"ALL MEN ARE CREATED EQUAL" (...EXCEPT...)

What's wrong with people's thinking?

I hope to be able to answer this question when I finish the 4-week class I'm taking on keeping one's brain agile as we grow older.  At our first class we talked about brain atrophy, which must be the reason some people act so bat shit crazy -- regardless of age, actually.  What else could it be?

Watch this.  It's funny.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6jrngYNGNeE

My first thought was, "This is sort of old school humor; no one can possibly be opposed to marriage equality anymore!"  But then I forget; I live on the liberal side of the Pacific Northwest state that just voted to legalize gay marriage.  Long overdue, but now done.  Moving on....

Then I peeked out from my little bubble and realized most of the rest of the US is still struggling with this idea and many are actively, vociferously, railing against it, believing it will "destroy" the idea of traditional marriage; a crazy notion so excellently parodied in this clip.

I recall my novice activist days in the early 70's, working for passage of the Equal Rights Amendment for women.  There were plenty of scare-mongering ideas about what it would mean for women to be accorded rights equal to men; things like, society would run amok with the upset of the 'natural' heirarchy of men as head of household; men would lose their jobs if women were paid the same because there just wouldn't be enough money to go around; children would be practically feral and constantly in danger because there would be no mommy at home to raise them right;  there would be rampant violations of privacy since we would all be forced to use uni-sex bathrooms!

It still galls me that the ERA didn't pass, but society changed regardless, and many of the provisions we wanted to have as legal protections under one constitutional amendment have come to pass anyway with multiple individual laws paving the way.

Within days of the marriage equality referendum passing here in Washington last November, couples of long-standing commitment, but not previously accorded the right to marry, rushed to courthouses and open-hearted churches to legally wed.   The news clips showed couples beaming with pride and joy and relief, families and friends showering them with confetti and love.  It was amazingly moving.  It always is, when finally we get out of own way, as a people, and do the right thing.

At least, that's the view from here....©