I do think that BM has a point. It has become a PC issue so civil union seems to be a better solution. I have never deflected this issue. I've said from the beginning that if gay and lesbian people want to marry, let them. I just also added that according to federal law that will not get them federal benefits.
.
Originally Posted by OliviaHoward
His point was that they already have all the rights that married people have. That is a lie, a myth. Lies like that give cover to people to say this PC crap. It is not PC, it is discrimination, pure and simple. If you and boardman are for that, then just say so but quit saying that it is PC gone amuck. That is total BS.
That is why the law needs to be changed. You keep saying it does not matter. Well without the change in law they are discriminated aganist.
http://www.now.org/issues/marriage/marriage_unions.html
What is marriage?
Marriage is a unique legal status conferred by and recognized by governments all over the world. It brings with it a host of reciprocal obligations, rights and protections. It is also a cultural institution. No other word has that power and no other status can provide that protection.
Married couples have 1,138 federal rights, protections and responsibilities such as:
- Social Security benefits upon death, disability or retirement of spouse, as well as benefits for minor children.
- Family and Medical Leave protections to care for a new child or a sick or injured family member
- Workers' Compensation protections for the family of a worker injured on the job
- Access to COBRA insurance benefits so the family doesn't lose health insurance when one spouse is laid off
- ERISA (Employee Retirement Income Security Act) protections such as the ability to leave a pension, other than Social Security, to your spouse
- Exemptions from penalties on IRA and pension rollovers
- Exemptions from estate taxes when a spouse dies
- Exemptions from federal income taxes on spouse's health insurance
- The right to visit a sick or injured loved one, have a say in life and death matters during hospitalization.
What is a civil union?
A civil union is a legal status granted by a state. The State of Vermont created civil unions in 2000. It provides legal protection to couples at the state law level, but omits federal protections, as well as the dignity, clarity, security and power of the word "marriage".
Civil unions are different from civil marriage and that difference has wide-ranging implications that make the two institutions unequal, such as:
Portability:
Marriages are respected state to state for all purposes but questions remain as to how civil unions will be treated in other states. The two appellate courts that have addressed the issue in Connecticut and Georgia have disregarded them based on the fact that their own states do not grant civil unions.
Federal Benefits:
According to a 1997 General Accounting Office report, civil marriage brings with it at least 1,049 legal protections and responsibilities from the federal government alone. Civil unions bring none of these critical legal protections.
Taxes and Public Benefits for the Family:
Because the federal government does not respect civil unions, a couple with a civil union will be in a kind of limbo with regard to governmental functions performed by both state and federal governments, such as taxation, pension protections, provision of insurance for families, and means-tested programs like Medicaid. Even when states try to provide legal protections, they may be foreclosed from doing so in joint federal/state programs.
Filling Out Forms:
Every day we fill out forms that ask us whether we are married, single, divorced or widowed. People joined in a civil union do not fit in any of those categories. People with civil unions should be able to identify themselves as a single family unit yet misrepresenting oneself on official documents can be considered fraud and can carry potential serious criminal penalties.
Separate and Unequal—Second Class Status:
Even if there were no substantive differences in the way the law treated marriages and civil unions, the fact that a civil union remains a separate status only for gay people represents real and powerful inequality. The United States Constitution requires legal equality for all. Including lesbian and gay couples within existing marriage laws in is the fairest and simplest thing to do.
Ending a Civil Union:
If you are married, you can get divorced in any state in which you are a resident. But if states continue to disregard civil unions, there is no way to end the relationship other than establishing residency in Vermont and filing for dissolution there. This has already created problems for couples who now have no way to terminate their legal agreement.
I've said it a million times; hopefully the million and first time will set in with you. I don't care if they marry or not. I do not think every nitpicking group needs to "protected". Ci
.
Originally Posted by OliviaHoward
It is not a matter of protection, it is a matter of equality, it is a matter of discrimination. That is why what Obama has done has galvanized that community, as it should. Do you as a woman want protection from the government discriminating aganist you? Or is that just PC hogwash?
- Get married or civilly joined IDK. Well I do, as long as you treat both sets equally.
- Change the federal law to allow same-sex civilly joined people to receive federal benefits. That is what Obama has endorsed. Fuc, you been living in the woods?
- It was a Democrat president that signed the bill making it illegal for the feds to grant federal benefits to same-sex partners regardless of what the state decided about marriage. What is your point? Obama was not the one who did so.
- Not every group needs their highly limited minority "protected" especially if it is expensive. Yes, you are right, retards should have to drive theirself to Beck's for a Hamburger.
- PC is the bane of our society. Especially when it pertains to women. We were a much better nation before ya'll could vote.
- Boardman changed my mind on this to some degree not the other way around. I now see it as PC vs society issue more than a who cares if gay people get married issue. So, yet again you either can't read, can't comprehend or choose not to comprehend. Either way, it is more of you twisting and turning on yourself to make an argument with yourself and no one else. bm thinks they already have equal protection under the law with this civil union bs. That is incorrect. So if he changed your mind, he changed it into believing a falsehood.
We are now at the limit of what stupid conversation I am willing to engage in with you. I am going to go back to the three and done with you unless you, amateurishly, try to twist my words. You are outta your league You always run and hide when you are getting your pretty lil ass spanked in a debate. That or scream 'stalker!'.
Originally Posted by OliviaHoward
And for the record: One man's She Devil is another man's obsession IJS.
Originally Posted by OliviaHoward
Under that logic Gonorrhea is another of my obsession.
I steer clear of women that are infected with both the she deviness and the clap.
Bucket List course for me. Don't fall off the cliff, its a long way to the jagged rocks below. LOL!
.