Marriage

After President Obama's much-hyped announcement that he has “evolved” to support gay marriage, I got a press release from my favorite homophobe, Ricky Santorum, declaring that he stands in strong support of “traditional marriage”, and it kind of made me want to f*** a chicken and send him a picture. Don't you ever feel that urge? As a heterosexual guy, I can't demonstrate my support for marriage equality by marrying another man, but I could at least stick it to all these shrieking loons who compare gay marriage to bestiality by actually marrying a farm animal.

Being single sucks. I know I'm not supposed to say that aloud, especially as an independent woman who considers herself pretty self-sustaining. Sure, being alone can be liberating and healthy for short periods of time, but sometimes, you just want to feel connected and so close to someone that you know you could fart in front of them. Not that you would, but you could. Other than lacking a partner to share full disclosure of bodily functions with, single folks also suffer in other areas of life, particularly at the workplace.

The fight to legalize same-sex marriages in the U.S. came a step closer today when Washington State passed a bill to make it the seventh state to legalize the union. The battle for marriage equality began in the U.S. in the 1970s, according to FreeToMarry.org , one of many grassroots gay marriage advocacy groups.  Here is a timeline outlining the small victories and let downs through the years. (This information was sourced from FreeToMarry.org , LambdaLegal.org and MarriageEquality.org )

When President Obama made history as the first American president to publicly support gay marriage May 9, founder and senior planner at Liven It Up events Anthony Navarro of Lakeview knew he needed to create a platform for his wedding industry peers to share their acceptance and belief in marriage equality as professionals attached so directly to the debate. "We are the ones making weddings happen all the time," Navarro said. "People in the wedding industry need, or should, be the ones who proclaim, 'Hey!

Is it possible to support same-sex marriage at the same time that I don't support marriage in general? I respect and love my gay friends and certainly wouldn't want to deny them any of their rights, but I've never believed in marriage as an institution, and I find myself at odds. --Confused but Hopeful Dear Confused, For those of you who have missed all the hullabaloo and the red equality signs on Facebook and Twitter, the Supreme Court has been hearing two gay rights cases this week: Prop.

Same-sex couples will now be able to announce their marriages on Facebook without the presence of a heterosexual symbol. The social media site has added icons for same-sex marriages to replace the standard bride and groom icon, according to Mashable . The new feature first gained attention when a blue icon of two grooms appeared over Facebook Co-Founder Chris Hughes' timeline announcement of his marriage to partner Sean Eldridge. Read the full story here .

It won't be a World Series ring, but the White Sox will still let you put a ring on it - for the right price. Deal site Gilt City is offering Sox fans a chance to propose to their significant others onU.S. Cellular Field on a non-game day for $5,000. The deal, which includes a limo ride and two VIP tickets for a future game, ends Friday. Sox spokesman Scott Reifert said the offer is new and unique to Gilt City, though the Sox "have had a number of marriage proposals" over the years including some before games, some during games and some on non-game days.

*1/2 (out of four)   It's a miracle! Not one of those happy miracles, though. More like, “Sorry, Bella, there's now a vampire growing inside you.”   That's because 18-year-old Bella (Kristen Stewart) and her new, much-older-than-that vampire husband Edward (Robert Pattinson) didn't think she could get pregnant. Their error puts a major damper on a Brazilian honeymoon that cools off after Edward decides any more sex will make him murder his wife.   So after just a few days of bliss following a rushed, one-minute marriage ceremony - half of which is kissing - the newlyweds return to the state of mopiness.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel spoke at the Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame ceremony on Monday night, both congratulating the new inductees and also urging the state of Illinois to adopt a marriage equality bill. "The time is now, the time is right and the time is here," Emanuel said to a cheering crowd. "There's no doubt when you look not only around the country, but you look around here in the city of Chicago, the state of Illinois, it is time to take the next step. " Less than a year ago, Gov. Pat Quinn signed into law a bill allowing same-sex couples to enter into a civil uinion, which gives recognitions at the state level.

I've been mulling over a recent column by Gawker's Hamilton Nolan in which he excoriates politicians and pundits over their cowardice. He uses the examples of Democratic and liberal support in the lead-up to the Iraq war (Here on its tenth birthday! Happy birthday, colossal strategic blunder and waste of human life and treasure!) and the decades-long refusal of left-leaning politicians to support gay marriage. The calculation of politicians makes for an easy target, and in the case of the Iraq war, I could not agree more.