Posted on 12/09/2009 9:53:50 AM PST by NYer
Dublin, Ireland As the United States engages in a heated debate over gay marriage, European Union countries are rapidly striding toward total recognition of same-sex civil unions, if not marriage. The most recent example is Ireland.Last Thursday saw Ireland become the latest country to edge toward marriage equality for homosexual couples. The Irish parliament read and debated the Civil Partnership Bill 2009, introduced by Minister for Justice Dermot Ahern.
Despite Ireland’s socially conservative image, opposition to the bill is virtually non-existent and will likely pass into law this month with widespread support from opposition parties Fine Gael and Labour as well as the governing coalition of Fianna Fáil and the Green Party.
If passed, the bill would see Ireland join a club of nine EU members that officially recognize civil unions. In addition, a further four EU countries Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain and Sweden fully recognize same-sex marriages.
In the US, meanwhile, Maine and New York last month became the 31st and 32nd states, respectively, to vote against same-sex marriage though five states allow it and New Jersey may soon make six.
The Irish bill would grant same-sex couples rights in relation to domestic violence, residential tenancies, succession, refugee law, pensions, medical care, and equal access to state benefits and immigration.
Minister Ahern has told the few dissenters in his Fianna Fáil party that he would not allow the bill to be reworded to include a freedom of conscience amendment that would see businesses, organizations, and individuals who objected to homosexuality choose to treat gays in a civil union as singles.
Despite the fact that the bill represents a sea-change in Irish attitudes to sexual orientation, many have complained that it still allows some discrimination.
(Excerpt) Read more at features.csmonitor.com ...
Catholic Ping
Please freepmail me if you want on/off this list
Stupid MSM thinking it is still 1950 instead of 2009. I bet, just like the rest of Europe, mass attandance in Ireland has collapsed and Ireland is just another Post-Christian country.
Pretty much only Poland is left, and even there slowly they are drifting away.
Very very sad.
I’ve yet to hear a convincing argument against civil unions. I agree, marriage is a sacred institution defined as male and female, case closed, and government has no business sanctioning a perverted definition of it. Fine.
But what’s the big objection to allowing gays legal status for issues like inheritance and health insurance so long as it’s not “marriage?”
This is the approach they have taken to gradually get states and nations to accept their lifestyle. Like you, many people say "what's the big deal?" and they approve the law. After a few years, the gay community seeks to upgrade it to marriage. By then, most folks have long forgotten why they were against it in the first place. This was the big mistake made by the gay community in NY. They pushed for marriage and were shot down. Now they're ..... really frustrated and angry.
“Camel’s nose under the tent,” fair enough. But the answer to that is to simply say no to actual “marriage.” Just as NY did.
The mainstreaming of homosexuality is driven by the pop culture considerably more than by law. “Queer Eye for the straight Guy” desensitized tons more people to gay behavior than Gavin Newsom ever did. IMHO.
And here's the true vice of the bill. You are NOT allowed freedom of conscience. You WILL accept and celebrate faggotry whether you want to or not.
Disgusting.
See my previous post.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.