The Portland Communique is writing some excellent coverage and commentary on the ballot initiatives that would ban gay marriage AND civil unions in Oregon. One interesting item it has found during its investigation on the three chief petitioners behind the initiatives, is one petitioner's weblog. Anyway, the Communique had an insightful observation on the anti-gay marriage initiatives, comparing them to past attempts to prevent interracial marriage in Oregon:
The same arguments made today against same-sex marriage -- which boil down to something about a threat to the social fabric -- are merely echoes of the arguments which supported the idea that blacks were not quite human and could be owned as property, the idea that women should not be allowed to cast votes at the ballot box, and the above idea that whites should not marry people of other races.
Thing is, they're right. Same-sex marriage indeed is a threat to the social fabric, just as were the ideas of free blacks, voting women, and interracial marriages. But when the social fabric clearly is worn, tattered, and only protects the privileged few, it deserves to be threatened.
