Gay marriage legalized in Britain.

[The Right Honourable Mlle Antéchrist]

High five, England/Wales!

[lord gibbon]

I say, a jolly good work, Britain. keep slogging on against the tide of hate toward the future.

[MadCatTLX]

The futile fundie tears will flow like rivers of mead in the halls of Valhalla.

There aren't really that many fundies in the UK. I remember one guy telling me that you're considered crazy if you go around praying in public.

Here, if you don't believe in a dirt man, rib woman, talking snake, humans riding dinosaurs, and a god that fathered himself to sacrifice himself to himself to get you forgivin from himself, the call you the crazy one

[PosthumanHeresy]

So, could one of our UK members explain why not Scotland?

[The Right Honourable Mlle Antéchrist]

Separate Parliaments, I believe.

[dpareja]

Separate Parliaments, I believe.

Technically not, the Scottish Parliament has only what powers the UK Parliament wants it to have.

[dpareja]

Separate Parliaments, I believe.

Technically not, the Scots Parliament has only what powers the UK Parliament wants it to have.

[Jack Mann]

Previously only civil unions had been allowed and religious organisations still have the right to refuse to do a gay wedding.

Personally I agree with that last bit. No need to force this on religious organisations, besides plenty of them already allow it and if the others change their policies it is better that the change comes from within than being forced by the goverment.

I don't think I've ever met anyone who felt churches should be required to hold gay weddings if it's against their religion.  No more than we require, say, a Roman Catholic Church to officiate over Mormon weddings.  The only people who talk about churches being forced to officiate are fundies looking for reasons to be upset.

And yeah, England tends to be more level-headed, religiously.  They're even further gone off the deep end when it comes to alternative medicine and other such nonsense, though.

[Askold]

I don't think I've ever met anyone who felt churches should be required to hold gay weddings if it's against their religion. 

Actually, neither have I.

But every single time that gay marriage is discussed you can be sure that someone from the opposition will claim that this would happen. They've been saying it in Finland, they've been saying it in USA (I bet we could find a dozen examples from the mainpage) and I'm pretty sure the same argument has been brought up in UK.

[Stormwarden]

Congrats to England and Wales, for taking a step in the right direction.

[Diamandahagan]

Scotland and Northern Ireland have separate laws on marriage.Its a bit like differences between states (but with no federal marriage law equivalent). Northern Ireland will either take 25 years to legalise it or their gonna have to be forced somehow. The place doesn't deserve the level of autonomy it has.

[PosthumanHeresy]

Thanks for all the explanations. Really helped! ^_^_^_^

[Katsuro]

Northern Ireland will either take 25 years to legalise it or their gonna have to be forced somehow. The place doesn't deserve the level of autonomy it has.

Yeah but it was basically either that or continue blowing eachother up.  What would you rather the British government had done?

Having grown up in Northern Ireland during the "blow eachother up" phase I think re-instating the Northern Irish Assembly was preferable, as much as I despise most Assembly members.  So far my house has yet to be shaken by another bomb blast, no husband of my mother's work friends have lost anymore body parts from people putting bombs under their cars for no reason other than they were a cop and no more children from the schools I went to have been shot dead for the crime of having a catholic friend.  So that's progress.  We may not have reached the 21st century yet but we'll get their some day.  Probably when everyone else is in the 25th century.

I am serious by the way, those were the two options.  There was a 3rd option - unify Ireland and give Northern Ireland back to the Republic but I don't think I need to explain why that would have been a disaster that would have caused the deaths of thousands of people.

[wrightway]

Northern Ireland will either take 25 years to legalise it or their gonna have to be forced somehow. The place doesn't deserve the level of autonomy it has.

Yeah but it was basically either that or continue blowing eachother up.  What would you rather the British government had done?

Having grown up in Northern Ireland during the "blow eachother up" phase I think re-instating the Northern Irish Assembly was preferable, as much as I despise most Assembly members.  So far my house has yet to be shaken by another bomb blast, no husband of my mother's work friends have lost anymore body parts from people putting bombs under their cars for no reason other than they were a cop and no more children from the schools I went to have been shot dead for the crime of having a catholic friend.  So that's progress.  We may not have reached the 21st century yet but we'll get their some day.  Probably when everyone else is in the 25th century.

I am serious by the way, those were the two options.  There was a 3rd option - unify Ireland and give Northern Ireland back to the Republic but I don't think I need to explain why that would have been a disaster that would have caused the deaths of thousands of people.

It really was that bad? My ex always claimed his bio-parents gave him up because of the violence in Ireland in the late 80s. I chalked it up to wishful thinking. Now...not so sure.

[Diamandahagan]

Northern Ireland will either take 25 years to legalise it or their gonna have to be forced somehow. The place doesn't deserve the level of autonomy it has.

Yeah but it was basically either that or continue blowing eachother up.  What would you rather the British government had done?

Having grown up in Northern Ireland during the "blow eachother up" phase I think re-instating the Northern Irish Assembly was preferable, as much as I despise most Assembly members.  So far my house has yet to be shaken by another bomb blast, no husband of my mother's work friends have lost anymore body parts from people putting bombs under their cars for no reason other than they were a cop and no more children from the schools I went to have been shot dead for the crime of having a catholic friend.  So that's progress.  We may not have reached the 21st century yet but we'll get their some day.  Probably when everyone else is in the 25th century.

I am serious by the way, those were the two options.  There was a 3rd option - unify Ireland and give Northern Ireland back to the Republic but I don't think I need to explain why that would have been a disaster that would have caused the deaths of thousands of people.

'Back to the Republic'? It was never part of the Republic of Ireland.

Honestly as its part of the UK right now Id rather it was mostly ruled from Westminster and had much less choice over what it does. I'm Northern Irish too. Born and raised in Derry.