Americans Talk Religion, Morality, Discrimination, Law: Commentary on Supreme Court Prop 8 and DOMA Hearings

A miscellany of articles (in addition to those to which I've already linked) that have caught my attention in the past several days, all spurred by the Supreme Court prop 8 and DOMA hearings, with brief excerpts:

Washington Post editorial:

Although many Americans’ attitudes on these matters are far from simple — we would hardly accuse President Obama of rank bigotry for opposing same-sex marriage only a couple of years ago — denying gay men and lesbians the right to marry is unjustifiable discrimination, and denying federal benefits to duly married couples is even more obviously repugnant to the notion of equal protection.

Charles Blow in New York Times:

I believe that in the end, history will record this period in our country’s development as a struggle over the weight that religious mores should have in our system of government and code of laws. 

This is either to be America’s Era of Enlightenment or Entrenchment. 

Glenn Greenwald at Common Dreams:

This demonstrates why that is true: even the most ossified biases and entrenched institutional injustices can be subverted - if the necessary passion and will are summoned and the right strategies found.

Irin Carmon at Salon:

Even if the Supreme Court does decide to punt on the Proposition 8 case, today’s oral arguments again made something clear: Defenders of the marriage equality ban are very, very anxious about gender roles.

Maureen Dowd in New York Times:

This court is plenty bold imposing bad decisions on the country, like anointing W. president or allowing unlimited money to flow covertly into campaigns. But given a chance to make a bold decision putting them on the right, and popular, side of history, they squirm.

 David Sirota at Salon:

That effectively tells bigots that if they can realistically threaten a divisive culture war in response to a pro-equality court ruling, then that alone may prevent such a ruling from ever being handed down in the first place.

Irin Carmon at Salon: 

Put aside all the diversionary tactics, the crazy theories about marriage being reserved for shotgun weddings for straights, the baseless claim that this is about the children. Even if it’s not in the briefs, their argument boils down to this: Gay people are gross, let’s put off anything suggesting otherwise for as long as we can.

 Mary Elizabeth Williams at Salon:

Our country has been on the wrong side of justice before, and for a very long time — a justice that’s being put once again to the test. 

Andrew Sullivan at the Dish:  

Contra Silver, Nate Cohn expects that it could take a long time for the South to come around . . . .

Andrew Sullivan at the Dish:

Despite the fact that most polls now show non-whites slightly more supportive of marriage equality than whites, the National Organization for Marriage has yet to get the message . . . .

Jillian Rayfield at Salon:

Republicans may begin to support gay marriage in full force, Huckabee said, "And if they do, they’re going to lose a large part of their base because evangelicals will take a walk."

Peter Montgomery at Right Wing Watch: 

NOM’s backers for the marriage march included the far-far-right-wing Catholic group Tradition, Family & Property, with its scarlet banners, capes, and marching band (see Adele Stan’s reminder who TFP is), Focus on the Family, the Family Research Council, a couple of Catholic dioceses, the Knights of Columbus and the Institute on Religion and Democracy.  Brown gave special thanks to the Mormon-run GFC Foundation for providing grants for buses.

Thanks to John Aravosis at Americablog Gay for uploading to his site the Daily Dolt video at the top of the posting.

And so it goes this Holy Thursday, when many Christians begin the observance of the sacred three days that end Holy Week by remembering that Jesus knelt and assumed the role of a domestic servant (a female role, in his culture) and washed his disciples' feet . . . .