UNTHINKING CLICHES–Versus the Ugly Reality of Distorting Marriage
Get government out of the bedroom. Get government out of marriage.
These phrases are thrown out by hard core Leftists defending homosexual behavior and abortion. They’re also uttered by Libertarians who don’t seem to get beyond what Thomas Sowell calls Stage 1 thinking, which is the absence of thoughtful consideration of the consequences.
Many who don’t know what conservatives believe often ridicule us by calling us anarchists. This, of course, is absurd. In truth, when we act conservative (admittedly a rare thing lately) we hold true to what is explicitly in the constitution. If something isn’t there, it’s left to the states or the people. So with a healthy dose of caution for knowing what unchecked government is capable of, I call for upholding government’s proper role in marriage.
In simple terms and in my 400-800 word limit, I believe we are put on this earth to earn our way to heaven (Evangelicals, I know you believe faith in Jesus Christ alone will do this, but bear with me). To accomplish this, we must become good people. Though far from a guarantee, one of the best ways to do this is get married and have children. Being a husband and father has matured me more than any experience in my life, and I often wish I had met Mrs. Cummings in college so that maturation process could have started earlier. There would have been a slight creepy factor in that hypothetical, however, as she is more than a few years younger than I. I “robbed the cradle” just a smidge.
Over the ages we can see how solid families produce good individuals and, by extension, good societies. Are there exceptions? Of course. There are exceptions to everything. But on the whole, one of the reasons the United States became great is because of the family. Look up any statistic regarding traditional, intact families and you’ll find mountains of evidence to my point. Traditional families produce higher education, higher income, lower crime, lower drug use, lower teenage birth rates, and on and on.
So yes, the United States has a vested interest in supporting traditional families. Because nothing in the US Constitution specifically addresses marriage, we have to leave these laws up to the states. We’ve done this since our founding, and it has worked very well. Until last Friday.
Destroy traditional families, Leftists and Libertarians, and the consequences are immense. Catholic Charities, one of the largest adoption agencies in the world, has already given up their adoption services in several states because they prefer traditional couples to same-sex couples. What do you think will happen to current and future unwanted children? Are these consequences pleasing to you? Shall we discuss the legal persecution of wedding photographers and cake makers? Are priests next?
One of Glenn Beck’s producers, Steve Burguiere, known as Stu, a man I like, made a cogent case for getting government out of marriage. His argument includes the historical place marriage held long before the United States came around. Make every marriage a “contract,” he says, and let churches decide which ones to bless.
His position seems reasonable until you see the sizeable hole, which is what happens if I want a contract with my dog to leave my estate to when I die. What if a single man contracts with his sister for the tax benefits? We’re already seeing those involved in polyamory and pedophilia raising their hands to get their civil rights in like manner. The consequences will not stop coming.
Please do not make the mistake of pointing to divorce, abuse, etc. to knock down the institution of marriage. There are thousands of car wrecks every day, some fatal, but we don’t stop driving.
There is a proper level of government, and in the case of marriage it should have remained at the state level. However, now that the Supreme Court has decreed from on high that we as a country do not encourage marriage in its proper, traditional form – meaning, allowing states to give preferred status in terms of familial benefits – this body of unelected officials has essentially obliterated all meaning of marriage.
Brace for impact.
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