Where's the Logic in Gay Marriage Ban?

Guest blogger Steve Paske here. For once I'm going to resist the urge to argue against my fellow educators on the subject of what we should be paid. Though normally quite moderate, an article in my home State Minneapolis Star Tribune (I just returned from overseas and am with my parents for a few days), has brought out my left-leaning side on the gay marriage issue today.

It seems that the Washington State Supreme Court upheld the State's ban on gay marriage on Wednesday. Now here is an issue where I just don't understand Conservative logic. And remember that in any good arguement with a Conservative you will hear the line, "Conservative's arguements are based on reason and logic, liberal arguements are based on emotion."

But let's look at the logic behind the decision made in Washington State. In defending the Court's decision to uphold the ban, Justice Barbara Madsen wrote,

"The gay marriage ban is constitutional because the Legislature was entitled to believe that limiting marriage to opposite-sex couples furthers procreation, essential to survival."

Essential to survival! I believe if I were to check out current world population figures there would be about seven billion people on the planet today, including about 300-million in the U.S.A. But by virtue of the conservative logic of this decision, we're to believe that human existance would be threatened if we allowed the marraige of gays.

One word: Absurd! For Justice Madsen to insinuate that the legalization of gay marraige could even put a dent in the birthrate is insane. Even if it did have a dramatic effect, let's say a 5% drop, I fail to see how that would hurt the State of Washington in any way.

The fact is that those who argue that gay marriage should not be allowed are generally basing their arguments on an emotion called faith. While I respect the rights of Christians to consider the act of homosexuality as immoral, I fail to see why their view of morality is what gets to dictate legislation.

This issue is precisely the reason we have a separation of Church and State. The founding fathers (who no doubt conservatives would point out, must have disdained homosexuality) wrote the Constitution in a manner that would protect the rights of individuals that didn't quite fit in with the most popular beliefs of the day.

In my opinion the only way to justify a ban on gay marraige would be to prove that it harms society, and to prove it in a logical way. Clearly the Court is stretching logic when it argues that homosexual marraige be outlawed because of the effect it might have on procreation and the survival of the species. If it's more kids they want I will happily volunteer to be a part of that process. And in that process there is no need to discriminate against people who are gay.