Obama Being Forced To Confront Issue Of Benefits For Same-Sex Couples

New York Times:

WASHINGTON -- Just seven weeks into office, President Obama is being forced to confront one of the most sensitive social and political issues of the day: whether the government must provide health insurance benefits to same-sex partners of federal employees.

In separate, strongly worded orders, two judges of the federal appeals court in California said that employees of their court were entitled to health benefits for their same-sex partners under the program that insures millions of federal workers.

Read the whole story: New York Times

Comments

[jnw147]

Marriage: A legal union between two consenting individuals of legal age, that are not biologically related to one another. It can be between two individuals of the opposite sex or it can be between two individuals of the same sex. However, if it's between two individuals of the same sex, it's considered a Civil Marriage that is recognized by the government of the United States of America, but does not have to be recognized by the Church or other Religious Institutions. This is what is meant by separation of Church and State.

Since marriage is between only two individuals, this eliminates Polygamists or those that want a threesome marriage. Since marriage cannot be between relatives, this eliminates any marriage based on incest. Since marriage is between two consenting individuals of legal age, this eliminates marriage with an animal or with a minor. Even though procreation is part of marriage, it's not the "only" part and there are a lot of heterosexual couples who can not procreate. A marriage doesn't make a family and a family doesn't make a marriage.

by Johnnie Newkir Jr.

[GodIs]

God believes it is important for the righteous to judge the wicked. God is love.

[Dustee]

"JUDGE NOT, LEST YE BE JUDGED"

MATTHEW 7:1-5:

[complice]

Bugger off, you charlatan. It makes God angry when you bear false witness.

[mercury613]

You contradict yourself.

[Hadok]

This entire concept of employee provision of health care benefits for spouses, or partners, whether they be of the same sex or different sex, is discriminatory against those who are celibate and/or have no partner or co-habitant.

To be entirely fair, businesses and government agencies who offer such benefits should be required to extend such benefit to the person of the employee's choosing - whether that person is a partner, spouse, or neither.

In that way, the employee could, for example, designate a next door neighbor, a cousin, another family member, or even a complete stranger as the recipient of health care benefits in the employee's name.

The employee could, for example, offer to designate his/her next door neighbor as recipient of benefits, and then charge a small fee to said recipient. Cheaper for the neighbor than buying health care in the open market, (especially if that neighbor has multiple chronic illnesses and pre-existing health problems), provide a few extra dollars for the employee, and everyone comes out ahead.

[juzcuz]

There are many different denominations that would 'marry' me and my same sex partner... we would have the minister's blessings, their support, their UNconditional love and yet... until we have our "union" or "partnership" or "marriage" recognized by the federal government... it doesn't mean the same... until it is finally "officially" and "legally" recognized and THEN we can and will receive the same kind of treatment, benefits, and privileges that a straight couple gets.

Right now the only difference between a union, a partnership, and/or a marriage is all wrapped up in genitals. One man + one woman supposedly makes a perfect(?) "marriage." It's nothing more than that. Tell me that isn't the silliest thing on earth. Body parts are what make a strong & lasting marriage?

Who I love and want to spend the rest of my life with is NOBODY ELSE'S BUSINESS, except the fact that many fearful and UNeducated straights are still trying to keep gays & lesbians from living their lives fully. As Harvey Milk said, "We are fighting for our LIVES, people!"

[AngryCitizen]

People like tr24 are steaped in ignorance and prejudice. They use their lack of understanding and whatever sense of humanity they might possess in the dark reaches of their soul, as a weapon against innocent people fighting for equal rights. The promise of United States is equality for all. "All men are created equal," and that includes women of course. What is so darn impossible to understand about that? Tr24 likes to confuse the issue with red herring, like oh let's legalize moonlight mating with zebras if we allow gay marriage.

The issue is what is the God-given nature of an individual. Why would you fight so hard against equal rights for gays who's only crime is to control the birth rate on this planet? Are you that afraid of love? Afterall, we are talking about far more than sex, it is who gay people fall in love with that matters the most. Gays will always be amongst us, but bigots will eventually die off.

