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Updated 3:15 p.m. ET- President Barack Obama endorsed the right of same-sex couples to marry on Wednesday, a landmark pronouncement made in light of mounting pressure from gay rights advocates. Obama became the first U.S. president to back the right of gay and lesbian couples to marry, a reversal from views expressed during the 2008 campaign, when he said he opposed same-sex marriage but favored civil unions as an alternative. Obama told ABC News that, after reflection, he had "concluded that for me personally it is important for me to go ahead and affirm that I think same sex couples...

A PRACTICAL CHALLENGE TO HOMOSEXUALS: I challenge the advocates of same-sex marriage and the entire sodomite community to gather themselves in a town exclusive to their perversion and see whether in 100 years they would not be in extinction? “Man has often lost his way, but modern man has lost his address” Gilbert K. Chesterton

Molly Butterworth, a Salt Lake City resident, liked that the 2010 Census form allowed her to identify her "Person 2" as both Chinese and white, correctly reflecting the diversity in her household. She also was pleased she could report that person as her "wife," even though her Massachusetts marriage license is not recognized in Utah.

MOSCOW – One of the Cold War's most famous defectors says Russia probably has about 50 deep-cover couples — and maybe even up to 60 of them — spying inside the United States. Oleg Gordievsky, a former deputy head of the KGB in London who defected in 1985, said Russian President Dmitry Medvedev would know the number of illegal operatives in each target country. The 71-year-old ex-double agent .. "there's usually 40 to 50 couples, all illegal." "The president will know the number, and in each country how many — but not their names," said Gordievsky, .. The FBI announced...

Low-quality females prefer low-quality males, at least in the avian world. This is according to research published in the Royal Society journal Proceedings B, testing female zebra finches' taste in males. As adults, the low-quality females showed a preference for the songs of males of the same quality, and for the male birds themselves. Evolutionary biologists previously thought that females would always opt for the best male available. The study was led by Marie-Jeanne Holveck from the Centre of Functional and Evolutionary Ecology in Montpellier, France. She explained that low- and high-quality birds differ in almost every important characteristic, including...

WASHINGTON, March 24, 2009 – As one spouse tried to navigate the other across a room and through a minefield of foam toys, the games had begun at the Army’s “Strong Bonds” marriage retreat near Baltimore. Army Staff Sgt. Jennifer Garcia and her husband, Army Cpl. Paul Garzon, both with the 704th Military Intelligence Brigade, share a moment while practicing new communication skills learned during the first day of an Army Strong Bonds love retreat, near Baltimore, Feb. 12, 2009. DoD photo by Samantha L. Quigley  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. “What these workshops do is it helps...

Same-sex couples from New York whose marriages in Massachusetts faced a legal challenge there have valid marriages in that state, a Massachusetts court found last week, meaning their marriages are presumably legal in New York as well, lawyers say. The court's judgment affects what lawyers say is at least dozens of New Yorkers who married in Massachusetts between May 2004, when Massachusetts began marrying same-sex couples, and July 2006.

ALLENTOWN, Pa.- A couple who grew apart and had agreed to split up were reunited by a life-threatening crisis. After more than 10 years of marriage, Chip and Cindy Altemos agreed about 5 years ago to separate, see other people, and begin divorce proceedings. But when 48-year-old Chip was hospitalized with kidney failure in September, Cindy, 49, offered him one of hers.

OLYMPIA, Wash. - An initiative filed by proponents of same-sex marriage would require heterosexual couples to have kids within three years or else have their marriage annulled. Initiative 957 was filed by the Washington Defense of Marriage Alliance. That group was formed last summer after the state Supreme Court upheld Washington's ban on same-sex marriage. Under the initiative, marriage would be limited to men and women who are able to have children. Couples would be required to prove they can have children in order to get a marriage license, and if they did not have children within three years, their...

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Jan. 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- 65 percent of consumers are spending more time with a computer than with their significant other, according to new independent research commissioned by support.com. Conducted by independent research firm Kelton Research, the "Cyber Stress" study confirmed consumers' growing relationship with technology in their everyday lives. In fact, more than 8 out of 10 Americans (84%) say they are more dependent on their home computer now than they were just three years ago(1). Like any relationship, the test comes not when things are going well but when times are tough. And unfortunately in the...

5/1/2006 - HUNT, Texas (AFPN) -- On the banks of the Guadalupe River, a veterans group hosts a retreat that helps couples reconnect so they can better cope with life after deployments. Six couples attended the retreat hosted by the Military, Veteran and Family Assistance Foundation at the Heart of the Hills Camp here from April 20 to 27. “I thought this was going to be very structured -- a mandatory fun kind of thing,” said Senior Airman Aaron Childs, who attended with his wife, Mellissa. “But it’s nothing like that. It’s laid back. Everyone is here to help you.”...

