Long-time Coming: Post on Politics and Proposition 8

Apologies

I apologize for taking so long to actually create this post. Let's just say that my body and mind are still adapting to having a new baby. Whenever I have thought about posting, I have found myself too exhausted to go through the intensive labor of gathering my thoughts and formulating them into coherent sentences. Let's hope I have better luck today with this post. If not, I do greatly apologize.

I also find that blogging is difficult for a perfectionist who cares deeply about his writing. Fearful of making mistakes in either thought or speech, I find myself reluctant to say anything until I have given myself great time to think and formulate a response. This restriction on free thought has greatly hampered my mental processes as well as my blogging capacity. Isn't it interesting that when we allow something such as fear to control our lives--even when that fear is of falling short of perfection--we sell ourselves short and deprive those around us of the great things we can offer if we are courageous enough to put one step forward. Actually, this courage is precisely what I wish to discuss.

Politics and values

Let me start out by warning you that I am not, as Aristotle described, a "political animal." I am not a supporter of either political party and am often flabbergasted by the polarizing effect that bipartisan politics has on the people of this great nation. That being said, I have great reverence and respect for the political history and evolution of this nation. As an American Studies major at BYU, I had the privilege of studying great (and not so great) American political minds throughout our nation's history. But it is not history that I wish to discuss, but the present.

As a recent resident of California and as an active member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I have been surrounded by the efforts of many California citizens to pass Proposition 8. For those who are unfamiliar with the proposition, it is a proposal to amend the California Constitution to read "only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California." In essence, the proposition would ban same-sex marriage in addition to any other forms of marriage that exceed the simply definition in the proposition. California started to allow same-sex marriages after the California Supreme Court ruled recently that a law stating the same words as the amendment that was passed in 2000 violated the California Constitution.

As can be expected in today's political climate, this proposition has received great national attention and debate. Outside of the presidential election, more money has been spent in support or opposition to this proposition in California than on any other race or issue. Although it is hard to believe, over $60 million has been donated towards this issue already, with much of the money coming from individuals and groups outside the state of California. Indeed, it is difficult for any California individual to watch television, listen to the radio, or even walk down any given street without being bombarded with advertisements to vote yes or no on Prop 8. As can also be expected, the political, moral, and social values at stake has led to a great deal of emotional division on this issue.

Before I continue, let me make it clear that I am in support of Proposition 8. My own personal decision on this issue, however, is less interesting than another point that I would like to discuss. I merely state my position so that I do not mislead anyone. What I would really like to discuss, however, is the treatment that each side gives to and receives from the other.

Let me begin by stating that I do not expect or suppose that the decision to vote for or against Proposition 8 is an easy one. In fact, it should not be an easy decision. With almost all political decisions, there are important ramifications to passing or not passing this bill. Real people are affected by these politics, and an individual should truly question themselves and this issue before making a decision.

Although many will argue that Proposition 8 is about one religion's attempt (i.e., Christianity) to enforce its beliefs on the rest of the state, I hope that nobody is so gullible as to believe this fallacy. It simply is not true. For one thing, this bill is not religious in nature or in tone. Although it is supported by many religions, including the LDS and Catholic faiths, Prop 8 is not religious. Notably, members of all religions will be voting both for and against Prop 8. Instead, this bill is simply a representation of the social values that citizens of California wish to adopt. Although the social issues represented by Prop 8 are aligned with many Christian religions, such could be said for any number of social issues (abortion, death penalty, contraceptives, etc.) that are certainly not religious in nature. Such issues transcend religion and affect people on a personal level, although they most certainly have an impact on the beliefs and structures of religious institutions.

Instead of being a religious issue, Proposition 8 is about values--particularly, which values the people wish to support as the core foundation of their government and society. The greatest thing about a democracy is that it is government by and for the people. Thus, it is the people as a whole, and not any arbitrary individual (such as a king or dictator) or small group (such as an aristocracy) within the government, which dictates the values that the society is founded upon. We find these core values in all of our laws, from laws outlawing murder, statutory rape, and incest to laws supporting small businesses and gun owners. Although many of these issues are largely undisputed by the people, one does not have to look hard to find people who oppose most of (if not all of) America's laws in some form or fashion. I, for one, am adamantly against jaywalking laws. I find them silly and downright insulting to not only basic intelligence but to survival instincts as well. Yet, despite my abhorrence of such laws, they are in the books because a majority of citizens support such restrictions as a representation of their moral and political values.

