In article , fleischman608
@NOSPAMverizon.net says...

"snakefiddler" wrote in message
In that light, it becomes clear that failure to allow gay
marriage is in itself a violation of the Constitution of the United
States.

Despite all the heated debate, I think it boils down to a no-brainer.
Civilly, marriage is nothing more than a contract that affords certain
rights, responsibilities, and priveleges to the entrants. The right to be
degnated next of kin, right of inheritance, child custody, etc. To deny me
a civil right simply because of my gender is as discriminatory as it gets.
So what's the difference between a hetero union & a homo union? Only what
occurs in the privacy of the home; and when that becomes the government's
business, we're all in it deep.

If a church wants to refuse to perform a ceremony because of their
institutional beliefs, I can live with that; but the Justice of the Peace is
a government representative and cannot discriminate. I think the
underlying problem is that the government and religious institutions use the
same word to describe two very different things.

I think the more underlying problem is that the religious institutions
(in general) don't like it.....regardless of what it's called.
- Ken