On Nov. 4, the big day of elections, there were a lot of things decided, from the new president-to-be for the nation, to a ballot full of propositions in each state. One of the most controversial ones for California was Prop 8, the act to force marriage to be between only a man and a woman.

The official wording on the ballot for the proposition was: “Eliminates Right of Same-Sex Couples to Marry.” And the big controversy over this was mostly the “Eliminates right” part. At least that’s what I’d be guessing.

You see, since Prop. 8 passed, same-sex couples have had the basic right of marriage taken away.* Now, keep in mind that marriage is not defined as between only a man and woman in every religious sect. In fact there is debate in some of them. Do Atheists have a set rule of who can and can’t get married? No, of course not, but they too will now have adhere to the proposition as well. This could imply a restriction of religion, and an impediment of the freedom of religion, and that just may be pushing it a bit.

Then there’s the issue of separating church and state. Though, it may have been pushed as “traditional marriage,” the roots were obviously religious. When it was up for ballot, the Church of Latter Day Saints (Mormon Church) were backing it and giving it most of its funding, along with various other churches. Why? Because of “tradition.” Tradition rooted in their religious beliefs, and like I said, not every religion holds the same views on this issue. Now, however, their beliefs are inserted into California’s constitution.

Another argument is that the courts had changed law against the “will of the people.” Though, the thing is that the courts are meant to uphold the law, and protect the basic rights of everyone, even if it goes against the majority. The new amendment simply undermined the courts decision and the purpose it serves.

Lastly, something that a lot of proponents of the proposition were afraid of, for some reason, was that marriage would be taught as between two people, regardless of sex, in schools. Besides the obvious question to why they’re afraid of that, it was still an unfounded fear. You see, the new fourteen word amendment just comments on what is legally recognized as marriage in California, and says nothing about what can and can’t be taught in schools.

All in all, this new amendment seems misplaced in California law. It takes away certain rights that should be granted to whomever, and has impaired the judicial system. Though, as recent events have shown, the fight against it is far from over.

*Alt. Dialog: Rant ModeWhich is rather bogus when you think about it. As marriage is a universal thing. NOT RELIGIOUS. Atheists get married, and they DON’T have set rules of who can and can’t get married.

This proposition seems to me a big f-you to the rule of thumb of separation of church and state. When it was up for ballot, most of the churches (especially the Church of Latter Day Saints) were pushing it. Why? Because of tradition, apparently, a tradition that they had gotten from their religion, therefore SHOVING religious beliefs into the California constitution. Beliefs that aren’t even in every religion, which almost restricts freedom of religion, but that may be pushing it.

Also, people pushing that “It’s the will of the people” bullsh*t saying that the courts can’t overturn this, THAT’S WHY THE COURTS ARE THERE, they’re there to protect the basic rights, not to think in favor of the majority, but to enforce and define the laws in place. It’s almost like the people somehow overturning any decisions that the court makes on the matter of free speech. Personally I don’t get why the purpose of the court is being so blurred and skewed.

Lastly, one thing that everyone seemed to think was that gay marriage would be taught in schools. I for one don’t remember ever having to learn about what marriage was from my school. I remember sex-ed, but they still taught it with both straight and gay couples in mind. Long before same-sex was legal in California. And with the EXACT wording of the newly passed amendment being “Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California,” I don’t see how that would have changed anything. There’s nothing in that fourteen word law that says anything about what should and shouldn’t be taught. So really, in the education aspect, Prop. 8 accomplished NOTHING.

This proposition was just all kinds of bad. It has taken away basic freedoms, undermined the judicial system, and all but embarrassed California. Though there are many still fighting against it, and if things do go right, this misplaced joke will fall.