Same sex marriage is not allowed in Australia but it is a growing topic. I do not see why if two people love each other why can't they get married just because they are both of the same sex, yes I am Christian but in my own way because of outrageous rules saying that two people cannot marry simply because they are the same sex.

Now onto everyone else, What is your view on same sex marriage or relationships? And why?

I don't think it's really an issue anymore for Australians since we do legally accept same-sex couples as de facto and do recognise the relationship. At this point it's just a title to be married. I can see why some fight to allow it, but I also know a lot of gay people who really don't care either because they don't care to be called married. This is all relative to the rights in other countries though.

Honestly, if two people both willingly want to get married, who really gives a fuck?

If you disect all the arguments that go against gay marriage and weed out the things that are unreasonable or pointless, they all end up boiling down to one opinion: "I don't like it and because I don't like it, it's wrong and shouldn't be allowed." The same thing applies to many other prejudices. All those arguments do is try to justify why it's okay to shun people based on such trivial things like sexuality, religion, gender, race, social class, etc.

The short of it is that people need to mind their own business. If I want to marry my girlfriend that's my business and not anyone else's. Also, since married couples are entitled to rights when they marry that "single" people or people in "civil unions" can not have so I'm not too sure how it's legal to say same sex couples can not marry based on that. It's discrimination and it should not even be an issue to begin with.

I didn't think basic human rights were ever an issue. Huh.

I don't have much to add to the argument other than to say that it's one of the worst forms of discrimination. And, as Tany pointed out, every single common argument you hear against gay marriage and homosexuality can be deconstructed with ease, because they're all misinformed. And if they can't, it's because they're being honest and saying "I don't like it, so it shouldn't exist." Which is fundamentally stupid, but you have to respect the honesty.

Claiming it violates the sanctity of marriage? You don't have a chance in a debate with me on that one.

Claiming it's sacrilegious according to your teachings? Well, okay, but those are your teachings. Not everyone's. Not everyone is of the same strict beliefs you are, and you don't have the right to force those beliefs on us. *Glares at Westboro Baptist Church*

Claiming it shouldn't exist "because the Bible says so?"There are so many flaws against this one you shouldn't even talk to me.

And that about sums up all of the common arguments I hear against gay marriage and homosexuality that aren't essentially "Because I don't like it." They're all religion-based, and all are horribly flawed.

It's horrid that gay marriage is illegal in so many places. If a guy wants to marry his boyfriend or if a girl wants to marry her girlfriend, who the hell are we to say no?

If people of the same sex love each other they should be allowed to get married. If people of different sex can get married then people of the same sex should be allowed to. We don't have to take vote on it the answer is obvious same sex marriage should be a right just like getting married to the opposite sex.

Like alot of people have said here, If both party's love each other then they should be entitled to be married, but a surprising amount of people are against it because the bible has said it was a sin. Now, one day when I get married (In the next 10 years or so...) I should have the choice weather I want to be married a guy. In the UK we have civil partnerships which state they are together, like a heterosexual married couple but they don't have the same rights. This is wrong, in every way, why should a homosexual couple not have the same rights as a heterosexual couple, they are exactly the same except one party just happens to be the same sex as the other. They are starting homosexual marriage here, but only after Obama made it legal in the US or that one state (I can't remember), everyone is just jumping on the bandwagon just so they look good, if i'm honest people like that disgust me.

Marriage isn't about love. It's about civil rights. It's not the fact that two people that love each other can't marry that ticks me off, it's the fact that homosexuals are treated like second class citizens.

I mean, yes, I love my fiance but my point is more that if one group is granted rights than everyone should have the same rights.

Honestly... let marriage itself burn... with the divorce rates so high in the world I think it's more valuable to have a loyal and honorable relationship over a piece of signed paper.

As for gays... honestly this is something I've tried to explain to my overly religious mother. I am not GOD therefor I do not have the RIGHT to deny them love and happiness.

