Reply #10: We need to get our heads out of our asses [View All]

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to be blunt. This amendment could well pass both chambers. DOMA passed both chambers by immense margins. If this becomes about gay marriage and nothing else we are hosed in Congress. It should be noted that his amendment would also ban civil unions and domestic partnership as well as gay marriage. We would forever be second class citizens at the utter mercy of our inlaws if our partners got sick.

First gay donors need to make it crystal clear that not one cent will go to any candidate who votes for this. That means Log Cabin gays and Stonewall ones. Make no mistake about this. There are several Democrats who will vote for this garbage. In the House there are probably at least 20 who will vote for it and there are five co sponsers. In the Senate, Miller, both Nelsons, Byrd, Dorgan, Hollings, and Conrad are all possible votes for this. I am basing that on past history for them which hasn't been good. Those people need to know that there is a price for that behavior. As to people like Santorum and the host of others across the aisle.

Second, we need to get creative gays and lesbians to make, and wealthy ones to fund, ad campaigns to oppose this amendment. We need regular gays and lesbians who were denied pensions, had their sick partner's care taken over by their inlaws, been unable to sue people for wrongful deaths, been denied visitation in hospitals, had their inheritences taken by greedy relatives of their partner, and on and on and on. It must be turned into an issue of simple, basic, fairness.

Third, we should be choosing around 15 states (we need 13) to be our no firewall. These are states whose legislatures we think will vote against ratification. I would suggest CA, HI, MN, NY, VT, RI, MA, ME, MD, NJ, CT, IL, DE, WA, and AK. Some of these are pretty sure bets. Others are close calls. We may want to take out WA in favor of NH or take out AK in favor of NH. We want either states with very active gay and lesbian communities or tolerant small states. Size is why Alaska is on the list instead of possibilities like PA.

We need to wake up. This is a major threat. We need to act like it