Rising Hegemon
In a state with a conservative edge, Bisbee, population 5,600, in early April became the first municipality in Arizona to legalize same-sex civil unions. On Tuesday, after threats by Arizona's attorney general to sue Bisbee for exceeding its powers and interfering in state affairs, town leaders tweaked the ordinance to omit references to "spouses" and "marriage" and to refer to its civil unions only as contractual agreements.
But the intent is still the same – to lay down a marker that, inside these city limits, a red state becomes a blue oasis on the issue of gay rights. And Bisbee is not alone.And it will take a great illogical leap for Jan Brewer and company to claim gays and lesbians cannot enter into contracts.
But I'm sure they'll be up for trying.
[cross-posted at Firedoglake]
3 comments:
I have been saying for years that marriage should be defined for what it is - a contract. A contract that requires a license, perhaps a medical test, an authorized authority to execute it - and the filing of that contract with a court. Only then are you married, and not because some Holy Joe said magic words over your head.
I ask my "marriage is sacred and from God" friends who disagree, "If you decide to divorce, to whom do you go to first; your priest - or your lawyer?"
Usually shuts them up. For a while.
A.J.
I can tell you now the argument they'll use. They'll try and argue that homosexuals are mentally ill and therefore cannot give consent to enter into contracts. They'll find a handful of quack fundie doctors to swear on a stack of bibles it's the God's truth and ram some steaming pile of shit bill through the legislature. It will then be ruled unconstitutional faster than you can say "idiots", but they will have made a big show for the rubes who throw $ at them and vote for them.
Aaron:
Ha! Oh, how I'd love to see that, because the next day after passage, all those banks and auto companies and merchants would be flooded with "teh gay" demanding all their money back because they had entered into a illegal contract. "Car's a little worn and damaged, but here are the keys. Where's my money?"
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