A federal judge ruled Virginia’s ban on gay marriage unconstitutional late Thursday.
The Court finds Va. Const. Art. I, § 15-A, Va. Code §§ 20-45.2, 20-45.3, and any other Virginia law that bars same-sex marriage or prohibits Virginia’s recognition of lawful same-sex marriages from other jurisdictions unconstitutional. These laws deny Plaintiffs their rights to due process and equal protection guaranteed under the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution.
U.S. District Judge Arenda L. Wright Allen wrote that the constitutional right to equality should apply to all, including same-sex couples seeking marriage licenses.
“Our Constitution declares that ‘all men’ are created equal. Surely this means all of us,” wrote Allen, an Eastern District of Virginia judge in Norfolk.. “While ever vigilant for the wisdom that can come from the voices of our voting public, our courts have never long tolerated the perpetuation of laws rooted in unlawful prejudice. One of the judiciary’s noblest endeavors is to scrutinize law that emerge from such roots.”
Jefferson Mob Rule?
Actually, there is no evidence that TJ actually uttered these words. They first appeared in 2004. According to the Monticello.org website:
We currently have no evidence to confirm that Thomas Jefferson ever said or wrote, “Democracy is nothing more than mob rule, where 51% of the people may take away the rights of the other 49%” or any of its listed variations. We do not know the source of this statement’s attribution to Thomas Jefferson.
So much for that. The internet has all sorts of expressions attributed to Thomas Jefferson that people want to fit in with this great leader. This is just one of them.
Let’s examine the words though. Is that really what its all about? 51% of the population dominating the other 49%? It does seem that the lines are that closely drawn. Recent elections also confirm that we are pretty much split down the middle. Are we all in one camp or the other or is there an overlap?
Our political leaders would have us believe that we were all Republican or all Democratic. I am not so sure we are that polarized. Furthermore, who is to decide what is Republican and what is really Democratic? The word RINO clearly demonstrates that there is some sort of litmus test to be a Republican. How about an explanation please.
