California Prop 8 Overturned By Openly Gay Judge

[Irving]

I was listening to a report about this on NPR this morning. Something someone said bothered me. They were basically saying that they didn't think this would make it passed the supreme court with its current make up. Then some guy said that he didn't think the supreme court would swing that far from public opinion. It kind of disturbed me that people think that is how the supreme court does/should work.

[Ranger]

Legislate from the bench...

[Irving]

Whenever I volunteer with Habitat For Humanity, I like when lesbians show up. They are twice the worker than any of the high school kids or other groups that show up to volunteer and just mess around all day. heh

[jake]

My problem with this isn't with gays, what they do is their business, it's with the majority vote of the people getting overruled, and overruled by a judge that probably should have removed himself from the case if there was any possibility of bias towards one party or the other.

What possibility for bias was there? That he is gay? Wouldn't that also mean a straight judge would have to remove himself from the case? Everyone has bias, the best we can hope for is that the guy tries to look at it objectively. If you read the decision (I didn't read the whole thing, admittedly) he's not really saying "OMG you breeders are such brutes! We're gay and proud, let us marry!"

[Ranger]

What possibility for bias was there? That he is gay? Wouldn't that also mean a straight judge would have to remove himself from the case?

The bias IS that, yes, he is gay. And I see your point about if he were straight then that's a bias as well. However, you have to weigh this in with what is "average" (I was going to say normal but that would be mis-interpreted). On average marriage is between a man and a woman, but in this case they are trying to change the average, and he is on the "activist" side of the case.

The same would ring true if a Hispanic judge were to sit in ruling of a case where Hispanics gain some significant new right. If it were a black judge, there's no pony in the race. If it's a white judge then there is a high likelihood there is no pony in the race, but perhaps there might be.

I completely understand your point but I believe there is a difference in THIS case if a gay judge ruled on an appeal from the community that he is a part of. Who is to say that he wasn't for prop 8 to start with? Nobody, but any chance of impropriety has to be brought into question. In my experience, at least, it is more likely a gay person will be PRO gay than it is that a straight person will be ANTI gay.

All of this being said, he did the right thing by postponing his ruling pending the appeal. Perhaps he knew that there was possibility for bias in this case and by postponing the ruling he was appeasing both sides to some degree.

[BigBear]

Whenever I volunteer with Habitat For Humanity, I like when lesbians show up. They are twice the worker than any of the high school kids or other groups that show up to volunteer and just mess around all day. heh

unfortunately, I find a lot of truth in this statement. I also notice this.

[Irving]

What's unfortunate about a woman that can effectively swing a hammer?

[BigBear]

Unfortunate in the fact that out of the thousands of people that partake, only a select few actually do the work.

[Irving]

Not all the people are bad. It's just that when you get a bunch of high school kids together, they tend to take breaks together, every 20 minutes. heh.

[DeusExMachina]

While I personally find homosexuality despicable, I'm a live and let live kind of guy, but when they start getting special rights for BEING gay, that just steams me.

I WISH that only gays could marry. Then women wouldn't bug me about it.