New York Governor David Paterson will introduce a bill legalizing gay marriage tomorrow. Commenting on this is Catholic League president Bill Donohue:
"In a Quinnipiac poll taken two weeks ago, New Yorkers resoundingly rejected gay marriage by a margin of 59-41 percent; even a majority of Democrats don't support it. So why is Governor Paterson trying to force feed legislation the people don't want? Moreover, this is not just another bill before the people—this is a bill that would radically alter the most basic and important institution in the nation.
"Paterson has received bad advice on many matters, and that is why his poll numbers are at record lows. But this advice is the worst yet. If two guys can get married, on what principle can the state deny three guys? It can't. Marriage is not for men or women: its function is to provide for procreation and the establishment of a family. Nature limits that function to a man and a woman, and society ought to ratify nature, not try to best it.
"For all the happy talk about inclusion, gay marriage is positively exclusionary in its effects. How so? Next month we will celebrate Mother's Day. How do two men tell their legally acquired children that they are excluded from celebrating this special day? How do two women tell their legally acquired children that they are excluded from celebrating Father's Day? One way to do it is to ban these special days, and that is exactly what has already happened in some gay-friendly schools in New York City.
"So not only will New Yorkers be force fed gay marriage, they can look forward to the time when the despots censor Mother's Day and Father's Day in the schools. All in the name of tolerance, of course."
