Via Today.com: How Gay Married Couples get Shortchanged

How gay married couples get shortchanged

June 9, 2013 at 10:32 AM ET

 

Jason DeCrow / AP

 

Patrick Plain, left, and Seong Man Hong, both of New York, celebrate after getting married at the City Clerk's office in New York Sunday, July 24, 2011. 

 

More than 1,000 federal rights and securities are denied to couples in same-sex marriages not legally recognized by Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act, or DOMA, says Vickie Henry, senior staff attorney at Boston-based Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders, or GLAD. GLAD is a leading advocacy group in the campaign to strike down DOMA.

"Few of those benefits are more important than Social Security," says Crosby Burns, policy analyst of the LGBT Research and Communications Project at the Center for American Progress, an independent, nonpartisan educational institute based in Washington, D.C.

"This program forms part of the bedrock of our nation's safety net," Burns says. "With full and equal access to this social insurance program, families headed by same-sex couples would finally have access to the economic safeguards they need, intended to keep them out of poverty and afloat during hard times."

Chief among them, Henry says, are the spousal benefit, the spousal disability benefit, the lump-sum benefit and the survivors benefit. The children of same-sex parents would also be affected.

Read on to see how the Social Security system works in favor of heterosexual married couples and against same-sex married couples. If DOMA is struck down, gay couples stand to gain more Social Security benefits.

Make the jump here to read the full article courtesy of today.com

Via Buddhism on Beliefnet:

	Daily Buddhist Wisdom
	Eventually we will find (mostly in retrospect, of course) that we can be very grateful to those people who have made life most difficult for us. - Ayya Khema, "When the Iron Eagle Flies" More Buddhism Quotes >>

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Tricycle Daily Dharma June 10, 2013

Here and Now

Heaven and hell are not some places I’m going to go to later on. Heaven and hell are here right now, and I create them for myself with my own choices.

- Hae Doh Gary Schwocho, "Beneath Belief"

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Tricycle Daily Dharma June 9, 2013

Nowhere to Stay

Pleasure isn’t a place for you to stay. Pain isn’t a place for you to stay. Pain wears away. Pleasure wears away. Our foremost Teacher said that all fabrications are inconstant.

- Ajahn Chah, “The Last Gift”

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Via JMG:POLL: Parents Chill About Gay Kids

 

More from Pew's latest study:

In 1985, a Los Angeles Times survey found that 64% of the public said they would be “very upset” if their child told them he or she was gay or lesbian. By 2004, that number had fallen by almost half (33%). Since then, it has declined another 14 points, to 19%. Instead, a majority (55%) now says they would not be upset if they learned their child was gay or lesbian, a 19-point increase since 2004 and a 46-point increase since the mid-1980s. Again, this has been an across-the-board shift in attitudes.

Yet the change has been more dramatic among some groups than others. In 2004, fully 82% of those 65 and older said they would be upset if their child told them they were gay, and 50% said they’d be very upset. Today, only about half (47%) say they’d be upset and just 24% say they’d be very upset.Among Republicans, the percentage saying they’d be very upset if they learned their child was gay or lesbian also has fallen by half – from 44% to 22% – since 2004.

Labels: homosexuality, parenting, polls

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Via JMG: GERMANY: High Court Rules That Gay Couples Deserve Equal Tax Benefits

In what is being characterized as a setback to the administration of Chancellor Angela Merkel, Germany's highest court has ruled that same-sex couples are entitled to the same tax benefits granted to married straight couples.

The verdict requires a change in the law and is a red rag to some in Merkel's Christian Democrats (CDU) and its traditionally Catholic Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU), who worry that conservative values are being diluted. The ruling was widely expected after the court in February overturned a ban on same-sex couples adopting a child already adopted by one of the partners. "The provisions set out in the income-tax law violate the general rule of equality," wrote the Karlsruhe-based court, adding the law should be changed retroactively from August 2001. Same-sex partnerships have been legal in Germany since 2001 but do not enjoy the same tax benefits as married heterosexuals.

Openly gay Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle hailed the ruling, saying that the time has come "for German tax law to be as modern as its society." A spokesman for the Christian Social Union party denounced the news as an attack on the "sanctity of marriage." (Tipped by JMG reader Matthew)

Labels: Angela Merkel, Germany, LGBT rights

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Via JMG: Another Positive Marriage Poll

 

You'll have to embiggen the above image to see the details, but here's the gist of the latest Bloomberg Poll:

More than half of Americans support allowing same-sex couples to marry, endorsing the goal of gay-rights activists as the U.S. Supreme Court this month prepares to rule on the issue for the first time. Fifty-two percent say they back giving gay couples the right to marry, compared with 41 percent who are opposed, according to a Bloomberg National Poll conducted May 31-June 3. Of those supporters, more than half -- 61 percent -- want a national law rather than a state-by-state approach. During arguments in March, the justices signaled a reluctance to declare a right to same-sex marriage nationwide.

Labels: marriage equality, polls, SCOTUS

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Via JMG: POLL: Majority Of Same-Sex Marriage Opponents Say Legalization Is Inevitable

Jeremy Hooper writes at NOM Exposed:

This is what NOM is up against: a reality where even a majority of its own supporters know that marriage equality is going to happen, despite their driven efforts. This obvious inevitability is, far and away, the most damaging thing NOM faces—which is precisely why they are working so hard to deny it. They know that the writing on the wall demoralizes their support base and depresses their donations, so they are acting as if it's all a lie. They pretend the trajectory and polling is just something we've concocted rather than an accurate representation of where America stands. This Pew Poll shows them to be wrong. More importantly, it shows that even a majority of their own supporters know it.

