RushLimbaugh.com, May 13, 2005 <http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/daily/site_051305/content/institute.guest.html>
How To Argue Against Gay Marriage
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RUSH: Let's go to Pensacola, Florida. Hi, Debbie. Welcome to the program. Nice to have you with us.
CALLER: Hi. I love your show. You always crack me up and give me stuff that I don't get anywhere else. I'm so happy to talk to you.
RUSH: Thank you.
CALLER: But I need to --
RUSH: But...
CALLER: I need to get your insight into the gay marriage argument.
RUSH: Mmm-hmm.
CALLER: I'm kind of like you. I'm conservative with a lot of different kinds of friends --
RUSH: Mmm-hmm.
CALLER: -- and I can't see a logical argument against it.
RUSH: Mmm-hmm.
CALLER: I know you say it's between a man and a woman --
RUSH: Mmm-hmm.
CALLER: -- and you don't like it when the racial issue is brought up.
RUSH: Mmm... It's not that I don't like it. I just think it's a false premise. It's not that I don't like it.
CALLER: Well, a long time ago a black man and a white woman or a black woman and a white man couldn't get married --
RUSH: Yes?
CALLER: -- and interracial marriages were not in the definition of marriage. So I don't really see how logically two consenting adults --
RUSH: No, no. Wait, wait, wait, wait. That is not true. It's not true to say that interracial marriages were not included in the definition of marriage. It was a cultural taboo that people of different races did not marry and did not create kids that would not be of, you know, "pure racial heritage of either parent." But it was not something enshrined basically in a custom or a tradition. It did not say that that would be something that would break down the definition of marriage because in that case you're still talking about a female and male, interracial marriage. One of the things that upsets many people in the black community is to compare this gay marriage business with the civil rights movement. They're offended by it. They don't think there's anything similar to it, common ground whatsoever -- and it's a false premise to say that interracial marriage was once illegal and so gay marriage is just the next step, because, you know, marriage between people of the same sex is not marriage. By definition it's not the same thing. Another thing, if you're wanting to pick my brain about this, I said this the other day, you know, if people who take marriage seriously, people that get married... Have you ever wonder what the social structure for marriage is all about?
CALLER: I've heard you talk about how it was for people that were going to have a family and have kids but there are a lot of heterosexuals that get married in civil ceremonies without plans of having kids.
RUSH: Yes, that's all true, but the vast majority of people who do get married have kids whether they want them or not, they happen, but at some point, at some point that's what the purpose of marriage is. The reason for the social structure of marriage is the raising of children. Now, when you get to gay marriage, you have to say, "These people do not want to get married so they can raise children because that's not in the cards." They have to go to a sperm bank or an adoption agency or something like that. So the premise of marriage to me has been to provide a nuclear family, a mother and father for the raising of children because human babies are distinct from all other, you know, mammal infants in that. You know, all the mammals are on their own in six weeks for the most part and after that they don't even remember who their parents are but the human, of course, it's a whole different thing. It's a crucial project and people take it seriously and it's one of the reasons why the structure of marriage is so revered.
CALLER: And I take my marriage very seriously and I have a daughter with my husband, but I can't really rectify this argument with some of my friends who are gay and many of them are lesbians and they have kids --
RUSH: Yeah?
CALLER: -- and, you know, they don't want to be seen as not committed. They're in a monogamous relationship, and I think that marriage in the gay community would help support monogamous relationships.
RUSH: Well, I, frankly, disagree with that, but that's just an argument about something that neither of us knows. The only way you can look at that is to take a look at the monogamous relationships in heterosexuals and homosexual relationships and try to make some projection on it. But what I hear you saying is you just don't want to be mean and you don't want to be discriminatory and you don't want to deprive people of happiness and this sort of thing.
CALLER: And I also want to hold up certain values as desirable, and my big value is, you know, if you're a woman who's not attracted to men or man who's not attracted to women then at least be monogamous and get into a committed relationship.
RUSH: Wait a second. Whether we're talking about heterosexuality or homosexuality or marriage or non-marriage we know that monogamy is not guaranteed by marriage.
CALLER: That's true. That's true.
RUSH: So you know, I can list a litany of other examples. I mean there's a lot of things that as a man I can't do simply because I'm a man, a lot of things women can't do because they're women. But to run around and say I'm being denied civil rights or denied this or that? There are certain things that I'd love. I'd love to be a member of certain golf clubs and I don't know why I'm not, but maybe it's because they think of me. What am I going to do about it, run around and make an issue of it? It's just the way things are. I'm not comparing marriage to a club. I'm saying it is a specific thing. It has a specific definition. Marriage between people that are not of different sexes is not marriage. No matter what you call it, it isn't marriage. You're being phony with the marriage. You're just pretending to be married because you literally can't be. It's like two plus two is not five, except when you think so in certain public schools.
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