Year: 2012
Anti-Gay Prop 8 Ruled Unconstitutional by 9th Circuit Court of Appeals
This is good news but because haters can’t stop hating, they will seek a stay to prevent marriages from resuming in California, which will almost certainly be granted.
Here’s coverage of the announcement by the Los Angeles Times:
A federal appeals court Tuesday struck down California’s ban on same-sex marriage, clearing the way for the U.S. Supreme Court to rule on gay marriage as early as next year.
The 2-1 decision by a panel of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals found that Proposition 8, the 2008 ballot measure that limited marriage to one man and one woman, violated the U.S. Constitution. The architects of Prop. 8 have vowed to appeal.
The ruling was narrow and likely to be limited to California…
“Proposition 8 served no purpose, and had no effect, other than to lessen the status and human dignity of gays and lesbians in California,” the court said.
The ruling upheld a decision by retired Chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn R. Walker, who struck down the ballot measure in 2010 after holding an unprecedented trial on the nature of sexual orientation and the history of marriage.
In a separate decision, the appeals court refused to invalidate Walker’s ruling on the grounds that he should have disclosed he was in a long term same-sex relationship. Walker, a Republican appointee who is openly gay, said after his ruling that he had been in a relationship with another man for 10 years. He has never said whether he and partner wished to marry.
ProtectMarriage, the backers of Proposition 8, can appeal Tuesday’s decision to a larger panel of the 9th Circuit or go directly to the U.S. Supreme Court. The high court is expected to be divided on the issue, and many legal scholars believe Justice Anthony Kennedy will be the deciding vote.
Nearly Half of Americans Received Some Form of Federal Payment in 2011
47%
Of Americans received one or more federal benefit payments in 2011, the highest percentage in U.S. history; $68 billion was spent on food stamps in 2010 (double the amount in 2007).
Ron Paul: Abortion Okay for ‘Honest’ Rapes
In his campaign for the presidency, Rep. Ron Paul insists that nothing is more important than reducing the size of government and making government less intrusive — except when it comes to the reproductive systems of American women.
When it comes to women’s bodies, Rep. Paul is all for big government. After all, somebody has to be in charge of ensuring that none of the 4 million pregnancies that occur each year in the United States are terminated illegally. There is no small-government solution for that.
Yesterday, Paul made his already contradictory position even more illogical by dividing pregnancies resulting from rapes into two categories — “honest” and, I guess, “bogus” rapes:
