The Sanctity of Marriage

Michael Schiavo's decision whether to remove the feeding tube that has sustained his wife's life for the past 15 years is both tragic and intimately personal. To those who believe that the institution of marriage is sacred, it is a decision that Mr. Schiavo should be able to make without government intrusion.

The fundamentalist Christian right that pulls the political puppet strings, however, does not believe in the sanctity of marriage. To the contrary, the religious lunatics of this country have demanded that the President, the governor of Florida, the U.S. Congress, the Florida legislature and the state and federal courts intrude upon the marriage of Michael and Terri Schiavo and make decisions for them.

The phenomenal contradiction is inescapable. Gay marriage was banned in thirteen states because the Christian right puppeteers convinced the voters of those states that gay marriage is a threat to the institution of marriage -- an institution, they insist, so holy and sacred that it is the very foundation of American society. But when the puppeteers themselves become a threat to the institution of marriage, the bait and switch advertising campaign regarding the right to life kicks in. Which is it? Right to life or sacred institution of marriage?