{"id":5061,"date":"2012-02-28T08:16:25","date_gmt":"2012-02-28T14:16:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/tonyjones\/?p=5061"},"modified":"2015-03-13T16:52:34","modified_gmt":"2015-03-13T21:52:34","slug":"another-bad-argument-against-marriage-equality","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/tonyjones\/2012\/02\/28\/another-bad-argument-against-marriage-equality\/","title":{"rendered":"Another Bad Argument against Marriage Equality"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Andrew Rosenthal at the New York Times<\/em>:<\/p>\n

Perhaps the most ridiculous argument against marriage equality is the one voiced most recently by David Bates, a Republican member of the New Hampshire legislature \u2013 that homosexuality is a choice, and thus same-sex marriage is not a civil rights issue.<\/p>\n

\u201cCivil rights have to do with intrinsic qualities that a person just can\u2019t change,\u201d said Mr. Bates, the sponsor of a bill that would repeal New Hampshire\u2019s marriage equality law. Being gay, he said, doesn\u2019t qualify. \u201cThere\u2019s no other example of any basis that we afford a civil right based upon a behavior or a preferential choice,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s astonishing that anyone in the 21st century would hew to the notion that humans choose their sexual orientation. I wonder when Mr. Bates made the affirmative decision to become a heterosexual.<\/p>\n

But in any case, the preference issue isn\u2019t sufficient to end the conversation. We choose our religious affiliations\u2014or at least we have the freedom to choose\u2014and yet it\u2019s illegal to discriminate against someone on the basis of religion.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

READ THE REST:\u00a0David Bates of New Hampshire Describes Sexuality as a Preference \u2013 NYTimes.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Andrew Rosenthal at the New York Times: Perhaps the most ridiculous argument against marriage equality is the one voiced most recently by David Bates, a Republican member of the New Hampshire legislature \u2013 that homosexuality is a choice, and thus same-sex marriage is not a civil rights issue. \u201cCivil rights have to do with intrinsic […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[459],"class_list":["post-5061","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-glbt","tag-new-york-times"],"yoast_head":"\nAnother Bad Argument against Marriage Equality<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Andrew Rosenthal at the New York Times: Perhaps the most ridiculous argument against marriage equality is the one voiced most recently by David Bates, a\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, 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