[JohnFromCensornati]

Tr24 is an obsessive, closetcase homophobe. It does not comment about anything else but gays.
It has been banned twice. First as tr24, then as tr_24, and it has re-appeared again as Tr_24.
It has a sock called Pie7 (formerly iwantpie). Don't fall for any of its lies. It just h@tes gay people.

[juzcuz]

that's right... me and every gay & lesbian in this country (and there are MANY millions) are HATED and discriminated against BECAUSE of WHO we LOVE. Jesus must be rolling in his grave!!! His entire ministry and teachings were about UNconditional LOVE and the anti-christ(ians) are teaching and preaching only hate and exclusion. That is why I despise the word "christian," just like I don't like the word "marriage"... because the connotations are unquestionably BOGUS!!

[mercury613]

Closeted trolls need to get their kicks somewhere.

[proggirl]

As a member of the GLBT community, I say rights cannot be given or taken away, only acknowledged or ignored. It's time to acknowledge our rights. If you have to call it something besides marriage to placate people who are narrow-minded or afraid, I think that's silly, but I can put up with it.
I suspect President Obama will have to propose an omnibus rights bill at some point. I'm reminded of Johnson signing the civil rights act and saying, "well, we just lost the south." Sometimes the willfully ignorant and hateful have to go to the back of the bus.

[PhilipB]

Thanks. well said.

[mercury613]

You go, proggirl.

[MPeter]

Mr. Obama is the Prez of the United States of America. Nobody forces him to do anything!!! This is a bogus headline!

[JohnBisceglia]

Laurel is dead, so we cannot ask her how SHE feels about this, but here is HER story. She spent her life protecting YOU - not just the gays - but ALL of you. And YOU (society/federal law) sh*t on her and her family. That was criminal then, and it is criminal now.

"Detective Lieutenant Laurel Hester spent 25 years investigating tough cases in Ocean County, New Jersey, protecting the rights of victims and putting her life on the line. She had no reason to expect that in the last year of her life, after she was diagnosed with terminal cancer, that her final battle for justice would be for the woman she loved.

Laurel struggled to transfer her earned pension to her domestic partner, Stacie Andree. With less than six months to live, Laurel refuses to back down when her elected officials - the Ocean County Freeholders -deny her request to leave her pension to Stacie, an automatic option for heterosexual married couples. The film is structured chronologically, following both the escalation of Laurel's battle with the Freeholders and the decline of her health as cancer spreads to her brain."

- GOOGLE Freeheld.

[JohnBisceglia]

"SteveS" summed it up nice on the HuffPost yesterday -

"A former civil rights lawyer being forced to confront an equality issue. How murky it must be."

BEST LINE YET.

[behindEnemyLines]

why is this a tough choice for the President. He promised to support the rights of gay couples during the campaign but now that he's president and he has to follow through he is suddenly "in a tough position." This should be an easy one for him no?

[Tr 24]

Gays should have rights, but not marriage. President Obama has stated numerous times that marriage is the union of a man and a woman. There are several Youtube clips of this if you are interested. When Obama sides with the gay community on issues such as marriage he loses a good 60% of his support if not more. He should tread lightly and do what is best for this country.

[complice]

Can you provide a credible link to support your claim that Obama loses "60% of his support if not more" when he supports the LGBT community? That seems a bit unlikely considering the priniciple source or debate/contention seems to be the word "marriage" and has nothing to do with repealing DADT, enacting hate crimes legistlation, and repealing DOMA. You can't just throw out random stats without something to back them up.

[juzcuz]

Being gay really doesn't have a whole lot to do with sex... it has to do with love and that special spiritual and emotional connection. Is it really that difficult to understand or does everything HAVE TO CIRCLE around sex and the genitals? Isn't there more to love than pieces-parts? Why do ONLY CERTAIN body parts... make or define marriage? Tell me Tr24... exactly who was it that defined "marriage" for all the rest of us? And what exactly is the real difference between a man and a woman? Got any intelligent ideas up your sleeve at all or are you just one dumb chimp.

