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Gay Marriage Response

SkepticalScience

Thinker
S
Joined
Jul 2, 2003
Messages
225
Hello all. . .

I was wondering how to respond to the following question, "Why shouldn't you let a brother and sister be married who really love each other? Or a man and his dog? Or a 21 year old and a 6 year old?"

I'm trying to see all sides of this debate, and was wondering what a logical response to that question would be.

Thanks!
 
The 6 year old is a child, the dog can not consent, etc.

How about, why can't I marry my boat? I really really love it. And so does my wife. Yeah why can't the 3 of us be united in matrimony?
 
fishbob said:
The 6 year old is a child, the dog can not consent, etc.

How about, why can't I marry my boat? I really really love it. And so does my wife. Yeah why can't the 3 of us be united in matrimony?
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That boat doesn't love you. We've been having an affair for months.
 
I will give benefit of doubt...

Two concenting adults is so obviously different than an adult marrying a 6 year old or a dog that I question your mental faculties.

Understand? Concenting adults?

Denying a segment of the population any benefits that the general population enjoys--whatever those benefits are--barring felons--is called discrimination.

You can agree with that or not.
 
The 6 year old is a child, the dog can not consent, etc.


So what about the brother and sister though??

I can almost argue both ways regarding this issue. . . at one level, it does seem akin to supression of interracial marriages. But i can't seem to validate that for brother and sister marraiges.

PLEASE HELP!
 
Yea, thanks for the benefit of the doubt. . .

I really don't know which way to go on this. . .

Intuitivley, I am for it. . . but I just can't seem to wrap my head around the brother sister argument.
 
SkepticalScience said:
Hello all. . .

I was wondering how to respond to the following question, "Why shouldn't you let a brother and sister be married who really love each other? Or a man and his dog? Or a 21 year old and a 6 year old?"
Click to expand...


Have you every tried, "Because they are wrong." ???
 
SkepticalScience said:
Yea, thanks for the benefit of the doubt. . .

I really don't know which way to go on this. . .

Intuitivley, I am for it. . . but I just can't seem to wrap my head around the brother sister argument.
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That's because the brother/sister argument, and incest in general, points to inappropriate boundaries from an early age. Incest is a sign of some sort of abusive upbringing.
There have been some cultures that allowed for childhood experimentation amongst siblings, but there also existed other societal controls to deal with it later on.
 
Simply saying "they are wrong" isn't the kind of response I am looking for Luke. (Who am I to say what is right and wrong?)

Corbin. . .what I am asking is, would you approve a brother and sister pair who wanted to be married? What if they were your children?
 
Re: Re: Gay Marriage Response

Luke T. said:


Have you every tried, "Because they are wrong." ???
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That's a non-answer. You have to explain WHY it is wrong.
 
"That's because the brother/sister argument, and incest in general, points to inappropriate boundaries from an early age."

But whose to say that it is inappropriate? Why is being gay any more appropriate than being attracted to your sister?

So, my question for you . . .is if both of your kids wated to get married, at say age 28, would you be against it? If so, why?
 
SkepticalScience said:
"That's because the brother/sister argument, and incest in general, points to inappropriate boundaries from an early age."

But whose to say that it is inappropriate? Why is being gay any more appropriate than being attracted to your sister?

So, my question for you . . .is if both of your kids wated to get married, at say age 28, would you be against it? If so, why?
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Depends...the point that I make about the brother/sister issue is that it points to a sexualized upbringing, which is psychologically damaging, according to people smarter than me.
 
Corbin. . .what I am asking is, would you approve a brother and sister pair who wanted to be married?
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I would not give my conscent because I think it's a bit icky, as Zero suggests. But why ask me? You need to form your own opinions. Would you approve?
 
SkepticalScience said:
Hello all. . .

I was wondering how to respond to the following question, "Why shouldn't you let a brother and sister be married who really love each other? Or a man and his dog? Or a 21 year old and a 6 year old?"

I'm trying to see all sides of this debate, and was wondering what a logical response to that question would be.

Thanks!
Click to expand...

Well your second two examples are simply because neither party can really be consenting as one is a child and one is an adult, and both involve abuse of roles of power and authority.

Why shouldn't a brother and sister be allowed to marry. That is a harder one. People, especially children, should feel comfortable and safe in their homes. If the boundry between siblings is crossed from a platonic to a more sexual nature then that safety issue is compromised because now one can pressure the other for sex. Also, once again, it comes down to a power and authority issue - younger siblings often look up to older siblings; older siblings are sometimes put in charge of younger siblings - you now have a situation where one can abuse one's power and authority and force sexual relations on another by coersion. As adults should siblings be allowed to wed? Well that is an issue: after years of pounding into children's heads that their brother or sister is not a suitable sexual partner, to say, but when you get to this age, it is okay, would be a confusing point.
 
Whats "love" got to do with legal marriage? Love isnt even mentioned in the marriage laws.


If I love my mistress then I during my divorce case I shouldnt be punished for having an affair. After all, who is the govt to tell me who to love!:p
 
Ok Chani (and others). . . .

Say a brother and sister were seperated at birth, and later on (say when they are 28) find each other, and fall in love.

Should they be allowed to get married? They are normal people, and they were raised seperatly.

What then???

See Corbin, Chani, Zero. . . all i am saying s that people opposed to gay marriage might see it as "icky" too. . . just as you see the brother sister marriage icky.
 
SkepticalScience said:
Ok Chani (and others). . . .

Say a brother and sister were seperated at birth, and later on (say when they are 28) find each other, and fall in love.

Should they be allowed to get married? They are normal people, and they were raised seperatly.

What then???

See Corbin, Chani, Zero. . . all i am saying s that people opposed to gay marriage might see it as "icky" too. . . just as you see the brother sister marriage icky.
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Icky isn't the issue...I'm not sure that there is grounds to prevent 'seperated at birth' siblings from getting married.
 
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