GAY MARRIAGE IN NEW YORK-- SPITZER MOVES IT UP A NOTCH

In the last couple of days DWT had two posts about gays people moving towards equality, on involving New Hampshire and one involving Washington. Today's New York Times says New York's governor, Eliot Spitzer, wants to go further than either.

Gov. Eliot Spitzer will introduce a bill in the coming weeks to legalize same-sex marriage in New York, his spokeswoman said Friday, a move that would propel New York to the forefront of one of the most contentious issues in politics.

New York would join Massachusetts in marriage equality if the bill passes. Connecticut is considering similar legislation. But that's a big "if." Both the Assembly and the Senate in New York are run by corrupt, entrenched reactionaries, one old line Democrat, Sheldon Silver, and one Republican, Joey Bruno. The chances of a gay marriage bill passing this year are next to nothing. But gay activists are relieved that there is real opportunity to move forward with the kind of social discussion that will lead to progress.

Having always considered the gay lifestyle kind of an outlaw thing-- I can't help it; the first I ever heard from "gay" was by Rechy and Genet-- two of the lowest things on my list of personal priorities were marriage and joining a military. But, having recovered from Rechy and Genet, I fully support anyone who wants to get in either of those battles to be able to do so. In fact, I thought today it might be appropriate to mention that since "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" was enacted in 1993, 10,870 gay men and lesbians have been discharged from the military under its provisions. On a less bleak note, Out Magazine reports that 73% of military men claim to be comfortable with gays.