Words have meaning and they matter

Dr. Albert Mohler, one of those rare anti-gay people who (usually) refuse to continue the lies spoken against gays, has a third essay about why he is against gay marriage. I wrote about his first essay, but didn't bother with the second. That can be summarized by saying "the majority is on my side" (except it no longer is). The third essay says that language matters and that language and culture define each other. Words such as "marriage" and "husband" and "wife" are central to civilization and necessary to understand laws, social arrangements, and culture. That's right, say the gays, which is why we aren't satisfied with civil unions, even though they are supposed to be legally equivalent to marriage. Then Mohler takes another step: No longer does "husband" imply straight, which implies "He's one of us." Not allowing gays access to those words means they are set apart -- and condemned. But language and culture define each other. And much of popular culture already assumes gay relationships are the same as straight ones. The meanings of those words is adjusting and gays are no longer set apart. It won't lead to the downfall of marriage and civilization, just to the definitions of marriage and civilization that the fundies are trying to impose.