Recently in Marriage and Family Category

Maryland stands strong for traditional values!!! I wish I could be watching the reaction of all of our homosexual activist readers when they open this link.

By the way, they still need an amendment...

Henry Hager, son of new RPV chairman John Hager, is set to marry the Jenna Bush. One has to wonder if Henry has any plans to follow in his father's footsteps, but his choice of bride certainly can't hurt.

NoVA TownHall Blog wishes them well.

H/T: Drudge (my source for most news)

One of the things as a country we generally approve is that competition breeds excellence. Competition between Firefox and Internet Explorer has made both better (well, okay, it has made IE better as the copy Firefox features and look and feel). Competition made Harley Davidson do better at making motor cycles; Japan finally got quality on the radar of American auto makers; telephone prices have come down, and telephone services have gone up (I remember $4 a minute for phone calls to California from Maryland before competition).

What about education? What choice do most people have for education? If you are rich, you can afford the taxes you already pay, and then the tens of thousands it costs for separate tuition. (Just one non-sectarian school charges upwards of $27,000/year Burke and there are others just as expensive.)

First, I'll start off with a nice wedding picture. Since the radical activists seeking to redefine marriage seem to really appreciate that.

Now, the reason for my post (better late than never, right?):

Victoria Cobb, President
Friday, July 27, 2007

Information Alert: Truth be told

Earlier this week, The Ohio state Supreme Court dismissed arguments that Ohio's marriage amendment undermined that state's domestic violence laws (State v. Carswell). I'm sure you vividly remember that opponents of Virginia's marriage amendment attempted to scare Virginians into voting against the amendment by pointing to the controversy in Ohio last fall.

This week's decision reaffirms what we said all during last fall's bitter campaign - the so-called "unintended consequences" arguments used against the marriage amendment were a figment of the opposition's imagination. As was clearly articulated in Attorney General Bob McDonnell's opinion of Virginia's marriage amendment, no one was going to lose a single existing right when that amendment was implemented.

Virginians can rest assured that domestic violence laws in this state will protect them. I hope that Virginians hold in contempt those who took the serious problem of domestic abuse and used the fears of women in crisis to try to accomplish their political agenda.

Marriage Commission

Almost two weeks ago I told you about The Family Foundation's efforts to reduce the divorce rate in Virginia. We recently convened the first meeting of our marriage commission to study the issue. Well, it didn't take long for the story to hit the media. We've been fielding calls for several days, and from media outlets as far away as Seattle, Washington!

Much of the coverage, particularly on talk radio has been less than flattering. It seems that there are many people out there who don't think a 50 percent divorce rate is such a bad thing. Or if they admit its too high, they simply throw up their hands and say that nothing can be done.

Regardless of the naysayers and those who simply criticize instead of seeking solutions, we are going to continue to look at this decidedly complicated issue in an attempt to seek real solutions.

Below is a sample of the media stories concerning the commission:

Va. Foundation seeks to reduce divorces - Washington Post, 7/26/2007
New Commission aims to make divorce harder - Virginian Pilot, 7/22/2007
Family Foundation focuses on divorce - WSET TV, Lynchburg
A marriage made in politics - Roanoke Times Editorial Page, 7/24/2007

Not surprising to see the cornerstone of the anti-Marriage Amendment folks' argument disintegrate. Let's not forget their entire million dollar plus effort was focused on distorting the issue and scaring voters about "unintended consequences" when in truth they were/are simply against the intended and real consequence-- constitutionally protecting marriage from radical redefinition via judicial decree.

I look forward to hearing more from the Family Foundation's Marriage Commission on ways our Commonwealth can support and encourage healthy marriages and prevent family dissolution and more children being raised without a loving mother and father under the same roof.

My alma mater is rated the number one gay-friendly college in the nation, which I'm pretty sure was the case back when I was there.

So please, no more lecturing me on open-mindedness, 'kay? I am THE open-minded right wing nutjob-guy.

From the Family Foundation:

Victoria Cobb, President
Friday, January 19, 2007

Information Alert: Marriage Amendment Repeal Defeated

Voters are famous for having short memories, but opponents of the marriage amendment are taking that old cliche to extreme. Fortunately, legislators tend to remember what happened in the last election.

Today the House Priveleges and Elections Committee scored another victory for the protection of marriage in the Commonwealth and killed two bills that were efforts to undo the marriage amendment you helped pass last November.

HJ 678, patroned by Del. Adam Ebbin (D-49, Arlington), would have allegedly answered opponents to the marriage amendments' concerns over "unintended consequences." The bill would have added a line to the amendment. Without discussion this bill was rejected.

HJ 721, patroned by Del. David Englin, (D-45, Alexandria), was a bill that would repeal the just recently passed marriage amendment that went into effect January 1, 2007. In the debate Del. Bob Marshall (R-13, Manassas), stated the bill was not needed as the voters of Virginia have overwhelmingly resolved the issue.

Fifty-seven percent of Virginians rejected the claims of marriage amendment opponents and voted to protect the definition of marriage. Frankly, to bring these bills up just weeks after the vote is an insult to the 1.3 million Virginians that voted for the amendment.

We are thankful to the members of the P & E committee who quickly dismissed these bills.

Despite the conclusion of the hard-fought battle to pass the Marriage Amendment (which incidentally was a huge victory considering the amount of money the anti-Marriage Amendment forces spent trying to deceive and distort Virginia's voters) I've continued to be MIA from the blog world. Grassroots activism continues to sap time that could be spent blogging.

Anyways, I wanted to dust off my keyboard to quickly point out that today's edition of the Washington Post has this article discussing the Family Foundation's efforts to enact mutual consent divorce for couples with children and thus reform the Commonwealth's loose divorce laws. Here is their description of the proposal:

The foundation is advocating "mutual consent divorce" for couples with children, which would require a husband and wife to agree to divorce before a marriage can be legally terminated, except in certain instances, such as abuse or cruelty. The proposed legislation would not affect childless couples.

"Right now, one spouse can unilaterally end [the marriage], and not only is their spouse unable to stop the divorce, their abandonment does not preclude them from having custody of their child," said Victoria Cobb, president of the Family Foundation. "When we send a message that one can up and leave their family and have no consequence, the Old Dominion is encouraging divorce."

The article goes on to discuss more of the Family Foundation's impressive legislative agenda and ties their mutual consent divorce proposal into the successful effort to protect Virginia's definition of marriage via the Marriage Amendment:

Cobb and her allies in the General Assembly said Thursday that the debate over the amendment banning same-sex marriage spurred this year's push for changes to the state's divorce laws.

