One Way or Another

Years ago, driving down the street in El Salvador, I learned that it’s okay to go the wrong way down a one-way street. You just have to go backwards.

I also learned something else on that one way street with no outlet: politicians always work on the streets during an election year.

I know that I’m not alone in being pleased that our President asserted his belief that same sex marriage should be legal yesterday. But I do not look at it as a win. It’s a political move. A welcome political move, but a political move nonetheless. It’s like fixing potholes during an election year.

In many ways, it’s like going the wrong way that one way street. You appear to be traveling in the right direction, but you’re not. Same sex marriage should be legal because it’s right. Our GLBTQ brothers and sisters should be able to share all the human rights of everyone else. Love who you want and marry who you want. It’s right.

But by making the decision a political decision, the rightness of it is tainted. You look like you’re going in the right direction, but it is an illusion. President Obama, you should have come out in favor of gay marriage at a time when it wasn’t expedient for you, but because it was the right thing to do.

But I’m still glad you did it.