Despite the fact that our government is a democracy, I have heard many opponents of Prop 8 accuse Prop 8 supporters of being un-American or supporting unconstitutional measures. Again, such could not be further from the truth. Proposition 8 supporters are simply defining the social and political values that govern the people through proper democratic channels. Thus, there is nothing more American than getting involved in defining the nation's political spectrum by voting for an issue--whether for or against. Although Prop 8 opponents may disagree with Prop 8 supporters on what California's political values should be, they are certainly no more American than the other side. In fact, by attempting to dissuade people from getting involved by arguing that such a process is unconstitutional, such individuals are in fact the most undemocratic of them all. After all, democracy is based on an active political populace.

In explaining Proposition 8 to another individual (as I have done above), that person responded that Prop 8 was a "hate bill." Since then, I have heard people call Prop 8 supporters small-minded people, bigots, and "intolerant" people. Such statements have bothered me both because they did not resonate with my own personal experiences and because they seemed to oversimplify a complex topic.

Proposition 8 is not a hate bill simply because it adversely affects homosexuals. Although "gay-bashers" and homosexual haters support Proposition 8 because of their hatred, such a simple fact does not make the bill a hate bill. Similarly, just because persons who hate children and babies vote for abortion does not make abortion laws "hate laws." There are many Prop 8 supporters, myself included, who have no ill-feelings towards homosexuals and yet believe that the social values embedded in Prop 8 should be upheld. It is unfair to assume that hate groups and non-hate groups are one and the same simply because they happen to vote the same way. American history has proven time and time again that persons can vote the same way on an issue despite having different goals and purposes.

It is truly possible to care about, love, and support gay and lesbian individuals and still oppose gay marriage. Although the analogy isn't perfect, it is similar to saying that an individual can care about, love, and support alcoholics and still support the prohibition of alcoholic drinks. Just because an individual believes in specific social values does not mean that he hates or is even intolerant of people whose actions counter those values. One can oppose certain actions without hating the actor. It is a question of supporting (or opposing) specific social values and not of hating or being intolerant of another individual.

The reason I believe that this topic is so important is that we seem to live in a society that denigrates groups or individuals who have conservative social values simply because they do not embrace the values of other people. Such "moral conservatives" are labeled as intolerant and are branded haters and bigots. Yet it is the most fundamental of rights for each person to follow the dictates of their own conscience on social and political issues and to vote accordingly. Just because a person supports differing values from another does not make that person intolerant or small-minded. Instead, it makes the person branding such people small-minded because that person fails to consider that an individual can evaluate the situation as a whole and still decide to support "conservative" values. Perhaps conservative voters believe that a society that embraces all values is simply a society without any values.

It should be noted that morally conservative individuals can also get caught in the trap of believing in their own moral superiority. This in turn can lead to mockery of their opponents that is just as detrimental to the political system. Moral conservatives truly become intolerant when they define an individual based on their differing social values and adversely judge the individual based on those values. Such a process is not only unfair but transforms the issue from one of defining social values to one of discrimination and persecution.

Conclusion

My goal here is not to persuade any individual to vote one way or another on the subject of Prop 8 specifically or gay marriage in general. Just as it is a difficult decision for myself, I expect that each person is going to wrestle with their own conscience and decide what they feel is best for their state and/or country. My hope is that this process can be done without hate or avarice on either side. When our forefathers created a democratic nation, they did so knowing that the success of this nation would hinge on the public voting in an informed and enlightened manner. Decisions based on hate are rarely, if ever, good decisions. Instead, let us reason one with another and politic with humility, patience, and understanding. Let us greet disagreement as an opportunity to explain our position and not as an opportunity to bash or ridicule the opposing view. Let us share our positions and the facts supporting them. Let us remember that an individual who stands for something will always reach higher than an individual who merely mocks opposing individuals for their positions or beliefs. After all, the only truly small-minded person is the individual who assumes that another group or individual is small-minded simply because that group or person disagrees.