We have been friends for a long time and I am certain that as you wrote this, you had no doubts as to what my position on this issue would be. Even before you read my post. I think you know me well enough.

I am curious to see how the fallout from this round of political bickering affects the statewide campaigns which will start later this year, for the 2010 elections. It has certainly stirred up emotions and intellects here in Iowa – with a healthy bit of (long overdue) review now underway into how law is made, the role of the different branches of government, how checks and balances work, and why judicial review is different from legislating. This is generally good for everyone, for it has great learning value, despite the somewhat sordid underlying subject matter. Very interesting times!

On some level, I really don’t care about the legal definition of marriage in Iowa because marriage, as a concept, already transcends legal definitions and it certainly transcends Iowa. At least for me it does – I know a married couple when I see one, and I don’t need to review their marriage license or sort thru the codifications of whatever geopolitical area they happen to occupy.

Despite the court’s opinion and the controversy surrounding it, we currently have no law in Iowa making exceptions as to what marriage is. While that may change in the future, will it really matter? I guess it will if your view of marriage is that of a materialistic contract between two people which is simply the basis for allocating goods.

My own view is that marriage is already defined by human history based on a religious covenant, and while you may bastardize a word and you may bastardize a law, you almost certainly cannot bastardize what marriage actually is. Even if the legislature wrote it into law or the people somehow voted it in on a referendum, the cloak of legality doesn’t change what’s underneath. If sodomy were suddenly legalized on the books, it would remain sodomy. Similarly, if smoking pot was made legal, it would still be smoking pot. But that is another battle, for another day.

Wow – I was just going to say “Hi” and “Thanks”. You’ve coaxed another entire post out of me here in the comments. This is one of the reasons I like you so much. All the best from the land of tall corn!

Iowa’s state motto is “Our liberties we prize, and our rights we will maintain.” A few points of pride: Iowa public schools were desegregated nearly a century ahead of 1954′s Brown vs. the Board of Education of Topeka. The state was the first to admit a woman to the bar, in 1869 — three years before the Supreme Court ruled that states could deny women the right to practice law.

I wonder how those laws were perceived at the time. I’m sure that they made a few people feel uncomfortable.

Here’s a suggestion that I’ve recommended to a gay couple who are dear friends of my husband and me. We happen to know them from our church.

Jordan House: This stately Victorian home was built in 1850 and added to in 1870 by the first white settler in West Des Moines, James C. Jordan. Completely refurbished, this mansion was once part of the Underground Railroad and today houses 16 period rooms, a railroad museum, West Des Moines community history and a museum dedicated to the Underground Railroad in Iowa.

I think that straight folks would enjoy it, too.

2) Maquoketa caves. Great park with lots of trails and caves to explore. Beautiful all year round.

3) Loess Hills in the SW corner.

There’s three more.

Best,

- Zane