Sunday, April 29, 2012

"Isn't There a Liberty Interest in Choosing To Marry?"

Under the headline "Why So Many Conservatives Oppose the Amendment," John Russell, in the Raleigh News & Observer:
...Only a month after the U.S. Supreme Court heard powerful arguments against the health insurance mandate as unconstitutional, it rings hollow to many conservatives to insist that the heavy hand of the state come down against people who want to commit themselves to sharing a life. Put simply, if there is a liberty interest in choosing to buy health insurance, isn’t there a liberty interest in choosing to marry? 
If Amendment One were simply an annoyance to business, then conservatives wouldn’t have so much trouble backing it. But it’s so bad that scores of normally apolitical business leaders have written or spoken publicly in opposition.
Jim Rogers, the CEO of Duke Energy (speaking for himself, not the utility), lambasted Amendment One during a speech in Charlotte recently. A top Bank of America executive said that passage would be “disastrous” for the state’s business climate. 
Among emerging growth companies, the situation is even more pronounced. North Carolina is uniquely hard hit by measures that cut our advantage in fields such as technology and life science, which rely on hiring talented people of diverse backgrounds. Amendment One attacks this creative meritocracy. 
One of the strongest criticisms conservatives make of liberal social legislation is that overly broad language forces judges to make law. This happened in Ohio, which passed a amendment similar to ours. There, multiple men accused or already convicted under the state’s domestic violence statute contested their guilt on constitutional grounds. The reason? The women they abused, threatened or assaulted weren’t their wives. It took the Ohio courts two years to decide they were guilty anyway. 
Conservatives criticize sweeping laws that attempt to control the future – witness debates over climate change. Conservatives believe in less certainty of prediction than liberals, and want market forces of all kinds to play out. U.S. Chief Justice John Roberts wrote in a recent case involving police searches that he wished for a limited result that would not “embarrass the future." ...


12 comments:

  1. Anonymous10:12 AM

    About 20% of Republicans oppose Amendment 1.

    Of course, 60% of Democrats FAVOR Amendment 1.

    Neither number matters. It's a referendum and voters can vote their personal feelings. Party affiliation is not an issue.

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  2. Anonymous12:57 PM

    RALEIGH, N.C. -- The Rev. Franklin Graham has recorded a message supporting a proposed amendment to North Carolina's constitution that would limit traditional marriage as the only recognized domestic legal union in the state.

    The pro-amendment Vote FOR Marriage NC released late Friday the audio message from Graham, the son of evangelist Billy Graham and head of the Samaritan's Purse organization in Boone.

    Franklin Graham asks listeners to "take a stand on God's definition of marriage" between a man and a woman and vote for the amendment on the May 8 primary ballot. Anne Graham Lotz - Franklin Graham's sister - also has said she supports the amendment.

    Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/2012/04/27/2029716/franklin-graham-backing-nc-marriage.html#storylink=cpy

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  3. Dem126:08 PM

    Where do you get that 60% of Democrats favor Amendment 1? The number that I read was 41%.

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  4. BRockBlue6:15 PM

    Franklin Graham has every right to encourage his church to "take a stand on God's definition of marriage," but he has no right to force his religious view into the secular Constitution of the State of North Carolina. The long-accepted doctrine of Separation of Church and State applies not only to the Federal Government, but the the several states as well.

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  5. Not Really8:44 PM

    Franklin Graham supports the amendment. Big surprise there. Since I have little respect for FG his opinion means little to me.

    I wonder if Franklin was listening when his father, a man I can respect, said one thing he would do differently in his life was to steer clear of politics.

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  6. Anonymous8:22 AM

    I'm still struggling with "God's definition of marriage". It may be MY preference, but the Bible clearly refers to marriage between a man, several women, concubines, and other slaves. Jacob to Rachel AND Leah, Abraham Sarah AND Hagar....

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  7. Anonymous9:28 AM

    Dem12 said...

    Where do you get that 60% of Democrats favor Amendment 1? The number that I read was 41%

    Dem 12. The 60% number came from Public Policy Polling, which is a Democratic polling organization. The more recent poll by them has lowered the number to 54%.

    My point is that this blog seems to make every second post about a number of Republicans who oppose the amendment but ignores the fact that a significantly higher percentage of Democrats favor it.

    From Daily Kos:



    "The current breakdown is 54 percent for, 40 percent against. This is a big movement from 61 percent support, 34 percent opposition from PPP's first poll six months ago."

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  8. shyster2:24 PM

    The first time God took a direct, recorded hand in paring a couple was Adam and Eve and you see how that worked out — the rest of us get work, pain, suffering, death and original sin. Hell, he had to have his own son killed to pay for all of that. Maybe it's time God kept out of it and just let us individual humans decide who to love.

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  9. Anonymous5:27 PM

    This amendment does not tell you who to love. It simply defines marriage.

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  10. Dem126:27 PM

    Anonymous said...
    "Dem 12. The 60% number came from Public Policy Polling, which is a Democratic polling organization. The more recent poll by them has lowered the number to 54%."

    That was not a poll of just Democrats. That was a statewide poll of either likely or registered voters (can't remember which) of both parties and also independents. You keep saying that 60% of Democrats support the Amendment, but that's just not true.

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  11. Anonymous9:26 AM

    Dem 12...You are correct. I misstated the numbers and I apologize for my error. Thank you for correcting me.

    The correct numbers, from the earlier poll are:

    Republicans pretty universally support it, 76/20. Democrats are closely divided with 48% in support and 47% opposed. White Democrats are opposed to the proposed ban, but African Americans support it 61/30.

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  12. Dem126:28 PM

    In PPP latest poll, 76% of Republicans are in favor of the amendment, while only 42% of Democrats are in favor. 21% of Republicans are against the amendment (which has been a quite steady number, I think) and 54% of Democrats are against it. Independents are split almost equally, with 48% in favor and 46% opposed:

    http://www.publicpolicypolling.com/main/2012/05/marriage-amendment-still-leads-by-14.html#more

    ReplyDelete