By Mike Fegelman
The story goes that God in his infinite wisdom made man and woman similar; as well as respectively different anatomy wise, in order for procreation to occur. What religious indoctrination preaches is that only a man and a woman are allowed to enter into the bonds of marriage, otherwise you’re a sinner and a parasite to our greater social existence because you’re not adding to the greater population.
Most people believe that moral values and religious obligations are the reasons why same-sex marriage is not allowed in Canada.
But there’s another hypothesis that’s been tossed around by proponents of gay rights: that denying gays and lesbians the right to marry is due to simple economics.
After all, if it’s just about procreation, why are sterile men and women allowed to marry if they can’t have kids themselves? That’s a good question and it’s one that gay rights activists have asked as they campaign for equal rights.
What many take for granted are the few privileges that are accorded to our significant others once wedlock commences. With taxation in mind, a married heterosexual couple is allowed to transfer or deduct their spouse’s income, thereby reducing their own tax bracket and lowering the amount of taxes they would presumably have to pay. The issue really comes down to a question of dollars and sense, as Canada is a country that preaches equal rights and entrenches these in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, but gays and lesbians are forced to face very tough odds in their goal to achieve economic self-sufficiency. Meanwhile, heterosexual couples are afforded a privileged status, relegating gays and lesbians as second-class citizens.
They are essentially denied equal access to a very basic economic opportunity because a greedy federal government wants to deny tax benefits to same-sex couples, rather than lower their own revenues that they have long grown accustomed to receiving.
Along with the denial of tax benefits, same-sex couples are also refused joint insurance benefits for their homes, cars and life insurance policies that heterosexual married couples currently receive. Likewise, gays and lesbians are refused various employment benefits, such as bereavement leave and various pension plans, because they are not of the married class.
With Jean Chrétien’s same-sex marriage bill currently in limbo, it’s unclear whether the bill will be reintroduced. Nevertheless, it might be of some value to question what Big Brother is up to, in order to ensure that all individuals receive equal treatment before and under the law.