What is the essence of American liberty? The Constitution says ALL men are created equal. I'll admit that it took a long time--far too long--to properly define "ALL" and that "men" meant men AND women.

Now, we are being told by the very same people who once said that black people must sit in the back of the bus and couldn't share the same public facilities with white people, much less consider dating or marrying them, that gay people should be relegated with our consent to permanent second-class status.

It doesn't matter that the gay person in question can be your son or daughter, friend, co-worker, best bud, or someone else you love dearly. Some people seek to use the government to FORCE people to deny who they are because it "offends" them.

It is pretty much a given that, once a law gets on the books regardless of whether it is a good law or bad law, it is going to be there for a while. That is why I question the wisdom of pushing "marriage amendments" and even California's Proposition 8, which seeks to block the fundamental right of EVERY citizen to get married. Doesn't our government have anything better to do with its time than push through "gay marriage amendments"? (Hint: It's the economy stupid!)

The Church wants to do by government fiat what it cannot hope to gain by consensus--that gays shouldn't ever get the same rights as straight people. It doesn't matter that gay people serve our country in the military, pay their taxes, buy homes and invest in the economy, and are first-rate people. Nope. By defining homosexuality by its own antiquated moral code, the Church wants to deny that gays make a real contribution to society and that the flip side of "with every right comes a responsibility" is that their taking responsibility for their own lives reflects their should-be status as Americans with full rights.

I for one am voting against California's Proposition 8 next month. The government should not be in a position to be allowed to legislate morality.