Pete,
This is my take on the issue. And yes, I have LGBTQI friends and relations, so it's a Yes for me.
Shillas,
I couldn't write a short one.
I thought sharing my background and experience might help explain my position on saying Yes to marriage equality.
When I joined the Army in 1980 it was very sexist and very homophobic.
I was there just after the first two female adult trade trainee electronics technicians started training. They were on the course before mine. There were arguments that they might get PMS and cry, or worse, throw tools around the workshop.
They would be too weak to lift the radios.
What if they got pregnant.
They were going to destroy the cohesiveness of the teams.
The Army would be ruined and would never be the same.
No-one questioned their technical aptitude or mental capacity to do the job.
They were the first of many good female technicians.
I was serving when the first female applied to be a motor mechanic apprentice.
All the previous arguments against were bandied about, plus she wouldn't be able lift gearboxes, not that any bloke lifted gearboxes on their own.
The Army would be ruined and would never be the same.
She passed the course, and being a solid country girl, could out-lift half the blokes.
There have been many more since her.
I was serving when Gays were going to be allowed to serve openly on the Defence Force.
Arguments of not sharing tents, showers, meals, etc with 'poofters' abounded. Rememember this was during the HIV outbreak.
Destroying the cohesiveness of the team etc.
The Army would be ruined and would never be the same.
One old wise Staff-Sergeant stopped a lot of the silliness in my section, by saying 2 things. The Army aren't making it compulsory to be gay", and "What makes you think you are so sexually attractive to gay men?"
They had already been serving, and had kept it to themselves. A large number still keep it to themselves, as it's no-one else's business.
The dire predictions didn't come true and gays continue to serve.
I remember the arguments against women going out on exercise.
What if the get their periods and how are we going to cope with pads and tampons.
They'll cause kaos with horny blokes out Bush missing their wives or girlfriends. etc.
They served well and one side effect was more civilised conversations and less bawdiness on exercise.
I remember when they decided it was OK to send women to combat zones. All the same silly arguments
They have since served with distinction in peace keeping missions in East Timor, the war zones of Afghanistan and Iraq. Some of my friends are amongst them.
Not one of those issues ruined the Defence Forces.
None of the dire predictions came true.
The Defence Force still serves with distinction in many theatres of operations around the world.
It's been a long journey for me from homophobe to understanding (I won't use acceptance, as it is not a begrudging tolerance).
I was also a bit sexist back then. I've since grown to understand women are every bit my equal and sometimes (often) they are my superior.
So that's my foundations for thinking this won't destroy the society, the country or the world.
I've seen these anti-everything and anti - change arguments before, and in the end, it's all been a big beat up.
At the end of the day, I'll still be married and maybe some of my friends and family will also have the choice to be married.
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