POLITICS: TODAY IN AMERICA - SAME SEX MARRIAGE, THE BIRTH RIGHT DEBATE & 9/11 MOSQUE

Today in America...

Same-sex marriage in California...

A United States appeals court made a ruling putting 'gay marriage' on hold while the case gets appealed. Earlier this month, California's Proposition 8 was overturned in the progressive fight to legalize same-sex marriage. The ruling to overturn Proposition 8 was a huge step in this civil rights movement for marriage equality. This ruling was the first time a federal Judge has deemed that this law was 'unconstitutional'. This ruling places a hold on gay marriage while the case is appealed and possibly heard in the Supreme Court.

Birth right?: So what if you were born in the USA..

The right wingers are at it again. The group that claims to protect the constitution far better than the liberals have been suggesting we tweak the 14th amendment just a little bit. Apparently some republicans (mainly down south) are trying to suggest we re-interpret the right every baby has when he or she is born on United States soil. This is their lame attempt to 'fight' illegal immigration. They recommend we rewrite the 14th amendment to exclude 'anchor babies'. These are babies who are born in the United States but their parents are illegal immigrants. When it comes to matter's of law, we have the literal interpretation and the spirit of the law. While the some of arguments in favor of this rewrite may seem logical, the spirit behind such a rewrite would significantly alter the whole concept of America. Considering if we trace everyones ancestry, we all came here illegally except native Americans. It's funny how 'the right' claims to hold on to and preserve the constitution until they find it inconvenient.

Mosque in America?: Freedom of religion? Who cares...

In New York, there's a continuous quarrel about building a mosque at the old Burlington Coat building location which happens to be around the block from ground zero. Unfortunately, some of our fellow citizens have a problem with a Mosque being built so close to 'ground zero'. Their paranoia has fueled significant mis-information on the exact location of the mosque. Most opponents of this mosque emphasis that the mosque will be AT ground zero, not true. The actual mosque (more of a community center really) is going to be blocks away. Furthermore, this mosque is going to be more like a YMCA than an actual mosque. More like a Jewish or a Christian recreation center. The planned Mosque, called "Cordoba House" will actually include a memorial to the lost ones of September 11, 2001. The Presidents comments from last friday were on point, the President stated, "As a citizen, and as president, I believe muslims have the same right to practice their religion as anyone else in this country..that includes the right to build a place of worship and a community center on private property in lower Manhattan in accordance with local laws and ordinances."

In the words of Keith Olbermann, "this is America Dammit" and freedom of religion is an important part of our Constitution that we just can't afford to mess with.