Walden: really? That's well-said? It doesn't actually say anything.
"Obviously the President is lying; people are sure gullible; everything we're dealing with now sure is unique ..." Those sentiments aren't information, they're generic cliches that get applied to every situation.
I know, I know, I shouldn't actually get drawn into a comment thread ...
MountainJoe: your suggestion has a lot of appeal, but it wouldn't be quite as simple as that. Quite a lot of other legal issues hinge on "marriage" visiting rights, being included on insurance; filing taxes; etc. If we stopped letting the government have a way of officially deciding who is and isn't married, we'd need to address all those scenarios also. People could simply register that they are "married" for those purposes, but it wouldn't solve the problem that some of us don't want others of us to be allowed to do that.
Although we could take your suggestion, and then have people register their "partners" for legal/tax purposes, and stop trying to restrict that definition. Live alone with your elderly mother? Go ahead and put her on your health insurance? Lifelong couple that never got married? Go ahead and file your taxes together. You want your best friend to visit you in the hospital? Go ahead and register her.
The Compromise
Walden: really? That's well-said? It doesn't actually say anything.
"Obviously the President is lying; people are sure gullible; everything we're dealing with now sure is unique ..." Those sentiments aren't information, they're generic cliches that get applied to every situation.
I know, I know, I shouldn't actually get drawn into a comment thread ...
Maine
MountainJoe: your suggestion has a lot of appeal, but it wouldn't be quite as simple as that. Quite a lot of other legal issues hinge on "marriage" visiting rights, being included on insurance; filing taxes; etc. If we stopped letting the government have a way of officially deciding who is and isn't married, we'd need to address all those scenarios also. People could simply register that they are "married" for those purposes, but it wouldn't solve the problem that some of us don't want others of us to be allowed to do that.
Although we could take your suggestion, and then have people register their "partners" for legal/tax purposes, and stop trying to restrict that definition. Live alone with your elderly mother? Go ahead and put her on your health insurance? Lifelong couple that never got married? Go ahead and file your taxes together. You want your best friend to visit you in the hospital? Go ahead and register her.