Personally.... i believe that who you are married to is your bussiness, not the government. So what if a girl falls in love with a girl? Or a ghy falls in love with a ghy, what does it matter? Its not like your genitals fall in love with another person's genitals. I mean, your not even supposed to see each other naked until you are married! Therefore, how do you TRULY know that they are a girl or boy? What if *gasps* you fell in love with a girl whom you thought was a man? Its not like you can stop loving that person. Im sorry if my arguement is a little too graphic or crude, but its my personal thoughts on this subject. Thank you for listening.

@ Eco - Well for one thing I would be asking them "Why didn't you ever correct me when I said She/Her?"
Unless they were hiding it, but that would hurt trust/could make someone stop loving them.

Gender isn't just "guy" and "girl". There's more than two genders. Also, there's people like me who are agendered and do not have a set gender. That's a whole other rant of mine though that would take a whole lot of explaining about what I mean and that gets off topic.

This really isn't much of a discussion here is it? Weeell, I agree with everyone here! Especially Mystic. It's the civil rights thing that bothers me. I'm living in America right now, probably never going back home, so any relationship commitment I make is going to have to do with the American system.
The thing I think is really stupid about the American system is how they just let the states decide. I mean, I understand that you want to give each state it's choice in things, but marriage is nationally recognized. To get any real benefits it needs to recognized by the country, not the state.

Originally Posted by Mystic

The short of it is that people need to mind their own business. If I want to marry my girlfriend that's my business and not anyone else's. Also, since married couples are entitled to rights when they marry that "single" people or people in "civil unions" can not have so I'm not too sure how it's legal to say same sex couples can not marry based on that. It's discrimination and it should not even be an issue to begin with.

This. Word for word.

I live in USA and in a Southern state where gay marriage is illegal. I would give anything to be able to marry my girlfriend so I can legally call her my wife. I love her so much I don't understand how our love can be wrong. We share a house together and we love our children, just like straight parents. So I just don't understand why we can't walk down the aisle legally.

Also, bullying has become such a huge issue when it comes to kids coming out or even being suspected of being gay. Kids are really cruel and I just think it's so sad that so many kids are driven to suicide because of who they love.

I have thought about this topic a bit more and I have come to the conclusion that it is the homophobics who want it their way and only their way simple as that. and those homophobic are in high places where they can influence laws and do what ever they want, to them I say grow up and realise that these people are just like you and me they are people who vote, work, pay taxes and are trying to live their lives.

I agree with everyone here in that gay marriage should be legal. Making a fuss out of it is ridiculous because their [the fuss-makers'] arguments are so very flawed. But more than that, it's just a matter of time until it's legalized, so to put up a fight over it is even more ridiculous. If you look at how far these reforms have come in a fairly short amount of time, you can easily extrapolate to imagine the day when it's legal. And in the future, they'll look back on this whole kerfuffle as being along the same lines as the abolition of slavery and gaining equal rights for women.

Found this on memebase... golden statement on marriage in general.

Bottom line: Screw everything else, if two people love each other, then they love each other. People just think homosexuality isn't right, and for what reasons?
The bible says it's wrong, you can't have genetic babies, and it's wrong, most of the time. But why is it wrong? There's no reason that's good enough to look down on it. Society, in general, was taught that homosexuality is stupid and etc.,. Just like how people tell you that a monster lives in your closet and there's actually nothing there, or weave up some silly bedtime story.

As for marriage, let them have it. Heterosexual love is just the same as homosexual love, or any other.

I am extremely pleased that no one outright disapproves so far. Gives me some hope for this world.

The thing about religious laws is, if we're going to have a functional society, they can only apply to people who follow that religion. If your religion says you shouldn't be in a relationship with someone of the same sex? Then don't date someone of the same sex. Plenty of religions say you can't eat pork, but do we see anyone trying to outlaw pork?

...well, besides PETA? (And that's not even for religious reasons!)

No. Because that's silly. People are gonna throw fits if you deny them their bacon because your religion says it's a sin. Most people love bacon, so that is not going to happen.

Unfortunately, it's a lot easier to shit on a minority that comprises no more than 10% of the population at the most generous estimate (many studies place us at about 2-5% of the population).

