Angela Merkel says gay couples should not call their unions ‘marriage’

[RandySF]

German chancellor Angela Merkel, has said that while she agrees same-sex couples should get marital benefits, she does not believe a civil partnership should be called marriage.

Merkel, who earlier this year ruled out same-sex marriage in Germany, has now said legally she supports it but that she would want it to be called something else.

The chancellor answered questions in an online community from German YouTube star Florian Mundt, known as LeFloid on the website, as part of the ‘Gut Leben’ [good living] campaign.

“I’m someone who is very supportive of us eliminating all discrimination.” She said when asked for her stance on marriage equality.
“We have come a long way; when I remember, 25 years ago, many people didn’t dare to say that they are gay or lesbian. Luckily we overcame this; you can enter a partnership, a civil partnership.” Merkel said.

“For me, personally, marriage is a man and a woman living together. That is my concept, but I support civil partnerships.” She continued. “I support us not discriminating against them when it comes to taxes, and to remove any other discrimination wherever we may find it.”



https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2015/07/14/angela-merkel-says-gay-couples-should-not-call-their-unions-marriage/

[dballance]

1. Just another reason I dislike Merkel. /nt

[truebrit71]

28. Yup.

..

[merrily]

2. I guess she doesn't get what discrimination means.

[Aerows]

3. Well she can fuck off then. n/t

[hollysmom]

4. I don't think she should call herself Angela - that doesn't sound like a German name -

If she can tell people what to call parts of themselves, so can I

[LuvNewcastle]

5. I hope she gets another backrub from Dubya.

Why do some heterosexuals think that their relationships are so much more special than other people's relationships? That is fucking arrogant as hell.

[Live and Learn]

6. "That is my concept!" Well that seals the deal then. We should all abide by her concept.

(Didn't want to leave the tag out!)

[Spitfire of ATJ]

7. Why do I think she's Christian?

And why the HELL do Christians believe they INVENTED marriage? They act like they OWN it. Like it didn't even EXIST until they came along and everyone needs their PERMISSION to get married.

Newsflash: People were getting married LONG before Christianity in every culture around the world.

[jtuck004]

8. This is one that had all that good advice for how Greece ought to behave too.

What is it about a country that makes them want to march around the world telling everyone what to do? That isn't the first time, I don't think.

I am aware this is an ironic statement coming from this side of the ocean. That is why it looks so familiar.

[tomm2thumbs]

9. she'll be eating her words in time

I just hope it doesn't look like this

[romanic]

22. Too early in the morning for this.

Now I lost my appetite for breakfast. Yuck.

[951-Riverside]

10. The ideals that created the 3rd Reich in Germany did not come out of no-where or vanished in 1945

It still exists and its still festering in Germany.

Adolf Hitler was a manifestation of the German people just like the Stasi state that came after it. "Chancellor" Angela Merkel is a modern manifestation and anyone who can tell a crying little girl to her face that shes not welcome to Germany is evil, period.

[icymist]

11. Does that go with people with German ancestry?

Lot's of those in the US. Just wondering.

[dembotoz]

13. Like ,,.............. Me

[icymist]

15. Me too.

Frankly, I'm proud of my gggGranfather who was involved with Winsfield Scot and the invasion of Mexico form the sea! I even have a diary that mentions him several time in this conquest! Be proud!

[951-Riverside]

14. Interesting that you mention that because Texas which is one of the most anti Mexican immigrant...

gun toting racist states in the union just happens to have a massive German population.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_Texan

http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-22490560

[icymist]

16. How in the world is this type of statement supposed to bring about peace?

I don't get it.

[geek tragedy]

19. So obvious. nt

[renegade000]

25. oh for the love of...

Neither did the ideals that created the Weimar Republic or helped fuel the Revolutions of 1848.

Yes, I think Merkel has been a stubborn dickhead as of late. But can we have a bit more historical and sociological sophistication than: I don't like them => Hitler (bonus points if they're German).

If anything, to make such bold statements of what is or is not "the national character" or the "manifestation of the people," is a tremendous oversimplification of how complex society is, to say nothing of the fact that it is the sort of stereotypic-thinking that ostensibly we're trying to avoid as liberals/progressives/etc.

[icymist]

12. Now hold on everyone!

Angela Merkel is where we were just 12 - 14 years ago! Let's be patient with Germany as we have the bravery to do the equal marriage first! Or well, before others.

[Bluenorthwest]

17. 12-14? More like 3-4. Face it in the 2008 election every single one of the

Democratic contenders expressed the exact same crap as Merkel does here. Obama, Clinton, Biden, all of them. Kerry did it when he was running, John Edwards did it while he was running and having extra marital affairs. The bulk of DU favored civil unions at that time and said things like 'be pragmatic and take half a loaf'.

[icymist]

20. I'm just saying to be patient with the foreign government.

Give them a little leeway, until they get it right. After all, Gay Marriage didn't happen in the US overnight! I'm just saying to let Germany do the Gay Marriage thing on their own. They will do it, I'm sure of it!

[gollygee]

26. We still have a lot of "take their ball and go home" folks

who say that no one should have what we know as marriage and everyone should have a civil union. And we have a brand new crop of people who have started saying that no one should have a state marriage and marriages should only be performed by churches, a decision they apparently came to very recently as that one didn't come up before marriage rights were extended.

I agree that the US isn't very far beyond this.

[geek tragedy]

18. Sounds like Barack Obama until 2011-2012 nt

[PoliticAverse]

27. Sounds like Obama and Clinton until Job Biden gaffed them both into support. n/t

[Monk06]

21. Playing to Vlad 'the gasman' Putin ?

[SidDithers]

23. She's wrong...nt

Sid

[Nye Bevan]

24. She sounds almost exactly like President Obama prior to 2012.

I hope that she evolves on this issue just as he did.