Prop 8 overturned

As you've no doubt read by now, a federal judge on the California Supreme Court has ruled that Proposition 8 - which "banned" gay marriage in the state after it had been previously legalized - was a violation of the U.S. Constitution, specifically the due-process and equal-protection clauses. The case was heard via a legal challenge filed by lawyers Ted Olson and David Boies, a liberal and a conservative who teamed-up specifically to bring Prop8 down. Funny story about that: Do those names together sound familiar? Well, they were opposing counsels in Bush v. Gore in 2000. There's a movie in there somewhere...

Says the ruling: "Proposition 8 fails to advance any rational basis in singling out gay men and lesbians for denial of a marriage license. Indeed the evidence shows Proposition 8 does nothing more than enshrine in the California constitution the notion that opposite sex couples are superior to same sex couples."

The ruling, crucially, does not automatically "reinstate" the original legality of gay marriage in the state, and the decision will almost-definitely be appealed or otherwise challenged. So on to the Supreme Court we go. Anthony "Swing Justice" Kennedy is about to have a VERY full inbox.

In any case, a landmark Civil Rights decision and unquestionably reason to celebrate for gay marriage supporters - unless of course you're a Democrat up for re-election. See, they're having a HORRIBLE night because they know that the innevitable homophobic backlash is going to give Republicans a big adrenaline shot. It'll also play BIG with the "Tea Party" because it's a textbook example of Big Government overturning the will of The People... or, rather, that's what it might look like if you're the sort of person who regards cosplaying as Sam Adams and shouting about Kenyan birth-certificates at a largely-disorganized protest rally as being roughly-equivalent to a Constitutional Law degree ;)

Incidentally, if there ARE any "Tea" folks reading this who're feeling the pangs of righteous anger about this for whatever this week's variation on "I don't hate gays but _______" rational is; perhaps you ought take to heart these words from your movement's Patron Saint. No, not the snowbound hillbilly, the other one:

"Individual rights are not subject to a public vote: a majority has no right to vote away the rights of a minority. The political function of rights is precisely to protect minorities from oppression by majorities : and the smallest minority on earth is the individual." --Ayn Rand