How can gay marriage hurt any one?

gay marriage

should gay marriage be allowed

What is your best argument for or against gay marriage?

If you were in charge of the law, would you make gay marriage legal or illegal?  What would your explanation or justification be? Personal opinions are welcome, but pick the legal side that you would choose, for that is the important part.  

Gay Marriage

For years now gay marriage has been an explosive subject with little middle ground. I want to know what you think here on CreateDebate. Please answer only with intelligent, legitimate, and respectful arguments. Any replies not meeting this standard will be ignored.

Should Gay marrige be legal in the United State of America?

Gay marrige, seems strange to us but to the gays its normal. why shouldn't it be its a life dicission just like eating apound of choclate each say or having moderations of fruit and vegitables. we try to force being stright on americans and say its a sin but i dissagree. People say it is a sickness and just because the bible says that its a sin and its wrong that it atomatically is. Voice your opinion and help me undersatn why they dont get the same rights as everyone else didn't we do this with other races thus racist! Its the same descrimination and its wrong. this could lead to somthing bigger like onother holocaust ( i doubt it but could be true) i just find it appoling!!

Should gay marriage be allowed

I am so for same-sex marriage, but like the whole poplulation of nova scotia doesn't allow it.

gay marriage

should homosexuals be allowed to get married just like heterosexuals?

Does Gay Marriage minimize Straight Marriage in any way?

Define "marriage" otherwise "gay marriage should be legal" makes no sense

  Disclaimer:  I believe that gays should get the same marriage benefits from the government as heterosexual married couples. This debate is about, "What does marriage mean?" If we do not have a working definition for the word, "marriage", then "gay marriage should be legal" makes no sense. The reason "gay marriage should be legal" makes no sense is because a gay couple can have a ritual wedding/romantic ceremony and they can tell people that they are "married" and they will NOT get thrown in jail or harassed by the police. So in that sense, gay marriage is already legal. Granted, certain religions will NOT perform the ceremony but.... even if the state said that gays are allowed to get married, the state cannot force a religion to perform the ceremony. If "marriage" is about "a couple being in love," then "gay marriage should be legal" makes no sense because, the government stating that you are married doesn't magically change how couples feel about each other.  In other words, if "marriage" is about "a couple being in love," then gay marriage is already legal. "Gay marriage should be legal" ONLY makes sense in the context of, "a gay couple should get the same marriage benefits from the government as heterosexual married couples." That's it. So gays should be petitioning the government for those right regardless of what the government decides to call it. In other words, if the government grants gays the same marriage benefits as heterosexual married couples but calls it a "Civil Union" then that should be good enough. If there's an issue with "separate but equal," then the government should stop using the word "marriage" and use the words "Civil Union" for both heterosexuals and homosexuals.

After gay marriage, what's next?

If you support gay marriage, do you support any other types of non-traditional marriage? Should a man be allowed to marry two women? An underage girl? His sister? An android? A cloned version of himself? A resurrected Neanderthal? A chimp? A tree? A canal? Panama?

best reason to legalize gay marriage

what argument should people who support gay marriage focus on that would be most convincing to people who currently disagree or are undecided? if you believe gay marriage should not be legal, please use one of the debates that discuss whether gay marriage should be legal - http://www.createdebate.com/debate/show/Should_Gay_Marriage_Be_Made_Legal_Everywhere , http://www.createdebate.com/debate/show/gay_marriage_3 , etc

What would - consummation of a marriage - mean in relation to gay marriage?

  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consummation

Should Gay Marriage Be Made Legal Everywhere?

Joe reaches out to the gay community to offer his strategy to end the gay marriage debate

It just occurred to me that many of you may not know what my position is on gay marriage. My position on gay marriage is that as long as the gay community continues the fight to modify the definition of the word "marriage," they are going to have an uphill battle because they are going to be fighting 2 groups, the religious right AND the government. That's 2 fronts people!!! The gay community would fare better if they only had one front to deal with. Hitler tried to fight multiple fronts and look where that got him ;) Now..., the question is..., which front should the gay community [attack] / [focus on]? Which front is [weaker] / [more reasonable]? I'll give you a hint..., it's NOT the religious right ;) Another good military strategy is to get one of your opponents to switch sides and join you in your fight against the other opponent. Now..., the question is..., which side is more likely to switch sides? I'll give you a hint..., it's not the government ;)  I know, I know..., it doesn't make sense..., but please hear me out. The government maintains control by dividing the people against each other.  They practice, "Divide and Conquer."  Have you noticed how the government pays lip service to both sides and does nothing except watch the two groups go at each other's throat? If the gay community were to petition the government to stop using the word, "marriage" [because of its religious connotations and separation of church and state] then the religious right might join in because they would love to own the word, "marriage" outright. Then..., once that's done..., you petition the government to use the term, "Civil Union" for every domestic partnership, gay or hetero. I know, I know..., brilliant..., right? But that's what I do. Think outside the box ;) When you think about it, my idea is just crazy enough that it might work ;) Even if the gay community decides not to implement my idea, it is a hell of a lot more entertaining, and original, than anything else either side has to offer ;)  

Why do people resist gay marriage?

