Freedom From Opinion

Freedom From Opinion

rushmoreAs I’m always heavily focused on removing government’s dirty tentacles, my theme of personal liberty is likely not too shocking. However, my choice of national discussion might be. The issue that positions itself as the first roadblock to a better country is, in my humble opinion, gay marriage.

 

What I once considered to be a political red herring, a divisive topic that allowed politicians to throw out some cheap rhetoric and continue their freedom robbing ways under cover of darkness, I’ve now decided is actually the key to freeing American politics. It relates to my piece last week. Ultimately, Americans think they are right. Whether they hate homosexuality, embrace it, or empathize with it, they think that everyone else in the country NEEDS to feel the same way. And, of course, when Americans need to force their beliefs on others, they turn to the government.

 

So why’s it so important? Gay marriage is the linchpin of American political compromise. This has become THE issue of a generation. Each side is entrenched, lines have been drawn in the sand; to lose this issue would signal a loss for their way of life. The left cannot move forward until there is marriage equality; it stands as the single largest injustice present and supported in society through legislation. The right cannot allow the slippage as it will certainly bring down the unrelenting wrath of god. So while tax loopholes breed new tax loopholes, undeclared wars rage around the world, and elected representatives are hated by everyone, we are all stuck in a homosexual tango to the death.

 

Sidebar – People need to stop seeing the government as a tool to force their beliefs on others. Each side needs to recognize that their beliefs, while 100% right, do not need to be law.

 

And now: to speak directly to religious zealots. If you can understand a simple chart or graph, then you will see that your numbers are failing you. I’m sure your god is great and all powerful and all, but apparently he only votes once like the rest of us. You can still muster a majority vote in most elections if enough people get excited, but just barely, and it’s no longer a guarantee. So rather than use up the last of your power to prevent a few more gays from marrying for a few more years, let’s start using that brain that god gave you. You need to start removing powers from government so it can’t take away your religious freedoms in a few short years (when you will be a minority).

Think about the possible futures you are preparing for. How easy would it be for the Great Satan (literal( Beelzebub) or figurative (Obama) your choice) to convince the godless heathen majorities that raising a child in religion is considered abuse? After all, teaching a poor, innocent child that God and the bible are fact will warp her ability to understand the world (studies already show this). Absurd you say? Sure. But when did absurdity prevent government regulation. If the government still has its endless power at that time, then it can outlaw that form of child abuse, just like all the others. And who wants to be holding up signs supporting child abuse? This is just one (likely) example handpicked from dozens, if not hundreds, of future battles that await a religious minority.

The writing is on the wall (that’s a biblical reference, so you can trust what I’m about to say). Dismantle the government you’ve helped build while there is still time. Remove the government power to enforce opinion with an overwhelming majority of support in the form of ostensibly legalizing gay marriage.  Ultimately we won’t be legalizing any marriage, but removing government from all marriages (the left doesn’t need to know, it’ll be our little secret).

 

While this post contains its fair share of levity, the fact is that there needs to be a shift in the argument. You will never convince a religious group to embrace homosexuality, and you will never convince the left to start stoning everyone attracted to the wrong gender. It’s time to put an end to the belief war and find some common ground in the realm of private opinion and freedom of belief.

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Jacob Morgan

Free until proven governed

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2 Responses to Freedom From Opinion

  1. I like how you framed your bigger issue here. You took a very volatile subject, marriage equality, and extrapolated it to it’s larger problem, scope of the government. I agree that this issue is a complete distraction and kabuki theater which riles up the blowhards, from both sides and does little to solve actual problems. It only serves to perpetuate a growing involvement of government in the lives of its people under the guise of “creating equality”. The real issue is that government continues it’s involvement into the lives of people where they have no real business doing so. They only muddy the waters. The only real reason government should ever be involved in any aspect of a private contract like marriage should be to be the arbiter when that contract needs to be voided, which is only done in a court room.

  2. I concur with Clinton. An excellent framing around a divisive issue. I agree that the best answer would be to get government out of marriage. And that sort of compromise could be a lot more effective in protecting religious freedom, instead of the high-intensity, high-stakes battle we have right now.

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