Bush is taking the senate’s lead in renewing the debate over gay marriages. One of the common buzz-phrases used by the conservative president is that gay marriages would undermine the conventional family structure. Like Ford Pintos exploding on impact, it’s one of those things that can’t be proven right or wrong until it happens.
I decided to play devil’s advocate and think the way a conservative might think. I came up with an analogy that supports the “undermining family structure” line. It goes like this. If someone obtains a Ph.D. from a degree mill (which is not only unaccredited but completely unethical), and features it on his/her resume and uses it to obtain real employment, it has the effect of reducing the importance of someone’s valid Ph.D. One can even imagine a scenario where the phony Ph.D. wins job placement over a real Ph.D.! In the gay marriage side of the argument, health benefits, tax benefits, and insurance benefits are at stake instead of employment.
At first glance, this makes perfect sense, however, marriage is not nearly as impressive an accomplishment as getting a legitimate doctorate degree. Obtaining a doctorate is designed to be an arduous task, yet also designed to have huge benefits once completed, which is why people are willing to pay for a fake one. But because of our civil liberties (those we have left), it is not illegal to obtain a phony Ph.D. You might want one framed on your wall as a gag or something. No one’s calling for the legalization or validation of scumbag degree mills, not even the degree mills themselves! At the same time, any two morons off the street can get married in a few hours and reap all the benefits afforded by that marriage.
Anyway, as far as the Bush administration is concerned, my devil’s advocate argument is actually moot because it’s based on financials and ethics, not morals which is where they’re coming from.
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