"People were saying, 'It is not the homosexuals wrecking marriage, it's the heterosexuals,' so we are saying, 'Is there any truth to that?' " said Del. Robert G. Marshall (R-Prince William), who has filed legislation to study the effects of no-consent divorce on state marriage rates.

"You can just walk away from someone right now. There is less security in the covenant of marriage than if you and I agree to open up a hamburger joint," Marshall said.

Definitely worth a read. I look forward to watching as this proposal develops.

85% of the 400+ people that bothered to watch Fox45, and bothered to sit down and send in a reply, responded "Yes" to this question. I guess it was a "hot button issue".

A solid summary of the Marriage Amendment’s recent victory and the rejection of the hollow and deceptive rhetoric spread by same-sex “marriage” activists. I find the data that the majority of Virginia's youngest voters supported the Marriage Amendment the most heartening.

Victoria Cobb, Executive Director
Wednesday, November 22, 2006

Information Alert: Defining Victory

How does Virginia define marriage? For months The Family Foundation asked that question of those who openly lobbied to change the meaning of marriage and topple it from its unique place of public support and approval.

On November 7th, well over one million citizens of our Commonwealth provided the clear, definitive answer. Yes, Virginia, marriage is the union of one man and one woman. These voters saw that marriage was being threatened, undermined and redefined in places like Massachusetts, Vermont, California, Maryland, and most recently New Jersey - and they knew that they had to act.

As the final votes were counted, the marriage amendment won handily with nearly 60 percent of the vote. In fact, over 1.3 million Virginians voted for marriage between one man and one woman in an election where turnout was over 50 percent. Even in Northern Virginia, where "experts" in the media predicted a significant loss, the marriage amendment won two key counties - Loudoun and Prince William - easily. The amendment earned more votes than any Democrat or Republican candidate for Governor, Lt. Governor and Attorney General in the last two statewide elections. In fact, the marriage amendment garnered nearly 150,000 more votes than the winning U.S. Senate candidate!

Ninety-two of ninety-five counties favored the amendment. In nine counties the marriage amendment earned over 80 percent of the vote! The amendment won handily in key counties and cities like Henrico, Chesterfield, Virginia Beach and Portsmouth, places where the "experts" again said that people don't support "conservative" issues.

In addition, according to CNN exit polls, the marriage amendment gained support from 56 percent of African American voters, a key constituency in any campaign. It also won the majority of youngest voters, ages 18-29. This defies the conventional wisdom that the next generation is more accepting of same-sex marriage.

George Washington once observed, "Happiness and moral duty are inseparably connected." Virginians are going to experience greater long term happiness because they responded to their moral duty to protect marriage, not only from the radical redefinition pushed by a militant pro-homosexual lobby and others who promote sexual relationships outside of marriage, but also from death by a thousand cuts--the slow incremental chipping away and undermining of marriage's place as the best place for a loving long-term relationship and the rearing of the next generation.

Virginians knew that marriage is associated with more positive outcomes for men, women and children. Marriage matters for the well being of Virginia citizens. No other relationship is so associated with a long, fulfilling life. None other promotes greater physical and mental health and psychological soundness. No other relationship correlates with reducing infant mortality so much. No other one generates more benefits for children.

The people of the Old Dominion perceived that it was not the unintended consequences that opponents feared, but the intended ones. For even if they would not admit it, amendment opponents knew that protecting marriage through this amendment would doom any plans to change, undermine or diminish marriage in Virginia, both for now and the foreseeable future.

Virginia rejected the false and deliberate machinations of those who wish to redefine our most fundamental institution. The opponent's desperate and strategically flawed efforts remind one of the old Beatles song, "Can't Buy Me Love." Opponents of the uniqueness of marriage found, much to their disappointment, that even a million dollars couldn't buy removing marriage from its unique place of honor and legal recognition.

Opponents found that their allegations of divisiveness were empty rhetoric - for few things so unite men and women, blacks and whites and Democrats and Republicans as marriage between a man and woman being good and right.

Virginians also rejected the extremism of amendment opponents. Unfortunately, opponents to the amendment stooped to incredible lows during the campaign. They lied, they stole, they vandalized, they verbally assaulted supporters, and on Election Day they even spit on volunteers passing out vote "YES" materials. Some of these incidents are being investigated by various law enforcement agencies in Virginia.

All these things Virginians wisely overcame.

So I commend Virginians for their wisdom, courage and insight in standing up for marriage in our Commonwealth. I know that vigilant Virginians will not allow this just, fair, good and true amendment to be undone. They know that they have done the right thing. They know that history will smile on their actions. They know their judgment will stand.

Homosexual activists, behaving badly, provide a rich heritage of inappropriate behavior which I submit is one of the main reasons their various causes garner such poor support from the public at large. Sometimes they are flat out idiots, and other times just unpleasant. (So what is the deal with going after children? Do you have to be gay to understand that angle? I don't get it at all. You are ripping on the kid for supporting marriage. Your effort almost perfectly obliterates your goal, geniuses. MOST PARENTS WANT THEIR KIDS TO MARRY SOMEONE OF THE OPPOSITE SEX. Ridiculing this girl certainly helps stamp you as an organization opposed to what most people believe.)

It will come as no great surprise that some local families had a bad experience this past Tuesday.

Here is a first-hand report from a Loudoun County mother, detailing what she and her kids had to deal with on election day:

November 11, 2006

Children and the Democratic Way

Every Election Day, I and my four daughters (ages 7, 9, 12, and 14) go to vote. They of course can't vote, because the oldest is only fourteen years old. But they do get an exercise in one of our greatest freedoms as Americans. This year was a little different. I received a call one day before Election Day and was invited to handout fliers supporting the Marriage Amendment for the State of Virginia, at the Lovettsville precinct, located in Loudoun County, Virginia. I am neither a member of the Democrat Party or the Republican Party. But I am a new Christian, and I would consider myself conservative. I jumped at the chance to engage my daughters in the political process. I, like many people, have high hopes and aspirations for my children. I received a bundle of fliers and distributed the bundle among myself, my four daughters, and one young child who is a good friend of my daughters. They faithfully lined up, beaming faces, ready to greet all and provide a flier to anyone who wanted one. My daughters exhibited enthusiasm at the simple task of saying, "sample ballot, sir/madam" and "Vote yes for marriage!" to voters passing by.

