Thanks for the clarification, Xantar. It makes me feel a little better about the potential for escalation.
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Originally Posted by Xantar
Just out of curiosity, what did you make of Brown v. Board of Education?
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That is my major conflict when it comes to my opinion on social issues decided by the courts. The right decision was made, and it had great results. It makes me hopeful that if gay marriage is legalized in a court system that it would stick and help develop tolerance, but in today's climate I'm not so sure an amendment wouldn't be ratified. In Brown, the issue at hand was localized that there was no way that an amendment could get 3/4 the states to ratify it. I'm not sure that is the case with gay marriage.
Brown and Roe are the two diverging examples of how social justice decisions are met by the populace. One helped evolve the discussion, the other stagnated it, and I'm not sure I can identify what made one more successful than the other.
EDIT: By George I think I've got it! The reason why Roe v Wade remains so controversial is because the heart of the case is that one body is sharing the rights of two individuals, and only one set of rights can truly be respected in their entirety. Brown v Board was about separate individuals denying rights to others, without the corporeal complications of Roe v Wade, making the moral implications far less murky.
By that rationale, having a court system grant the rights of gay marriage should follow the line of Brown, and not Roe v Wade. Still, I think at this point it might be a mistake because there still might be enough support for a marriage amendment to counter a high court ruling.