Was directed to this http://www.scribd.com/doc/16355867/Obamas-Motion-to-Dismiss-Marriage-case via one of the comics I read.
Basicly what it's saying is "You didn't file your suit in the right way with the right courts to even be considderred, so we don't have to answer to you.", "It's too expensive to the federal government to consider giving same-sex couples the same privilages as those of heterosexual couples. You can't claim somebody is taking something away from you that you don't already have (benefits and services). Further, You can't lay claim that a law (Defense of Marriage Act) takes any fundemental rights away from you because you had no legal right to them before DOMA took effect."
I have to hand to to the homophobes that put DOMA together, that was pretty slick maneuvering. All it really says says is that No outside jurisdiction can force any state to legally recognize a marriage that is not between one man and one woman.
From a logic and legality point of view, I can understand how the judicial system gets away with it's answer. I can even understand to a point, why even people who don't give a rat's ass that "Neighbor Bob" and his "Roomate" want to adopt a kid together. Or that "Neighbor Bob" and his "Roomate" have been in a steady relationship for anywhere from three to ten years already. People are scared and unwilling to say what two men or two women or one person and a transperson have together is the same as what a man and a woman have together when they marry.
So that leaves those of us in non-traditional relationships with the questions. What rights do I have if my partner is hospitalized and unable to communicate? What if they die suddenly without making legal provisions for me? What if their family doesn't like me, does that mean I won't be able to be there if they are dying in a hospital? Does it mean that if my partner adopted children, that they'll be taken away because I can't be listed as my partner's spouse?
And to avoid such pitfalls, non-traditional couples or groupings (say, people who AREN'T in a sexual relationship but ARE cohabitating and taking care of each other) are shit out of luck unless they've gone to the expense of consulting a lawayer and drawing up a living will or somesuch other meathod of stating what you want should events lead you to be incapable of making your will known.
Oh, and that Defense of Marriage Act? I seem to remember it saying that no court in the nation would be requiered to uphold anything that accorded ANY of the same rights and privillages as are granted by marriage to any pairing or grouping that is not One Man and One Woman, so even should you draw up some legal documentation that states that your partner or roomate is the executor of your estate &/or your voice in medical and legal matters should you be unable to speak, Someone can use DOMA in court to invalidate your wishes. Not saying they'd win, just saying they could use it to support their claim.
So any relatives of yours or your partner can legally screw either of you over if they so choose.
Emotionally? It makes one feel cast out or under the nation one lives in to be treated this way. But then again, Look at how far we've come, eh? Not everyone assumes that because Jane likes to have sex with women or John likes to have sex with men or that Susie's Daddy used to be her Mommy, that they are dangerous sexual predators. Nor do they assume that our sexual orientation is a psychological abberation worthy of locking us up in mental institutions. (though from what I understand, some people still send their children to places that are just as bad if not several times WORSE to "Correct" their child's sexual orientation or gender identity.) Sexual Identity and Orientation are on the list of minority status for protection from Harrassment and Hate Crimes. <sarcasm>I mean really, shouldn't we be happy that the courts don't throw us into jail for being "perverts" in our own homes any more? That the courts think we should be treated as sane human beings? but no, we keep trying to raise the bar. To convince people that we deserve a happily ever after too. A "Day in white" a chance for home and family. A chance to have what striaght couples take for granted. That when we fill out a legal form, our spouse is our spouse, regardless of our gender or theirs. greedy fucks, aren't we? </sarcasm>
Basicly what it's saying is "You didn't file your suit in the right way with the right courts to even be considderred, so we don't have to answer to you.", "It's too expensive to the federal government to consider giving same-sex couples the same privilages as those of heterosexual couples. You can't claim somebody is taking something away from you that you don't already have (benefits and services). Further, You can't lay claim that a law (Defense of Marriage Act) takes any fundemental rights away from you because you had no legal right to them before DOMA took effect."
I have to hand to to the homophobes that put DOMA together, that was pretty slick maneuvering. All it really says says is that No outside jurisdiction can force any state to legally recognize a marriage that is not between one man and one woman.
From a logic and legality point of view, I can understand how the judicial system gets away with it's answer. I can even understand to a point, why even people who don't give a rat's ass that "Neighbor Bob" and his "Roomate" want to adopt a kid together. Or that "Neighbor Bob" and his "Roomate" have been in a steady relationship for anywhere from three to ten years already. People are scared and unwilling to say what two men or two women or one person and a transperson have together is the same as what a man and a woman have together when they marry.
So that leaves those of us in non-traditional relationships with the questions. What rights do I have if my partner is hospitalized and unable to communicate? What if they die suddenly without making legal provisions for me? What if their family doesn't like me, does that mean I won't be able to be there if they are dying in a hospital? Does it mean that if my partner adopted children, that they'll be taken away because I can't be listed as my partner's spouse?
And to avoid such pitfalls, non-traditional couples or groupings (say, people who AREN'T in a sexual relationship but ARE cohabitating and taking care of each other) are shit out of luck unless they've gone to the expense of consulting a lawayer and drawing up a living will or somesuch other meathod of stating what you want should events lead you to be incapable of making your will known.
Oh, and that Defense of Marriage Act? I seem to remember it saying that no court in the nation would be requiered to uphold anything that accorded ANY of the same rights and privillages as are granted by marriage to any pairing or grouping that is not One Man and One Woman, so even should you draw up some legal documentation that states that your partner or roomate is the executor of your estate &/or your voice in medical and legal matters should you be unable to speak, Someone can use DOMA in court to invalidate your wishes. Not saying they'd win, just saying they could use it to support their claim.
So any relatives of yours or your partner can legally screw either of you over if they so choose.
Emotionally? It makes one feel cast out or under the nation one lives in to be treated this way. But then again, Look at how far we've come, eh? Not everyone assumes that because Jane likes to have sex with women or John likes to have sex with men or that Susie's Daddy used to be her Mommy, that they are dangerous sexual predators. Nor do they assume that our sexual orientation is a psychological abberation worthy of locking us up in mental institutions. (though from what I understand, some people still send their children to places that are just as bad if not several times WORSE to "Correct" their child's sexual orientation or gender identity.) Sexual Identity and Orientation are on the list of minority status for protection from Harrassment and Hate Crimes. <sarcasm>I mean really, shouldn't we be happy that the courts don't throw us into jail for being "perverts" in our own homes any more? That the courts think we should be treated as sane human beings? but no, we keep trying to raise the bar. To convince people that we deserve a happily ever after too. A "Day in white" a chance for home and family. A chance to have what striaght couples take for granted. That when we fill out a legal form, our spouse is our spouse, regardless of our gender or theirs. greedy fucks, aren't we? </sarcasm>
