Ball no longer in Supreme Court; set sights on 2010
Posted May 27, 2009 at 9:08 am in Opinion
It’s déjà vu, all over again.
This morning, amid the bustle of Obama’s Supreme Court justice nomination, as rumors flew fast and hard surrounding North Korea’s so-called missile testing, and gossip mills were abuzz in the aftermath of Monday night’s explosive “Jon & Kate Plus 8” episode (only in America are we so fascinated with offspring in multiples of eight), Proposition 8 was upheld.
When Prop 8 originally passed, having garnered the support of 52 percent of California’s voters, protestors (the other 48 percent) reacted apoplectically across the country. There was something similar in the tableau outside the California Supreme Court in San Francisco Tuesday morning, as peals of boos and cries of condemnation swept the crowd.
Attempts to hold the court responsible are misguided, however, as it was the court of public opinion that faltered in November, jilting many Californians out of a once-constitutional right.
While the spirit of the times seems to be concentrating its retaliatory oomph on the court that ratified the voters’ decision, or the governor who upheld this ratification, ultimately, the responsibility comes to rest with those who did (or didn’t vote) Nov. 4.
Enthusiasm and fervor can only carry a movement so far — if Californians don’t consummate their ardency with a checked box, they have no one to blame but themselves. In the end, the supporters of Prop 8 were more dedicated than the opponents, and the vote swayed to “Yes.”
Pundits say the issue of gay marriage might make another appearance on California ballots as soon as 2010, at which point we can only hope the California voters’ blasé attitude toward constitutional rights has changed.
The time to protest the court’s decision is through; opponents of Prop 8 should instead focus on regrouping for an inevitable rematch, at which time we can only hope they will be better prepared to gather votes — not just gusto.
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