The nomination of Judge Alito to the Supreme Court may please the far right, who see themselves as holding the line on morality in society, but the short-sighted victory may have exactly the opposite effect. Alito believes a husband has dominion over his wife and that an abortion should require his permission, whether or not it is his child. If such a practice were put in place, my solution would be simple: don't get married. Live together.
Marriage has to give equal benefits to each partner or it is not a partnership, it is ownership. Would the wife have to be consulted before the mistress could abort? Can you imagine a fully responsible adult having to go before a judge and PROVE that the spouse would beat her if he found out she was pregnant before being given permission by the judge to abort? And what if the judge said no? Can you imagine how you would feel after humiliating yourself before the court to be sternly and parentally sent back to your husband? These personal issues should be outside the domain of government.
Marriage is part of the legal system because it is seen not just as a personal relationship or a sprititual relationship. It carries property rights with it. And the history of those property rights are from the woman to the man. Only in my lifetime have women had the right to credit in their own names without the signature of a man - any man. Perhaps the real reason the conservatives are against gay marriage is that they see that a marriage between two people of the same sex would destroy the last vestige of this inequality at the root of marriage. There will no longer be an a priori master of the house.
Tuesday, November 01, 2005
The End of Marriage
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