Rachel Maddow-Maine decides on revoking a civil right

[muellerican]

Currently Spain, South Africa, Canada, Sweden, Norway, Belgium and The Netherlands (Holland) and Israel (as long as it's performed abroad) allow for same-sex marriage and equal family rights like adoption and inheritance. Pretty soon (some may happen before the end of 2009) Argentina, Uruguay, Nepal, PORTUGAL, Luxembourg, Denmark and Iceland (where the President is a Lesbian) will join the bandwagon raising the international numbers to 15 countries with full equal rights.

[muellerican]

The issue of same-sex marriage is currently in discussion by the Parliament of Argentina. Results may happen as soon as tomorrow Nov.5th 2009. The current party in power in Urugay has pledged to allow same-sex marriage so does the current leading party in Portugal.

[losarman]

america is so incredibly backward, why wud any1 want to live there

[disgustipated81]

Ha, and Spain is so advanced. Spain is dirty as hell

[DecimusIunius]

The Founders understood that rights cannot be given or taken away by the state. This is a fact utterly beyond Rachel Maddow's comprehension.

[troyboulay]

Ya, the founders were all about oppression and the revoking of basic civil rights.

[DamNationDiplomat]

At the time of the founders, 'person' meant 'straight white landowning male', and I hardly think that's an appropriate human rights stance for this day and age. At that point in history, slavery was considered a necessity, women were basically property, and the corset was considered a 'healthy' object. I'm not saying that the founders didn't have good ideas, but you can hardly assert that the late 18th century was a great beacon of civil rights. The state was giver and taker of rights even then.

[DecimusIunius]

Most of the founders considered slavery a great evil, and would have abolished it at the passing of the Constitution if they could.

The founders' ideals transcend their own petty prejudices, their misconceptions about what was healthy or not and the unfair things they did to other people. And those ideals transcend the bad things we do today (and you shouldn't imagine that we are significantly evolved, morally or otherwise, from the founders).

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[DecimusIunius]

The thinking of the founders (which most people today are either ignorant of or consider outdated or irrelevant, unfortunately) is the foundation of the freedoms we have today. When we lose their understanding that our rights are NATURAL rights; when we lose sight of their understanding that the state is there to protect rights of the people that exist BEFORE the state does, then we are on the road to tyranny.