We have argued the reasons for gay marriage and which tactics should be persued.  But we have yet to discuss the flip side.  Why is it that there is so much resistance to gay marriage? Could it be that straight people feel like they are being manipulated or is it that they're all homophobes?  They can't all be homophobes.  Not in this day and age.  They can't all be biggots, not in this day and age.   And yet, if they feel they are being manipulated, which arguments make them feel that way?  If they feel manipulated by a particular argument for gay marriage, maybe we can stop using that argument. For example:   When I hear someone claim that the term marriage is superior to the term civil union, my perception is that that the person believes that other people will not accept civil unions on their own volition and that, therefore, the people's perceptions must be manipulated.  One way to manipulate people's perception of a thing is to associate the thing with something people perceive as positive.  If you want the reverse response, you associated it with something people perceive as being negative, like Hitler and Nazis. A concept like gay marriage needs to be able to stand on its own merit.  Without any need to associate it with anything.  It is its own concept.  Unique.  People must see it for what it is and accept as such.  People must not be forced into viewing it through rose color glasses (or glasses of any color).  In other words, the other side shouldn't associate gay marriage with something negative in order to discredit it. The problem with trying to manipulate people is that people are not stupid. They know when they are being manipulated and they push back. That is what I see happening right now with gay marriage. Which is why I advocate not pursuing that tactic (to both sides).  

Should gay marriage be upheld by the US Supreme Court?

I created this debate because so far I haven't heard one good reason against gay marriage. I'm trying to see if there is one at all, though I doubt it.

Are any gay people against gay marriage?

Gay Marriage

I thinl love and affection are the same, for gays and for heteros. If procreation is an issue, why they don't forbid marriage to sterile and old hetero couples? We shouldn't discriminate love and affection.

WHY are you for/against gay marriage?

This is an issue that is very near and dear to my heart, being that I am gay.  And the truth is, I can't logically see a reason for anyone to actually reject gay marriage.  I can understand why they would think what they think.  But honestly, I have no clue why they make such a big deal about it.  So I don't care what you believe.  I don't mind what you share, but PLEASE give me a real reason for your belief.   PS.  It's been a long time since I've logged on and a lot has changed.  It's nice to see some old faces and a pleasure to see all of the new faces.  Of course, I miss the other old faces. Can't say I've missed the site (I think I ran out of things to give my opinion on!), but I do know I've changed a lot in the past few years.  Whole new person here! :)

Is gay marriage in alignment with the state interest in marriage?

I am for gay marriage.  But, I recently encountered someone who made the following claim:  Except the supreme court has never declared gay marriage a right. See Standhardt v Arizona("opposite-sex have a fundamental right to marry, Loving 388 US at 12, excluding such [gay] couples from marriage could only be justified by a compelling state interest") Furthermore, other courts around the world have found no violation of human rights. Google EU court rules states not obliged to allow same sex marriage. A quote: "The [EU] court found no violation of human rights Here's my proof procreation is the state interest. See adams v howerton 486 F. 1119,1124 ("the state has a compelling interest in encouraging and fostering procreation of the [human] race...") and providing ("stability to the environment in which children are raised")   Basically, he says gay marriage is not a right because it is not the state interest in marriage, which he claims is procreation.  Since gays cannot procreate, he says they do not deserve the right to marry.   How would one go about refuting such a claim?  If it can be legitimately refuted of course...

Would it ease this issue if we made a new word for Gay Marriage?

Would it ease the issue on gay marriage if we made a new word that was only for gay couples? That way they are legally recognized as a couple and have there own word that heterosexual couples cannot use.

Gay marriage is similar to straight marriage where one/both will not/cannot have children

And gay sex is similar to straight sex when not trying for a baby/using contraception.

Gay Marriage Destroys Traditional Marriage

Gay marriage most definitely destroys traditional marriage. What part of the tradition of traditional marriage does gay marriage destroy? The tradition of 50% of opposite sex marriages ending in divorce. That's right. In states that have legalized gay marriage, the divorce rate has gone DOWN. "In Massachusetts, which legalized gay marriage in 2004, the divorce rate has declined by 21 percent and is the lowest in the country by some margin." "On the other hand, the seven states at the bottom of the chart all had constitutional prohibitions on same-sex marriage in place throughout 2008. The state which experienced the highest increase in its divorce rate over the period (Alaska, at 17.2 percent) also happens to be the first one to have altered its constitution to prohibit same-sex marriage, in 1998." [1] Kudos to Alaska! They are on the forefront of the fight to protect the tradition of same-sex couples getting married, getting divorced, getting married again, again getting divorced, and married a third time -- as is the case of Newt Gingrich, opponent of gay marriage who has been married no less than three times. Conservative radio clown Rush Limbaugh is now on his fourth marriage. According to one study, divorce rates among conservative Christians, stanch opponents to same-sex marriage, are significantly higher than for other faith groups, and much higher than Atheists and Agnostics experience. [2] Let's face it. Jesus wants you to divorce, and we can't let the gays take that away. [1] http://gay.americablog.com/2010/08/science-duck-says-allowing-gay-marriage.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+AMERICAblogGay+%28AMERICAblog+Gay%29 [2] http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_dira.htm

Gay Marriage Should Be Allowed. True or False?

Hi! So, the title's pretty self-explanatory.Feel free to be as offensive/opinionated as you want, as long as you have a legit argument. No one will get banned just because I don't agree with your opinion. (I've seen moderaters do this in debates, and it always makes me mad... the point of this site is to debate, not to ban anyone who doesn't have the same opinion as you!)Ok thats all!Ready, Set, Go! :)