Amazing.

Just fucking amazing.

Perhaps out of fear of earning the moniker “The Gay State,” Massachusetts lawmakers passed a 105 to 92 vote to amend the state constitution to prevent same sex marriages and establish instead the nation’s second ‘civil union’ (Vermont was the first in 2000). Previous to this decision, gay marriages were scheduled to become legal in Massachusetts on May 17th as a result of a previous Supreme Judicial Court ruling that anything else is ‘unconstitutional.’ Somehow, this new legislature supercedes the ruling of the state’s highest court…

…Or does it? Gov. Mitt Romney doesn’t seem to know. He called on the State Supreme Judicial Court to delay the May 17th deadline, because this new legislature has created a ‘conflict.’ His opinion is that the public should make the decision, and that opportunity won’t present itself until the legislation is voted upon in a public ballot in November 2006. Romney has been a less-than-subtle opponent of gay marriage from the get-go. He is also a known jackass.

Tom Reilly, on behalf of the state’s highest court, has said that the May 17th imposition will go on as planned. This means that, new legislation or no, gay marriage becomes legal on May 17th — at least for a time. What then, will happen to those same sex couples who are married between May 17th and the proposed November 2006 vote? Will their union be anulled? Converted to a civil union? Maybe they’ll be publicly stoned or hanged as an example to the rest of us. Heck, maybe the vote will come, the amendment voted down, and the marriages accepted. Anything is possible.

By the way, the proposed ‘Civil Union’ will supposedly afford same sex couples “entirely the same benefits, rights, privileges, and obligations as a re afforded to married persons.” Also according to the same language in the amendment, “under present federal law, same-sex persons in civil unions will be denied federal benefits available to married persons.” hmm….