Maine Gay Marriage Legalized

Maine Governor John Baldacci signed Wednesday into law a bill legalizing gay marriage in the state. The move makes Maine the fifth state to allow gay marriage.

The press release:

Governor John E. Baldacci today signed into law LD 1020, An Act to End Discrimination in Civil Marriage and Affirm Religious Freedom.

"I have followed closely the debate on this issue. I have listened to both sides, as they have presented their arguments during the public hearing and on the floor of the Maine Senate and the House of Representatives. I have read many of the notes and letters sent to my office, and I have weighed my decision carefully," Governor Baldacci said. "I did not come to this decision lightly or in haste."

"I appreciate the tone brought to this debate by both sides of the issue," Governor Baldacci said. "This is an emotional issue that touches deeply many of our most important ideals and traditions. There are good, earnest and honest people on both sides of the question."

"In the past, I opposed gay marriage while supporting the idea of civil unions," Governor Baldacci said. "I have come to believe that this is a question of fairness and of equal protection under the law, and that a civil union is not equal to civil marriage."

"Article I in the Maine Constitution states that 'no person shall be deprived of life, liberty or property without due process of law, nor be denied the equal protection of the laws, nor be denied the enjoyment of that person's civil rights or be discriminated against.'"

"This new law does not force any religion to recognize a marriage that falls outside of its beliefs. It does not require the church to perform any ceremony with which it disagrees. Instead, it reaffirms the separation of Church and State," Governor Baldacci said.

"It guarantees that Maine citizens will be treated equally under Maine's civil marriage laws, and that is the responsibility of government."

"Even as I sign this important legislation into law, I recognize that this may not be the final word," Governor Baldacci said. "Just as the Maine Constitution demands that all people are treated equally under the law, it also guarantees that the ultimate political power in the State belongs to the people."

"While the good and just people of Maine may determine this issue, my responsibility is to uphold the Constitution and do, as best as possible, what is right. I believe that signing this legislation is the right thing to do," Governor Baldacci said.

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Comments

[AlKhateeb]

Here is a little experiment for everyone to conduct. Acquire six mice, 3 male and 3 female. Next segregate them in three cages and provide each cage with the same environmental conditions: warmth, well regulated light and darkness to promote sleep and , proper food and nutrition, a clean, accessible source of water, and adequate clean nesting material. Then separate the mice into pairs, one all female pair, one all male pair and one female-male pair. Observe them for three years. Which cage has more mice at the end of three years? Which cages have only one mouse or no mice surviving? Now that's nature for your...sorry! I was getting besides myself. Oh and be sure you get each pair of mice checked by a veternarian before the start of the experiment to make sure they are all healthy and capable of reproduction. We wouldn't want there to be any one pair with an unfair advantage for reproducing and there by....well let's just leave it there for now.

[PA Blue]

Relavance?

[AlKhateeb]

none whatsoever. just trying to be clever. obviously I failed miserably.

[kwinter]

I THINK, this is AlKhateeb's subtle way of saying 2 males or 2 females can't reproduce.
And I assume in AlKhateeb's mind, if you can't reproduce you shouldn't be allowed to marry.
So I guess he thinks I should not be married, since after 22 years my marriage has failed to produce any offspring. I wonder if AlKhateeb thinks my marriage should be voided ?
I hope not, we've grown very fond of each other!

[goodnightandgoodluck]

We fully understand how reproduction works, but if you're using the inability of homosexual couples to procreate as an argument for the prohibition of marriage what do you propose for infertile heterosexuals? Civil unions? When shall we forcibly divorce couples who have trouble conceiving? One year, two years after marriage? Will the government administer testing to determine who is capable of reproducing and who is not? My other point is this: with 6 billion people on the planet humans can hardly be considered an endangered species. In other words, is reproduction actually high on our list of priorities? I would think getting parents for the hundreds of thousands of orphaned children worldwide would be a better goal.

[LadyAva]

To your last point in a very great post, goodnighta­ndgoodluck­, why don't all those anti-gay advocates who gag at the idea of gays adopting not adopt these orphans themselves. From the way they bleat, I'd expect to that children's homes would cease to exist.

