Thread: Same sex marriage

Originally Posted by David48atTD

To make it worse ... the ad was on during the Football game

...agree: football is incredibly boring to begin with...

Australia’s 1st gay marriage ends with tragic death of terminally ill spouse
by REUTERS


Australia's first gay marriage lasted just 48 days and ended in heartbreak with the death of a terminally ill woman, Queensland state parliament heard on Wednesday after the family gave permission for details to be released.


Queensland woman Jo Grant married her partner of eight years, Jill Kindt, on Dec. 15 in the garden of their home on Australia’s northeast Sunshine Coast, less than a week after the nation became the 26th country to recognize same sex unions.


The couple had avoided a 30-day waiting period and were granted exceptional circumstances to become Australia’s first married same sex couple following the passage of the marriage equality laws on Dec. 9.


The wedding had remained private until it was revealed with the family’s permission in parliament on Wednesday.


“Jo and Jill were approved, married, and registered all in one day, after the registrar ruled exceptional circumstances,” Queensland Attorney General Yvette D’Ath told parliament.


“Jo’s mum Sandra believes the marriage renewed Jo’s spirit, keeping her alive long enough to have one last Christmas with her family.”


Grant, who was in palliative care for a rare form of cancer, died on January 30.


The couple were one of 159 same sex couples who have been married in Queensland since the marriage equality laws were passed, according to the state government in a statement.


https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/j...ies-75-n855221

...^RIP...

Costa Rica: Carlos Alvarado wins presidency in vote fought on gay rights


The centre-left’s Carlos Alvarado Quesada has decisively defeated a conservative Protestant singer in Costa Rica’s presidential runoff election by promising to allow gay marriage, protecting the country’s reputation for tolerance.


A former minister and fiction writer, Alvarado Quesada, 38, had 61% of the vote with results in from 95% of polling stations, a far bigger lead than predicted by opinion polls that foresaw a tight race.


“My commitment is to a government for everybody, in equality and liberty for a more prosperous future,” he told thousands of cheering supporters blowing horns and waving Costa Rica’s red, white and blue flag.


“There is much more that unites us than divides us.”


His rival, Fabricio Alvarado Muñoz, a 43-year-old former TV journalist known for religious dance songs, quickly conceded, sinking to his knees, arms raised, in front of supporters, some of them crying.


“We didn’t win the election,” he said, adding that he had congratulated his opponent in a telephone call and, in another sign of Costa Rica’s cordial politics, promised to help him resolve the country’s problems.


The election had exposed divisions in the Central American tourist destination known for laid-back beach culture and pristine rainforests, but where some rural communities remain socially conservative.


It could also reflect the mood elsewhere in Latin America, where elections are being held this year in several countries that have backed same-sex unions, provoking a conservative reaction.


Alvarado Quesada, until recently a minister in the outgoing government, will be the youngest president in the modern history of Costa Rica when he takes office in May.


Also known for his student prog-rock band, he used the campaign to appeal to his country’s centrist streak. His vice presidential candidate, Epsy Campbell, will be the country’s first Afro-Costa Rican to serve in that role.


Alvarado Muñoz had vowed to restore what he called traditional values by preventing gay marriage and restricting women’s access to abortions.


In the campaign’s final debate, Alvarado Quesada called his opponent’s comments homophobic.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/20...-on-gay-rights

...the good news just keeps rolling in...

2 Moms of family who drove off cliff have dark history of abuse



The moms who fatally veered off a California cliff with at least three of their six adopted kids were being investigated for starving their children before Monday’s crash — and one was previously convicted of domestic assault for hitting their little girl, according to new reports.

Cops say they still have no evidence Jennifer and Sarah Hart deliberately drove their SUV off the road — but have noted that there were no skid or brake marks where the vehicle went over. Three of the kids’ bodies had been found as of Thursday morning, while the others — including 15-year-old Devonte, whose image went viral after he was photographed tearfully hugging a white cop at a 2014 protest in Ferguson, Missouri — remain missing.

https://nypost.com/2018/03/29/moms-o...tory-of-abuse/


Family of 8 that’s feared dead after SUV plunged off cliff had troubled home life, neighbors say

WOODLAND, Wash. — What happened to the Hart family Monday is almost unimaginable: Their SUV plunged off a Pacific Coast Highway cliff, crashing onto the rocky coast 100 feet below.

