# Why should I care about gay marriage?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-should-i-care-about-gay-marriage/681766>\
**Category:** Great Debates\
**Created:** [February 20, 2014, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-should-i-care-about-gay-marriage/681766 "2014-02-20T02:37:39Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 28

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**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\
**Post date:** [February 27, 2014, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-should-i-care-about-gay-marriage/681766/542 "2014-02-27T15:35:49Z")

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> [@Melchior](#):
>
> The tax laws can be changed. I would support such changes. Guardianships are also possible.

What a great idea, we can enact changes to the 1,138 Federal Laws that confer rights benefits and protections due to marital status. Then we can go after however many tens of thousands of State and Local laws also confer marital benefits. Then we get to spend the next decade or two managing uncountable lawsuits where laws were not properly updated, eventually homosexuals will have similar rights to married heterosexuals, as long as nobody passes a law without the appropriate gay rights conditions.

Or we could just recognize SSM and have it all done tomorrow.

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**Author:** ![lance\_strongarm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/87869e/32.png) [@lance\_strongarm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lance_strongarm)\
**Post date:** [February 27, 2014, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-should-i-care-about-gay-marriage/681766/543 "2014-02-27T19:23:50Z")

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> [@Melchior](#):
>
> The tax laws can be changed. I would support such changes. Guardianships are also possible.

So you have no problem with gays having all the benefits of marriage, you just plain don’t want them to be “married.” It’s all down to a word with you? I wonder, do you support the “civil union” option?

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**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\
**Post date:** [February 28, 2014, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-should-i-care-about-gay-marriage/681766/544 "2014-02-28T01:39:48Z")

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> [@lance\_strongarm](#):
>
> So you have no problem with gays having all the benefits of marriage, you just plain don’t want them to be “married.” It’s all down to a word with you? I wonder, do you support the “civil union” option?

It seems I’ve heard that somewhere before.

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**Author:** ![Lord\_Feldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lord_feldon/32/341_2.png) [@Lord\_Feldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Feldon)\
**Post date:** [February 28, 2014, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-should-i-care-about-gay-marriage/681766/545 "2014-02-28T02:25:40Z")

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> [@lance\_strongarm](#):
>
> So you have no problem with gays having all the benefits of marriage, you just plain don’t want them to be “married.” It’s all down to a word with you? I wonder, do you support the “civil union” option?

There is no civil union option with all the benefits of marriage, at least not one that can be created by the US and its states alone. (It’s important for people who travel. The US is right next to a country with nationwide same-sex marriage that, IIRC, does not recognize civil unions, so for a couple in Detroit that ever wants to travel a mile south, a civil union is not equivalent to a marriage.)

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