Iowa Delivers, Again.
Last time I was this happy with the State of Iowa it was on a cold winter night over a year ago when Democrats, Republicans and Independents came together to insist that this time was different.
Today, I think back on that night and although the circumstances couldn’t be more different, I can’t help but feel like this is another watershed moment.
In a unanimous ruling, the Iowa Supreme Court legalized gay marriage today.
Andrew Sullivan has a sampling of reactions from across the spectrum.
Personally,I think that reevaluating the scope of “equality” is the task of my generation and so I’m obviously thrilled with this ruling. However, while today’s ruling is an optimistic indication of where I think we’re going- I’m not quite ready to celebrate yet, (remember New Hampshire). We’ve seen this already, we’ve done this before. Months after a California supreme court legalized gay marriage their decision was taken to the ballot box and overturned. So while I remain hopeful, I think it’s imperative that we as a people continue the discussion. I think we have to use this moment (as well as moments that make us cringe) as teachable ones, leveraging them to discuss the ramifications of legalizing gay marriage where we rationally make a legal argument that focuses on a timeless sentiment “injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere”.
The GOP is likely going to use this as a wedge issue in 2010 and 2012, things are going to get ugly before we make them right. Buckle up- this is going to be an extremely bumpy ride.