“(California now) is the only state that has both an iron-clad constitutional ban on same-sex marriage and thousands of gay couples whose marriages have full constitutional protection.”

“Let’s stop hurling dismay at beauty pageant losers for a second, considering the fact that our own President seems to have left the gays out to float on a block of ice too. As we know, Obama used to be in favor of same-sex marriages, but then he changed that to a far more politically expedient middle-of-the-road stance, shifting his true feelings on the road to ambition. Meanwhile, he can’t exactly denounce the California Supreme Court’s decision to uphold Proposition 8, seeing as he’s now conveniently anti gay marriage himself, so he’s staying mum about it. And he doesn’t seem all that willing to reconsider the absurd ‘Don’t ask, don’t tell’ premise that still haunts gays in the military, despite gay activists begging him to abolish it now.”

“Obama has long been, as he says, a fierce advocate for gay equality. The Windy City Times has reported that he initially endorsed legalizing same-sex marriage when running for the Illinois State Senate in 1996. The most common rationale for his current passivity is that his plate is too full. But the president has so far shown an impressive inclination both to multitask and to argue passionately for bedrock American principles when he wants to. Relegating fundamental constitutional rights to the bottom of the pile until some to-be-determined future seems like a shell game.”

“I’m a recovering alcoholic and drug addict. I know that when I used to use and drink, that my mind situation was altered completely. Your caution goes out the window and you think, ‘Oh, well, we’ll gamble, we’ll have...’ and luckily, I was so lucky enough to not be HIV-infected.”