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"One of these things is not like the others,
One of these things just doesn't belong,
Can you tell which thing is not like the others
By the time I finish my song?"

Is there really a difference between "marriage" and "civil unions"? A rose by any other name is still a rose, after all. Unfortunately, there is a HUGE difference between the two when it comes to the gay couples receiving these "civil union" pacifiers. Most legal contracts say "marriage" explicitly when it comes to defining who has rights regarding estates, health care, et cetera. A partner joined by "civil union" would, unfortunately, not be granted many of the rights that a couple joined in marriage would. This small but important detail affects everything from income to taxes to health insurance to "Do Not Resusciate" orders and living wills.

In issuing a "civil union" the government is trying to placate the gay & lesbian community, but they are still not giving us our full rights and freedoms as granted to other citizens, our rights to pursue "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." They are, in short, giving us something that is "separate but equal" (or so they say). Does that ring a bell for anyone? We all saw how well "separate but equal" turned out the first time around. It's not "equal" at all, by any stretch of the imagination.

We'll not settle for civil unions - we want the full deal, complete with cake, rice, and "till death do us part!" Or as a friend of mine likes to say, "Let gay people marry so they can be broke and miserable like the rest of us."

For more information about this very important issue, check out FreedomtoMarry.org or the Human Rights Campaign (www.hrc.org).

("One of These Things" Words & Music by Joe Raposo and Jon Stone)

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