A.S. Haley: The Unvarnished Truth

November 11, 2008

Excerpt:
I conclude that the expressed desire of gays to be allowed to enjoy the state-conferred privilege of “marriage” as their "right"can be, I am sorry to have to say, only a ruse. For if it were just a case of gays desiring greener pastures, then the foregoing argument would be dispositive, and no gay person would wish to argue for the “right” to marry on the ground that “it looks better than a civil union.” But (and based on the recent demonstrations, I defy you to come forward with even one example) there will not be a single activist homosexual who can be convinced, say, by the foregoing argument that the supporters of Proposition 8 actually have a rational (rather than hate-filled, as most are suggesting) basis for their vote. No, the extremely high level of emotion displayed tells me that there are other reasons at stake here---reasons that can only incidentally have anything to do with the enhancement of gay relationships.




The “gay marriage” movement is thus based on ulterior motives---perhaps having more to do with how they see themselves, and how they think others see them, than with any concern for the role that marriage actually plays in a society, based on how it actually evolved. It has gotten as far as it has by confusing what is a “right” in the eyes of the law with what is actually a privilege, and by persuading everyone that there is a right here which is being denied, unfairly (and hatefully) denied. But if what is involved is not actually a "right," then the entire platform of justice is removed from the dispute. We are back to talking simply whether there is a rational basis for society to decide that only certain people may marry---not brothers with sisters, not children with adults, and not men with men or women with women.

I agree that privileges must be rationally based in order to continue to have legal protection and definition. But I have seen no argument to date that shows me that the definition of marriage as given in Proposition 8 is not rational. (To argue, as did four members of the California Supreme Court, that the definition is "discriminatory" is legal flimflam, as I have demonstrated with the series of propositions set out above. Grant that, and its "unconstitutionality" follows as a matter of course.) But to call a privilege "discriminatory" is to say nothing at all. Privileges have to discriminate, since they entail the drawing of lines. If the right not to be discriminated against trumps the right to define a rationally based privilege, then there can be no privileges at all---and that is the definition of anarchy.

If we cannot maintain that basic distinction in our society, if we are going to allow emotion to override it, then we richly deserve the chaos that will ensue. Full Essay

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