Since same sex marriages has been a hot issue in Canada a recent bill was passed to allow same sex marriages from coast to coast in Canada, I thought I'd post this.

I don't think they should be banned, after all, people all have their personal preferences. I knwo there is a whole issue on marriage being defined as a man and a women, but if that's the issue then just call it something else and get it over it with.

The thing I have the issue with is how people have to flaunt it. For a while there, everyday there would be a gay couple on the news that got married. That's what I have the issue with. Fine, get married but don'r publicize it. That;s what the issue is, I bet if it hadn't been publicized like that, it wouldn't be such a controversial issue.

What do you think?

Personally.. I don't see a problem with it. Let them be happy, they aren't doing anything wrong. Then again.. I know it's against most religions and that is where people have a problem with it.

Hmmm.... :D

I have a gay sister. Gay marriage isnt legalized where she lived with her G/F of 5 years but they exchanged rings.

I dont have an issue with gay marriage.

If there was an institution to legalize gay union I think they may be just happy with that. It doesnt HAVE to be called "marriage." Of course that's coming from listening to my sister who feels slighted because if a man and woman choose to they can be married and afforded legal rights under the constitution, but gays are not afforded those same rights.

I think the biggest issue gays have in the US is that the country is founded on freedom...and upholds equal rights yet theyre treated unequally.

Human beings deserve equal freedoms. Bottom line.

Do I personally agree with gay marriage? No. But the government shouldn't be legislating moral values.

I agree, it has nothing to do with the Government what people do in their own homes...
I have many gay friends, most of whom are single and making the most of it mind you :rolleyes:, but should any of them want to marry, I don't see why not. Whatever makes them happy! :)
And if they are religious, then isn't it better for them to be 'married'? You can't help who you love.

IDK...it's a very controversial issue.
I'm against gay marriage, and I hope I don't sound mean because I really don't intend to but I do not like seeing gay couples kiss etc. and I especially do not like the issue being so publicized. I am used to a man and woman being a couple. (I always get so mad at MTV because when I watch dating shows on there some of the episodes have 'gay dating' and I do not enjoy watching that! lol JMO)

But, then again, if a friend ever told me he/she was gay I would not think of that person badly or look down on him/her. I have no superiority over someone because they are different.

It's dying out now, at least where I live, but a lot of the time people my age (15-16) used to say "That's so gay!" when talking about something weird or stupid. I was guilty of saying it too but then stopped. It can be very offensive to certain people when you gear the term toward something negative.

And someone brought up religion...I am a raised Catholic but do I agree with everything the Catholic church says? Definitely not...The Catholic church is very strict. I am Christian before I am Catholic.

I usually do not base my views simply because of my religion but rather on what I personally and honestly feel. You can't bring a baby into the world and say that just because it is Catholic it will be against same sex marriages, abortion, etc.

Well, to conclude:
-I am leaning against gay marriage, it just does not seem "right" to me, but I do not think the government should be able to say what is right or wrong - everyone has their opinions and perspectives. I would be angry to see gay marriage legalized, but you would not find me storming around the streets with picket signs saying gay marriage is bad blah blah blah.
- I am incapable of SHUTTING UP! :blink:
Whew! ::steps off podium::

It groesses me out but I still think it is their choice. I just think ok love each other, get married, but I don't need to know about it or see it. I don't know why just makes me squmish.

Well, that's alright, I guess...but people can't live by what makes others "squeamish".

I mean, some people are grossed out by breastfeeding, but does that mean a woman isn't allowed to breastfeed her child?

I see what you're saying, but a lot of things have the potential to gross someone out. Doesn't mean they're wrong.

they can be whatever they want to be i don't have a problem with it at all i have some gay and lesbian friends (or wait i did have some i don't have any freinds anymore) .. as long as they don't hit on me i'm cool with it

:lol: i knew this would come up!

Well, its not what God intended for sex, marriage etc.

Personally I don't understand it, but I'm not against it either. Whatever floats your boat, ya know? Just don't force it on me...

Honestly I think the real issue here is that people need to shut up and stop messing with everyone else's lives because "this and that are against my religion/morals/etc" or "it's weird/different". Honestly, the gay people holding hands are not going to infect you/corrupt you/whatever. Let them do what they want. People are too closed minded.

