Gay Civil Unions arrive in the UK

[afleitch]

Yes; next-of-kin status for people in longterm relationships is extremely important.

I agree, I believe this to be more important than the 'ceremony' itself. Property, pensions and next of kin rights are set down by the state and the state has chosen to extend them to same-sex couples. I am not a strong supporter of gay marriage as I know that it has far reaching political implications, but civil partnerships are a contract with the state, not with God.

[○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└]

yeah, the brits did better then their american counterparts in that respect.

You mean that quietly (and it was; sod all people knew it was going on, and less cared) passing legislation that made it possible for homosexual couples to register their relationship (and get next-of-kin rights/a few tax benefits to boot) was always more likely to be sucessful than a court going: "Gay Marriage is a CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT!!!!!! we've legalised it despite not being legislators BECAUSE WE ARE JUDGES AND ARE ALL POWERFUL!!!!!! and there's NOTHING THAT YOU FUNDIES CAN DO ABOUT IT!!!!!!111111 and then having the Mayor of San Francisco basically do the same... in an ELECTION YEAR?

Learn something new every day
And yeah, Howard is a sly one.

For all your SF bashing, the California state government legalized civil unions and no one really noticed. The legislature also passed gay marriage, but the OneTerminator decided to flip flop again on that issue, and vetoed them.

[WMS]

yeah, the brits did better then their american counterparts in that respect.

You mean that quietly (and it was; sod all people knew it was going on, and less cared) passing legislation that made it possible for homosexual couples to register their relationship (and get next-of-kin rights/a few tax benefits to boot) was always more likely to be sucessful than a court going: "Gay Marriage is a CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT!!!!!! we've legalised it despite not being legislators BECAUSE WE ARE JUDGES AND ARE ALL POWERFUL!!!!!! and there's NOTHING THAT YOU FUNDIES CAN DO ABOUT IT!!!!!!111111 and then having the Mayor of San Francisco basically do the same... in an ELECTION YEAR?

Learn something new every day
And yeah, Howard is a sly one.

Yes, that had to be the dumbest political move I've seen in many, many, years.

[○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└]

yeah, the brits did better then their american counterparts in that respect.

You mean that quietly (and it was; sod all people knew it was going on, and less cared) passing legislation that made it possible for homosexual couples to register their relationship (and get next-of-kin rights/a few tax benefits to boot) was always more likely to be sucessful than a court going: "Gay Marriage is a CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT!!!!!! we've legalised it despite not being legislators BECAUSE WE ARE JUDGES AND ARE ALL POWERFUL!!!!!! and there's NOTHING THAT YOU FUNDIES CAN DO ABOUT IT!!!!!!111111 and then having the Mayor of San Francisco basically do the same... in an ELECTION YEAR?

Learn something new every day
And yeah, Howard is a sly one.

Yes, that had to be the dumbest political move I've seen in many, many, years.

LOL, dozens of countries and states already have them. So those others weren't as dumb?

[afleitch]

San Francisco may even see a mini gay 'honeymoon' tourist boom

[WMS]

yeah, the brits did better then their american counterparts in that respect.

You mean that quietly (and it was; sod all people knew it was going on, and less cared) passing legislation that made it possible for homosexual couples to register their relationship (and get next-of-kin rights/a few tax benefits to boot) was always more likely to be sucessful than a court going: "Gay Marriage is a CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT!!!!!! we've legalised it despite not being legislators BECAUSE WE ARE JUDGES AND ARE ALL POWERFUL!!!!!! and there's NOTHING THAT YOU FUNDIES CAN DO ABOUT IT!!!!!!111111 and then having the Mayor of San Francisco basically do the same... in an ELECTION YEAR?

Learn something new every day
And yeah, Howard is a sly one.

Yes, that had to be the dumbest political move I've seen in many, many, years.

LOL, dozens of countries and states already have them. So those others weren't as dumb?

How are you enjoying Bush's second term, ferny?

And if you'd bother to get your head out of your Bezerklyite ass, you'd have caught Al's point that deliberately provoking a fight by trying to use the Supreme Court of one state to force gay marriage on everybody else might, just might, cause a counter-reaction. Or did you miss those states which, as a result of this, not only banned gay marriage but also civil unions? Not to mention how the entire gay marriage issue drew attention away from the far more important issue of gay rights.

