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I have never understood why, in this age of reason and compassion, there is even a debate about gay marriage. I personally have never even seen one single debatable point from those who oppose gay marriage. The following is a list of the "stronger" arguments I've seen against gay marriage, and why even these are patently absurd and discriminatory.

1) Marriage is a religious institution, and the Bible prohibits homosexuality.

This is the most common argument and also the biggest fallacy. Marriage is NOT a religious institution. It is part of secular law. If marriage were a religious institution, it would be recognized only by the couple's church and the couple's God. If marriage were a religious institution, married couples would not be allowed to visit their spouse in a "relatives-only" hospital room, they would not be able to file joint tax returns, they would not be able to enjoy the benefits of each other's insurance... there are countless secular laws and benefits attached to marriage. And if marriage were a religious institution, there would be no "going down to the courthouse" to get married. Perhaps marriage began as a religious institution, and perhaps it has a deep religious meaning to many married couples - but as long as marriage grants special standing and privileges in the eyes of secular law, then it is not just a "religious institution".

Furthermore, this country was founded with the principle of "separation of church and state" - in other words, we don't force our citizens to do the bidding of your god. Keeping marriage from a group of people on the basis of your religion spits in the face of our American ideals of freedom, and the right to live by any religion (or lack thereof) that you wish.

2) Marriage is for procreation and the continuation the species.

The implication here is that gay people shouldn't get married because they can't reproduce. But then surely the infertile or those who simply choose not to have children would be banned from marriage also. Yet I have never heard of a call for a constitutional amendment to ban infertile couples from being married.

3) Gay marriage opens the door for bestiality, pedophilia, and other "abnormal" behaviors.

This one boggles my mind the most. The implication is that homosexuality is 'abnormal' so it is a 'gateway drug', if you will, to other abnormal behaviors. But the strange thing is that advocating gay marriage isn't advocating anything even remotely similar to men marrying dogs. Gay marriage is about

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