Plaintiff’s attorney David Boies finished destroying the second defense witness of Wednesday.
David Blankenhorn, the president and founder of the Institute for American Values, testified that procreation is central to marriage. Boies used some of Blankenhorn’s own writings that were favorable to same-sex marriage to discredit his testimony. He has called same-sex marriage a “victory for the worthy ideas of tolerance and inclusion,” and an “expansion of the American idea.”
Boies asked Blankenhorn about married couples that do not have sex. Blankenhorn said that he had never met one.
He claimed that more same-sex marriages would lead to more one-parent households. He did not explain why, unless he doesn’t count both gay or lesbian parents.
He said, “the rights of gays and lesbians should take second place to the needs of an existing social institution.” So an idea (traditional marriage) is more important than people and their rights.
The judge adjourned the trial. He gave both sides until Feb. 26 to file additional documents. He’ll schedule closing arguments at that time, and the trial is on hiatus until then.
Prop 8 trial rests
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I know several married couples that are unable to conceive. I know a married asexual (look it up) couple that enjoy being with each other yet never engage in sex. I know far more married couples that never intend on having kids because it would cramp their lifestyle. Should these people have not been allowed to wed?
The more I read about this trial the more I realize that the Prop 8 and anti-gay marriage stance in general is built upon logical fallacy, after logical fallacy. How many times have they invoked argumentum ad populum for the tyranny of the majority in defense?
From everything I read, the plaintiffs left out several arguments about marriage and procreation.
What about elderly couples that marry? My father married at the age of 63. His wife was a few years older. Why wasn’t procreation an issue in their marriage? Some couples are unable to conceive. Are their marriages suspect? Other couples use, if you’ll excuse the express, birth control and decide not to have children. Are their marriage licenses revoked? And what about couples who are abusive parents and Child Protective Services has to remove the children from the home? Those couples may receive prison time, but the loving gay or lesbian couple that may end up caring for those children and putting them through college doesn’t get the tax breaks, pension and myriad other rights and benefits that the criminal, yet still-married, heterosexual couple get.
What they did do was completely discredit the witness and showed that even the best witness the Prop. 8 defense could find thought gyas and lesbians who were married were better off.