[markinaz]

Imagine that. The prez is confronted with an issue that most other -read heteros- LAW ABIDING, TAXPAYING citizens take for granted every day. It should be a no-brainer. After all, civil-unioned individuals tax money is just as green as everybody else's.

[GodIs]

Faith counteracts the destructive effects of sinful actions and activities. Every considerate friend of civil liberty, in order to be consistent with himself, must be the friend of the Bible. God is love.

[CosmicSpaceTurtle]

You sound more fanatic and irrational than even the most brainwashed scientologist. I hope you don't think people take your gibberish seriously.

[VPN]

Did you get lost on your way to church and wound up here?

[complice]

What an insipid comment. Go proselytize elsewhere, please.

[frantaylor]

:"Faith" is believing in things that don't exist. Get your nose out of the Bible and pay attention to reality.

[juzcuz]

whose reality fran, yours only? Are you the center of your world?

[MathIsTruth]

I believe what you just said is that you believe that God supports same-sex marriage.

Which, assuming He exists and is worth worshiping, is true.

[hapiday]

No matter what President Obama does someone is not going to be happy. Of course someone will thre-aten not to vote for him in 2012 or the Republicans will threa-ten not to vote for the health care bill or the media will constantly flock him in the media. It's never ending.

[cocolola]

Please give the gay couples their complete civil rights. I don't know why Prop 8 was implemented to begin with. And why did "the people" have a say about their personal issues? It has nothing to with them.

[tr 24]

Prop 8 was necessary because the judges overturned Prop 22. The people of CA have spoken twice on this issue; on both occasions the people voted for the sanctity of marriage.

[VPN]

What percentage of the population voted in the election that Prop * was included in, out of that total number what percentage voted for Prop ? Two question that MUST be answered if your going to claim that the people of California spoke.

[CosmicSpaceTurtle]

The people do not have a right to remove rights from other people. If a state voted to take voting rights from Asian Americans, it would be illegal. If people voted to take drivers licenses from people with red hair, it would be illegal.

A role of the courts is to ensure all Americans get their equal rights. It is their job to overturn this abuse of power by the people in CA, and in time this will be corrected. When it comes to civil rights, states rights are not legitimate defenses of oppression.

[complice]

Yes, and do you see a trend developing? Prop 22 was approved with almost 62% of the vote; Prop 8, on the other hand, passed 52.3 - 47.7%--hardly what I would call widespread consensus. It will be back in 2010.

[JohnFromCensornati]

What a pity. This clostcase has been ban.ned again.

[frantaylor]

What is "the sanctity of marriage"? Sounds like a great new sex toy. Can I get one for my wife?

[juzcuz]

what does SANCTITY of MARRIAGE really mean mr. genius 24? Give me a definition of both words? Or do you have the ability to think for yourself?

Tell me also, who defined sacred or holy or entitiled or respect and reverence? Who defined marriage as body parts?

I really think tr24 should go back to his eighth grade class and learn where he left off and stop trying to make comments on this blog... which truly show his (or her) ignorance, bigotry, lack of education.

And I'm really wanting to know if tr24 is married and if indeed, is his marriage sacred, respected and respectful... I don't it seriously. Sounds like a person who insists on just playing with himself.

[juzcuz]

thanks coco for your human-kindness. I will cherish the day when my life, love and happiness are NO LONGER voted on... by other people who have NO life, NO ove and NO happiness.

[LiberalBuzz]

The NYT article is somewhat dishonest. WHY should Obama give a flying leap about working with the Thug party when they have publicly stated their entire purpose is to defeat anything he does and they could care less about what is good for the country.

[juzcuz]

I tend to agree with buzz here - the Repulsive Party are obstructionists and want Obama and Democrats to fail, fall on their face and lose in 2012. There comes a time Obama when you've got to stop catering to the Repugnant Party and start supporting the people who have and do support you all along. Wake up and smell the coffee!!