All you anti-gay bigots and "pro-lifers" out there? How many of you are actively doing all you can to adopt and get all children into permanent loving homes? Would you rather a child be in a children's home? How is that better than being raised in the home with two loving, nurturing parents? As with my last question which no right wingers responded to, I'd like answers based on the constitutional and not religious law... that is what this country is based on. I also want link to CURRENT stats.

[jerry23]

I find this post rather bazaar to say the least. A percentage of the marriages in today world are still arranged . Civil Marriage is primarily a business deal in many cultures, past and present. It has in history codified relationships and truces for harmony in communities. So this breeding to legitimize has so many holes in it , it is scary. Why I have taken the time to respond is a mystery to me, maybe it is the wine.

[LadyAva]

None of the anti-gay marriage advocates have given me an intelligent argument as to why gay marriage threatens the institution of marriage. They toss out religious objections and nonsensical red herrings like bestiality and incest. Please tell me why gay marriage is wrong and yet you all condone divorce and adultery, two serious threats to marriage! I just want a reasonable objection.­..please..­. I'm asking nicely.

BTW, when you make this argument, don't mention reproduction. I have SIX...count them... SIX straight couples who have chosen NOT to have biological children. One of the six couples fosters children and are planning to adopt!

Oh, and TR 24, the fastest growing group of HIV cases are in the African-American community, especially women. My boyfriend's sister, who is AA, works as an AIDS activist educating young black teens... Please stop being disingenuous.

[PA Blue]

Excellent question. Sadly, I fear you won't get a response. All they're god for is repeating the same bull over and over again.

[LadyAva]

Sadly, you're right...all I'm hearing are crickets...

[Tr 24]

Reposted for prosperity. Thank you AlKhateeb. Great post!
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AlKhateeb See Profile I'm a Fan of AlKhateeb I'm a fan of this user permalink

Calvin, et al,

So let me get this straight, homosexuality among humans has as it's evidence for normality in nature the occurrence of the same practice among animals, but polygamy which involves multiple people has no analog in the animal kingdom? Therefore since one can point to the occurence of homosexuality among animals it's occurence among humans is also normative. Is that right? So what exactly am I to gather from the practice of male lions keeping harems of lionesses, or Silverback mountain gorilla's keeping troupes (harems) of female gorilla's? Can anyone explain that for me, please? But then again you didn't dismiss polygamy along with "an attraction to children or animals" in the last sentence of your second paragraph did you?

[JohnFromCensornati]

Your obsessive h0m0phobia gives you away, closetcase.
Why has HP b@nned you so many times?

[Tr 24]

According to the CDC, 71% of ALL HIV cases in the U.S. are found in gay men. This is a sad and disturbing number. We have to do better folks, and gay marriage isn't the answer. Repectfully yours, Tr24

[PA Blue]

Again, faulty statistics at best. The statistic is for all adult and adolescents, is four years old and is imcomplete in that it's only 33 states included in the report. Please stop copying and posing the same arguement.

[StevenKeirstead]

CDC data also show that the proportion of HIV cases among men who have sex with men (MSM) has been dropping, and the proportion among heterosexuals has been increasing. While MSM were still the majority of new HIV cases, according to the later 2006, as of then 53% of new cases were in MSM.

Even in 2005, in the states studied, the number of HIV and AIDS cases divided by percentage of males reporting sex with other males works out to 1 in 31, or 3% of MSM. But the number is probably less because people lie about their sexual activities, and the percentage of the population that really ought to be counted as MSM is probably more.

At any rate, HIV prevention is not going to be helped in any way by banning same sex couples fro marrying, so the point is very tangential to the news topic of Maine equalizing the state's marriage laws.

[goodnightandgoodluck]

Even if your stats were true, do you sincerely believe that without legalized same-sex marriage homosexuals will stop engaging in homosexual activities? That's the same logic that told us criminalizing alcohol production and distribution would stop people from drinking. Not to mention the fact that the real AIDS crisis is overseas in Africa and Asia where the overwhelming majority of cases are contracted through heterosexual encounters. It is no longer 1985, let's stop demonizing gays with talk of HIV.