About fifteen minutes later, we began to receive piercing, angry stares from one of the Democrat volunteers, who had been handing out sample ballots and fliers opposing the Marriage Amendment. She made impolite remarks regarding my children's enthusiasm and their presence at the polling location. She threatened me and my children with removal. Her husband walked over to where I and my daughters were standing and began to confront my 14 year old daughter. He said, "This is tyranny you know, tyranny". I'm not sure what he thought could be gained by intimidating a young girl. A third volunteer with an irritated tone stated that "...children are not allowed and should not be allowed at polling locations". A fourth volunteer took me aside and informed me that "...fifty years ago in America, it was unlawful for a black to marry a white". She demanded to know why I supported the marriage amendment. I felt very uncomfortable with a fifth male volunteer who was attempting to speak about the marriage amendment to my daughters. When I motioned him to leave my daughters alone, he shouted, "I wanted to confuse the kids, but the mother won't let me!" A sixth volunteer (male) provided an unsolicited comment meant to support his misguided beliefs concerning traditional marriage. He asked, "Isn't the dowry system a traditional way of marriage!?" I retorted by saying, "Sir, this is America, not India!" I wondered if he was lost. By the way, I immigrated to the United States from India in 1977. I am a naturalized citizen of the United States of America. I have been a resident of Virginia for the past thirty years. I have been married to my American husband for the past seventeen years.

For the last year, prior to the election, we've heard the media disparage Christians, Conservatives, the Military, Republicans, and anyone else who didn't agree with their point of view. I guess the media and the liberals belong to the same family. They seem to believe the ends justify the means. Win at any cost. Threaten, lie, attack, accuse others of what you yourself are the most guilty of. Foment hate using false accusations of racism, twisted truths of the past, and if history doesn't support you, then invent your own version of the facts. My daughters received a lesson in politics and freedom, but not the one I intended for them to learn. Freedom isn't free. Standup when they try to push you down.

Liberals cry Freedom! They want the freedom to attack and pervert my children. They want the freedom to silence the opposition. They want the freedom to erase God, accountability, honor, and innocence. What they call freedom is slavery.

As we all know, the good people of Virginia resoundingly embraced the Marriage Amendment by a 17 point margin, and as such rejected the hollow and deceptive rhetoric coming from same-sex “marriage” advocates.

Of course the opponents of the Marriage Amendment did their best to hide their true agenda (redefining marriage to permit same-sex “marriage”… or at least leave the Commonwealth as vulnerable as possible to litigation designed to redefine marriage a la judicial decree)… their million dollar campaign was very slick and time and time again we heard them lament that if the Marriage Amendment passed all these horrendous “unintended consequences” would descend upon unmarried Virginians. They never once mentioned same-sex “marriage” (what they call marriage “equality”) in their TV and radio ads and it rarely appeared in their coordinated letters to the editor, etc. Basically their effort was nothing but a bait-and-switch Trojan horse campaign.

For those who contest this fact (and maybe even bought into their “unintended consequences” BS… the same stuff they were pushing a few years back when HB 751 passed) I suggest you read the post-defeat message coming from the anti-Marriage Amendment coalition. I’ve placed the entire email below the fold, but here are some juicy tidbits. Please note that their message does not mourn the terrible “unintended consequences” that will result now that the Marriage Amendment has passed… in fact they barely even mention them, if at all. Instead they talk about leaving the “GLBT community stronger politically and financially” and that the fight for “justice and equality” (read: same-sex “marriage”) will continue. Their parting message is an invitation to activist forums being held by Virginia’s leading proponents of the redefinition of marriage-- “Equality Virginia.” Witness their true agenda laid bare (emphasis mine):

“From the outset of this campaign, we had two goals: to win the campaign at the ballot box and to leave Equality Virginia and the GLBT community in Virginia stronger politically and financially.”

“There are real, tangible positive results from this campaign that will benefit Equality Virginia and the gay and lesbian community for years to come.”

“[We] identified tens of thousands of gay-friendly voters to help build our political clout for future legislative battles and elections in 2007 and beyond.”

“I am ready to "reinvest" in the effort to move Virginia forward toward a day when all Virginians achieve full equality and my friends in the GLBT community are accorded the full measure of dignity and respect that is their inalienable right.”

It’s good to see the true agenda exposed for all to see. I suppose it made political sense to cloak their message in deceptive terms that could successfully be used to mislead commonsense voters who reject same-sex “marriage" under any name, but that doesn’t make it right.

Anyways… 1,327,783 Virginians obviously saw through the Commonwealth Coalition’s charade… despite being outspent 4-1 and having the MSM relentlessly push the opposition’s talking points day in and day out. Virginia’s Bill of Rights now protects the definition of marriage and will ensure that an unelected Virginia judge does not radically redefine this Natural Law institution… and thus help to ensure that no child is willfully denied a mom or a dad.

In addition to Virginia, six other states embraced constitutional amendments designed to protect marriage:

Colorado: 56% Yes, 44% No
Idaho: 63% Yes, 37% No
South Carolina: 78% Yes, 22% No
South Dakota: 52% Yes, 48% No
Tennessee: 80% Yes, 20% No
Wisconsin: 59% Yes, 41% No

There are now 27 states with such amendments. The first loss occurred in Arizona by a narrow margin of 49% Yes and 51% No. Truly desperate for any kind of victory, same-sex “marriage” proponents are spinning this one hard… claiming it is a sign of “time being on their side” and portraying the tens of millions who have embraced marriage as the union of one-man and one-woman as reactionary bigots on the verge of defeat. Obviously this couldn’t be further from the truth.

The reason why the Marriage Amendment (Proposition 107) failed in Arizona by ~30,000 votes should be quite clear. It was certainly not an indication of support (in any shape or form) of same-sex “marriage”… rather it was the product of confusing ballot language and a $2.1 million campaign even more deceptive than the one we witnessed here in Virginia.

Here is what, in part, the ballot language said in Arizona:

"A no vote shall have the effect of retaining the current laws regarding marriage, including a statutory ban on same-sex marriage."

With just a quick reading of this description and little background information, a voter could believe a “no” vote was a vote against same-sex “marriage.” Given that the far more liberal state of Wisconsin (lacking such a messy explanation) passed a similar amendment by a healthy margin, this was the obvious deal-breaker and resulted in a tight race.

