Gay Marriage Bill Passed in New York's State Government.

[Xiahou]

(a) There is no reason to deny marriage to the gays

This is another red herring in the gay marriage debate. (The first being civil marriage = love, see prior post) No one is denying marriage to homosexuals. The exact same requirements apply to them that do to me.

Marriage has been less about wealth, status and bearing children and more about love and joining two people together as a single entity under the tax code since the late 1800s.

What states have "love" as a legal prerequisite for marriage? It's been about wealth, inheritance and child bearing for a long, long time. The tax code changes that come with it fall under the same principles.

Because they constitute an identifiable subset of stakeholders in society, because they are organized, and because they want it. That's all that is required to effect change in a liberal democracy. Broader society then evaluates the associated costs of the change and decides whether it is worthwhile.

Considering the fact that no one seems to have come up with any legitimate social costs of allowing gay marriage, there do not seem to be any legitimate arguments against it - at least from a public policy perspective.

I can agree with the first, but not so much the second. I don't subscribe to the "why not?" theory of legislation, but the "why?". I can understand why homosexuals want civil marriage between members of the same sex, but I don't see why I should support it nor do I see an overall benefit to society at large.