Voting Day!!!

Well here we are again in the month of November and on the first Tuesday of the month. It is time to vote. Being in the hinterlands of Minnesota the past four days allotted me the luxury of not hearing the last second smear tactics of the two major parties and allowed me time to reflect on all the candidates out there. Remember that other candidates will be on the ballot outside of President Obama and Governor Romney.

So, if you are in a state that is solidly red or blue then use your sacred right to vote for a candidate that reflects your beliefs, thoughts, and direction for this country as one will often find that the Democrat or Republican candidate is a lessor of two evil decision. Not to mention the fact that if a third or fourth party candidate can garner enough support they too will be able to be on the national stage with our current two-party system.

In the end, make sure you get out and vote. The state of Minnesota has a couple of extra bonus votes this  year in addition to electing our Representatives. We get to vote on amending our State Constitution.

First we have the Voter ID Amendment that would require all Minnesotans wishing to cast a vote in any election to provide a government issued ID to do so. A YES vote makes this requirement a NO vote doesn't add it to the State Constitution.

Second we have the Marriage Amendment that proposes to define marriage as being between one man and one woman. A YES vote puts it into our State Constitution, a NO vote doesn't put into our State Constitution.

While the first Amendment should be a slam dunk for everyone as it improves our process by using current technology to ensure our process is free of error. The second Amendment isn't as cut and dry; at least not for me. The reason I don't see it as cut and dry is because the concept of marriage is a rite of passage within ones religious dogma and is not a right nor should it be considered a right that the government ought to define.

In the end, again, get out and vote and if there is any indicator that has been more accurate on the Presidential stage..one can skip that vote because the Redskins lost on Sunday which means that Governor Romney wins.

Marriage Amendment - a Rite or a Right?

Again this week I had a conversation on the pending constitutional amendment before the citizens of Minnesota in defining marriage as being between one man and one woman. Words like bigot and intolerant were thrown around by those that oppose the Marriage Amendment. I know that I have blogged on this topic prior and my point is pretty clear; unfortunately I struggle still because people don't see the real problem facing marriage.

The real problem isn't that same sex couples want to "marry" each other, the real problem is government is being used as the final arbiter of the conversation. Marriage is a concept, a spirit concept, rooted in religious dogma that combines the female and male soul as one. In the Garden of Eden, Adam wondered alone for a while and God realized that he needed a partner; someone to balance Adam out. After a deep sleep Adam was less a rib and Eve was created. The notion is that Adam and Eve (man and a woman) are to come together.

Now some religions have expanded the notion of the Adam and Eve to include same-sex couples and that is perfectly fine as everyone has the right to their religious beliefs in America. Unfortunately, our elected officials and many Americans have allowed marriage to seep into aspects of our government - i.e. the tax code.

I have purposed on more than one occasion that we remove Government from the equation. To many that seems like a daunting task but it really isn't. People on both sides of the aisle have wanted to alter the tax code to varying degrees. Why not start with removing married filing jointly and separately while leaving in single and head of house hold. Everything else that "married" people enjoy as a benefit can be handled through contract law. Marriage is not a basic human right nor is it something that is protected by the State or Federal Constitution. Marriage is a rite and it is a decision that one makes on a personal level with no intervention from the government.