Twenty-five years ago, most men in the Tampa Bay area married by age 35. But since 1980, the number of never-married men 35 to 55 has jumped sevenfold. ST. PETERSBURG - On the eve of his 50th birthday, Robert Mendenhall was trying to decide whether to spend the big day with someone new or with his ex-girlfriend. She had held his interest the longest: eight months. Mendenhall, who works in regional sales for a roofing and window company, hangs out with half a dozen never-married men in their late 40s and early 50s. They are successful at their jobs, keep...

Many times born again believers find themselves accepting the ways of society instead of the ways of God. The temptation to do this is tricky and in many cases has become the norm. You can simply pick up a magazine or turn on the TV, and instantly, you are exposed to compromising lifestyles. We must remember, however, that just because an idea, concept or way of life seems acceptable doesn't mean it is right in God's eyes. Popular shows display people living "cheerfully" in a manner that opposes God and his word. A prime example of this is the cohabitation...

In Iraq, where nights are long for a happily married soldier, Command Sgt. Maj. Douglas Sandstrom yearned for the day he could put the war behind him and get home to his beloved wife and kids. After a year away, he'd pictured a return to wedded bliss. Instead, he felt "alienated and unimportant." His wife of 20-plus years, always an independent woman, had become, by necessity, the matriarch-in-charge. During his absence, she learned to run the household like clockwork without him. When their two sons, one a teen, the other a first-grader, needed guidance or advice, they'd automatically turn to...

WHISPERS WITH BIAS ....would be Rocco Palmo's Indian name. ... He reports on a blessing ceremony at the Cathedral of Vienna, where homosexuals where also blessed. His account, however, deliberate or not, is not quite accurate in the most crucial question. OK, it seems that St. Blog's will want some 'splaining on this one.... Gay couples were apparently included in the Valentine's Day liturgy at the Stephansdom in Vienna, and it's being hung around Schonborn's neck like an albatross. Well. Schoen langsam, Rocco. I've read the German article. What happened? Valentine's Day blessings (not a Mass) for "people in love",...

Comparing the Lifestyles of Homosexual Couples to Married Couples Family Research Council via Virtuosity Online ^ | April, 2004 | Timothy J. Dailey, Ph.D., http://www.virtuosityonline.org/portal/modules/news/article.php?storyid=650 Summary: Many times, homosexual relationships are touted as being no different than ordinary married couples. But research shows that in several key respects, the homosexual lifestyle differs radically from other types of relationships. by: Timothy J. Dailey, Ph. D. "Married and Gay Couples Not All that Different," proclaimed the headline of a news article portraying homosexual households as remarkably similar to married couples. "We're the couple next door," claimed one partnered homosexual. "We have...

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) - A state appeals court ruled Tuesday that New Jersey's Constitution does not require the recognition of gay marriage, rejecting the efforts of seven same-sex couples who sued the state to allow them to marry. The panel, in a 2-1 decision, affirmed a lower court ruling that said legislators must change marriage laws before same-sex couples can wed. Without legislative action, "there is no basis for construing the New Jersey Constitution to compel the state to authorize marriages between members of the same sex," Appellate Judge Stephen Skillman wrote for the majority. Appellate Judge Donald G. Collester...

The Army has taken on a new mission: to help mend war-torn marriages. It's an admirable effort, as young service men and women are sent to harm's way for extended periods of time - including some stationed at Fort Huachuca. When they come home, they may have trouble adjusting back to everyday life, especially with children and spouses. As The Associated Press reported this week, 300 couples with the Fort Campbell-based 101st Airborne Division, which has had troops serve in Iraq, have attended "marriage enrichment" seminars. And surely there are others who need the help, too. According to the story,...

Attorney-General Menahem Mazuz announced on Wednesday that unlike his predecessor, Elyakim Rubinstein, he favors upholding financial arrangements made between same-sex couples and that he had already changed the state's approach to this issue in cases that have come to court. Mazuz issued the statement in response to a ruling in Ramat Gan Family Court that sharply criticized the state's objection to a financial agreement between male partners who wanted to share paternal obligations regarding a child born to one of them.

Canada's Supreme Court has started a three-day hearing on whether gay marriage is constitutional.

Greetings from a fellow FReeper! I am a fervent debater, and most anybody who's ever met me in person can testify to that. One of the most controversial issues I have been debating lately has been gay marriage. Does the U.S. government have a right to ban gay marriage? Can America justify making homosexuality illegal? As a proud Christian, I believe whole-heartedly in the Bible. There isn't the slightest doubt in my mind that the Bible finds homosexuality to be a highly immoral practice. However, when I am arguing with atheists or followers of other religions, especially over a political...

SEATTLE - Now that Barbara and Heather Rhoads-Weaver of Seattle have taken advantage of Canada's new gay marriage law by tying the knot in Victoria, B.C., they have some legal questions to ponder. For instance, should they fill out their tax forms as single or married? When Barbara begins clerking for a Wash. State Supreme Court justice, how will she check her marital status on the human resources forms? "How do we truthfully fill out forms so we don't get penalized as trying to defraud the government?" she asks. The couple have no doubt in their own minds that they...