Some things are certain, according to authorities. The married couple, Jennifer Jean Hart and Sarah Margaret Hart, both 38, were killed. So were three of their six adopted children: Martin, 19; Abigail, 14; and Jeremiah, 14.

But much remains unknown, including the fates of the Harts’ three other children — Hannah, 16; Devonte, 15; and Sierra, 12. They are feared dead; authorities say they have “every indication to believe” that all six children were in the family’s 2003 GMC Yukon when it drove off an ocean overlook near Mendocino, Calif., about 150 miles north of San Francisco.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/...=.cd76d7c093bc

Originally Posted by david44

a very poor country can be democratic

...Costa Rica isn't that poor...it has a generally well-educated population and enjoys reasonably stable government institutions...it is a popular retirement destination for a number of North Americans for precisely those reasons...and now it will benefit from the flow of pink dollars...

...not to be a cynic, but I wonder if pink tourist dollars had anything to do with the revised decision...

Originally Posted by tomcat

Costa Rica ... has a generally well-educated population

Hence the way of the vote.

...^555...

Uniting Church allows ministers to conduct same-sex marriage ceremonies in Australia


Parishioners Kitty and Josie say they will renew their vows at the church.

Ministers of the Uniting Church in Australia will soon have the freedom to conduct same-sex marriage ceremonies.
In its first meeting since the country's same-sex marriage survey, the church's national assembly agreed to give individual
ministers the right to decide whether to marry same-sex couples.

Uniting Church president Diedre Palmer said it was important the religious convictions of ministers were respected and
protected.

"We accept the diversity in our midst and we are allowing our members the freedom to decide on whether they conduct
same-sex marriages or not," Dr Palmer said.

"No minister will have to conduct same-sex marriages if it conflicts with their beliefs."

The 265-member assembly approved two separate definitions of marriage, which it said will be "equal yet distinct".
The traditional definition of marriage between a man and a woman will exist alongside a new, broader definition of
marriage between two people.

...except to provide an opportunity for spectacle, church weddings are ridiculous...no need to bother any longer with the Stone Age opinions of cave-dwelling ghost worshipers...

You're so understanding and inclusive of people who have different lifestyles to you, Tom.

...it's my Christian upbringing...I've been turning the other cheek for some time now...

Punny man. Well done.

Originally Posted by Maanaam

You're so understanding and inclusive of people who have different lifestyles to you, Tom.

Interesting how one expects acceptance of his beliefs but denigrates someone else for theirs. Someone once said. "Let him first remove the chip from his own shoulder before removing the chip from his brothers shoulder, or keep on being a boring repetitive coont". Something like that anyway.... Think it was the King Hugh version.

Originally Posted by Hugh Cow

Think it was the King Hugh version

...probably just as relevant as the original...

Originally Posted by Hugh Cow

Interesting how one expects acceptance of his beliefs but denigrates someone else for theirs.

Last I checked gay marriage did not have a centuries long history of murder, torture and child rape.

^ give it time eh.

Originally Posted by bsnub

Last I checked gay marriage did not have a centuries long history of murder, torture and child rape.

One would hardly compare a 2000 year old religion with a 2 year old marriage act. Maybe for balance you could also mention one of many Christians like friar Max Kolbe who sacrificed his own life for a stranger, or father Bernard Kinvi who saved and cared for many muslims in the central African republic at the risk of his own life and many other Christians who spent much of their lives helping the sick and poor. Unfortunately Human beings in general have a long bloody history of violence and murder which started long before Christianity. Calling yourself a Christian does not make you one, no more than thinking you are Christian makes you one. I would have thought anyone of your suggestions would preclude one from being a Christian in the first place. Its like saying you are a vegan who eats meat. Accepting that premise means Me lai defines all U.S. servicemen who went to Vietnam, which of course is ridiculous.