It only affects the 12 states (so far) that allow gay marriage, but it’s still a great win for equality. This means (and I’m copying & pasting from the NYT here), that “Married same-sex couples in the twelve states that allow such unions, along with the District of Columbia, become subject to more than 1,000 federal laws and programs and start to receive federal benefits. The ruling has no direct effect on bans on same-sex marriage in other states.”
The interesting ones will be when a same sex couple resides in two different states: Wife A lives in Massachusettes and Wife B lives in Texas. So Wife A gets benefits but Wife B does not? That will be interesting to hash out.
LOL. It’s worth noting Fox News has already moved on to other news like Snowden and IRS scandals.
CNN and MSNBC are still reporting.
FOX NEWS: Nothing to see here folks! Move along…
That’s great to hear, thanks for the info.
Best birthday present for my wife EVER!
But what does this mean for us? We were married in NY but we are residents of TX.
Having been together 32 1/2 years, my SO and I are quite happy!
However, at this moment we are waiting for the confetti to stop falling from the sky until attorneys have had the chance to read what are probably 1000’s of pages to determine the fine points of both decisions today.
For instance, we live in Nevada - which only has Domestic Unions (of which we are registered here).
Assuming this is the good news we think it is, the questions:
-
As Nevadans, can we drive over to California soon and get legally married? It is a short drive from Las Vegas - about an hour or so - to the nearest California court house. (It might take a bit longer to drive home, what with the tin cans tied to the back bumper and the “Just Married” sign in our back window.)
-
Once married in California, when we return to Nevada - will our marriage be recognized on a Federal level - meaning when filing Federal taxes (there are no Nevada State taxes), will we be able to file jointly next time, even though we live in Nevada?
We are still bickering about who has to pay the dowry, but other than that, we are quite optimistic that thing are about to change for the better - and SOON!
Happy day, happy dance!
(Just being overly cautious to find out the specifics and nuances…)
Of the thousands of federal rights implicated, some of them are based on the status of same-sex marriage where you got married and some of them are based on the status of same-sex marriage where you live. So it will depend on the particular right in question, DMark.
With the Prop 8 being dead in California, the percentage of Americans living in state that allow same sex marriage has jumped from 18% to 31%.
And how exactly is the average person supposed to figure that out and act accordingly?
(not a jab at you, Richard, just general frustration with the broken system)
ETA: Not that I expect that everyone will have to figure it out on their own… but keeping up with how to comply without mucking the whole thing up, that’s my concern.
Yeah, that was part of Scalia’s point about why DOMA could make sense apart from discriminatory animus.
But the answer is the same way you figure out all kinds of legal bullshit – you make do. The same is true of writing your will, paying your taxes, or buying a car. Eventually, the basic rules will become somewhat common knowledge, the way the basic rules of tax exemptions are now common knowledge.
I’m sure accountants and lawyers are in for a world of fun soon. 
Well, eff worrying for now, I’m just going to enjoy today!
For me, the really surprising part of today’s rulings was the breakdown on Prop 8. I mean, how often are you going to see a 5-4 decision with Scalia, Roberts and Ginsburg on the same side? Or with Sotomayor and Kagan taking opposite sides?
Yeah, I googled some but I couldn’t find the dissent. Why’s Sotomayor dissenting?
Just dropped by to say this is a good day for all Americans interested in equality.
I’m so damned tempted to go get a Chick Fil A sandwich today.
Because of the events of the past 12 hours I am now free to achieve my dream of gay marrying Eric Snowden and hiring an illegal alien surrogate mother to have an abortion for us in Texas, all while eating Chick-Fil-Fuckin’-A, baby!!!
Clarence “Fetchit” Thomas chewed gum through the announcement and the hearings. I think all gays should send him a pack of gum.
Without having read the opinion, I’d wager a guess that she wanted to overturn gay marriage bans on a broader basis, rather than simply punt on a matter of standing.
I just need to make sure I understand this clearly and correctly. Same-sex marriage is legal in California at this moment thanks to the vote of… Anton Scalia?
Wait - so today we LOVE the SCOTUS?
OW! Whiplash!
I’m hoping for as much, but the article I read just said something to the effect of “a dissent by Kennedy with Thomas, Alito and Sotomayor joining in” and unless it’s purely a “I disagree!” statement, I have a hard time believing all 4 agree on why they’re disagreeing.
Yeah, just scanned the dissent - written by Kennedy with Thomas, Alito and Sotomayor joining. It basically states “Yes, the defenders did have standing, so we should have ruled on the merits of the case instead of dismissing it.” Nothing about the actual merits of the case itself. Presumably if the Supremes had agreed to rule on the case, Sotomayor and Thomas wouldn’t have been on the same side.