November 10, 2011

Doublespeak Titles

A strange bill will be considered today at 10 A. M. in the Senate Judiciary Committee - S. 598, which bears a doublespeak title, "Respect for Marriage Act". The bill's text is actually quite short, and has little about respect, but quite a lot about repealing the former "Defense of Marriage Act". Apparently, marriage is respectable, but indefensible. The bill goes on to ask each individual state to figure out just what marriage is, almost guaranteeing a furthering of the political battles that have ensued to answer such a question. This bill says little about respecting the deeply held religious beliefs of people who are quite certain about what marriage has been defined to be for millenia. Whatever happens to this bill, I expect the issue will remain a hot-button one for some time. I am very deeply concerned about the turn the debate has taken with the unexpectedly misleading title. Never judge a book by its cover. If you are as offended as I am by the deception being practiced in this title, contact your elected representatives.