There's nothing like that nutty 14th Amendment! When it comes to misinterpreting the language of the Constitution, no clause is more misconstrued than the 14th Aamendment's provision that all states shall supposedly provide equal "protection under the law."

For decades, that wording, clear as it is, has been misread to mean "equal treatment". So, from there, people see that government is involved in marriages and they want equal treatment under the law. As folks who believe in fairness, it's likely that most libertarians would like to see all people treated equally by the state. But the trouble is that all state functions come through legally sanctioned theft and threats of imprisonment for non-payment. So we take it a step further, and we, as people who believe in liberty, say, "Why should you get the government involved in marriage in the first place?" Why argue about what the gubment will do or not do, what special privelege it will give, and to whom? Why not STOP it from taking money from some people in order to grease the legal gears for others over things like visitation, inheritance, and more? Why not recognize that state-sanctioned marriage in the US is a vestige of attempts by some people in the 1800's to stop black and white people from marrying? Why not let people be free to NOT pay for the marriage license bureaucracy, and let people who want to "marry" do so in front of their friends and, if they choose, their God, rather than the almighty State?

Jeez.Take a look at this LA Times segment:

"Justice Anthony Kennedy, speaking for the 5-4 majority, said DOMA was unconstitutional because it violated the right to liberty and to equal protection for gay couples.

"By seeking to displace this protection and treating those persons as living in marriages less respected than others, the federal statute" violates the Constitution, he said"

See? He doesn't even get what's written in the Constitution he swears to uphold. And why he sees ANY marriage as important for the coercive power of the State to handle, one can never know.

Linkola: http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-pn-doma-supreme-court-ruling-201...

Don't ever think that a Justice is brighter or more honest than you -- or your favorite pet.