Responding to the SLC protests over Prop 8

November 8, 2008

Recently there has been a lot of postmortem on the two sides of the proposition 8 issue.  Most of it has been because of the reactions of the pro Same Sex Marriage (SSM) side. I hate wading into this but yet I feel like I have to because I have heard many of these arguments before.

While I may be less sure of my position now then I was a few years ago let me make some basic observations.

On balance gay marriage, regardless of the novelty, is still something done by a very few, according to stats Canada since the allowance of SSM in 2005 only 16% of Gays and Lesbians are married.  Read the rest of this entry »


Prop 8 is half way there

November 5, 2008

so far as of nearly midnight in California…

Proposition 8-Same Sex Marriage Ban

All Precincts Totals

Choice Votes %
Yes 2,984,218 52.5%
No 2,696,629 47.5%

48% of precincts reporting

Updated 11/04 11:45PM

As listed in the SF Gate Website


Congratulations to the President elect

November 4, 2008

While I might not completely agree with him.   I honestly hope the best for him.  I think this was a monumental election for African Americans who could not even have freedom just 150 years ago.   In the western world how many can say that a visable minority was elected leader of their country?

Congratulation to Barack Obama.  And to John McCain who failed once more, but honestly, how many of us would be willing to suffer these battles?  Have a nice life Senator.


Prop 8 battle first seen in Bill C-38 fight part 3

November 3, 2008

In the meantime, the LDS church, Catholic Church and various evangelical groups sought to oppose the legislation federally in the Parliament and legally by intervening in the cases.  They would slowly start to put pressure on the MPs as the legislation went through the Parliament.These groups were not cohesive, mistrust of Mormons among the Evangelical sects led to continual friction.  The LDS members formed other groups to try and convince their own membership to be active.  Even with some tacit leadership support money is not found from among enough sources to do more than mount a legal campaign.

During all of this the best solution for the Church and those who opposed gay marriage was to attack individual provinces.  If one province had been willing, as Quebec had been in the past over Abortion, to stand up and refuse to enforce gay marriages I suspect that no account of legal retributions would have worked.  (Btw for those who would not know Quebec flat out told the Federal government it would not enforce limitations to Abortion.  Within five years after Abortion limitation was struck down in all cases as the legislation was ruled out of line with the new constitution. (No government since has had the political will to put any brakes on it since) Read the rest of this entry »


Prop 8 battle first seen in Bill C-38 fight part 2

November 3, 2008

History of Gay rights in Canada:

The Haig and Birch v. Canada case becomes a landmark case in 1992 as it overturns the Canada Human Rights Act. Kim Campbell the PC minister of justice reintroduces the new Human Rights Act to include sexual orientation, however it did not pass. In 1996 the legislation is changed. It along with the Delwin Vriend case set the stage for the next argument. Benefits to same sex couples.

In 1999 the M v H case, two lesbians suing each other over their break up, allows the Supreme Court to rule same-sex couples should have the same benefits and obligations as opposite-sex common-law couples and equal access to benefits from social programs to which they contribute. Read the rest of this entry »


Prop 8 battle first seen in Bill C-38 fight part 1

November 3, 2008

It is not often that Canada acts like the Canary in the mine shaft but one has to wonder if the LDS church took what happened in Canada and internalized it.   It almost appears if the fight in California, is D-Day to Canada’s Dieppe.

I do not make that comparison lightly.  Dieppe was a fiasco, billed as a raid to test German strength in France, it was one of the biggest blunders by the Allies in World War II leading to the capture and death of thousands of Canadian troops.   The Gay marriage fight in Canada carried out by the LDS church and its allies in various communities took on a Dieppe style buffoonery as they failed in every way possible to understand the political dynamic in Canada, and get ahead of it.

Read the rest of this entry »


Canadian Election results

October 14, 2008

So after over four weeks the Canadian government for the third time in four years is being led by a minority government.  For the second time it is a Conservative one.  It is a close run thing, I would argue that the economic meltdown combined with Quebec’s passionate flip flop led to once again a minority. Read the rest of this entry »