Equal Rights Are for Girly-Men

Yesterday was a day of celebration for GLBT-rights activists in California, as the Assembly narrowly voted in favor of a bill that would give same-sex couples full marriage rights and responsibilities. However, the celebration was short-lived, as the Governator indicated today that he intended to veto the bill:

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger announced Wednesday he will veto a bill that would have made California the first state to legalize same-sex marriage through its elected lawmakers.

Schwarzenegger said the legislation, given final approval Tuesday by lawmakers, would conflict with the intent of voters when they approved an initiative five years ago. Proposition 22 was placed on the ballot to prevent California from recognizing same-sex marriages performed in other states or countries.

What the Gropenführer seems to have forgotten that members of the California Assembly are the elected representatives of the voters, and so by definition they represent the intent of the voters. (Yes, I know in practice that is not always the case. I'm going with representative democratic theory.) It is entirely possible (I would say probable) that the public have changed their minds in the last five years, thanks in part to the marriages in San Francisco last year which -- startlingly -- did not lead to the apocalypse.

Later in the piece, Schwarzenegger says that same-sex marriage is an issue for the courts to decide.

It seems to me that Arnold might have missed those many memos which accuse any court that declares laws banning same-sex marriage "activist". Or he's guilty of rank hypocrisy. I report, you decide.

Robert