I have absolutly no problem with gay marriage or gay people in gerneral. What people do in their bedrooms is their own buisness and i dont feel that the government has any right to tell people who they can and cant build a life with. to me, marriage is 2 people in love comming together to share their life together. Im not religious and i know that religion says its "wrong" but i just beleive what i beleive. I actually feel bad for gays cause they feel they cant be like everyone else just because they practice different things behind closed doors. I mean yes if you flaunt it and make a specticle of it then thats just stupid. i wouldnt go down the street making out with my husband in the middle of Times Square for all to watch, gay people shouldnt do that eithier.
I have no problem being around gay people or having gay friends.. ive heard other people say they dont like to be close to gays cause they dont want to get "hit on" but again think about it. thats like not going out to a bar on a saturday night cause you dont want to get hit on. Not every gay person is going to be attracted to you just like not every man isnt going to be attracted to you... Its kinda a silly fear if you ask me.

I'm not against it or anything but when they start throwing it in your face....

There's this big pride parade here in Toronto you can't really escape from so you're pretty much forced to watch 2 guys make out... its not my thing... I think its not right...

but like I said, I'm not against it, just stop trying to stand out, ya know?

They don't have parades to celebrate straight people... <_<

They don't need parades to celebrate straight people!

Gay people don't ask to be gay any more than straight people ask to be straight, it's just something they are.

How many of you saying that they shouldn't push it or flaunt it in people's faces have considered what it would be like to live in a world where you are considered to be wrong, a freak or damned from the moment you're old enough to understand love? Gay people are not criminals or evil, they just happen to love members of their own sex and that happens to be a minority.

To a gay person life itself is an endless 'flaunting' of straightness, films, tv, ads, family weddings etc. There may be lip service of acceptance but not much. It amounts to 'If you hide what you are and don't make a fuss then we won't give you a hard time'. But they can't be at their lover's side in hospital because they aren't a relation, they have no rights under the law, they are condemned for showing any sign of affection to those they love in public, their partners are rarely if ever invited to family events and they are constantly subjected to pressure to be as invisible as possible to be acceptable. To love someone as an equal is not a sin, why should they be forced to hide everything they are from a straight world that lets face it has everything its own way?

Do I believe in gay marriage? I believe in the sacredness of vows taken by those who believe in them whatever their orientation. Why should what is a sizeable proportion of the population be made to feel that they are freaks for loving and wanting to share that love?

Try and think of the courage necessary for those who are brave enough to stand up in spite of the world's hate and say yes I love and am not ashamed of doing so, even if they risk persecution, abuse (and death in many places) for it.

*is taking Kate to Speedqueen next time she's here* :clap: They'll love you there! ;)
I totally agree with you.

LOL Ang :D I'll take you up on that!

I just meant I don't like seeing 2 people of the smae sex kissing on national TV every night. It makes me sick. That's not to say I am against it, I just wish they would act like the rest of the straight world and not publicize it.

I, personally, don't even like watching 2 people of the same sex kiss and make out so it's not a predjudice.

I have a gay friend, do I care? No! They're just like the rest of us except they have different preferences.

i dont know where i really stand with this as because i've grown up in a neighborhood where you dont see any gay or bi people anywhere.. they just dont show it. i know some gay and bi people.. i tried to be friends with them in Jr high.. but when i was walking around in the halls with one of them.. people were shouting out "OOO look! there goes some Lesiban action!" and so i just tried to stay away after that.. and my Brother is a Homaphob. but i do have a Bi friend, (she likes me LOL) but yeah. and you know since my brother says pants all the time about it, i get uncomfortable when i see them hold hands, kiss. in Public.. i dont do anything thats like related to gay kinda thing.. like i know a lot of girls kiss their friends cuz they are close and are like sisters.. but when my friend was in that stage i would tell her not to kiss me. like i would stop hugging my friends after awhile but then once like everybody started to do it, then i did it. but has since stopped unless someone is upset and needs a hug. but i just dont know where i stand.

Couldnt they like elop? or is that agasint the law also.. i was watching True Life one day, and they did it on Im getting Married. and there was a gay couple and they did a last name change, so they combined each others last name.. and did like a vow thing, where they exchanged vows, kinda thing, i forgot what they called it

As far as I'm concerned, I really couldn't care less. However, I think if the government had given same sex couples equal rights in terms of spousal (aka, common law) benefits to begin with, I don't think the whole 'marriage' thing would have been that big of an issue.

I don't particularly agree with the term 'marriage' for gay couples but I definitely believe in gay couples having the same rights as opposite sex common law couples.

