JuridicsUSA: New Jersey: 'Gay marriage' defeated

David Kocienniewski, New York Times (Jan7,2k10) reports defeat yesterday of the latest onslawt of sexpol activists trying to change the definition of marriage in New Jersey, until now considered among the most tolerant states of the 50:

New Jersey Senate Defeats Gay Marriage Bill

Trenton, NJ — The State Senate on Thursday rejected a proposal that would have made New Jersey the sixth state in the nation to allow marriages involving same-sex couples. The vote was the latest in a succession of setbacks for advocates of gay marriage across the country.

I have argued at length in the past against the idiocy of changing the traditional definition of marriage as state recognition of the special relationship of intimacy, reciprocity, and mutuality that can exist between one woman and one man. I'm tired of commenting, but I used to live in New Jersey before immigrating into Canada many decades ago. I'm homo, vowed celibate, old, with a very low libido. But I'd support and do support now at a distance the decision of the state's Senate. I opposed Canada's ignorant courts and federal law-making around a specious theory of sameness dumbed down to what prevails here now.

I think the various lesser jurisdictions -- the provinces (Canada) and states (USA) shoud be able by democratic means to recognize one, two or three kinds of intimate unions: but without altering the special status of heterosexual unions which are distinctive because the members of each marriage negotiate the difference within the relationship of the two genders. A month back New York said No; and last November the state of Maine repealed its short-lived 'gay marriage' law in a referendum. New Jersey already approves so-called "civil unions" for homos of both stripes; but the notion of civil union does not recognize the difference of lesbian unions in contrast to gaymale unions, so for me, it's also quite absurd. These three are irreducible to one another, shoud have distinctive legal names, and do not depend on the state for their existence.

-- Lawt

PoliticsNigeria: Senate: Threatens retaliation for being placed on terrorism watchlist

According to Amos Dunia (Abuja), "Terrorism: Senate threatens to take action against US" (Jan6,2k10), the Nigerian Senate leadership is furious at USA's placing the country's international travellers on a watchlist of 14 countires, simply on the basis of nationality.

“We also want to advice America that it is in their own best interest to conduct this matter very well in a manner that will not result into diplomatic row between America and Nigeria because Nigeria has never been found wanting in her dealings with America. So, for them to embarrass this country with this kind of classification for no justification is completely unacceptable.

“It is not America alone that has citizens to whom the government is responsible, we also have citizens and we are responsible for them, we will not allow Nigerians to be molested wherever they go. I think that this message should be put out clearly that when we resumes, if the situation is still there, it is going to be one of the major issues that we are going to tackle and the Senate president has told me to state categorically that he is unhappy about this and being the chairman of the National Assembly, it means also on behalf of the National Assembly.”

So says Senator Ayogu Eze, speaking apparently for the President of the Senate, David Mark. The Nigeria National Assembly is bicameral, but the present initiatve in the diplomatic war of words with the Obama Administration is being launched by upper chamber, Nigeria's Senate.

-- Politicarp

EconomicsUSA: Recession: Over, proclaims self-aggrandizing CEO

Screaming headline on Yahoo! Finance's TechTicker where, on video, Barry Ritholtz, CEO of Fusion IQ claims potvaliantly "The Great Recession is Over...." despite ongoing "weak employment, weak housing and the continuation" of chronic recession ("what he describes as a mild recession"). Note, "a" in the term "a mild recession." It seems to me that this not a single recession but a series of multiple recessions which will continue to back up on one another but which individually are incapble of peaking and self-resolving in the manner outlined by neo-classical market theory (perhaps a chronic unresolvability due to over-interference of socialist initatives of govt). Note, even Ritzholtz is saying continuation of mild recession will be continued to be accompanied by heavy unemploment, no homes for woud-be buyers.

-- EconoMix