Give me a REAL reason why gay marriage shouldn't be legal.

Because I haven't heard a good one yet. Usually, I just hear the same old arguments like, "Marriage is between a man and a woman!" I am apt to respond, "Says who?" Almost invariably, the answer I get is: "God!"

Well, that's a matter of opinion. Not everyone believes in the same god(s), if any at all, so that argument is futile. If it's against your religion, don't marry someone who belongs to your gender. Religion should not have any influence on law in America, because Americans have different religious beliefs, and it is preposterous to force those beliefs on anyone else using the legal system. Your prejudices which stem from religious beliefs are still prejudices. Next argument, please.

"I don't believe in gay marriage, but I believe in same-sex civil unions."

Really? Is that because you like treating people with different sexual preferences than you like second-class citizens? Because that is what a "civil union" does, legally speaking. Marriage is a legal institution which establishes a legal kinship between the married partners. When two people marry, the bride becomes the groom's next-of-kin and vice-versa. This does not happen in civil unions. Also, married couples can file jointly for taxes while couples who have a civil union (or a domestic partnership, someone please correct me if I'm wrong) cannot. Actually, civil unions don't offer very many of the perks that marriage does. One half of a married couple can get sick leave to care for his or her ailing partner, but someone who has a civil union cannot. Widows and widowers receive survivor benefits from Social Security; members of a civil union cannot. So, technically, civil unions are separate from, but not equal to, marriages.

On to the next argument: "Children should be raised by a mother and a father."

Tell that to every divorced person in the country and maybe I'll listen to you. According to divorcerate.org, the divorce rate is 41% for one's first marriage, 60% for one's second marriage, and 74% for the third marriage. You can bet that a lot of divorcees have children. Most of the time, sole custody is awarded to one parent with the other parent getting visitation rights. Sometimes, both parents get equal custody, but much of the time one parent is responsible for much of the child's care. Oh, and while you're talking to the divorcees, please have a word with those darned single parents won't you? Because many women are now having babies on their own, using anonymous sperm donors through a sperm bank. And some members of both genders are adopting children on their own, when it is possible. Naughty things.

Ah! I nearly forgot this one: "Homosexuality is unnatural."

Really? Tell that to Roy and Silo, two chinstrap penguins at the Central Park Zoo. They have no interest in female partners and vice-versa. Roy and Silo even raised a chick together, and it worked out swimmingly. Bonobos, members of the ape family, also exhibit gay and lesbian sexual behavior. Are these animals unnatural, too? Or are you arguing that, since homosexual relations don't naturally result in biological children, then they're useless? That's a matter of opinion. Many heterosexual couples remain childless by choice, and many people give unwanted children up for adoption. Next.

"Gay marriage will lead to polygamy and people marrying squirrels and stuff!"

Grow a brain. Polygamy doesn't work, legally, because of the legal status of marriage. TWO people can file taxes jointly, TWO people can act as each other's next-of-kin, but 5 people can't. And squirrels are not legally consenting human adults who can sign a marriage license, last time I checked.

In light of all I have said here, I see no reason why gay marriage should not be legal except for the prejudices of other people.

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