[StevenKeirstead]

Tr 24 misrepresents the 2005 data. The CDC found 71% of male adult and adolescents in 33 states were MSM, not "71% of ALL HIV cases in the U.S. are found in gay men." MSM is Men who have Sex With Men, a broader category that is not equivalent to gay men, and includes bisexuals, men "on the down low," etc. Some of these unfortunate infected men may be wanting to marry other men, but they're not representative of all the gay and lesbian couples who want to marry in Maine or have their marriages recognized there.

For example, my husband and I have been in a monogamous relationship since 1991, and have been married since 2007 in Massachusetts. We travel to Maine all the time and want to have equal rights there and at home in Boston. Another couple I know were the first same sex couple to marry at Harvard University's Memorial Church, Dave Emmert and Killian Melloy. They were together for 19 years before getting married in 2004, and had been sweethearts in high school.

It is insulting to committed same sex couples to misuse government data to tar us with the brush of the stereotype that gay men are all promiscuous, and try to deny us equal rights with that stereotype. Tr24 is just as wrong as I would be, if I were to use the stereotype of the promiscuous right wing evangelicals to deny them the right to vote in a Presidential election.

[goodnightandgoodluck]

It's extremely disheartening to see the comments that emerge from any article about gay marriage on HuffPost. Inevitably one or two folks who hate the idea of equal marriage spend the following day engaging the rest of us in such juvenile and immature banter. They prod us into action by spewing some controversial and incendiary, usually homophobic and illogical statement. They never back down from their flawed arguments because to them the two sides of the argument are completely parallel, they will never touch. We give them post after post of logical and reasonable, many times legal and constitutional arguments for equal marriage. They answer back with bestiality, incest, polygamy, child pornography, and bare, raw bigotry. Their aim is to get a rise out of us. No matter how compelling your argument, they will not concede in the slightest. In the mean time, the world changes rapidly around us. Suddenly 5 states have legalized same-sex marriage. This is a time to celebrate and yet we get bogged down trying to make tolerant the forces of intolerance. We have the Constitution on our side, we have the next generation on our side. Let them cling to their hatred, it's nearly all they have left.

[PhilipB]

Well said!

[RearwindowNic]

Gay marriage, a black president and I didn't have to die before any of this happened. We are truly coming along with excepting each other as humans. Humans with the same desires to live, love, dream, learn...nice.

[StevenKeirstead]

Thank you Maine. My husband and I live in Boston, but visit Maine 4-5 weeks every year. I am glad our legal rights will be respected in the state I think of as a second home state. It is fitting Maine's motto is Dirigo, Latin for "I lead."

[schaffermommy]

why is this the very last story on hp? it hasn't even been 24 hrs.. anyway, good job maine :)

[calvinphoon]

Although I'm happy about the increasing number of states with marriage equality, its still very saddening to see that such anti-gay attitudes persist.

How exactly does me being gay share a room with pedophilia, polygamy, or bestiality? pedophilia involves children, polygamy involves multiple people, and bestiality involves other species. Research suggests that homosexuality is a part of the human condition. For example, homosexual activity is extremely prevalent in the animal kingdom, with whom we share a common evolutionary ancestry. On the other hand, you would be hard pressed to find someone who believes that people are born with an attraction to children or animals.

While its true that the HIV infection rate is very high for gay people, I feel that other groups are just as susceptible as us. There is nothing inherent about us that predisposes us to HIV infection, and differences among groups are most likely due to outside factors. In Africa it could be due to lack of education on the subject. For gays it could be attributed to being heavily ostracized, which has a strong correlation with promiscuity.

People who are against gay rights are certainly entitled to their opinion, but I feel that greater acceptance of homosexuality poses no threat to society.

Respectfully,
Calvin

[LadyAva]

Calvin, as a straight woman, I applaud your eloquent post. I'm disgusted that gays are being denied the same rights as I, as a straight woman, am entitled to. It's your CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT! See SEPARATION of CHURCH and STATE and thePURSUIT of HAPPINESS!