When marriage is concerned, we're talking about the basic right to be legally considered family. Which involves hospital visitation, tax breaks, shared insurance benefits, death benefits, the list goes on and on and on. There are over 1000 legal family rights that come with legal recognition of a marriage in the US.

It is completely and utterly unfair to deny these rights to someone just because some people's religion disapproves of a relationship, and/or because some people think we're icky. Look, if I got to choose who could be legally married on the grounds of finding someone icky, my partner would be a bastard child, because my future mother in law, I swear...

What else is there? That we can't have kids? Plenty of opposite-sex couples are infertile and no one prevents them from getting married. If you want to use that excuse, then I demand that all couples have a fertility test before being permitted to marry.

But I think my favorite argument is that it's a threat to existing marriages. It's a threat to your marriage? Really? Sweetie, if your relationship is so fragile that knowing that total strangers have the same right to it that you do can ruin it, I'd look into couple's counseling. Or divorce, because frankly I think you're beyond help.

As it stands, this is discrimination. It's very much unconstitutional in the US for one group of people to be denied the legal right to be considered family just because someone who knows nothing about our lives decided that we're icky and sinful and evil.

Though I get to anyway because we have a loophole, hell yeah!

Yknow I thought of a very valid point yesterday. Peopl always say gay marriage is bad, gross, sick, disturbing... but something I remember I used to read about a lot.... is the actual disturbing things people marry.

One woman married HERSELF.
One man married a PHOTO.
One man married his CAT.

I think marrying objects which can not consent to the marriage is a lot more effed up that two men.

I wish people would realize this.

Yep. There was also a woman who married the Berlin Wall, a man who married a corpse (granted, they were engaged before she died, and in his culture, until the funeral she was just considered very very sick rather than dead, so if you look at it separated from Western culture that one was really kind of sweet), and a man who married a pillow. You don't see their local or our global society collapsing because of it.

I kind of take issue with the guy who married a cat, since the cat is a sentient being who can't consent, but...whatever. It's none of my business. But, if this is allowed, even if it ends up just being the butt of someone's joke, there is no excuse to deny two consenting adults the right to be legally considered family.

How could she marry the Berlin Wall? O.o she doesn't even own it...

The corpse one is sorta sweet... even after death he still loved her.

Pillow? That was the "girl" pillows wasn't it?

Plus marriage is broken anyways... heck my own wife failed to abide by the rules of marriage along with 50% of the population... so why can't we use them to boost that number a lil >.>" cause they'll likely be a lot more faithful given I know some divorces are due to finding out they're gay or something

Yeah, I'm not sure if that guy was in love with the pillow itself or the anime girl printed on the pillow, but...whatever.

As for the divorce rate, it's not even that. The reason the divorce rate is so high is because of society's insistence on marriage being the great goal. No relationship is legitimate unless you plan to get married someday, and it's not successful unless you do. Marriage is the point at which you're a REAL ADULT YAY~!

Which is funny, because I always thought being an adult was about independence? Not to say that all married couples are codependent, but in most cases one partner is financially dependent on the other at any given time. But whatever, society says I'm wrong, so YAY SOCIETY!

And because my partner and I are the same gender, we can't see it that way. Even though we can be legally married thanks to a nice little loophole we've got, we still have a hard time seeing marriage as anything more than a legal declaration and a nice party. It doesn't feel like something we HAVE to do in order to be legitimate. We just want to be allowed to visit each other in the hospital if anything happens. We want to be able to share insurance benefits like we share everything else. We want to be able to get each other's death benefits, just have something to soften the blow when the worst time of one of our lives comes.

But a lot of couples, that's not what they're thinking of at all. What they're thinking of is just BEING married for the sake of being married. Not even because they really feel like they could be with their current partner for the rest of their lives, just because they think they should be married to SOMEONE.

So please explain to me again how I'm ruining the sanctity of marriage more than this practice? Or, for that matter, celebrity less-than-a-week marriages?