Pentagon surveys troops on DADT (again)

[xoxoxoBruce]

Civilian clergy are licensed by the state to perform a civil ceremony along with the ceremony of their faith, and file the proper paperwork with the state.
Do military clergy have the same arrangement with civil authorities?

[Lamplighter]

The Bill for Federal protection in the workplace for gays, lesbians,
bisexuals and transgender passed out of Committee today !

The vote was bipartisan 15 to 7, with 4 Republicans.
...Hatch (UT), Murkowski (AK), Kirk (IL) voting in favor
The Bill is co-sponsored by Susan Collins (R-ME)

See my earlier post today, and a more recent article in the NY Times.

This Bill was originally introduced in the Senate in 2007.
Who can say the Senate is not a deliberative body.

[Lamplighter]

Back to the PA lawsuit (as posted above) ...

Philly.com
REGINA MEDINA
July 10, 2013
Kane won't defend Pa. in gay-marriage suit, sources say

Attorney General Kathleen Kane is expected to announce Thursday that
her office won't defend the state in a federal lawsuit
that challenges Pennsylvania's ban on gay marriage,
the Daily News has learned.
<snip>

Pennsylvania is the sole state in the Northeast without same-sex marriage or a civil-union statute.

But as in California's Prop 8, a third party could step forward to defend the lawsuit;
however, the USSC effectively ruled against them, based on a technicality of "standing"

[Lamplighter]

This is a major milestone... that started with the military.

National Public Radio
Eyder Peralta
8/19/13
3835

IRS Will Recognize All Legal Same-Sex Marriages

The U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service announced
on Thursday that when it comes to federal tax purposes, same-sex couples
who have legally married will be treated the same as straight married couples,
no matter what state they reside in now.

The move is one in a series from the Obama administration to come in compliance
with a Supreme Court decision invalidating a key provision of the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act.
"Today's ruling provides certainty and clear, coherent tax filing
guidance for all legally married same-sex couples nationwide,"
Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew said in a statement.
"It provides access to benefits, responsibilities and protections
under federal tax law that all Americans deserve. This ruling also assures
legally married same-sex couples that they can move freely throughout the country
knowing that their federal filing status will not change."

The IRS says couples can begin filing taxes as married in 2013,
and generally, same-sex couples could file amended returns for 2010, 2011 and 2012.

Talking heads are now saying that for people in states that do not recognize same sex marriages,
"it pays for people to travel to a state that does recognize same sex marriages to be married".

Once again, changes within the military have been forefront in changes within civilian life.

[Lamplighter]

When Jack Kennedy was running for President, he had to go to great lengths
to convince the public that as a Catholic, he would not let his personal, religious beliefs
interfere with his duties as President of the United States.
The public believed him and he was elected.

Now we have the Republican Governor of New Jersey, Chris Christy, doing just the opposite.
Christy has publicly said he is Catholic and does not personally believe in same sex marriage,
but is doing all that he can as Governor to stall, stop, and prohibit such marriages in NJ.


The Jersey Journal
Christopher Baxter/The Star-Ledger The Star-Ledger
10/11/13

N.J. judge denies Christie administration request to delay same-sex marriage

TRENTON — A state Superior Court judge today denied the Christie administration's
request to delay same-sex marriages in New Jersey beyond Oct. 21
while it appeals the matter to the state Supreme Court, saying that such a move
would infringe on couples' rights.

But the administration quickly responded by requesting the same delay
from the state Appellate Division instead, according to the state Attorney General's Office.
It is unclear when the court will consider the motion.

The administration intends to appeal the ruling directly to the state Supreme Court
to prevent the marriages, bypassing the normal procedure through the appellate courts.
In the meantime, it had asked Jacobson to delay marriages until the appeal was decided.

Both houses of the NJ legislature previously approved a Bill to make NJ law conform with the USSC decision.
It only needed Christy's signature to take effect.
But he followed his religious beliefs and tried to make it a public referendum.
Now Christy is using the mechanisms of the State to enforce his own religious beliefs.

I don't give a fig what this Republican Governor believes personally,
but as a presumed candidate for President in 2016 he should be held
to the same "Kennedy" standard.

[glatt]

I think the concern with Kennedy was that as President he wouldn't be subservient to the Pope.

I have no problem with politicians fighting for what they believe in. Let the voters know what you believe in and then they can chose to vote for you and your beliefs or not.

[Lamplighter]

Yes, I agree that was one of the facets in this issue ... the way it was stated in the press...
but there was a broader concern (Protestant prejudice) about what Kennedy would do as a Catholic President.

Here are some quotes from Wiki

At the 1956 Democratic National Convention, Kennedy was nominated
for Vice President on a ticket with presidential nominee Adlai Stevenson,
but finished second in the balloting to Senator Estes Kefauver of Tennessee.
Kennedy received national exposure from that episode;
his father thought it just as well that his son lost, due to the political debility
of his Catholicism and the strength of the Eisenhower ticket.

Kennedy visited a coal mine in West Virginia;
most miners and others in that predominantly conservative, Protestant state
were quite wary of Kennedy's Roman Catholicism.
His victory in West Virginia confirmed his broad popular appeal.

To address fears that his being Catholic would impact his decision-making,
he famously told the Greater Houston Ministerial Association on September 12, 1960,
"I am not the Catholic candidate for President.
I am the Democratic Party candidate for President who also happens to be a Catholic.
I do not speak for my Church on public matters – and the Church does not speak for me."[48]

Kennedy questioned rhetorically whether one-quarter of Americans were relegated
to second-class citizenship just because they were Catholic, and once stated that,
"No one asked me my religion [serving the Navy] in the South Pacific."