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| Gay marriage? Republican senator Saxby Chambliss tells it straight | Gay marriage? Republican senator Saxby Chambliss tells it straight |
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| Empathy. It's a basic operation of the human imagination by which a person conceives of experiences not his/her own. It's thought to be one of those magic traits that supposedly separate us from barnyard animals. | Empathy. It's a basic operation of the human imagination by which a person conceives of experiences not his/her own. It's thought to be one of those magic traits that supposedly separate us from barnyard animals. |
| Senator Saxby Chambliss of Georgia, a former chairman of the agriculture committee, knows from farm animals. But when asked this week about his views on same-sex marriage, his reply did not express, perhaps, the full complement of empathy resident in the human heart. | Senator Saxby Chambliss of Georgia, a former chairman of the agriculture committee, knows from farm animals. But when asked this week about his views on same-sex marriage, his reply did not express, perhaps, the full complement of empathy resident in the human heart. |
| "I'm not gay," Chambliss told Politico. "So I'm not going to marry one." | "I'm not gay," Chambliss told Politico. "So I'm not going to marry one." |
| Without pausing to wonder where the senator comes down on voting rights for women, it's worth observing that Chambliss is not out of step with his party on this issue. As of Wednesday, the GOP officially believes that marriage "is between one man and one woman." Chambliss's remark was notable for its concision and catchiness, not for its policy view. | Without pausing to wonder where the senator comes down on voting rights for women, it's worth observing that Chambliss is not out of step with his party on this issue. As of Wednesday, the GOP officially believes that marriage "is between one man and one woman." Chambliss's remark was notable for its concision and catchiness, not for its policy view. |
| The Republican party, however, is now gravely out of step with the American electorate on the question of whether a man ought to be able to marry a man, and a woman marry a woman. Support for same-sex marriage was gauged at an all-time high of 58-36 in a Washington Post-ABC News poll published this week. | The Republican party, however, is now gravely out of step with the American electorate on the question of whether a man ought to be able to marry a man, and a woman marry a woman. Support for same-sex marriage was gauged at an all-time high of 58-36 in a Washington Post-ABC News poll published this week. |
| A watershed moment has arrived in the civil rights movement to go beyond civil unions. Next week the supreme court will take up two cases relating to same-sex marriage, considering the legality of the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act and California's Proposition 8, both of which define marriage as between a man and woman. The result could be a historic defeat of anti-gay-marriage legislation – or a major setback to the cause. | A watershed moment has arrived in the civil rights movement to go beyond civil unions. Next week the supreme court will take up two cases relating to same-sex marriage, considering the legality of the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act and California's Proposition 8, both of which define marriage as between a man and woman. The result could be a historic defeat of anti-gay-marriage legislation – or a major setback to the cause. |
| If the court follows the public in its acceptance of same-sex marriage, pressure will grow on Republicans who are not gay to show a little empathy, to conceive of rights that may apply to everyone, not just the self. Senator Rob Portman pointed the way by evolving on gay marriage last week. | If the court follows the public in its acceptance of same-sex marriage, pressure will grow on Republicans who are not gay to show a little empathy, to conceive of rights that may apply to everyone, not just the self. Senator Rob Portman pointed the way by evolving on gay marriage last week. |
| But there's more at stake here than just the future of the Republican party. It's rather disturbing to think of the descent into filth that could take hold if the GOP does not evolve on gay marriage. The failure of empathy would only erase one more line separating us from the animals. | But there's more at stake here than just the future of the Republican party. It's rather disturbing to think of the descent into filth that could take hold if the GOP does not evolve on gay marriage. The failure of empathy would only erase one more line separating us from the animals. |
| The next thing you know, it'll be man-on-dog. | The next thing you know, it'll be man-on-dog. |
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