Homosexuality is NOT a choice. Who would choose to be the target of such bigotry and not being able to openly love his/her same-sex partner? The pedo myth and equating homosexuality with bestiality are ravings of scared little minds that aren't informed and don't have the sense to think for themselves. these bigots absorb what bolsters their opinions, instead of looking at FACTS, such as homosexuality in the animal kingdom.

Opponents of gay marriage don't understand the constitution and have no grasp of the Bible teachings when framed in an historical context. I suggest all you anti-gay marriage opponents watch what religious...yes, RELIGIOUS leaders, such as Desmond Tutu, as well as historical scholars and theologians have to say about the subject in the very informative documentary, For The Bible Tells Me So... You'll be surprised! And they're a hell of a lot smarter than you all!

The tide is slowly turning. Know there are many of us on the straight side who are fighting for you! These bigots are a dying breed...

Calvin, I wish you the very best. I hope and pray one day, you too are free to love as I do.

[martiniandabotoxchaser]

I'll go further. It does not matter if homosexuality is a choice, marriage is a choice and people have to right to marry whom they choose as long as the person is of a legal age and consents to the agreement. With our separation of church and state, let's take religion out of marriage as far as our government is concerned, it is should be a civil contract.

[AlKhateeb]

Calvin, et al,

So let me get this straight, homosexuality among humans has as it's evidence for normality in nature the occurrence of the same practice among animals, but polygamy which involves multiple people has no analog in the animal kingdom? Therefore since one can point to the occurence of homosexuality among animals it's occurence among humans is also normative. Is that right? So what exactly am I to gather from the practice of male lions keeping harems of lionesses, or Silverback mountain gorilla's keeping troupes (harems) of female gorilla's? Can anyone explain that for me, please? But then again you didn't dismiss polygamy along with "an attraction to children or animals" in the last sentence of your second paragraph did you?

[LadyAva]

I started writing a response to your nonsensical post, but goodnighta­ndgoodluck above answered it more eloquently than I did...Please read...

I thank the heavens that your kind are becoming obsolete...

[Lucas702]

After reading some of these comments, I am so glad for two things....
One, that the states are slowly but surely making progress towards equal rights for all.
And two, that we are a CONSTITUTIONAL REPUBLIC and NOT A DEMOCRACY. (man! there's some ignorant folk out there)
and to the gays,..go get married! Straight people have made a mockery of the institution of marriage for decades now. let the gays have a crack at it, maybe they'll get it right. The only way to preserve the institution of marriage is to make divorce illegal.

[Malcom Kardashian]

you want to make divorce illegal? right-wing ideologue.

[Foreground]

I believe he was being sarcastic about the Right Wing's claim that gay marriage somehow weakens the institution of marriage, but never seems to address the increasing ease of getting a divorce.

[JohnJames]

Good night. What a homophobic sewer. Good luck.

[Sepulchre]

Good night. I have to go back to the lab so I am calling it a night myself.

[Malcom Kardashian]

and you have to go back to your evolution notes. amateur.

[steamboat]

Please, while some are, NOT all people who do NOT believe in same-sex marriage are homophobes. As you can see, I'm NOT enthalled by this policy. And I am NOT homophobic. I totally respect gay people the same as I do straight people. Is Pres. Clinton homophobic? Of course not. Same with Pres. Obama. Yet, they have the same view as me and this wrongly villified Miss California girl.

[Stephen Weiss]

Come on buddy... seriously now, we all know both Obama and Clinton would gladly tell you they think cow manure should be sold in school vending machines if they thought the majority of americans agreed with that opinion. You're right because Obama and Clinton agree with you?

And yes, Obama's and Clinton's views on gays are homophobic in nature - even if I doubt that homophobia's source is really them. They believe whatever society projects on them.

[Malcom Kardashian]

Millions of years of evolution has produced a class of species without the ability to reproduce? C'mon.

[Tr 24]

Hey just think about it. If that were true then this conversation would never have happened because we would have long become extinct.

