal level of relationship recognition, and the rights and
responsibilities of such partnerships varies drastically from state to
state, that is if a particular state even chooses to provide such rights
at all. That coupled with the fact that tangible and intangible
protections and benefits that only marriage can afford are usually
minimal at best in a 'domestic partnership' and are NOT recognized if
the couple travels outside their home state, meaning that all legal
benefits afforded the same-sex couple in their home state will probably
NOT be recognized by another state. So what does the couple get from
these two words... basically NOTHING of legal substance at all.
Next we have the term 'civil union' being bantered around as the term
that should be used instead of the word 'marriage.' While the legal
protections and benefits of a 'civil union' are indeed greater and more
encompassing than those of a 'domestic partnership,' these protections
and benefits are only available at the state level while the
all-important federal protections, such as tax and social security
benefits, are missing. This translates into 'civil unions' still being a
separate but unequal union falling far short of providing the same-sex
couple with all the legal benefits, security, and protections afforded
by the word 'marriage'.
And while some gay couples have
NO problem with the words 'civil
union' and the limited benefits those words afford, legally problems remain stemming from the fact that a 'civil union' recognized in one
state might NOT be recognized outside the state in which it was
performed making a 'civil union' still NOT equal in status to
'marriage'. Also, 'civil unions' would still negatively affect medical
emergencies that might
happen while traveling in the sense that one partner may NOT be allowed
to make medical decisions for the other. And private employers may or
may NOT offer health insurance for those in a 'civil union' meaning
that those couples must take additional legal steps on their
own to provide greater
legal and medical protections for themselves and their
children...something 'married' couples do NOT have to do. And even if
the same-sex couple does take said legal steps on their own... just like
they would have to do with a 'domestic partnership'...those protections
will still fall far
short of what's afforded by being legally married.
So
that brings us back to the actual legal concept and meaning of the word
'marriage'...and by 'legal' I mean 'civil marriage' NOT 'religious
marriage'. 'Civil marriage' would afford same-sex couples many but NOT
all of the secular
rights, benefits, security, and responsibilities of those in a
'traditional
marriage', including providing some of the all-important protections for
their
families. And while gay and lesbian families can further protect
themselves in additional ways by drawing up wills, health care proxies,
and co-parent
adoptions, even a 'civil marriage' is NOT legally equal in the
protections that a traditionally recognized marriage would provide.
And I CANNOT say this enough...legal equality is what 'same-sex marriage' is truly
all about...it is NOT about what two consenting adults do in the privacy
of their bedrooms...it is NOT about forcing the clergy to perform
'marriages' that go against their religious beliefs...it is simply about
the equality afforded to all men (and women) under the eyes of the law.
And with the SCOTUS decision now fast approaching many legal experts
(rightfully) predict that the high court will legalize 'same-sex marriage'
nationwide...by their overturning the 'same-sex marriage' bans in Michigan
and three other states...by finding that the Constitution does guarantee
equal treatment and protection under the law for all persons...with
due-process then prohibiting all states from banning 'same-sex marriage.'
So as it stands right now, we know that the four liberal justices will vote
in favor of 'same-sex marriage' and that the four conservative justices will
most like vote against it leaving the ninth justice, conservative
Justice Anthony Kennedy, to be the deciding vote. And while some say
that Kennedy will use the 'federalism-based' argument about the right of
states to define marriage for themselves along with his knowing that a
ruling against same-sex marriage would have NO bearing in the 37 states
who already have 'marriage equality' laws in place...meaning same-sex
couples in those states could continue to marry and those same-sex couples already
married would remain so...coupled with Kennedy's history of supporting
'legal' gay rights, the odds are more than likely that he will rule on
the side of favoring 'same-sex marriage' based upon the Constitution's
wording alone. And that along with the fact that the SCOTUS left in
place rulings from several lower courts striking down state bans still
leaves us to wait a bit longer to see how this plays out.
And so as we await the SCOTUS decision, and while I know some will NOT
like it, I will say that if 'same-sex marriage' does indeed become the
law of our land the world will NOT end, our country will NOT collapse,
God will NOT desert us nor we Him, and the sun will still rise in the
east the next morning whether the gay-bashers and haters like it or NOT.
And then maybe when the dust settles...and know that it will...we can
get back to the truly serious and all-important issues that face our
country today.
******************************************************
Today, Wednesday, June 24th, on
RIGHT SIDE PATRIOTS on
CPR
Worldwide Media, from 2 to 4pm EST, Craig and Diane will discuss Obama's
so-wanted gun control in the wake of the Charleston shootings, the
upcoming SCOTUS decisions on same-sex marriage and ObamaCare, and
Obama's very bad decision to allow the paying of ransom to the enemy.
Hope you can tune in:
http://cprworldwidemedia.net/radio
And chat with us live at
https://www.facebook.com/groups/cprworldwidemedia/
