Beyond Proposition 8

I heard Jasmyne Cannick on the radio yesterday, and frankly she's the only person I've heard talk sense on the issues. Her LA Times op-ed is the basis of her interview on Talk of the Nation.

The gay community's reaction to the success of Proposition 8 has been to hold demonstrations outside churches, especially temples of the LDS church. One press report noted that demonstrators held signs attacking Joseph Smith, calling him "prophet, pedophile, polygamist."

The gays should be advised that attacking the family structures and morals of Mormons is not a strategy when trying to gain access to privileges afforded to people who have normative family structures and morals. It's hysteria and hateful.

For the record, I'm not interested in marriage. I'd rather see the privileges of marriage stripped from the institution and socialized for everyone: health care, estate benefits, and tax benefits. Legal marriage, as granted by the state, seems best suited to protect the rights of children and support the ability of adults to look after children or elderly. The circle of privilege around marriage needs to be destroyed not expanded.