I don’t support gay marriage, but I support our Constitution and the framework it provided more than I oppose it. Those simple facts are how I find myself in the precarious position of supporting Vermont’s acceptance of a legal construct that I otherwise morally oppose.
The founders created our nation to be a collection of 50 states, the vast powers resting within them. And the people of the states should get to form the laws and culture in the community where they live. Our nation was designed to be of the people and our government was designed to be local. If the people locally want to pass laws that reflect their values and culture, they have not only a right but a duty to do so with few exceptions.
That is why Conservatives generally oppose judicial activism and the heavy hand of the Federal government. Legislation through activist judges takes the power from the populous and provides it to a select few who are generally not accountable for their actions. Similarly, an over-bearing Federal government takes the power from the states and local communities and results in legislation that is neither reflective of the culture nor efficient in its execution.
So when same sex marriage is approved in Vermont by the processes set forth by the Constitution, through the legislature and not through some activist action, as a Conservative and a Federalist, I have to accept it. You can’t have principles or an ideology, and waiver from it when the outcome is not that you would prefer. If I did, I could not honestly expect a state like California to uphold the citizen’s will to ban gay marriage, which also occurred through proper channels. And all Conservatives would do well to remember that very fact.
The ends never justify the means… principles do. As an opponent of same sex marriage, if I lived in Vermont, I would have to either accept the law with which I disagree, work to overturn it through prescribes means, or move. And while I weep that the values that forged our nation are wasting away… at least I could be proud that the Constitution and its promises remained strong.
Those on the flip side in other states should learn to appreciate the same.
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