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Subject: 
Re: At last, some family-values legislation I can really get behind!
Newsgroups: 
lugnet.off-topic.debate
Date: 
Tue, 28 Feb 2006 01:53:39 GMT
Viewed: 
1591 times
  
In lugnet.off-topic.debate, David Eaton wrote:
   In lugnet.off-topic.debate, John Neal wrote:
   Once again, show me in the Constitution any mention of “gay” rights.

Does it say anything about the rights of Republican voters? :)

  
   Parenthetically, it’s great when straight white guys tell gays and/or blacks what they should think their rights are.

As I said-- all of those things should be irrelevant.

So you disagree with Hood’s proposal? I guess I was assuming you were agreeing, but that is admittedly pretty presumptious of me.

I’m not informed on the issue enough to know why the Ohio legislature is taking this radical stance on gay adoption. Off hand it sounds extreme. So does amending the Constitution defining marriage, but I guess when people are pushed to the extremes, they react extremely. I tend to want to take a more common sensical approach to the issue. I believe common sense says that the ideal way to raise a child is in a family which consists of a married man and woman. I know of none proven better. Every child deserves a mother and a father. They don’t always get that, but that is harsh reality, not calculated design.

  
   It isn’t, and here is why, Dave! Right now the government recognizes unions between 1 man and 1 woman. If you are going to set out and change that because you feel it is wrong in some way, then the challenge is to come up with a more equitable solution that doesn’t equally discriminate. I don’t see how that can be done.

I don’t think gay marriage is the point on this one-- but how is allowing gays to get married not equitable? As far as I can see, you’re allowing government perks to one group, and disallowing them to another group. So allowing both to have the same perks is *more* equitable, by definition. How does it discriminate?

Let’s be clear here-- rights belong to individuals. Groups have no rights enumerated in the Constitution. Groups of individuals have been denied their rights, but they were denied their individual rights as members of an oppressed group. In theory, everyone possesses the very same rights as everyone else.

  
  
   Hagen isn’t arguing on behalf of centenarians or polygamists, so your insistence that the issues be linked or equated is a straw man (and a very common tactic among Conservative pundits and legislators who favor discrimination against homosexuals, by the way).

These are other groups who are equivalent in nature to gays. Any arguments for gay adoption should apply to others as well.

Let’s be a bit more clear here. Are there presently laws against polygamists adopting?

Since polygamy is illegal, a law against polygamists adopting would be dumber than Hagen’s.

   Are there presently laws against gays adopting?

In Ohio, it sounds like there soon could well be.

   Are there laws against elderly adopting? I’m not aware of any, but then again, I don’t know. So, to the best of my knowledge, polygamists and centenarians already HAVE those rights, so they don’t need to be fought for.

What Hood’s bill is trying to do is *revoke* rights from those who already HAVE them. Hence, it’s our duty to let them *keep* their rights.

I’m uncomfortable using the term “rights” when discussing issues not specifically enumerated in the Constitution. Better we speak of legalities, and whether said laws are constitutional or not IMO.

My whole thing with the gay adoption thing is this: I don’t have anything against gays adopting per se. What I have a problem with is the equivocation of gay marriage with hetero marriage. These are not equally suitable environments in which to raise children. One is superior to the other and, generally speaking, is preferrable to the other.

When this issue arises, I believe the salient point is what is best for the adopted, not for the adopter. In this light, I don’t think there is much disagreement for the vast majority of Americans, republican OR democratic.

JOHN



Message has 2 Replies:
  Re: At last, some family-values legislation I can really get behind!
 
(...) -snip- (...) These two paragraphs put together seem to imply that you do have some against gays adopting - that gay parents are less fit to raise children than straight parents. That's "harsh reality" tho. But then we're already dealing harsh (...) (19 years ago, 28-Feb-06, to lugnet.off-topic.debate, FTX)
  Re: At last, some family-values legislation I can really get behind!
 
(...) I guess I'd agree, although as you said elsewhere, I think that sexual orientation of the parent is as much of a factor in whether they'll be good parents as, say, a parent's level of strictness. It chanages things, certainly, but I would (...) (19 years ago, 28-Feb-06, to lugnet.off-topic.debate, FTX)

Message is in Reply To:
  Re: At last, some family-values legislation I can really get behind!
 
(...) Does it say anything about the rights of Republican voters? :) (...) So you disagree with Hood's proposal? I guess I was assuming you were agreeing, but that is admittedly pretty presumptious of me. (...) I don't think gay marriage is the (...) (19 years ago, 27-Feb-06, to lugnet.off-topic.debate, FTX)

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