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I wouldn't assume that liberals march lockstep for gay marriage - in fact, it's obvious that the left is split on gay marriage - as printed in the Times last week: even in liberal NYC, almost 35 percent of the population rejects gay marriage. In fact, if you look at the big names of the Democratic party, they all reject gay marriage, and poll after poll reveals deep splits: in MA, the only state that recognizes gay marriage, record numbers of voters signed petitions to get a state constitutional amendment banning gay marriage - only parlimentary mechinations kept the vote from coming to the table -good thing: if it did, supporters of gay marriage predicted they would lose. Personally I'm neither for or against gay marriage - I think this is a concern of middle class whites - the same people who have health insurance and lawyers to secure the protections for their lovers and familes - for poor gays, I can't imagine this is a big issue because it does little to help their every-day lives and is probably seen as a symbolic victory - important in the abstract, but, aside from a few protections, accomplishing little. I think this is a loser of a political issue, alienating liberals who still respect the institution of marriage as between a man and a woman, and no amount of revealing the double standard of failed hetro marriages will change what many see as a basic definition of the family. I would much more respect a movement to get the government out of the marriage business all together, and instead grant tax benefits and protections to head of households - I envision that any two people could define themselves in this manner, but that, of course, would never appeal to the polygamists - and this I think is what really scares the masses: how far are we willing to go in defining a family?
