In mid-November a gay commentator said that same-sex marriage is a ‘bare-faced state power grab’, and not ‘some warm fluffy equality bunny’.
Paddy Manning, writing in the Irish Daily Mirror, said that with gay marriage the state remakes the institution as: ‘an anything-goes irrelevant partnership agreement between adults’. In addition, same-sex marriage: ‘asks us to ignore reality and children’s rights’.
He was taking part in a newspaper debate after it was revealed the Republic of Ireland is to hold a referendum on the issue in 2015.
Don’t ignore reality
Mr Manning commented: ‘I’m a gay man, I’m not a victim and I reject this notion that traditional marriage should be drastically altered for some fantasy.’ He said that civil partnerships are sufficient and that Ireland is: ‘a very different place for us now’.
Mr Manning, who is a blogger and campaigner, remarked: ‘Claiming that equality demands that men and women be as interchangeable as Lego blocks shows you don’t understand men and women, marriage or much else. We can ignore reality all we want but the outcomes for children are not the same across all family models. Marriage of a man and a woman gives children the best chance.’
Writing in favour of a redefinition of marriage in the newspaper debate was Tiernan Brady, Policy Director at the Gay and Lesbian Equality Network.
