False choice

Timothy Kincaid of Box Turtle Bulletin starts with a story. The father tells his son, "Instead of getting you a new bike, let's go to Disneyland!" The son thinks this is a fine tradeoff. But just before the trip the father announces, "We're not going. I bought new golf clubs instead."

Kincaid says this is the false choice marriage protection advocates are pushing on us. Their ads feature a smiling family of mother, father, and two kids. This is yours only if you reject gay marriage. If that were truly the choice even gay people would support it. Prevent the downfall of Western Civilization? I'll vote for that.

The Pew Research Center has released new stats about the state of the family. By 2010 the percent of kids living apart from their father had risen to 27%. And 27% of dads whose kids live elsewhere haven't seen them in the last year. 46%, nearly half, of all fathers report at least one child born out of wedlock.

Marriage is not being protected.

To contradict the anti-gay crowd even more, gays are stepping in to repair some of the damage by adopting kids (as I reported before). I wrote elsewhere that marriage is doing better in states that have approved gay marriage -- if gays want it that badly perhaps there is something important in that old institution.

People are starting to notice that they've been sold a false choice. That means they will trust their church leaders and politicians less.