The issue of basic human rights for gays is one that cannot be managed or poll-tested. It is inevitable. Gays will soon be able to marry in any state in the United States and they will be able to openly serve in the military. Twenty years ago no one even discussed gay marriage in the political realm. Ten years ago it was at the periphery of the discourse. Now it is front and center. Younger Americans show increasing openness to gay marriage- the trend will not abate. Dr. King once said that "The arc of the moral universe is long but it bends toward justice."
When people like Rick Santorum start spouting nonsense about how allowing gay marriage will open the door for people to marry their pets, they just make themselves seem more ridiculous. I have a dog. I'm quite fond of Max(many other people aren't because he tends to snap at people for no good reason and steal their food). I'm not inclined to marry him. Why the hell would a gay person want to marry him? Sure, some gays like to dress their dogs up, but so does Paris Hilton and we've allowed her the right to marry.
The language around banning gays from the military pretty much matches why blacks were not allowed to serve equally with whites until the latter part of the 20th Century. It might be bad for morale. Soldiers wouldn't feel comfortable. It is a unique environment and we can't tamper with it. Sooner or later, this form of discrimination will end as well.
A few decades from now, the question our grandchildren will ask is where were you on the great civil rights issue of your time? I'm sure the answers will change and people will say they always in favor of equal rights for everyone. Today you can find lots of people who claim to have marched for civil rights in the 60s (including Mitt Romney). You never find someone saying "Yeah, I really tried to keep those n$#@& in place but unfortunately we lost that one."
When we are rehashing this debate, I'm glad I'm on the side of this guy:
and not these folks:
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