Additionally, the anti-Marriage Amendment crowd spent $2.1 million (more than twice what their allies spent here… and with a much less costly media environment) on a Trojan Horse campaign against “taking away domestic partner benefits.” Their ads claimed (without any legal credibility) that the Marriage Amendment would:

“…limit Social Security incomes, and children of domestic partners will lose medical insurance.... Why take away domestic benefits, legal protection and healthcare? Vote no on Prop 107."

For more information on their straw-man campaign, please see their website. As in Virginia, Marriage was never mentioned by the opposition and thus the outcome cannot be interpreted as support for same-sex “marriage.” Thankfully, Arizona has solid courts (for now) and they have recently upheld the statutory protections for marriage. This should give the citizens more time to regroup and submit a slightly modified amendment to the people (hopefully without such an awful ballot explanation).

Now that the Commonwealth’s definition of marriage is enshrined in the Constitution the struggle to protect and honor the institutions of marriage and family is far from over.

Many opponents of the Marriage Amendment rightfully pointed out that there are severe threats to marriage in addition to radical redefinition under law (although they illogically tried to argue that because there were other threats we should ignore the one posed by the redefinition of civil marriage). Some examples of these threats are the rampant and growing divorce rate leading to broken homes (just look at the wonderful example being set by Britney Spears), infidelity, and a general lack of respect for life and the amazing blessing of children. Many of these issues are outside of the realm of civil law and are issues of the culture around us. I believe the first and most important thing we can do to reaffirm and restore the honor and dignity of marriage and family is to fulfill our lifelong vows to our spouse and place them first in our lives (above careers, money, or possessions)… and we must be open to the life-giving love that flows within the marital relationship and instill the value of family in any children with which we may be blessed. We are surrounded by a corrosive culture focused on the immediate gratification of our personal desires above the greater good… everyone is constantly claiming a “right” to have what they want regardless of the consequences on others and society (abortion on demand is a tragic example as is the action of same-sex couples using in-vitro fertilization to create a child they want with the intention of denying he/she his/her father or mother). However, I believe the influence of the family is more powerful than the influence of our self-centered culture and with dedication, prayer, and focus we can overcome all obstacles.

Unbelievable.

Why are these folks so afraid of giving the people (rather than unelected judges) a say in how marriage is defined? Thank God the definition of marriage is now protected in Virginia.

Maggie Gallagher has more here.

Virginia Catholic Bishops Applaud Voters’ Decision on Marriage Amendment

On behalf of Arlington Bishop Paul Loverde and Richmond Bishop Francis DiLorenzo, Virginia Catholic Conference (VCC) Executive Director Jeff Caruso issued the following statement regarding yesterday’s outcome on Ballot Question Number One, which succeeded by a 14-point margin:

“Yesterday, large numbers of citizens across our Commonwealth voted to affirm, protect, and preserve the institution of marriage as designed by God and as passed on from one generation to the next throughout human history.

“Virginia’s Catholic bishops have been pleased to offer their perspective on the importance of safeguarding this bedrock institution over the course of the debate on the marriage amendment, and to join their voices to those of many others whose roles were instrumental to this significant outcome. In the end, though, the decisive statement on the issue came from Virginia’s voters. Given the decisions that courts in some other states have imposed on their citizens with no public input, Virginians clearly appreciated the opportunity to decide this matter for themselves.

“The bishops also wish to commend Delegate Robert Marshall and Senator Stephen Newman for sponsoring the amendment, the Family Foundation and va4marriage.org for their persistent and effective leadership in organizing grassroots support among individuals representing a diversity of faith traditions, nearly 200 Catholic parishes across Virginia for distributing diocesan-approved educational materials on the ballot question to their parishioners, and the Virginia Knights of Columbus for assisting parishes in the dissemination of those materials.”

The VCC is the public-policy agency of the Virginia Catholic bishops and their two dioceses. The VCC delivered over 100,000 copies (available in English and Spanish) of the bishops’ pastoral letter on the marriage amendment and an accompanying “question and answer” piece to 194 parishes and two Catholic campus-ministry organizations. These materials were also printed in the official newspapers of both dioceses and sent to their 133,000 subscribing households. Further information is available online at www.vacatholic.org.

Two out of three, so far, for conservatives in Loudoun County. Frank Wolf won, and the Virginia Marriage Amendment has passed - and it appears it passed by a landslide vote. This issue is likely off the table in Virginia for 10 or 15 years.

I'm going to leapfrog the analysis a bit, but it appears the public sentiment in favor of traditional marriage cut across every sociological boundary. Lots of money was spent to oppose this Amendment; lots of intelligent people argued against it. Although I personally had no idea how the vote would turn out, looking at what has happened I now don't think it was ever even close.

The real suspense now is what George Allen has managed to do. Stay tuned.

CNN reports that the good people of the Commonwealth have embraced the Marriage Amendment and rejected the hollow rhetoric of the anti-Marriage Amendment/pro same-sex “marriage” crowd. Congratulations Virginia!!!

It’s gut-check time. In a little over 30 hours the polls will close on one of the most important elections in Virginia history. Please click here to send an e-card to your friends, co-workers and family reminding them to vote YES for Marriage tomorrow!

Below is the final message from the Family Foundation/VA4Marriage regarding our historic opportunity to elevate existing principles into the Virginia Constitution in order to protect marriage from judicial assault. The Commonwealth should never be forced, via unelected judges, to support and embrace relationships that willfully create motherless or fatherless homes. Children deserve both a mom and a dad. I’ve been so encouraged and blessed to meet some amazing volunteers on this campaign and I look forward to celebrating with them tomorrow! Now get out there and spread the word, work the polls, and finish strong!

Victoria Cobb, Executive Director
Monday, November 6, 2006

Action Alert: VOTE "YES" FOR MARRIAGE

This is my last opportunity to reach out to you, the voters of Virginia, and say "Vote YES" for marriage during tomorrow's crucial election. If polls are any indication, the battle over the amendment is much closer than we'd like. While we are very confident the amendment will pass, we cannot take a single vote for granted. I urge you to go to the polls tomorrow to vote YES on the marriage amendment.

From our perspective, we have been frustrated by two campaign situations that I know have also frustrated our supporters. The first has been the refusal of amendment opponents like the ACLU and the "Commonwealth Coalition" to debate the actual issue, same-sex marriage. They have hidden behind their lie of unintended consequences because they are afraid to talk about same-sex marriage or polygamy or how they actually want to define marriage. We have challenged them in debate after debate, through the media, and through an actual fax request. Unfortunately, they have refused to answer the question.

