From Andrew Sullivan's Blog

Notes on the President's State of the Union Speech and what he had to say about gay and lesbian tax-paying citizens:

The preamble to his attack on gay unions is truly a low-point in this president's rhetorical campaign against a minority of Americans:

Our second great responsibility to our children and grandchildren is to honor and to pass along the values that sustain a free society. So many of my generation, after a long journey, have come home to family and faith, and are determined to bring up responsible, moral children. Government is not the source of these values, but government should never undermine them.

And this is the justification for banning gay unions in the constitution itself. So I - as a gay person - am somehow a threat to "family and faith"? How dare he? What about my family and my faith? Bringing gay people into the embrace of their own families through marriage is somehow an affront to bringing up responsible, moral children? What about gay children? And what about gay couples bringing up moral, responsible children? Are they not members of families as well? Then this:

Because one of the deepest values of our country is compassion, we must never turn away from any citizen who feels isolated from the opportunities of America.

Unless you're gay. In which case, we want to amend the very Constitution to keep you isolated from the very responsibilities and opportunities we insist on for everyone else.

I am invariably disgusted by the depths of Bush's attempts to ammend the Constitution to deny us our rights as American citizens to equality under our (secular) law. Why not do as the Canadian Parliament, in their wisdom, has done and simply exempt religious groups from having to perform or recognize same-sex unions? That way they can "protect" their religions from being "soiled" by gays and lesbians and still retain their distinctions as the most discriminatory, hateful and fearful people, while keeping their scandalously high divorce rate to themselves. Who wants that? Be our guests!

Just leave us alone.