Uh, oh...if BILL DONOHUE is throwing in the towel...

[brooklynite]

William Donohue, president of the New York-based Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights, applauded the archbishop’s “bold leadership.”

“If we lose on this, it won’t be because Archbishop Dolan wasn’t up to the fight,” said Donohue, who believed the religious-exemption language is the key to what happens in the New York state Senate.

“If the pro-marriage side gets their way, with the religious protections built into the law, then I think it will probably be passed. But our side holds the cards to some extent. We have to get what we want in terms of religious insulation from the state. It would be a partial victory for us, but not sufficient,” added Donohue, during an interview.

Read more: http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/new-york-awaits-same-sex-marriage-decision/#ixzz1Q89sH74o

[ejpoeta]

1. churches have never had to marry anyone. when i got married, the church wasn't required to perform

the ceremony. why would they be required to for a gay couple? i don't understand why they want to make it sound like they would be when they aren't now!

[gratuitous]

2. Donohue's trying to salvage something. Anything

Of course the nugget he's parading around was never in danger, but it makes little Billy feel good about himself. There's a part of me that says, "Let the baby have his bottle," but since Donohue will try to leverage this "victory" into more donations for his bigoted self, I'm more inclined to portray him as King Shit of Turd Island.

[Pisces]

4. They want protection from lawsuits if they refuse to marry to gay people. They also want to appear

like they won something for their bigot followers. The Catholic Church refused to baptize my nephew because the mother was single, they made her take classes and go to confession as well as the godparents had to be Catholics in good standing. It was utter bullshit, and only fear makes people go through this much shaming.

[HockeyMom]

7. They don't have to marry divorced couples

How long has that been in effect. At least since the 50s, when my Aunt divorced. The are talking about stupid things like Knights of Columbus halls. Like what gay, Jewish, or athiest couple would want their reception in a K of C Hall. Get real people.

[ejpoeta]

10. it is bullshit. i know they don't marry people who aren't members of their church.

at least when my sister got married. i got married by a judge. i refuse to participate with a church. i got married at my aunt's cottage during a family reunion. my uncle is a minister. in the buffet line before the ceremony i overheard a kid asking why there was a judge and making a comment about it and i turned around and put my two cents in since i was the bride and all after i didn't like what they were saying. churches as far as i know have always had leway to refuse to marry anyone they didn't want to perform ceremonies for. they just want to push their bullshit on everyone else. i don't like when people do that.

my kids aren't baptized either. fuck that. i had a friend who insisted her kid wouldn't get into heaven if he wasn't baptized. i asked her how that could be if all kids are considered innocent until they are 7. she couldn't explain that one to me. brainwashed. uggh. how can a baby who can't even talk be entered into a religion? how can they accept anything?

[arcane1]

5. They like to blur the distinction between "marriage" and "wedding"

Deliberately, of course!

[ImNotTed]

9. Same goes for Sweden & Canada

[Vinnie From Indy]

3. Donohue must have gotten weary of blaming the victims in the

Catholic preist global sex scandals.


"The victim, and others in similar positions, are dehumanized when Donohue writes "those looking to sue the Catholic Church for being inappropriately rubbed decades ago are not exactly the poster boys for the victims of child rape."

Yes, you read that correctly. The victims "are not exactly the poster boys for the victims of child rape." Are there any members in this supposed league of Catholics who are offended by this? If not, why not?

Donohue further distorts the situation by equating those who wish to sue the church because of the trauma inflicted upon them, with the strawman non-argument, "those who hate the Church continue to use the term child rape as a way of discrediting the Church. They lie about this being a pedophilia problem and they lie about the nature of the misconduct. That’s reason enough to call them on it."

[HockeyMom]

6. Plus, how many legally married gay couples are there RIGHT NOW

in NYS, since it was adjudicated in 2008 that all gay couples married in states, and countries, where gay marriage was legal would also be recognized as legally married in NYS. I've seen it happening with my daughter's friends going to Connecticut to marry and then coming back to live in legally wedded bliss in New York State. I suppose Cardinal Dolan doesn't want to talk about THAT because he couldn't do a damned thing about it.

[dsc]

8. the proposed exemptions go way beyond

simple refusal to marry. They want the right to deny benefits and the right to refuse to place children in same sex homes while getting money from the state.

[DevonRex]

12. Thanks for that info. It's important.

If those restrictions are in the final bill do you still favor passage and then hope changes can be made later on?

[dsc]

13. I don't think it is my place to make that decision

since I don't live there, but that said, I think waiting for a clean bill would be the better idea since they can get married in CT now, comeback to NY, and have full legal recognition. Given that dynamic a small wait to get full equality seems not a terrible price to pay. But again, they are the ones who need to make the decision.

[DevonRex]

15. Good point. Thanks again. Nt

[Dawson Leery]

11. The defender of child molesters has surrendered!

[DefenseLawyer]

14. Those weren't children

They were young, homosexual sexual predators whose victims were poor, helpless priests!