Perhaps it is because they know Virginians will overwhelmingly reject their fluid definition of marriage. In fact, on the www.beyondmarriage.org web site, opponents of amendments like ours in Virginia say they support "Legal recognition for a wide range of relationships, households and families - regardless of kinship or conjugal status." My guess is you won't see that on our opponents campaign signs or in their advertisements. But that is exactly what they want.

The second frustration has been some of the media in Virginia. Too many of our friends in the "mainstream media" have refused to question opponent's claims. If we ever tired to repeat a lie like the "unintended consequences" line our opponents have used, reporters would have investigated and dismissed it. The media can look to all 20 states that have already passed marriage amendments and they will find no unintended consequences. They can look to the passage of the Virginia same-sex unions ban, and the defense of marriage act, and find no unintended consequences. They can look at Attorney General Bob McDonnell's official opinion of the Marriage Amendment, and the Virginia State Board of Election's authorized explanation, and again they refuse. To date, only two newspaper editorial pages that we are aware of in Virginia have supported the amendment. This disconnect of the media from the electorate has caused many of you to call our office. We share your frustration. The only way to let them know how you feel is to vote "YES" on November 7th.

I would also like to take the time to thank the thousands of volunteers, and donors who have become a part of this campaign. Our grassroots efforts have been incredible and have far outshone our opponent's attempts to organize. You have been steadfast in the face of opposition at fair booths, rallies, and other events all across Virginia. They can steal our yard signs, peel off our bumper stickers, throw our literature back at us, and fire our supporters from their jobs, but they cannot steal what is in your heart - the simple truth that marriage is God's design, created by Him for one man and one woman.

So now, it is time to finish the job at hand. All of us, you and I, our neighbors, church members and friends, need to work the polls and Vote YES tomorrow. Together, we can take this necessary step to ensure a pro-family Virginia for years to come!

Send a Last Minute eCard

If you have not already done so, please go to www.va4marriage.org/ecard and send a get-out-the-vote eCard to friends and family, urging them to vote in favor of the marriage amendment tomorrow. This is a quick and simple way to get the message out!

Vote YES Signs to the Polls

Because so many of our "Vote YES" yard signs have been stolen or defaced by our opponents we are running low and do not have enough signs to cover all the voting precincts in Virginia tomorrow. If you have a yard sign, please take it with you to your voting precinct tomorrow when you go to vote and place it among the other political signs you will see. We want to make sure that voters see "Vote YES" signs as they approach their voting precinct.

Victory Party

Don't forget to plan to join us for our "Victory Party" tomorrow evening at the Richmond Convention Center from 6:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. The Convention Center is the same location where we have held our December Gala the last several years.

Tomorrow evening evening, all of the hard work we have put since those initial votes on the marriage amendment in January of 2005 will come to fruition! Please plan to join us for a fun celebration of victory!

Parking will be limited around the Convention Center so be sure to get there early!

I've been MIA at NOVA TH for months now due to my decision to commit what free time I have to supporting the Virginia Marriage Amendment and thus work to ensure that marriage is not left unnecessarily vulnerable to judicial activism and that the Commonwealth does not sanction (via judicial edict) a relationship designed to willfully deny children a mother or a father.

It’s been quite exhilarating to see the enthusiastic response to our efforts to protect marriage in Virginia as well as to witness the rejection of the anti-Marriage Amendment crowd’s increasingly desperate and absurd declarations and obfuscations. Less than 2 weeks to go! Everyone should get out there and work hard because our opponents and their paid staff are certainly doing so… we can take nothing for granted!

Anyways… just wanted to quickly post Senator Allen’s response to the decision of four unelected New Jersey judges to force same-sex unions on that state’s residents (precisely what the Marriage Amendment is designed to protect against). Here it is, in full:

For Immediate Release: October 25, 2006 Contact: Press Office 703.845.3689

Senator Allen’s Statement on New Jersey Supreme Court Ruling

ARLINGTON, VA – Senator Allen issued the following statement in response to today’s ruling by the Supreme Court of New Jersey that legalizes same-sex marriage:

“Today’s decision by the NJ Supreme Court is another example of activist judges inventing the law and subverting the will of the people. This is why I support the marriage amendment, because it will protect the values and views of the people of Virginia from judges who would want to impose their elitist views on us. This is a clear difference between my opponent and me – I support protecting marriage from judges who do not understand their role: to interpret the law, not invent the law. My opponent does not.

“My opponent says that this amendment would infringe upon the rights of ordinary Virginians, and he opposes it. But I and many members of the Virginia Assembly joined in asking the Attorney General of Virginia to render an opinion. His response: ‘I can find no legal basis for the proposition that passage of the marriage amendment will limit or infringe upon the ordinary civil and legal rights of unmarried Virginians’.

“This amendment does exactly what it says it does; it defines marriage as being between one man and one woman, and I’m for marriage between a man and a woman while my opponent is against it.”

— # # # —

Now get off your computer and start making calls and knocking on doors! Sign up here.

Support the National Right to Life - Christmas is just around the corner!

Many people - parents of high-school-age kids being at the top of the list - would jump out of their seats to support a message promoting abstinence to teenagers. The reasons for this need not even be expounded. So pro-abstinence, "Christian" comedian Keith Deltano's appearance at Loudoun County High School Thursday would seem to be one of those rare instances where the government has managed to do something incredibly right.

An attendee wrote to me describing the event:

The kids were skeptical at first but they really got into it – shouting, clapping, and cheering as Keith told them that "virginity rocks." He presented waiting for sex as a positive life choice that makes it possible for them to pursue their dreams without worrying about STD's and pregnancy.

Who in the world could argue with that? (And who in the Loudoun County Public School system can we send thank you notes and gift baskets to for having the good sense to allow Mr. Deltano to speak?) I'm going to go out on a limb here and speculate that more influences like Keith Deltano would result in less screwed-up lives for young American adults.

But leave it to the ACLU to discern the dark cloud: the dark cloud of CHRISTIANITY!!!

There is nothing wrong with abstinence as the topic of the program, and there is nothing wrong with the fact that it is being performed by a self-described Christian comedian or paid for by a faith-based organization...But this is a public school, and we are naturally concerned that the religious views of the speaker and the sponsoring organization, both of whom make faith-based arguments for abstinence, will seep into the presentation.

God help us all if religious viewpoints should "seep" into a seminar promoting abstinence among teenagers - especially if the seminar was effective!

