IGF contributing author Dale Carpenter knows that the gay left chorus which shouts "bigots, bigots, go away" at conservative critics of gay marriage accomplishes little. Instead, he is engaging in an exchange of ideas (what a thought!) with conservatives fearful that gay marriage will irrerparably fray the social fabric. Carpenter argues quite forcefully the opposite is true, in his just posted piece for the conservative National Review Online, "The Bonds of Common Ground: Ten Areas of Agreement Among Conservatives on Marriage."
Carpenter's basic premise:
marriage would benefit gays, generally by encouraging long-term commitment among gays and particularly by settling gay men. It would therefore benefit our whole society.
In this, he echos Andrew Sullivan and Jonathan Rauch, whose take on "A Traditional Gay Wedding" we recently posted. Likewise, IGF contributing author John Corvino has been on the lecture circuit debating marriage with Focus on the Family--which is what GLAAD and other well-funded gay advocacy groups ought to be doing, but aren't.
It's interesting to see the principles shared among
conservatives (straight and gay) who believe marriage is the
bedrock of social stability and as such must be defended and
promoted. In contrast, too many arguments advanced by gay activists
deal with expanding "equal rights" and obtaining access to
"government benefits." Those aren't irrelevant concerns, but the
heart of the matter must firmly be on recognizing the value of
marriage per se, and strengthening the institution by
bringing gays under its fold.