Were it not for how stupid some Americans are this pairing of words as a political issue would never have seen the light of day.
But Karl Rove knows an issue to enrage his ignorant but rabid Christian Right base when he sees one.
Exit polling at the 2004 Presidential election produced the following not surprising factoid: moral issues were second or third on voters' lists. Moral values meant that you violently disapproved of allowing "gay marriage." What sleaze these Republicans are for having gay marriage seen as an important moral decision.
Well, perhaps marriage by definition is a union of a man and a woman for the purpose of having children via sexual procreation and raising them to the age of majority. Then couples who are infertile should not be considered married. Couples whose children are adopted are not married.
But perhaps the dictionary definition of marriage is not the point. Marriage is clearly a religious institution and it is as equally a secular legal institution. And of course, in some cases, there are marriages that are either religious and not civil or that are civil and not religious. Let's examine marriage from those perspectives.
Perhaps marriage is a religious union, sanctioned by a church, synagogue, mosque, or other formal religious institution. In that case, government has no business making laws that benefit married couples, like tax breaks, or automatic participation in the probate of an estate.
Perhaps marriage is a civil institution, granting certain privileges to such legal partnerships, and imposing severe penalties for its breakup. In which case, religion has no place complaining and government has no right prohibiting certain marital unions based on religious scruples.
Perhaps Gays could start their own church. It's not hard: ask Tom Cruise and John Travolta for advice. Who CARES if the straight (read: Christian) world thinks you are married; as long as the government does not mess with your rights.