You idiot leftists could have picked up on the fact that civil unions had by 2004 become the centrist position and run with it. If not to the Presidency, then at least to an expansion of civil rights. But you were far more concerned with attracting media attention than in actually doing something of value.

[afleitch]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/southern_counties/4505270.stm

A terminally ill man believed to be the first in Britain to "marry" his partner in a civil partnership has died just one day after the ceremony.
Matthew Roche, 46, who had lung cancer, and Christopher Cramp held their ceremony hours after the Civil Partnership Act became law on Monday.

The couple, from Brighton, were given special permission to go ahead before the normal 15-day waiting period.

[Jens]

Congratulations, Britain - and only 16 years later that us

[WMS]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/southern_counties/4505270.stm

A terminally ill man believed to be the first in Britain to "marry" his partner in a civil partnership has died just one day after the ceremony.
Matthew Roche, 46, who had lung cancer, and Christopher Cramp held their ceremony hours after the Civil Partnership Act became law on Monday.

The couple, from Brighton, were given special permission to go ahead before the normal 15-day waiting period.

Aww...pity he died. But good to see he got special permission.

[Serenity Now]

I'm suprised I don't hear much talk of it in Brighton, considering the Brighton & Hove district has applied for the most licences:

Brighton and Hove: 510
Westminster: 140
Manchester: 88
Newcastle: 80
Birmingham: 70
Leeds: 60
Edinburgh: 76
Sheffield: 58
Nottingham: 50
Glasgow: 30
Cardiff: 24
Belfast: 20
Liverpool 20
Londonderry: 6
Aberdeen: 5

[minionofmidas]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/southern_counties/4505270.stm

A terminally ill man believed to be the first in Britain to "marry" his partner in a civil partnership has died just one day after the ceremony.
Matthew Roche, 46, who had lung cancer, and Christopher Cramp held their ceremony hours after the Civil Partnership Act became law on Monday.

The couple, from Brighton, were given special permission to go ahead before the normal 15-day waiting period.

Aww...pity he died. But good to see he got special permission.

No No No, they're totally misreporting this story! He was totally healthy physically until he did this horrible thing, for which God instantly smote him to death.

[afleitch]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/southern_counties/4505270.stm

A terminally ill man believed to be the first in Britain to "marry" his partner in a civil partnership has died just one day after the ceremony.
Matthew Roche, 46, who had lung cancer, and Christopher Cramp held their ceremony hours after the Civil Partnership Act became law on Monday.

The couple, from Brighton, were given special permission to go ahead before the normal 15-day waiting period.

Aww...pity he died. But good to see he got special permission.

No No No, they're totally misreporting this story! He was totally healthy physically until he did this horrible thing, for which God instantly smote him to death.

I hope you're being sarchastic

[minionofmidas]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/southern_counties/4505270.stm

A terminally ill man believed to be the first in Britain to "marry" his partner in a civil partnership has died just one day after the ceremony.
Matthew Roche, 46, who had lung cancer, and Christopher Cramp held their ceremony hours after the Civil Partnership Act became law on Monday.

The couple, from Brighton, were given special permission to go ahead before the normal 15-day waiting period.

Aww...pity he died. But good to see he got special permission.

No No No, they're totally misreporting this story! He was totally healthy physically until he did this horrible thing, for which God instantly smote him to death.

I hope you're being sarchastic

No, I converted into an even sillier version of Hawkeye.

It's been a slow day...

[Peter]

I'm suprised I don't hear much talk of it in Brighton, considering the Brighton & Hove district has applied for the most licences:

Brighton and Hove: 510

As I understand it, Brighton Registry Offices will be opening at 12:01 am on the 21st in order to marry many of the couples as soon as legally possible.

[WMS]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/southern_counties/4505270.stm

A terminally ill man believed to be the first in Britain to "marry" his partner in a civil partnership has died just one day after the ceremony.
Matthew Roche, 46, who had lung cancer, and Christopher Cramp held their ceremony hours after the Civil Partnership Act became law on Monday.

The couple, from Brighton, were given special permission to go ahead before the normal 15-day waiting period.

Aww...pity he died. But good to see he got special permission.

No No No, they're totally misreporting this story! He was totally healthy physically until he did this horrible thing, for which God instantly smote him to death.

I hope you're being sarchastic

No, I converted into an even sillier version of Hawkeye.

It's been a slow day...

@ Lewis. The Fred Phelps News Network's style of coverage, I see...

