For 24 hours, the freedom, joys, and tribulations of civil marriage were awarded to gays and lesbians in Polk County Iowa, by a district judge who put together a 63 page opinion on the matter that was dismissed in an instant by GOP frontrunner St. Mitt of Romney.
Many papers published a hug, but the NYT published a kiss (above). Aww..
The County's busy-body officials quickly rushed to get a stay from a higher court, and the case now moves on up to Iowa's Supreme Court.
Astronomers were overheard to say that there was no apparent disturbance in the Cosmos after the wedding and kiss took place in Ames.
Of course, those religious conservatives who are too dense to have figured out yet how to allow gay marriage an not give up their authority to police the Moral Order felt shockwaves of squeamishness, as far away as Nigeria, where religious blindness and the associated spiritual violence is most virulent and rampant, these days.
The case has been shepherded by Lamda Legal (Camilla Taylor Ken Upton, Jr.) and with the following plaintiffs, the families that McCain, Romney, Giuliani and Thompson would just assume ignore and deny, while smugly smiling on their way to false promises from the highest office to protect the rights of all citizens:
- Kate, 34, and Trish Varnum, 42, of Cedar Rapids, who have been in a committed relationship for nearly seven years.
- David Twombley, 66, and Larry Hoch, 65, of Urbandale, both retired teachers who have been in a committed relationship for over six years
- Dawn and Jen BarbouRoske, 39 and 37 respectively, of Iowa City, who have been together for more than 17 years and their two children, McKinley, 9, and Breeanna, 5
- Ingrid Olson, 29, and Reva Evans, 33, of Council Bluffs, who have been together for nearly 10 years and their son, Jamison, 1
- Jason Morgan, 37, and Chuck Swaggerty, 35, of Sioux City, who have been together for 10 years
- Bill Musser, 49, and Otter Dreaming, 50, of Decorah, who have been together for over six years.
NO RESPECT FOR AMERICA, ST. MITT of ROMNEY ATTACKS A DELIBERATIVE JUDICIARY THAT HAS KEPT AMERICA GREAT
Mitt Romney
"The ruling in Iowa today is another example of an activist court and unelected judges trying to redefine marriage and disregard the will of the people as expressed through Iowa 's Defense of Marriage Act. This once again highlights the need for a Federal Marriage Amendment to protect the traditional definition of marriage as between one man and one woman."
Rudy Giuliani's response is the same: via spokeswoman Maria Comella: "It's becoming increasingly clear why we need judges who interpret the Constitution rather than legislate from the bench. It's the reason why Rudy is committed to appointing strict constructionist judges in the vein of Alito, Roberts and Scalia." (NY Sun)
Hoping to hear the Democratic frontrunners with, "The GOP's candidates continue a relentless attack on the judiciary that was fomented by Karl Rove under George Bush. It's time that we start respecting the judicial process again, and that goes beyond the removal of Alberto Gonzales."
I can hardly wait for the youTube debates. I hope someone sends in a question, "You all condemned as "activist" a written, sixty-three page opinion from an Iowa judge, who found for plaintiffs on rights to marry in Iowa. Tell me, have any of you written a 63 page paper explaining to the voters your position on excluding gays and lesbians from marriage and, if not, what paragraph in this opinion was "activist"?"
WHEN THE TIDE TURNS IN THE NATION, THE GOP WILL SUFFER BACKLASH, PERHAPS SEVERE
Check out how Ann Coulter is now filling coffers in Ohio. (Just savor it for a while, until the homocons get a hold of it for a lecture ...).
Cincinnati, OH – A coalition waged a “Thank Ann Coulter” campaign to raise money – over $25,000 to date – for Xavier University progressive student groups working for the causes Coulter regularly bashes. Equality Ohio, ProgressOhio, People for the American Way, and other sponsoring partners announced the latest total today after a month long effort.
