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So I guess gays can still get married now? Exciting!
Do you know an MP named Mark Holland? I'd never heard of him before today but according to this story he may be the reason that the bill got voted on in this session of the house and not postponed until the fall. See what he did was put together a petition of back bench MPs - both for and against the legislation - asking Martin to hold the vote NOW instead of LATER.
"The impact of the petition, I don't think should be underestimated. That firmed up [the PM's mind]. They did get some names of opponents on that petition and that sort of indicated that even the ones who support it have surrendered and they just need to get it past them, they need closure to go in their own ridings and they can go and say, 'Look, I fought the good fight. It's over and we have to move on,' " said the source in an interview, who pointed out that the petition was circulated to the backbenches and kept totally away from the ministers.
The petition was circulated on the weekend of June 18-19.
Prime Minister Paul Martin (LaSalle-Émard, Que.) on Thursday, June 16 after the Cabinet meeting was non-committal that Bill C-38 would be passed in the current session of Parliament. But on Monday, June 20, in an abrupt shift, he said in a radio interview in Vancouver that extending the current session is one of the available options and one that the Liberals will "look at seriously." Later on in the week, Liberals delivered on their promise and in a vote on Thursday evening, the current session of the House was extended.
So: hooray for you, Mr Holland. Well done.
Meanwhile, Stephen Harper continues to be an idiot:
“There will be a chance to revisit this in a future Parliament,” Mr. Harper said. “Our intention is to have a free vote.”
The next paragraph in the article that I'm quoting from confirms my love for the CBC.
How Mr. Harper might handle the issue is unclear since almost every provincial and territorial government has made gay marriage legal.
Furthermore, it's not clear how Harper might handle the issue given that in 2003 57% of Canadians said that same sex marriage does not threaten the institution of marriage. Moreover, in a more recent poll we learn that the people who are opposed to same-sex marriage tend to be rural people or older people. Younger Canadians and urban Canadians tend to be in favour. More polls here
Consider that Harper pretty much has the ageing rural vote tied right up and that the thing that he needs to do to win the government is to make in-roads into places like Ontario. Attention Stephen: YOU ARE PICKING THE WRONG ISSUE. PLEASE CONTINUE.
Meanwhile, Ralph Klien in Alberta is figuring out what he can do to avoid actually following these rules.
He said using the notwithstanding clause isn't an option because the definition of marriage is a federal jurisdiction, but says there may be other things they can do.
Conservative MLA Ted Morton has proposed the province withdraw from sanctioning all marriages, instead registering civil unions and leaving marriage to religious orders.
So, uh, good luck with that in Alberta. And congratulations to the border towns in BC and Saskatchewan that will no doubt soon be doing a rip-roaring business in providing lavish gay weddings that will be legally recognized in Alberta.
Also, after a quick scan of my friends' page, I have determined that my group of friends is not nearly diverse enough. Every single post is a variation on "gays allowed to get married: Hooray!"
Do you know an MP named Mark Holland? I'd never heard of him before today but according to this story he may be the reason that the bill got voted on in this session of the house and not postponed until the fall. See what he did was put together a petition of back bench MPs - both for and against the legislation - asking Martin to hold the vote NOW instead of LATER.
"The impact of the petition, I don't think should be underestimated. That firmed up [the PM's mind]. They did get some names of opponents on that petition and that sort of indicated that even the ones who support it have surrendered and they just need to get it past them, they need closure to go in their own ridings and they can go and say, 'Look, I fought the good fight. It's over and we have to move on,' " said the source in an interview, who pointed out that the petition was circulated to the backbenches and kept totally away from the ministers.
The petition was circulated on the weekend of June 18-19.
Prime Minister Paul Martin (LaSalle-Émard, Que.) on Thursday, June 16 after the Cabinet meeting was non-committal that Bill C-38 would be passed in the current session of Parliament. But on Monday, June 20, in an abrupt shift, he said in a radio interview in Vancouver that extending the current session is one of the available options and one that the Liberals will "look at seriously." Later on in the week, Liberals delivered on their promise and in a vote on Thursday evening, the current session of the House was extended.
So: hooray for you, Mr Holland. Well done.
Meanwhile, Stephen Harper continues to be an idiot:
“There will be a chance to revisit this in a future Parliament,” Mr. Harper said. “Our intention is to have a free vote.”
The next paragraph in the article that I'm quoting from confirms my love for the CBC.
How Mr. Harper might handle the issue is unclear since almost every provincial and territorial government has made gay marriage legal.
Furthermore, it's not clear how Harper might handle the issue given that in 2003 57% of Canadians said that same sex marriage does not threaten the institution of marriage. Moreover, in a more recent poll we learn that the people who are opposed to same-sex marriage tend to be rural people or older people. Younger Canadians and urban Canadians tend to be in favour. More polls here
Consider that Harper pretty much has the ageing rural vote tied right up and that the thing that he needs to do to win the government is to make in-roads into places like Ontario. Attention Stephen: YOU ARE PICKING THE WRONG ISSUE. PLEASE CONTINUE.
Meanwhile, Ralph Klien in Alberta is figuring out what he can do to avoid actually following these rules.
He said using the notwithstanding clause isn't an option because the definition of marriage is a federal jurisdiction, but says there may be other things they can do.
Conservative MLA Ted Morton has proposed the province withdraw from sanctioning all marriages, instead registering civil unions and leaving marriage to religious orders.
So, uh, good luck with that in Alberta. And congratulations to the border towns in BC and Saskatchewan that will no doubt soon be doing a rip-roaring business in providing lavish gay weddings that will be legally recognized in Alberta.
Also, after a quick scan of my friends' page, I have determined that my group of friends is not nearly diverse enough. Every single post is a variation on "gays allowed to get married: Hooray!"