For gay America, a time to reevaluate
Jonathan Rauch, one of America's most sensible gay writers, is looking for the pony in the dung pile:
Republicans' continued control of Supreme Court nominations makes it nearly unimaginable--and it was always unlikely--that the court will overrule the states on gay marriage. The Supreme Court recently sidestepped an opportunity to intervene in Massachusetts' gay marriages, and the election returns will give lower federal courts second thoughts about butting in. The enactment of those 13 state amendments demonstrates that popular sovereignty is alive and well in the states. I am dismayed by the amendments' passage, but I can't complain about the process.
Jonathan thinks the gay community would make a lot more progress if it would give on the semantics and ask for civil unions, not marriage. I think he's exactly right.
Meanwhile, the drive for a Federal Marriage Amendment remains stalled, despite Republican gains in Congress. And it's unlikely to pick up steam unless the courts insist on defying the will of the people. Major gay groups seem to have heard the message:
People think that neither the country nor the courts are ready for it [same-sex marriage] and probably we'll lose. Nobody likes to take cases and lose.