Washington '12: Getting Stoned at our Gay Weddings

[CultureKing]

Are there any conservative democrats expected to vote against the bill?

I could see one of my representatives (Fred Finn) voting against it.

[Meeker]

Fred Finn is a sponsor of the bill.

These are the only Democrats who weren't sponsors:

Rep. Tim Probst (17th LD)
Rep. Brian Blake (19th LD)
Rep. Tami Green (28th LD)
Rep. Troy Kelley (28th LD)
Rep. Steve Kirby (29th LD)
Rep. Mark Miloscia (30th LD)
Rep. Chris Hurst (31st LD)

Green has since said she supports the bill. Haven't heard about the others.

[Grad Students are the Worst]

Passes 55-43

[Grad Students are the Worst]

Rep. Tim Probst (17th LD) - Aye
Rep. Brian Blake (19th LD) - Aye
Rep. Tami Green (28th LD) - Aye
Rep. Troy Kelley (28th LD) - Aye
Rep. Steve Kirby (29th LD) - Nay
Rep. Mark Miloscia (30th LD) - Nay
Rep. Chris Hurst (31st LD) - Nay

Steve Kirby fail.

Anderson and Walsh were the Republican "aye"s

[Meeker]

The vote from Kirby warrants a primary challenger IMO. Miloscia also may have just cost himself the election for State Auditor.

[Grad Students are the Worst]

The vote from Kirby warrants a primary challenger IMO. Miloscia also may have just cost himself the election for State Auditor.

Kirby's new district is pretty anti-gay.

Miloscia's opposition is sincere, but he's still pretty un-charming about it.

[greenforest32]

The vote from Kirby warrants a primary challenger IMO. Miloscia also may have just cost himself the election for State Auditor.

Are primary challenges effective in states with open/top-two primaries?

[Χahar]

"Traditional marriage...goes back to when life started."

- Rep. Jan Angel (R-Port Orchard)

do people over the age of 50 not have access to wikipedia?

I suppose you could claim that if you believe that traditional marriage was created by God at the same time that life was created, or something.

[Meeker]

The vote from Kirby warrants a primary challenger IMO. Miloscia also may have just cost himself the election for State Auditor.

Are primary challenges effective in states with open/top-two primaries?

It happened to a Democratic State Senator in 2010. The district was significantly more Democratic than Kirby's new district though.

[greenforest32]

Rep. Maureen Walsh (R-Human Decency, somewhere near Walla Walla) just gave one hell of a personal speech.  I'm sure it will be on YouTube sometime soon.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CbmbdWK6338

[bgwah]

Rep. Maureen Walsh (R-Human Decency, somewhere near Walla Walla) just gave one hell of a personal speech.  I'm sure it will be on YouTube sometime soon.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CbmbdWK6338

Nice speech.

She beat a Constitution Party candidate 78-22 in 2010. It will be interesting to see what happens this year.

[MilesC56]

Rep. Maureen Walsh (R-Human Decency, somewhere near Walla Walla) just gave one hell of a personal speech.  I'm sure it will be on YouTube sometime soon.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CbmbdWK6338

Nice speech.

She beat a Constitution Party candidate 78-22 in 2010. It will be interesting to see what happens this year.

I think she changed my mind.

[Governor Scott]

Rep. Maureen Walsh (R-Human Decency, somewhere near Walla Walla) just gave one hell of a personal speech.  I'm sure it will be on YouTube sometime soon.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CbmbdWK6338

Nice speech.

She beat a Constitution Party candidate 78-22 in 2010. It will be interesting to see what happens this year.

I think she changed my mind.

Yay!  One more for equality!

[bgwah]

Watching the anti-gay speeches has actually made me support gay marriage more, if that's possible. I cannot believe how bad their arguments are.

[Grad Students are the Worst]

Watching the anti-gay speeches has actually made me support gay marriage more, if that's possible. I cannot believe how bad their arguments are.

It was amazing how long Rodne could talk legalese while rehashing some of the worst arguments I've ever heard.  It's sad to see an obviously intelligent person so obviously set on not even thinking directly about his own argument.

The rest of it fit two categories: 1) People complaining about pre-existing anti-discrimination statutes that will not be affected; 2) People whose idea of "religious liberties" is evidently their freedom to enforce their own religious views on all people through government.  Not a charming bunch.

[bgwah]

Watching the anti-gay speeches has actually made me support gay marriage more, if that's possible. I cannot believe how bad their arguments are.

It was amazing how long Rodne could talk legalese while rehashing some of the worst arguments I've ever heard.  It's sad to see an obviously intelligent person so obviously set on not even thinking directly about his own argument.

The rest of it fit two categories: 1) People complaining about pre-existing anti-discrimination statutes that will not be affected; 2) People whose idea of "religious liberties" is evidently their freedom to enforce their own religious views on all people through government.  Not a charming bunch.

And one of them is a front runner for the GOP Presidential nomination... Depressing.

[ModerateCoward]

I'm proud of the Walla Walla critter that voted yes. Not so much for the rest of Eastern Washington.

