Historic day

Today was a historic day in the United States, as anyone with a TV, web browser, Facebook feed, or ears is aware. I refer, of course to the decision of the Supreme Court to make same sex marriage legal in all 50 states. This really is a momentous occasion, and I know that many of my friends, both gay and straight, are in a very celebratory mood today.

I'm happy, but at the same time I know that the battle is far from over. This is by no means the end of the so-called "culture wars." While liberals and LGBT-friendly conservatives applaud the decision, the opponents have made their feelings very clear.

Justice Scalia wrote a scathing dissenting opinion which accuses the 5 justices that voted in favor of marriage equality of threatening democracy. Naturally, Republican presidential candidates like Mike Huckabee and Rick Santorum (not two of my favorite human beings) also expressed alarm and disappointment.

Besides those Eeyores, my Facebook feed was full of joy and plenty of rainbow colors. I do hope that the animosity toward gays and gay marriage on the conservative side goes away sooner rather than later. I hope that conservative politicians are not successful in stoking the fires of resentment (though I am sure Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck are shoveling coal as we speak).

As for myself, I suppose this means that marriage is now on the table again (well, living in California it's been back on the table for a while now). When I came out 3 years ago in my late twenties, I was coming off of a lengthy period of time (years) during which I was on the fence about whether to embrace my attraction to men and come out as gay. One fear that kept me closeted for so long was the possibility of closing the door on ever being able to get married, to be able to wed my partner. So the fact that marriage is actually a legitimate possibility is comforting.

Maybe if I meet the right guy and get married some day, by that time opinions will have softened even more and same sex marriage will truly be viewed by the majority of people as just as valid as any other marriage. Humanity has so many countless challenges to face, it's such a tragedy that so much time, effort, and energy has been wasted on bickering over people's right to build a life with the person they love.