Lest you surmise simply from the foregoing that the ACLU doesn't deserve the respect of a rat's patoutie, please allow me to point out that our esteemed former paper of record saw fit to frame the event as an insidious intrusion:

"Having so-called secular performances or speeches in public schools by Christian evangelists" is a growing trend, said Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State. "Schools need to be extremely careful when they tread into these waters."

Americans United, which evolved from an organization formed in the 1940s to advocate for Protestant freedom in the face of a supposed Vatican power-play on American society, is now a strangely full-blown secularist advocacy group referenced whenever the mainstream media needs an anti-Christian source to supplement quotes from the ACLU.

We can be certain America's parents are extremely grateful that AU and ACLU are monitoring the devious machinations of anyone who might attempt to foist Christian values on today's teenagers. Shudder the thought.

Equality Loudoun representatives attended the Thursday assembly and report as follows:

If the behavioral objective is "abstinence until marriage," where does that leave those who are told they may not marry their partner? The message to GLBT kids is "You don't exist. You have no future to look forward to." Unfortunately, this is identical to the message of the entire Family Life Education curriculum, as written. The damage this does to our kids is inexpressible and inexcusable, and this assembly was yet another mandatory dose of it.

The foundational assumption upon which this program is based is that sex is only for procreation. This is unequivocally a religious view ("God's plan for sex"), unsupported by the facts, but it was presented here as if it were self-evident. The simplistic logical arc was explicitly spelled out at one point like this: Being a parent is hard. Are you ready to be a parent? (No.) So are you ready to have sex? (No.) It was as if contraception doesn't exist. It was as if two people never get married and decide to delay childbearing, or forego it altogether. Sex is for making babies, period. Clearly, this idea is central to the world view that Deltano is representing - only he has edited out the part where he articulates it because this is his "secular" show. The result is that this fallacy is even more insidious than would be the case if it were stated outright.

I recommend reading all of David's essay because he states his case well and if you want the "other side" of the argument, that's it.

At the same time, David makes a pretty clear case for why parents of teenagers - whose sexual identities are fluid - might not want the ACLU or David Weintraub guiding their kids' education on sexual matters.

What should stand out about this episode is the blatant protest from the left - the Post, AU, ACLU and Equality Loudoun - that the Keith Deltano presentation at Loudoun County High School was somehow problematic...because it might be Christian. Oh Lord help us if Christianity should be propogated among our children! Bear in mind that Christianity was not being taught - only "Christian" values.

Citizens of Virginia, and parents in particular, need to decide if they fear Christianity more than secularism for the next generation of Virginians.

The following letter by John Grigsby appeared in Leesburg Today last week:

Why are so many people volunteering their time with coalitions like va4marriage.org and virginiaisformarriage.com, in support of the Virginia Marriage Amendment? In my case, it comes down to a few pictures.

If you visit galluccio.com, you will see displayed with pride a "family portrait" of two New Jersey men, Jon and Michael Galluccio, bare-chested in tuxedos, alongside their four adopted children, one of them a similarly-dressed adopted boy. All the chatter on this issue is meaningless against the backdrop of this picture; a Rohrschach Test for the marriage amendment if there ever was one.

You may, like the ACLU of Virginia, Loudoun's Democrat Committee, the Democrat leadership nationally, the Unitarian-Universalist Association, various "gay, lesbian, bisexual & transgender (GLBT)" organizations, and Governor Kaine, all very active opponents of the Marriage Amendment, view this grouping of people with a gentle smile. To you, two dads are just as good as a mom and a dad, and at least better than just one mom or just one dad. "What's all the fuss?" you ask.

If you are like virtually all Republicans in Loudoun County and statewide, as well as many if not most traditional Democrats, who support the amendment, your reaction is like mine. You feel broken-hearted. You feel an aching sadness.

As a father, I look back with gratitude for what my dad contributed, as a man, and for what my mother contributed, as a woman, to my upbringing. As a dad, I see everyday how my wife and I both contribute to the development of our girls and boys in ways that are complementary. While either parent may change diapers, arrange field trips, buy groceries, and etc., parenting doesn't simply reduce to a task list. Boys need a father, and girls do, too. Likewise for a mother. Apparently it's not "modern" or politically correct to say this, but I unashamedly believe this is how things were meant to be, and that men and women aren't interchangeable, as far as parenting goes.

Yes, there are reasons, seldom intended, why some children will never have the benefit of a mom and a dad under the same roof. However, a marriage of two men removes the possibility of a mom-it says that "mom" is a superfluous category, and unnecessary. Creating an institution that in its very nature denies a boy or girl even the remotest possibility of a mom on one hand, or a dad on the other, is wrong. Like others, I am working to pass this important amendment to make it tougher for a Democrat-appointed judge to do to Virginia what was done to Massachusetts.

Given the steady strides judges have made to usurp the role of the legislature, and the importance of this institution to society at large, marriage as "one man, one woman" gets my support and my vote on Nov. 7.

Despite the attempts to cloud the issue with diversions about the impact of the proposed amendment on heterosexual couples (who can get married and avoid that alledged impact), this amendment is about homosexual marriage.

The following letter was printed in the Washington Times this morning (4-OCT-2006).

The report, "More deaths tied to preterm birth" (Nation, Monday), tells us that preterm birth is responsible for at least 70 percent more infant deaths than previously thought. This increase in preterm deaths is a reason for researchers, including the March of Dimes, to request more federal funding to determine the cause of such births. But a major cause of preterm births, which many choose to ignore, is surgical abortion.

There are now 60 studies from 23 countries dating to the 1960s showing that surgical abortion increases premature births in subsequent pregnancies. There are many illustrious researchers and health-care professionals such as Judith Lumley of Australia; Barbara Luke, 2005 March of Dimes award winner; and McAllister Distinguished Professor John M. Thorpe who have verified that the risk increases with the number of surgical abortions.

Recently the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies of Science recognized first trimester abortion as an "immutable medical risk factor associated with preterm birth." The report noted a 30 percent increase in preterm births since 1981, which tracks with the legalization of abortion in the United States, at an annual cost of $26.2 billion to our health-care system.

Preterm babies have more disabilities, including cerebral palsy, than full-term babies. A study published of 120,000 children showed that premature babies are abused at twice the rate of full-term babies.

Abortion not only kills children, it reduces the mother's ability to carry subsequent children to term and increases their rates of mortality, morbidity and abuse. Preterm birth is another of many reasons why abortion is a devastation for women and children.