[JohnJames]

Seriously disturbed.

[Tr 24]

The truth hurts, but it is a necessary evil.

[Tr 24]

The truth h ur ts, but it is a necessary e v i l.

[Sepulchre]

Actually evolution takes it into consideration. Species developed homosexuality to reduce tensions during breeding season, and to reduce the number of breeding pairs when a population (of a species) reaches its carrying capacity (maximum number vs. natural resources and good areas). It helps control population especially in populations that are isolated or have limit habitats they can survive in. Bi-sexuality is prominent in Bonobo chimps as a socially regulating factor.

[Malcom Kardashian]

that makes no sense, in every context. and as far as that trite attempt at contrasting behavior of an animal to that of humans, my question to you is are there any GAY chimps?

[ThreeOfNineteen]

Here is an interesting article about the myth of natural selection not favoring homosexuality:
http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn13674-evolution-myths-natural-selection-cannot-explain-homosexuality.html

When talking Natural Selection, you have to remember that there are more ways than just having kids of your own to promote your genes.
A study in Samoa, linked in the article I mention aboxe, showed that gays and lesbians there would often help rearing the children of their siblings, giving them a reproductive advantage since they have more resources available than those without the "nice gay uncle". Since those nieces share 25% of the genes of the uncles (usually anyway) it is almost as good as having kids of your own.
Of course, this requires a society where homosexuals aren't ostracized, like has happened so long in monotheistic societies.

[Hirnlego]

Unintelligent design?

1,500 animal species practice homosexuality
http://www.news-medical.net/?id=20718

[mercury613]

Ah, the bitter, repressed closet cases come out to seek their jollies. Where else can they interact anonymously with so many gay men?

[Malcom Kardashian]

we will refer to you on that subject as you seem to be quite expert on that.

[mercury613]

LOL! Right.

[SFMuscular]

The expression is to "defer" not "refer." By the way, heterosexual men visit child pornography sites more than gay men. You seem to be projecting. And yes, I inteded to "refer" to you.

[LadyAva]

Touché!

[Tr 24]

Someone here doesn't like the cruel, hard facts:
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Tr 24 See Profile I'm a Fan of Tr 24 I'm a fan of this user permalink

What, incest has medical considerations involved? And the same can't be said about so domy? Gays make up 75% of all HIV cases according to the CDC. Shouldn't that be a medical consideration?
Reply Favorite Flag as abusive Posted 01:43 AM on 05/07/2009
- + New puffthedragon See Profile I'm a Fan of puffthedragon I'm a fan of this user permalink
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Sure based on 1986 statistics
Reply Favorite Flag as abusive Posted 01:46 AM on 05/07/2009
- + New Tr 24 See Profile I'm a Fan of Tr 24 I'm a fan of this user permalink

NOPE...LOL Try this.

http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/topics/msm/resources/factsheets/msm.htm

Sorry 71%
Reply Favorite Flag as abusive Posted 01:49 AM on 05/07/2009
- + New puffthedragon See Profile I'm a Fan of puffthedragon I'm a fan of this user permalink
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spam allert

[Sepulchre]

Well monogamous relationships would put an end to that wouldn't they?

[Tr 24]

This deviant lifestyle and behavior lends itself to the passing of disease. It is very sad, but also very real.

[StevenKeirstead]

71% of males with HIV infections you mean, Not 71% of all HIV infections, and that is based on 33 of the 55 states, so the data is not complete. This statistic also does not mean the majority of men having sex with men are HIV+.

If anything, reducing HIV and other STDs is a good public health reason to encourage monogamy among gay men by giving equal access to marriage.

[Tr 24]

Reposted for prosperity...now who says homosexuality isn't a health hazard?

http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/topics/msm/resources/factsheets/msm.htm

[puffthedragon]

lets outlaw straight sex for spreading syphilis, gonorrhea,, chlamydia, herpes and aids.

[Tr 24]

71% of ALL HIV infections are found among gay men. Let's just start with the biggest risk factor.

[jrfunkenstein]

'Reposted for prosperity.,,,,'

You mean posterity; and no it isn't.