That map jfern shows you why I have a very low opinion of Islam

Well, that's if you look at the Muslim countries in the Middle-East, except for Jordan and Turkey...

See that light-blue landlocked country bordered from the south by Algeria, and by the West with a dark red country? That is Mali, which is 90% Muslim. It is also a constitutional republic, a multi-party democracy, and has a 2,2 rating from Freedom house.

Of course, it would be nice to see the blue turn darker.

Iraq is light blue...

So much for the vaunted Pacific Islander tolerance.

And what's up with India, anyway?

[minionofmidas]

Iraq is light blue...

Probably a result of Saddam's anti-islamic baggage.

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Also, take a look at Jamaica. The smaller British ex-colonies in the Caribbean are too small to make out well. Cuba also had such laws until fairly recently IIRC.

You must be logged in to read this quote.

Seldom enforced. There are large gay communities in many major cities, especially in Bombay. But the issue simply has no resonance across the country - calling for a legalization would probably not cost you many votes, but wouldn't gain you any. (There's a poll of Bombayites, a couple years old, that says that almost 2/3 of the population would favor a repeal - and a large percentage was not aware the law existed. But Bombay is not India ... and I'm not sure about the methodology, ie this may really have been a poll of the westernized Bombay Middle Class rather than Bombayites at large.)

[freek]

So much for the vaunted Pacific Islander tolerance.

On most Pacific Islands the inhabitants are quite strict protestants, so it isn't that surprising.

[freek]

Congratulations, Britain - and only 16 years later that us

Why doesn't Denmark have same-sex marriages?

In Holland, same-sex unions were introduced 1998, and same-sex marriages shortly thereafter in 2001.

[WMS]

Iraq is light blue...

Probably a result of Saddam's anti-islamic baggage.

Don't know: not enough information, although I will point out Syria isn't blue and they're the bloody mirror image of Iraq.
But if true, that was only true up until 1991, then Saddam went all jihadist to shore up his regime.
From Wikipedia: Criminal code amended to include death penalty for homosexuality in 2001. The U.S. occupation restored the criminal code back to its original 1969 edition. As can be seen with gay rights in Iraq no provisions of the current Iraqi criminal code deal with homosexuality. However by the government has issued a decree allowing islamic laws.

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Also, take a look at Jamaica. The smaller British ex-colonies in the Caribbean are too small to make out well. Cuba also had such laws until fairly recently IIRC.[/quote]

What, Cuba, the Socialist paradise? That does fit in with their atrocious treatment of their citizens with AIDS. And it appears that Trinidad and Tobago is the yellowish 'Large Penalty' color while the rest of the Islands are the light bluish 'No Same-Sex Unions' color, except for one 'Same-Sex Unions' dot at the top...either St. Kitts & Nevis, or Antigua & Barbuda...wait, hold on, dig dig dig in Wikipedia, OK, not either of them, so it apears to be the French possessions there, because France has civil unions of a sort. Or maybe the Netherlands Antilles, for the same reason.

You must be logged in to read this quote.

Seldom enforced. There are large gay communities in many major cities, especially in Bombay. But the issue simply has no resonance across the country - calling for a legalization would probably not cost you many votes, but wouldn't gain you any. (There's a poll of Bombayites, a couple years old, that says that almost 2/3 of the population would favor a repeal - and a large percentage was not aware the law existed. But Bombay is not India ... and I'm not sure about the methodology, ie this may really have been a poll of the westernized Bombay Middle Class rather than Bombayites at large.)

[/quote]

Hmm, sounds like a mysterious and complex situation that you should look into.

So much for the vaunted Pacific Islander tolerance.

On most Pacific Islands the inhabitants are quite strict protestants, so it isn't that surprising.

Well, considering the traditional 'Look! They're all about loose sex!' attitude toward the Pacific Islanders, I find this ironic.

[Kevin]

As long as the UK doesn't make gay marrige legal I have no problem with what Parliment approved. Civil unions are ok if there left at just that.

[Jens]

Congratulations, Britain - and only 16 years later that us

Why doesn't Denmark have same-sex marriages?

In Holland, same-sex unions were introduced 1998, and same-sex marriages shortly thereafter in 2001.

It has been discused, and we had a rather amusing situation where the prime minister supported it while his own party, Venstre and especially the rightwing Danish People's Party was against. An quite influencial group in DPP is some wery rightwing Christian priests and they are not that different from rightwing christian American groups or your own Christian party SGP