[realisticidealist]

I'm genuinely undecided on how I'll vote on this come referendum time. This is the first time I've genuinely felt apathetic about a state legalizing gay marriage.

[bgwah]

I'm genuinely undecided on how I'll vote on this come referendum time. This is the first time I've genuinely felt apathetic about a state legalizing gay marriage.

Please don't turn into a Santorum supporting, anti-gay marriage theocrat. It's been really sad to watch your political transformation... You're smarter than this.

[realisticidealist]

I'm genuinely undecided on how I'll vote on this come referendum time. This is the first time I've genuinely felt apathetic about a state legalizing gay marriage.

Please don't turn into a Santorum supporting, anti-gay marriage theocrat. It's been really sad to watch your political transformation... You're smarter than this.

I guess I'll probably vote for gay marriage because I can't think of any good reason not to (though I can think of a lot of bad, visceral, vindictive reasons not to), and I don't think I could possibly face a gay person and tell them they don't deserve the chance to get married. I'd like to think I'm not that heartless.

I just won't feel as good about it as I'd like, and that saddens me.

[President Marokai]

I'm genuinely undecided on how I'll vote on this come referendum time. This is the first time I've genuinely felt apathetic about a state legalizing gay marriage.

Please don't turn into a Santorum supporting, anti-gay marriage theocrat. It's been really sad to watch your political transformation... You're smarter than this.

I guess I'll probably vote for gay marriage because I can't think of any good reason not to (though I can think of a lot of bad, visceral, vindictive reasons not to), and I don't think I could possibly face a gay person and tell them they don't deserve the chance to get married. I'd like to think I'm not that heartless.

I just won't feel as good about it as I'd like, and that saddens me.

What a strange way to view this issue. You seem as if you're desperately waiting on any excuse to vote against it, but you just can't find one.

[bgwah]

I'm genuinely undecided on how I'll vote on this come referendum time. This is the first time I've genuinely felt apathetic about a state legalizing gay marriage.

Please don't turn into a Santorum supporting, anti-gay marriage theocrat. It's been really sad to watch your political transformation... You're smarter than this.

I guess I'll probably vote for gay marriage because I can't think of any good reason not to (though I can think of a lot of bad, visceral, vindictive reasons not to), and I don't think I could possibly face a gay person and tell them they don't deserve the chance to get married. I'd like to think I'm not that heartless.

I just won't feel as good about it as I'd like, and that saddens me.

Is your new-found religion really making you feel this bad for supporting basic human rights? I hate to budge into something so personal, but perhaps you didn't pick the right church for you...

[realisticidealist]

I'm genuinely undecided on how I'll vote on this come referendum time. This is the first time I've genuinely felt apathetic about a state legalizing gay marriage.

Please don't turn into a Santorum supporting, anti-gay marriage theocrat. It's been really sad to watch your political transformation... You're smarter than this.

I guess I'll probably vote for gay marriage because I can't think of any good reason not to (though I can think of a lot of bad, visceral, vindictive reasons not to), and I don't think I could possibly face a gay person and tell them they don't deserve the chance to get married. I'd like to think I'm not that heartless.

I just won't feel as good about it as I'd like, and that saddens me.

Is your new-found religion really making you feel this bad for supporting basic human rights? I hate to budge into something so personal, but perhaps you didn't pick the right church for you...

It's not religion so much as socialization. I don't know...I used to be more passionate about this issue than any other. I used to think exactly the same way as the rest of you guys. But now, I've trained myself to not care because it's the only way to reconcile these two competing interests. I think the way we look at marriage is wrong. I don't think marriage is itself a right per se; I don't like when people say that because I think it demeans marriage. I think marriage is the definition of a privilege and an honor that you must earn, not something that you're entitled to, and perhaps the textual nature of the discourse has allowed me to create artificial reasons to numb myself.

Everything about my ideology should scream for gay marriage to be allowed to those who earn it. I know that I'm being hypocritical otherwise. I've tried to avoid this topic for months, but I don't think I can anymore. I see my emptiness, and I'm ashamed.

I guess gay marriage is the one major issue I don't align with the Catholic Church on. I just need to accept that.

[asexual trans victimologist]

Rep. Maureen Walsh (R-Human Decency, somewhere near Walla Walla) just gave one hell of a personal speech.  I'm sure it will be on YouTube sometime soon.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CbmbdWK6338

Nice speech.

She beat a Constitution Party candidate 78-22 in 2010. It will be interesting to see what happens this year.

I think she changed my mind.

Hurrah! Welcome to the team, Miles.

realisticidealist, if you'd like to talk to me about this, odds are I'll understand the lay of the land with regards to your feelings on this--as somebody who's had a lot of the questions that you're talking about but who feels that he's reconciled them in a way that seems to work.

[Seattle]

Rep. Maureen Walsh (R-Human Decency, somewhere near Walla Walla) just gave one hell of a personal speech.  I'm sure it will be on YouTube sometime soon.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CbmbdWK6338

That was a great speech! The part at the beginning is really touching and certainly a great argument for gay marriage as well.