>(tip of the hat to Raymond Carver for influencing the thread title)
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>Gay rights issues are at the top of the Supreme Court docket and the news. It may be close to epitomizing polarizing issues, never the twain shall meet. Call me a dreamer but I think this is a pretty bright group that can discuss it constructively.
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>Here are the ground rules.
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>1. It is not a debate in which one side wins and one side loses. Think of it instead as a discussion in which both sides gain a greater understanding of differing POVs.
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>And I realize already I am trying to impose ground rules. One of the things I liked about the Abraham Lincoln depicted in the movie "Lincoln" (a movie which in some ways I did not like at all) was that he listened to and tried to learn from people he did not agree with on basic terms. So let's behave like intelligent, respectful adults and talk about it, in whatever way you like.

I think The Defense of Marriage Act is going to be gone pretty soon. Listening to the arguments at the court has been somewhat humorous. The lawyers that are trying to prevent gay marriage have fallen flat on their face - by saying really stupid (and incorrect) things - my favorite being when they were trying to explain WHY The Defense of Marriage Act was created to begin with.