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Cheney [sensibly] rejects gay marriage ban
Wednesday, 25 August, 2004, 06:27 GMT 07:27 UK US Vice-President Dick Cheney has said he does not support a federal ban on gay marriage, apparently contradicting President George W Bush's stance. Mr Cheney was addressing a campaign audience in Iowa that included his daughter, Mary, who is openly lesbian. He said the issue of legalising gay unions should be settled by individual states rather than by Washington. However, Mr Cheney said he accepted the views of Mr Bush, whose opposition to gay marriage is well publicised. 'Gay daughter' President Bush recently backed a motion calling for a federal ban on gay marriage, prompted by attempts in some US states to have same-sex unions legalised. The motion was defeated when Republican senators sided with Democrats on the issue. Vice-President Cheney said he and his wife "have a gay daughter, so it's an issue our family is very familiar with". Regarding the issue of same-sex relationships, he said, "my general view is freedom means freedom for everyone". He said individual states have historically decided "what constitutes a marriage". 'Mixed message' Mr Cheney has said his views are personal and have no bearing on White House policy. However, says the BBC's Dan Griffiths in Washington, they strike at the very heart of President Bush's thinking and should revive debate around the issue just days before the Republican convention in New York. While gay rights activists welcomed Mr Cheney's comments, there was criticism from some conservatives. Genevieve Wood of the Family Research Council said Mr Cheney's remarks were disappointing and sent out "a mixed message to voters". I will cheerfully commend Dick Cheney for finally getting it right on this incredibly divisive and discriminatory issue. That he has the courage to stand up for true "family values" and show some respect for his own child is a major step forward for his political philosophy. Homosexual marriage has been around for thousands of years and only recently was expurgated from modern culture by the puritanical dictates of western religious strictures. Roots of Homosexual Marriage Go Way Back Yale historian John Boswell researched the history of homosexual marriage and contended that such unions were legally sanctioned and religiously upheld for over 3,000 years in ancient African, Asian, Egyptian, Greek, Mesopotamian, Native American and Roman cultures ... Same-sex relationships did not gain widespread condemnation until the 13th century, according to Boswell, when religious orders labeled them immoral. What's more, the Christian religion used to celebrate such unions in ancient times. Among the evidence Boswell presents are Greek texts of the ceremonies, along with their English translations ... The texts are clear. There is no doubt that the ceremonies sanction a union between two people of the same sex. Even before Boswell, historians who knew of the existence of the texts admitted as much. The accompanying prayers invoke the example of paired Christian saints of the same sex - in particular, the martyred Roman soldiers, Serge and Bacchus, who were the most famous and revered paired saints in early Christianity. The DOMA (Defense of Marriage Amendment) is a naked attempt to enshrine religious doctrine into the American constitution and represents a most shameful contradiction of federal anti-discrimination laws. The profound damage this has done to Republican claims of representing true conservative values is both deserved and fitting. Posted by: Anonymous6166 2004-08-25 |
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