DR. WILLIAM F. COLLITON JR.
Clinical professor of obstetrics
and gynecology (retired)
George Washington University
Medical Center

Every year, we have about one million abortions in the United States. That's about how many legal immigrants we accept every year. Every single weekday, more people are murdered in their mothers' wombs than were murdered by terrorists on 9/11. The immigrants aren't killing our culture, we are.

This is what the Democratic Party fights so hard to protect -- a woman's right to murder her child.

This just came across the e-mail from PFOX, which is, I recently learned, demonized by many in the GLBT community. I don't understand that at all - maybe someone can explain it to me.

PTA – Peril for Parents?

By Regina Griggs, Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays & Gays (PFOX) Executive Director

Do the initials “PTA” bring to mind innocuous parent-teacher meetings and parent-student school projects? Think again. The national Parent Teacher Association, fondly known as PTA, is under the leadership of chief executive officer Warlene Gary. Ms. Gary previously served as the National Education Association’s human rights director and that school union’s liaison to gay interest groups.

PTA bills itself as the “largest volunteer child advocacy association in the nation.” It holds an annual convention and exhibition attended by public school teachers, students and parents. Last year’s convention theme was “diversity.” In keeping with PTA’s theme, Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays & Gays (PFOX) applied for an exhibit booth. PTA rejected our application in favor of a gay organization’s application on the grounds that the gay organization was there to “educate parents on the topic of school bullying.” PTA also allowed the gay organization to hold a workshop.

When we visited the gay organization’s exhibit booth, we encountered materials that denounced therapy for homosexuals with unwanted same sex attractions, recommended anti-ex-gay publications, essentially denied the existence of former homosexuals (so much for tolerance and diversity), and urged the Southern Baptist Convention to vote against one of its resolutions on homosexuality in public school education.

Jonathan of Equality Loudoun submits the following response to the Attorney General's opinion in the previous post:

This really isn't news. The AG is only talking about the current state of affairs, not the effects that the amendment will have in the face of court challenges by anti-gay activists and puritanical Victorian social engineers. For example, as David pointed out, CCV, the parallel organization to VA's "some" families foundation filed an amicus brief that challenged the notion of domestic violence protection for an unmarried household member, as that legal status "assigns" a benefit of marriage.

Virginia Attorney General Bob McDonnell has just issued his official opinion on the Virginia Marriage Amendment, which will be on the ballot for Virginia voters on November 7.

You can read the complete opinion at the AG's Web site.

Following are key excerpts:

It is my opinion that passage of the marriage amendment will not affect the current legal rights of unmarried persons involving contracts, wills, advance medical directives, shared equity agreements, or group accident and sickness insurance policies, or alter any other rights that do not “approximate the design, qualities, significance, or effects of marriage” or create “the rights, benefits, obligations, qualities, or effects of marriage.” It further is my opinion that passage of the marriage amendment will not modify the application and enforcement of Virginia’s domestic violence laws.

The gay community undoubtedly appreciates you, moron. Thanks for providing the first absolutely perverse and hostile comment at the NVTH Blog in just about one year of existence.

I take it you are in Columbus, OH, and you are what the right-wingers warn about when they talk about a "gay agenda."

Don't worry about your pearls of wisdom being lost, because I have saved them, along with 68.77.187.186.

And you know what, "Rusty?"

I think you might have just spilled a bit more than you intended to.

Congrats. You conveyed a very important aspect of the gay, lesbian, blah blah blah whatever the hell it is bunch of people's - ok I won't say "agenda" I'll just say modus operandi.

The hostility.

Funny how that little element has managed to slip under the radar in the debate, eh?

There is more to come on this topic, believe me. We've been lucky here so far to have the David's and Jonathan's of the world as our ambassadors from the GLBT community (pardon me if I mixed up the letters) because D and J are such gentlemen. But that happenstance misses a bigger reality:

The Gay-Lesbian-etc-etc community has a bit of an edge to it.

And, no, this statement isn't just based on the unfortunate singular comment of an individual here. That individual's comment fit a pattern, a very recognizable pattern. It reminded me, for instance, of things I've heard since the 1980s. Not from my gay friends, mind you, of which I have had many, but from the gay ACTIVISTS - a separate group and an obnoxious group whose, uh, agenda, seems to be to impose on the rest of society a sexual more designed to provoke outrage.

It isn't just me and Jacob talking with David and Jonathan about bedroom politics. It's gay folks who want to demonstrate gay behavior around straight people's children. The ones who walk up to our kids at a public event embracing and kissing solely for show and the outrageousness of it all. Homosexuals and bisexuals don't want merely to be accepted: They want to ram their sexual practices down our throats and our families' throats.

Here's a free piece of advice to the gay- etc-etc community: We heterosexuals think of you as regular people who engage in different sexual practices. Beyond those practices, we're the same.

But when your PR takes the form of indoctrination about your own sexual practices, we tend to say "STOP."

And then we tend to spell out all the reasons we do not want homosexuality advocated in the public sphere.

Let's not any of us forget that the reason the latter argument has had to be made is because the gay community has thrown the grenades. They're the ones who want to blow our minds, expand our horizons, expand our KIDS' horizons, and generally make everyone very uncomfortable with the hope the discomfort can be attributed to heterosexuals' "uptightness."

Nope. Sorry, boys, but we see through it. You are hostile.

You have a massive arena for self expression in society and freedom to carry on whatever private sexual activities you want. But you want more than that. You want everyone who is less enlightened than you about the superiority of alternative sexual practices to have to hear about your sexual practices all the time. You want our kids to hear about it. You want to rock our world.

Memo to the gay activists: You are breaking no new ground. All of us in the heterosexual camp are familiar with the concepts of sexual experimentation and the fluidity of sexual identity. "Homosexuality" is, I submit, a commonplace idea. Queer Eye for the Straight Guy does not leave us freaked out with eyeballs spinning. We know what it is.

The key question is, how RUDE are you going to be in trying to press your agenda. Because there is an agenda - don't try to hide that. Maybe David and Jonathan are the lone civic purists seeking no more than equal standing for gays in Virginia. But some of their compatriots certainly seek what many gays and lesbians seem to seek, which is the overthrow of the social norm of heterosexuality.

