There is an Associated Press article on two recent moves to recognize gay marriages. In the article, "Gay right activists score wins in NY and Calif" we must ask: What is wrong with this picture?

The article points out, "Gay rights advocates had reason to celebrate on both coasts Thursday, with New York set to recognize same-sex marriages performed elsewhere and California preparing to begin issuing marriage licenses to gay couples on June 17."

What has gradually and insidiously worked its way into our lexicon is the concept of "gay rights". There are no gay rights, period. Being gay is a life style choice. It is based upon a sexual obsession for the same sex, nothing else. There never has been any legal, moral or social justification for or acceptance of gay sex, until now. The unelected courts in Massachusetts and California have legalized gay marriage. The Governor of New York by executive fiat has recognized gay marriage.

What we are seeing is historic. The unnatural individual decision to enter into sexual relations between men and men and women and women being legalized by those not elected by the people and without the peoples consent.

Abraham Lincoln must be turning over in his grave as this is not a nation "of the people, by the people and for the people".

Our founding fathers understood full well previous experiments and various systems of marriage that had been tried over the millennia. Polygamy, communal living, adultery, state supported single parenthood and homosexuality have all been tried by societies to solve the problem of raging male and female hormones. All have failed.

The only model that has worked from a social, economic and moral perspective is the marriage between a man and a woman. Strong traditional families create more strong traditional families, healthy children, reduce poverty and lead to happiness and fidelity.

We previously wrote an editorial titled, "When did we legalize moral decay?". We citizens have over the years gradually added to the moral decline of our own nation. While we may not have been active participants we have been passive observers. Our passiveness has been interpreted by activists as not "tolerance" but rather as support. We have all gravely erred. We are paying the price in the growth of social ills such as poverty, broken families, drug abuse, alcohol abuse and domestic violence.

As we pointed out in our previous editorial here is how and when in American history we began to legalize moral decay.

First the moral decay of the family and marriage:

"The Flemming Rule (1960) was named for Arthur Flemming, then head of the Department of Health and Human Services, who issued an administrative ruling that states could not deny eligibility for income assistance through the AFDC program on the grounds that a home was “unsuitable” because the woman’s children were illegitimate.

In 1968, the Supreme Court’s “Man-in-the-House” rule struck down the practice of states declaring a home unsuitable (i.e., an immoral environment) if there was a man in the house not married to the mother. Thus, out-of-wedlock births and cohabitation were legitimized. In very short order, the number on welfare tripled and child poverty climbed dramatically." Janice Shaw Crouse, TownHall.com, November 23, 2007

The moral decay of social values:

Abington Township School District v. Schempp (consolidated with Murray v. Curlett), 374 U.S. 203 (1963),[1] was a United States Supreme Court case argued on February 27–28, 1963 and decided on June 17, 1963. In the case, the Court decided 8-1 in favor of the respondent, Edward Schempp, and declared school sponsored Bible reading in public schools in the United States to be unconstitutional.

The moral decay of the respect for life:

Roe v. Wade, 410 U.S. 113 (1973) was a United States Supreme Court case that resulted in a landmark decision regarding abortion.[1] According to the Roe decision, most laws against abortion in the United States violated a constitutional right to privacy under the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. The decision overturned all state and federal laws outlawing or restricting abortion that were inconsistent with its holdings. The central holding of Roe v. Wade was that abortions are permissible for any reason a woman chooses, up until the "point at which the fetus becomes ‘viable,’ that is, potentially able to live outside the mother's uterus, albeit with artificial aid.

And finally, we have added to this inglorious list the further destruction of the family by the State of Massachusetts and the California Supreme Court legalizing gay marriage, and NY Governor David Patterson ordering state agencies "including those governing insurance and health care - to immediately change policies and regulations to recognize gay marriages."

So long as we the people remain passive, we as a society will fall because the building block upon which all great societies are based is the traditional family.

We support Florida Amendment 2 that defines marriage as between a man and a woman. We cannot be passive and we are beyond tolerance. Action is needed, our voices must be heard on November 4th at the ballot box.