Gay Marriage; Good for Divorce Lawyers
Historically
Marriage, originally, was not about love. It was about Bloodline. It was about perpetuating a Tribe.
A spouse was selected, based on specific criterion; tribe, religion, wealth, etc. Love had nothing to do with it, having children who carried specific genetic material was the purpose of marriage.
If a woman could not bear children she would be supplanted by a woman who could. This is why in many societies a man could have more than one wife.
Marriage was also a method to merge factions. The King of X would marry the Queen of Y and their children unify the domain.
It was not about love.
The Death of 'Till Death do Ye Part"
In 1912 there were very few divorces. There was something shameful about divorce. Marriage was, in about 95% of cases, until Death ye do Part.
Sure there was adultery, abuse, hatred, but socially, this was Mr & Mrs and such a union was permanent.
In the Western world, there were problems with ownership of property. This led to various laws dealing with 'matrimonial property' and giving women some kind of rights (even limited rights) over their own property.
These laws are not as protective as those in other Contracts. The paragraphs of a marriage contract, the rights and penalties are more difficult to establish.
Many people learn this as over 1/2 of all marriages in the Western world end in divorce. Many acrimonious.
Enter The Divorce Lawyer
One hundred years ago, the same lawyers who drafted Wills and bought and sold property, would do a stray divorce during their career.
With the proliferation of failed marriages, with the increase in divorces came the rise of the most lucrative realm of law; the Divorce Lawyer.
Divorce is so common today that if you consider your family, your friends, people you know, the enduring marriage is rare.
Today, the likelihood of the marriage celebrated yesterday lasting until death, is about 35%.
The number of people living together in 'common law' unions has increased dramatically. 'Shacking up' is no longer a secret, nor 'shameful', whether you look at Hollywood or your neighbours.
So Why?
Why are Common Law Marriages So Popular?
Some participants have been married before and aren't going through that circus again. Divorce is messy, painful, and often leaves deep emotional scars. There are arguments over the dog, the car, who gets what when. There are battles over whether this is part of 'family property' or belongs to one of the spouses; on and on.
There are issues concerning just about everything, making the process of being Divorced long and tedious and acrimonious.
Being able to pack up and walk away without involving lawyers and courts and a
battalion of functionaries makes 'shacking up' desirable, save and except that the same property arguments exist once one is the 'common law spouse' and there is property to divide.
Many people avoid relationships. They want independence, they want to control their own property. They never want to find themselves 'trapped' in legal quicksand.
Some have created their own 'contracts' so that at parting, everything is already worked out.
Often a standard 'Partnership' agreement as exists in business is utilized. Done this way, there is no need for argument or for any third party to step in.
Divorce lawyers have been pro active in creating per-nuptial agreements. With less people getting married there are less divorces. Lawyers have to make up the short fall somehow. So the pre-nup is another money spinner.
And then, as a gift from their Fairy God Mother, comes Gay Marriage.
Logically
As previously discussed, the foundation of Marriage, was never love, it was the bloodline. Who is related to whom, for the purpose of inheritance.
Wanting a piece of paper which creates imperfect legal rights of the union only benefits divorce lawyers, for the majority of Gay Marriages, as all other marriages, will end in divorce.
Having Same Sex marriages picks up the slack left by heterosexuals who eschew marriage.
Considering many Gays will marry to marry, to prove that point, to wave that flag, one can not be surprised at how many such marriages will not survive a year.
It is really wiser to enter a contract then a marriage.
In this way, the property is already apportioned, there is no need for a public spectacle. Just as the relationship was private, the separation is private.
Contracts
Besides the Partnership Agreement, there are 'personal service' contracts.
These contracts are drawn up between managers and celebrities; be they in sports or the theatre. They are created whenever a person requires a specific other person to perform particular tasks they do not want delegated.
These contracts are actionable, contain termination provisions, as well as whatever specific acts are required. They are legal, and if necessary, can be adjudicated simply and easily.
If I hire you to train my horse, I can specify I want you, and you alone, not an associate, to train my horse.
Your severance package must be clear and the reasons for termination permitted.
You can demand certain benefits, health, vacation, sick days, etc.
Once that contract is signed, our relationship is guided by those rules. And our relationship lasts as long as desired.
Look at Meeeee!!!!
There are those Gays who want Gay Marriage not to cement a relationship, not to recognise a long standing connection, but sadly to annoy the hell out of straight people.
It has nothing to do with love, with protection, with relationships, for everything that is needed can be done without using the word marriage.
In fact, more protection is guaranteed between two people who enter into a personal services contract than in any marriage as explained in the paragraph above.
Past to Present
In the 1950s, people so deep in the closet they were behind grandma's bedspread, formed contracts which were so powerful no one could break them.
The 'loyal' man or maid servant who gained the estate was never seen as the lover of the deceased.
He or She was never attacked, never had to defend anything. That the relationship was not the Lord of the Manor and his trusty Butler, but lovers, was no one's business.
This is the way it should be, keeping one's sex life private.
Expect wedding planners and those involved in the marriage industry, who have felt glum due to the decline in marriages buying their second Benz next year as the influx of Gays boosts their business.
And of course, divorce lawyers are now ordering their Lear jets.