Commenter Zimzo just submitted an excellent comment on my recent post about the marriage debate (you should read that thread first), and instead of jawing back and forth in the comments I'll make this one a new entry and respond point by point. Zimzo's essay is in the quote boxes:

The reason assault and battery is not specifically defined in the Virginia Code is that it was previously defined in English common law from which the code derives, namely the "an intentional harmful or offensive contact" or the "apprehension" thereof. Society has agreed on that definition for centuries and the only comment the Virginia code makes on that definition is to protect teachers and other school personnel from being charged for assault and battery in the reasonable prosecution of their duties. Otherwise, there is a broad consensus on the definition.

But when it comes to marriage under English Common law, the definition has undergone dignificant changes. In fact, the definition usually relied on in Great Britain and British Commonwealth countries is the one Lord Penzance formulated in Hyde v Hyde and Woodmansee in 1866, to wit that marriage is "The voluntary union for life of one man and one woman, to the exclusion of all others." Obviously, this definition was formulated long after English common law had any influence on Virginia code and we can see already that even this definition has undergone a significant alteration in that the legalization of divorce makes the phrase "for life" no longer necesarily true.

If you look at Commentaries on the Laws of England, by Sir William Blackstone, probably the most well-known treatise on English common law published in 1765 we also see an institution that looks far different from what marriage looks like today. The definition of marriage under English common law according to Blackstone was a union of husband and wife where "the very being or legal existence of the woman is suspended." Again, this definition has undergone extreme alteration. We no longer see marriage as the forfeiting of legal standing under the law by women.

How interesting. Most people, certainly including myself, don't know much about this history. But it sort of proves my point. While all these aspects of marriage have changed, and the majority aren't familiar with them, most people would still contend they know what "marriage" is because the one-man, one-woman part has been the central part of its definition.

For some reason, visitor Bill Garnett and the NOVA TownHall constable on patrol, Jack, have been debating in the comments section of a month-old post here. Reading their exchange evoked a couple of thoughts I'm going to jot down here, both to invite further discussion and get Bill and Jack back on the front page, in the interests of social order.

To get the context, please read the last 5 or so comments in that post.

Bill seems to mean well but he has fallen for the fallacious argument that the burden of proof is on people who don't think the definition of marriage should be changed. It's very clever, but it's not true.

Same sex marriage did not exist anywhere in the world until about 10 years ago, and during that time the evidence of it's effect on society is incredibly sparse. There's hardly sufficient data to analyze the impact in Europe, and there's pretty much zero data in the U.S.

Proponents of same sex marriage actually have quite a mountain to climb in order to make the case it will not have a negative impact on society because they don't have any evidence to support their claim. They're saying, let's change the institution that's been around for a really long time, in order to try something that's never been done before. Not an easy sell if you look at it rationally.

Lately I’ve fallen far short of my previous blogging pace—I’ve been using most of what free time I have outside of work and family obligations to support the Marriage Amendment (and let's be honest… the blogosphere is not the most effective way to do that given most folks here already know where they stand and need little motivation to become politically active… I am trying to reach those who may not be aware of the Marriage Amendment and may only be exposed to the $3 million misinformation campaign planned by the anti-Marriage Amendment coalition). It’ll be great to get back into the swing of things here at NOVA TH once E-Day has come and gone but I have to say it is refreshing to make phone calls and go door-to-door—meeting so many enthusiastic supporters of the amendment!

Speaking of the Marriage Amendment, I am surprised nobody has posted on this yet, but on August 17th the Weekly Standard published an article by Ryan Anderson titled “Beyond Gay Marriage: The stated goal of these prominent gay activists is no longer merely the freedom to live as they want.” This piece is relevant to the debate raging in Virginia because it highlights A) the logical extension of the warm and fuzzy No-Fault Freedom arguments being advanced by same-sex “marriage” advocates; and B) it yet again demonstrates what side can be trusted in this debate—whose claims are unsubstantiated misinformation efforts and whose are not (in this case validating some of the long mentioned concerns held by defenders of marriage).

Anderson’s article discusses the once dismissed “slippery slope” argument: if marriage, as it is currently defined (and as it has been for much of human history), is dramatically redefined (in this case via unelected judges) to no longer mean the unique union of the two complementary parts of the human organism… there will no longer be a satisfactory reason to deny similar benefits/status to a whole host of relationships beyond monogamous same-sex couples. He says:

…Gay marriage's "conservative" proponents have countered that the model of opposite-sex marriage, with its norms of monogamy, exclusivity, and permanence, could apply just as well to same-sex partners. That everything which makes a marital relationship worthwhile to heterosexual spouses, to their children, and to the state would apply to gay couples as well. Essentially, that same-sex partners want the exact same things as straight couples. And that basic fairness requires recognition of their relationships by the government.

Defenders of marriage saw through this. Scholars like Hadley Arkes and Robert P. George noted that by rejecting the grounding foundation of marriage--the unique psychosomatic unity possible only between one man and one woman in conjugal sex--the state would lose the principled basis for refusing to recognize polygamous (one man to multiple women) or even polyamorous (multiple men to multiple women, i.e. group) marriages. For pointing this out, they were called slippery-slope reasoners, scaremongers, and bigots. After all, it was said, no one seriously argues in favor of state-sanctioned polygamy or polyamory; George and Arkes were just slandering the good name and intentions of same-sex marriage activists.

It turns out that George and Arkes's points were not slanderous, but prophetic.

He goes on to discuss the” Beyond Same-Sex Marriage" statement put forward by a group (Beyond Marriage) composed of 250 “scholars, civic leaders, and LGBT activists” recently published as a full-page ad in the “New York Times.” The broad spectrum of relationships endorsed by these same-sex "marriage" activists/leaders is truly shocking:

The statement lists several examples of such relationships, among them "committed, loving households in which there is more than one conjugal partner"--that is, polygamy and polyamory. But this is mild compared to what follows: demand for the legal recognition of "queer couples who decide to jointly create and raise a child with another queer person or couple, in two households." The language is breathtaking. Queer couples (plural) who jointly create a child? And intentionally raise the child in two (queer) households? Of course, no reference is made to the child's interests or welfare under such an arrangement--only to the fulfillment of adult desires by suitable "creations."

If you don’t believe Anderson’s description, go right to the source and read the document itself! Here is a quote directly from the organization Beyond Marriage.org:

Marriage is not the only worthy form of family or relationship, and it should not be legally and economically privileged above all others. While we honor those for whom marriage is the most meaningful personal--for some, also a deeply spiritual--choice, we believe that many other kinds of kinship relationships, households, and families must also be accorded recognition.

And folks,