Labels: marriage equality, NOM, polls

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Via JMG From Freedom To Work

Source.

Labels: employment, ENDA, Obama administration

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Via Buddhism on Beliefnet:

	Daily Buddhist Wisdom
	Considering the harm others do to you As created by your former deeds, do not anger. Act such that further suffering will not be created And your own faults will disappear. - Nagarjuna, "Precious Garland" More Buddhism Quotes >>

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Tricycle Daily Dharma June 5, 2013

Not Judging our Emotions

There isn’t any such thing as a negative emotion. There are negative things that we do with our emotions, but our emotions themselves are neither negative nor positive.

- Robert Augustus Masters, "From Spiritual Bypassing"

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Via JMG: Quote Of The Day - Rep. Earl Blumenauer

"Let's get real and stop the charade about what a 'social welfare' organization is. Last year, internal National Organization for Marriage (NOM) strategy documents were leaked, stating that the organization seeks 'to drive a wedge between gays and blacks' by promoting "African American spokespeople for marriage,' thus provoking same-sex marriage supporters into 'denouncing these spokesmen and women as bigots,' and "to interrupt the assimilation" of Latinos into 'dominant Anglo culture' by making the stance against same-sex marriage 'a key badge of Latino identity.'

"Does this sound like social welfare to you? Social welfare organizations should work in the public interest -- not to divide, exploit, and conquer. When I brought this up at the hearing today, Dr. Eastman, Chairman of the Board of NOM, angrily groused, 'To say that defending traditional marriage doesn't qualify for defense of the public good is beyond preposterous.'

"To Dr. Eastman, I say that it is the denial of my constituents, and all Americans, the right to marry the person they love is preposterous. To exploit racial and religious differences so you can fundraise for and enforce your specific worldview is preposterous. But your right to be preposterous should not extend to taking political positions under the guise of a social welfare organization, raising money and campaigning." - Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), writing for the Huffington Post.

Labels: bigotry, Catholic Church, Congress, Earl Blumenauer, FTW, hate groups, John Eastman, NOM, racism, religion, Vatican

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Via JMG: California Marriage Support Grows

Source.

Labels: California, marriage equality, polls

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Via JMG: AFER Graphic On Prop 8 Outcomes

 

The Supreme Court is expected to issue its ruling this month. Rulings come on Mondays, so the next possible date is June 10th.

Labels: AFER, California, Prop 8, SCOTUS

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Via JMG: Hate Groups Diss Gay Ark Painting

 

Gay artist Paul Richmond has created the above painting titled "Noah's Gay Wedding Cruise: MarriageEvolved Edition."  Among the "drowning sinners" are Ann Coulter, former Sen. Larry Craig, Oklahoma state Rep. Sally Kern, and Westboro founder Fred Phelps.
Saved on the ark are Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi, Elton John and David Furnish, and Joshua and Steve Snyder-Hill, the founders of MarriageEvolved.  NOM's Frank Schubert weighs in at the Christian Post:

"Since those couples are inherently unable to accomplish the very thing that God intended for those who inhabited the ark – the procreation of the earth following His wrath for failing to follow His commandments." "Marriage is intrinsically the union of one man and one woman," Schubert said. "Government didn't create marriage, it merely recognizes what nature and nature's God created. Marriage was designed to bring men and women together because only those unions have the capacity to create new life.

The Family Research Council's Peter Sprigg feels the same:

"The rainbow is God's symbol, not an LGBT symbol. It's particularly bizarre to use Noah's Ark," he said, noting that same-sex couples are incapable of natural reproduction, which is why same-sex is not included in the definition of marriage, and isn't recognized as marriage in most states.

The artist and his partner will be among 25 couples that will take the C-Bus Of Love to Washington DC on June 21st for a marriage ceremony outside the Supreme Court. That angers Peter Sprigg, who claims that since prayers are forbidden on the steps of the Court because that would be considered a political protest, a same-sex wedding ceremony should also be banned. Sprigg: "They're definitely trying to influence public opinion, and I hope people see through it."

Labels: activism, Frank Schubert, FRC, gay artists, marriage equality, MarriageEvolved, NOM, Peter Sprigg, SCOTUS

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Via JMG: Broken Bargain For LGBT Workers

 

A new report from the Movement Advancement Project:

A landmark new report released today examines how lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) workers might have the same job as a coworker, yet be legally fired, denied equal benefits and be required to pay thousands of dollars more in taxes simply because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. A Broken Bargain: Discrimination, Fewer Benefits and More Taxes for LGBT Workers illustrates how America’s basic bargain—that those who work hard can get ahead—is broken for LGBT workers. The report vividly shows how antiquated and discriminatory laws make it harder for LGBT workers to provide for themselves and their families, and offers detailed policy recommendations for addressing those inequities.

Read the full report.

Labels: employment, ENDA, insurance, LGBT rights

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Via Buddhism on Beliefnet:

Daily Buddhist Wisdom
	The one who wishes to escape from doubt Should be attentive and alert; Looking at mind and body both, He should see the causes and the origins. - Patisambbida Magga More Buddhism Quotes >>

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Tricycle Daily Dharma June 4, 2013

Suffering Guaranteed

Of course we need to practice compassion in individual thoughts and acts—these are the bread and butter of practice, the real test. But where we see political and economic systems guaranteed to generate tragedy and despair, we must also respond to transform and humanize those systems.

- David Edwards, "Life Or Death"

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Via JMG: DOD Pride Month Memo

(Via JMG reader Eloise)

Labels: DOD, gay Pride, military, Pentagon

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