- "In Maine and Maryland, voters approved ballot initiatives to begin allowing same-sex unions. And
- in Minnesota voters declined to back an initiative that would enshrine in the state’s constitution a definition of marriage permitting only a union between a man and woman.
- In
Washington state, where voters also weighed an initiative to legalize
gay marriage, the vote count was expected to stretch on for days. [Reading elsewhere, the vote for was apparently leading]
- in Wisconsin, Rep. Tammy Baldwin, a Democrat, defeated the four-time governor, Tommy Thompson, for a seat in the U.S. Senate. She will be the first openly gay senator in the nation’s history."
I sort of wish that voting required a clear majority one way or the other, and that there could be a period of extended discussion after close votes to help reach consensus. I suppose no one wants to spend the time or money for that, though.
In short, you 'sort of wish' that everyone would just agree with each other?
ReplyDeleteNot so much. More that more time would be spent identifying the basis of differences and seeing if issues between conflicting ideals can be resolved, rather than relying on potential slim (and then nearly meaningless) majorities.
DeleteI'm not sure how often conflicts are resolved without some fundamental level of agreement between conflicting parties.
ReplyDeleteOften, if you can just kill enough of them!
DeleteAgreed. Hence why I think taking the time to have more constructive discussion over disputes could help narrow the points of contention to the fundamental difference, and perhaps move people away from thinking each other stupid or evil. :)
Hm. Kind of like strike mediation? ( :
ReplyDeleteYes. I feel like mature adults or children should be called into parliament and congress to deal with childish feuds. =)
Delete