A Total Non-Issue

You've got to hand it to our President, King of Smoke and Mirrors. He has proven yet again that his political acumen has developed serious glaucoma and has no clue as what to do about it.

This Monday the President formally reassumes his position behind an amendment to the U.S. Constitution that bans same-sex marriage. His exact words were, "The union of a man and woman in marriage is the most enduring and important human institution. For ages, in every culture, human beings have understood that marriage is critical to the well-being of families. And because families pass along values and shape character, marriage is also critical to the health of society. Our policies should aim to strengthen families, not undermine them. And changing the definition of marriage would undermine the family structure. America is a free society which limits the role of government in the lives of our citizens. In this country, people are free to choose how they live their lives."

First of all, some bouts with his words. If people are free to choose how they live their lives, why can't they choose to commit to another partner that they love and respect and want to share their life with? And a society which limits the role of government in the lives of our citizens? Puh-lease. How does interjecting the government into a personal issue like this limit their influence in our lives? If you read his whole speech, you'll find holes galore that I won't waste time with now, from activist judges to treating citizens with respect and dignity. But as exemplified by the passage above, what a waste of oxygen those sentences were.

The President, in making this vague, short-sighted appeal to gut-reaction conservative politics, has successfully ignored or glossed over issues that truly are "critical to the health of society." You want to help our society? Great. Then let's talk about poverty-reduction, the war in Iraq, debt reduction for both the nation and our citizens' personal finances. Immigration reform, public health, even terrorism deserve to be the recipient of such lengthy discussion and support from our primary leader. But instead, he wastes his political capital, already so diluted, on this issue which is hardly critical to the future of the United States as a society. If you truly desire to solve the critical problems, Mr. President, it's time to focus on real issues, not pander to your mutinous political base. This grandstanding display of pseudo-authority is not fooling anyone.