Marriage was made up in ancient times to basically accrue land and money. That's it, no holiness, no God was involved... it was simple... "I'm an up and coming tycoon, I need a wife and one with a father with lots of land, money and property" was the thought of the younger men... the fathers thought "I need an heir to take over my fortune when I'm gone, I don't want those rivals of mine stealing it when I'm gone." so he'd bump off his daughter to the most eligable bachelor who looked like he'd provide the old man with a grandson to take on the family name and fortune.
The woman didn't matter in the slightest as long as she provided male heirs and would not stray from her husband.
Up into the 1900s this practice carried on and today I imagine for some people, marrying into the right 'line' is important (will say nothing about the Upper classes;)). Even in fiction, marriage is presented as a trophy rather than about love, i.e. Charlotte and Mr Collins in Pride and Prejudice.
That's all by the by, I just wanted to explain that the origins of marriage were not about love, happiness or God, but were about greed, self preservation and providing heirs. :) Many religions then took it upon themselves to provide ceremonies, hence why most are religious today.

Marriage provides stability and, without thinking about all the stuff about love, married couples get better rights (as Kate says about hospital visiting, etc) than unmarried ones. So why shouldn't gay people enjoy the same rights?! :???:
Even though Dan and I live in the same house, own the same house, people won't speak to me concerning our phone bill because it's in Dan's name... however if I was Mrs Dan, it'd be a different story.
I don't see why gay people living together cannot have some kind of union that entitles them legally to the same rights as a heterosexual couple. It's the legal issue that is mostly the problem.

You're forgetting about Romeo and Juliet. That was about nothing but love. :P

And I think it's an issue becuase in the bible marriage is defined as a union between a man and a woman. Or something like that. I don't really know for sure, I never read the bible myself.

Even back to the beginning of time with Adam and Eve it's always been a man and a woman. But I think that's where the issue lies with many people.

Oh yes, I accept that marriage is about love in most cases, definately... I'm sure Dan's not marrying me because my dad owns 2 houses! LOL :D At least I hope not! ;) :o *will speak to father about this later*<_<
But that brings me to, well if they're in love, then why can't gay people be married?!
I don't believe in the Bible... I've read it... maybe that's why I don't have the same reaction that other people may have. :dunno: But then there are people, like Kate, who believe in it, but can still accept and embrace other human beings without caring what they get up to in their bedrooms or whether they hold hands or not.

I think that's more the issue than anything. As I stated earlier, my sister has been living with her gf for 5 years. She shares the bills and has helped pay for the house they live in. Unfortunately everything's in her gf's name so if something were to happen to her gf, God forbid, she wouldnt be entitled to anything. There's also the illness issue. What if she or her gf were to get ill and be hospitalized? Shouldnt they be afforded the same rights that we straight people are? My hubby has made MANY medical decisions for me...when I couldnt. They cant/arent allowed those same rights. I dont think the gay community has an issue with not being allowed to be married so much. I think their issue is with not being given the same rights in a country thats supposed to be "equal rights."

That's why I say, if the issue is that marriage is between a man and a woman, call it something else and give them all the same rights.

This is not true. I could quote verses, i will if you want.

Go ahead... I'm interested to hear...

I'm totally blanking out on the verse right now, but in Genesis (right after "in the beginning" and the creation of man), God says that a man is to leave his parents house and be joined with his wife, and the two shall become one. And in nearly every Old Testament book (esp. the Torah), marriage is discussed over and over.

ok, got em. actually i have a few more on a list upstairs but i'd have to go grab that. LOL lazy here.

the verse Emily mentioned is Genesis 2:18-24

but what about Jane and bingly? (what a dumb name!)

Jane and Bingley? That was a very good marriage on Jane's part... Bingley being an up and coming man about town and with her inheritance going to Mr Collins, her male cousin, her somewhat mediocre income would not have provided her with much money. I studied Pride and Prejudice in depth for university. Also it's Mr. Bingley, his first name was Charles. :) Again, that was a love story... I'm not saying love doesn't exist in marriage... I'm saying that marriage started as a tool rather than a union of two hearts.
The first recorded marriage was in 2350BC... long before the bible was even written. In the betrothal ceremony of ancient Greece, a father would hand over his daughter with these words: “I pledge my daughter for the purpose of producing legitimate offspring.”
Anyways, talking of ancient Greeks... many of them had male lovers... why is it so wrong nowadays?! :blink:

I wonder that myself, sometimes! Maybe it has something to do with the introduction of HIV/AIDS and it originally being mostly associated with the gay community. I'm sure that contributed somewhat to the "stigma" of being gay. I don't really know, obviously....just speculating, as I was really just a kid in the 80's.

As for same sex marriages, I don't have anything against it, personally.

I think Illegalising it is just stupid. It happnes, some poeple fall in love even if they arnt of oppisite sex, you can't look down on them for soemthing that happens naturally