Mike Kinsley offers a novel solution to the brewing brouhaha over gay marriage. His solution? Privatize it. Read:
Only certain marriages get certified by the government. So, in the United States we are about to find ourselves in a strange situation where the principal demand of a liberation movement is to be included in the red tape of a government bureaucracy. Having just gotten state governments out of their bedrooms, gays now want these governments back in. Meanwhile, social-conservative anti-gays, many of them southerners, are calling on the government in Washington to trample states' rights and nationalize the rules of marriage, if necessary, to prevent gays from getting what they want. The Senate Majority Leader, Bill Frist of Tennessee, responded to the Supreme Court's Lawrence decision by endorsing a constitutional amendment, no less, against gay marriage.
If marriage were an entirely private affair, all the disputes over gay marriage would become irrelevant. Gay marriage would not have the official sanction of government, but neither would straight marriage. There would be official equality between the two, which is the essence of what gays want and are entitled to.
Sensible, but unlikely. Now if only Mike would offer us some equal sense on privatizing other government functions.
My God. Michael Kinsley said something that sensible? Did someone note the exact time, place, and configuration of the planets?
Sure, no problem.
The state has no interest in marriage. Out goes the whole spousal immunity in court thing. And all other legal things, like probate and all that. You'll have to put it all in a private contract, and get a lawyer to GET married as well to get out.
Think how much we can save if there are no spousal continuances of benefits after the death of a recipient! That would be cool, we can just leave widows penniless, like us Republicans have been wanting to do since FDR did all that Social Security silliness in the first place.
Heck, we can just have all the kids put in orphanages, too, since there won't be any parents!
Sweet. I can feel my stock portfolio growing just thinking about all of this. I'm gonna take the proceeds, buy a Ferrari, and tell the wife that since we don't have a contract, I'm off to pick up a younger model or two!
W00t!
Man, this idea rocks!
Interesting. the privatization of government function is intriquing.... however - it is usually limited to the plot of lo-budget (nevertheless cool) sci fi movies.
I read a proposal years ago (probably in National Review) suggesting that it was unreasonable to expect people to commit to marriage for life without the help of God. In other words, government sanctioned marriages should have different terms and conditions than those blessed by a church. Traditional Christians believe that marriage is until death. If you choose to have a church wedding, you are required to make that commitment. If you want a different contract, our legal system should offer a list of options; maybe contract for a set number of years, or until the youngest child reaches 18 or 21, whatever you choose, including prenuptial agreements. But, as Blaster said, this would upset a whole bunch of apple carts. Something to think about, though.
