Okay. I think I’m missing something here. You see, I’m heterosexual.

1,000 per cent. 

Trust me on this one.

And I’m married…to a woman…an absolutely wonderful woman.  We have, counting our kids and their spouses, eight fantastic children and three beautiful grandchildren.

Our family is close – physically (six of children and all of the grandchildren live within fifteen miles of each other), emotionally and spiritually.

Now, we may not be the Cleavers exactly, or Ozzie and Harriet (I’ll explain that reference to you kids who are still in diapers in another post), but we love one another, and we’re are an incredibly close-knit group.

So I wanna know why I should fear gay marriage, and see it as force that will destroy this little piece of Shangri-La in which I live. 

When I  listen to the Catholics and other religious folks here in Connecticut, they are telling me that the prospect of gay marriage is a threat to the institution of marriage as a whole. That “Love Makes A Family” is going to destroy families as we know them.

For the life I me, I don’t see how allowing gays to marry is going to disrupt my family or my life. But, then again, I’m not always the brightest bulb in the chandelier. I’m sure FAR GREATER minds than mine have pondered this subject and come to that conclusion! (Right?)

Now listen, I have gay friends. I’ve eaten with them, I’ve argued with them, I’ve laughed with then, I’ve acted with them, I’ve seen them naked (backstage in communal dressing rooms) and they’ve seen me naked (backstage in communal dressing rooms). I have not been turned on by their naked bodies, nor have they been turned on by mine. (And…strangely enough, for some reason, that last statement  almost BOTHERS me!!!)

What they do in their private lives has no bearing upon me or my life or my family or my world whatsoever. Do people really think that, because two gay men are going at it behind closed doors somewhere, they create a disturbance in the fabric of the universe that can be felt by others? Really?  Where the hell is George Lucas when you need him??!!

However, denying gays the right to do whatever they choose to do in their private lives has a HUGE potential impact on my life, because, if their civil liberties can be taken away simply because somebody has a problem with their lifestyle, then who’s to say that I might not be the next in line? I mean, if other’s liberties are reduced simply because of who they choose to love, couldn’t somebody also take issue with my choices, and then virtually outlaw them also?

I mean, there might be people out there who think it’s obscene that I wear wool socks when making to love to my wife. They could then pass laws against the wearing of L.L. Bean socks in the bedroom, and revoke my marriage license, right? I mean, look in the Bible, man! NOWHERE does Jesus wear Smartwool! Therefore, there’s GOTTA be something wrong with it!

(And, by the way, there is not one biblical account of Jesus ever having sex, either, inspite of what Dan Brown thinks.  Therefore, should ALL sex be taboo?)

What gives?

I must be stupid, because I just do see how one man making love to another, or one woman getting it on with another, is going to be the downfall of western civilization as we know it.

Right now in CT, it is perfectly all right for a Catholic priest to refuse to marry a gay or lesbian couple.  That is all well and good. However, according to the front page of today’s Hartford Courant, The Connecticut Catholic Conference is asking lawmakers to expand the category of those who don’t have to comply with the state’s new same-sex marriage law if their religion holds that such unions are wrong.

In other words, they want legislation passed that says if you were a Catholic caterer, you could refuse to cater a gay wedding reception. If you we were a Catholic florist, you could refuse to sell  flowers and arrangements for a gay wedding, etc.

So, tell me how this is different from the Nazis refusing to interact with Jews back in the thirties and forties? I’m just too unenlightened to see a difference.

Just what in the hell are these people afraid of? I’m sorry, but for the life of me, I just don’t get it!

Part of the problem with this type of legislation, besides blatant intolerance towards gays, is that, if passed, it opens the door for other bigoted legislation against other groups. In other words, anybody could refuse to interact with anybody else just because they disagreed with them on political or religious grounds.

Nice, huh? Talk about bringing people together and working in harmony, huh?

Forget about asking WWJD?  (What Would Jesus Do?) As far as gay marriage is concerned, maybe we should be asking  WGAS? (Who Gives A Shit?)

Why should it matter to straights if gays are allowed to marry? How does it hurt us?

I contend that it hurts us if DON’T let them do it. It hurts us every time we take rights away from others.

Sometimes, I’m really ashamed of the fact that I was raised Catholic!