Government in your face. Is your marriage safe?

It's the election promise most Canadians neither cared about nor believed was necessary.

The Conservatives will follow through with their election promise to revisit same-sex marriage, with debate expected to begin as early as next week.

The government confirmed Tuesday they will begin debate Dec. 6th with a vote planned before the House breaks for the holidays.

The motion is expected to ask MPs to reopen discussion on same-sex marriage, but will not directly challenge the existing legislation. However, it may ask whether parliamentarians wish to repeal or amend the existing law.

Never mind that in poll after poll Canadians have determined that the matter is settled. Over two-thirds accept the current legislation and believe it has been put to rest.

That doesn't matter to Steve, however:

Prime Minister Stephen Harper has said if the House votes against changing the law to allow same-sex marriages, the matter would be settled.

Do you really believe that? Do you really believe that the social conservative wing of Harper's party will let this go if they lose?

Don't count on it.

During the election campaign, Harper promised to hold a free vote in the House of Commons on whether Parliament should revisit the issue.

A free vote? Do you mean in accordance with paragraph 7 of the Conservative Party Policy Declaration:

A Conservative Government will make all votes free except for the budget and main estimates.

Or, is it the statement from the CPoC 2006 Federal Election Platform:

Make all votes in Parliament, except the budget and main estimates, “free votes” for ordinary Members of Parliament.

Well, I hate to have to point this out, but that promise has already been broken. So, unless Harper is willing to put TV cameras in the Conservative caucus meetings preceding such a vote, and we all get to see the paperwork coming out of the Government Chief Whip's office, there's no reason whatsoever to believe a word of what Harper says regarding free votes.

Make no mistake here. This is the Conservative party, the party that claims to want to reduce government and get government out of the lives of ordinary Canadians, digging into the personal lives of anyone they so choose. This is scrutinizing the lives and aspirations of a segment of Canadian society after we have already decided to boot government out of that arena.

This is an unnecessary and unwarranted intrusion by government and it comes to you courtesy of the religious freaks who will never let go. They will shove their fundamentalist religious bullshit down the throats of Canadians at every opportunity.

I have asked this before and deserves asking again: Is there anybody who can say their marriage has been adversely affected, has been diminished in any way or has been destroyed because two other people formalized their life together through legal marriage?

If anyone answers "yes" to that I would offer that your marriage is resting on the shakiest of foundations. Basing the strength of a marriage on a piece of legal paperwork and a solemnization ceremony suggests that perhaps that marriage needs a bit more attention. And, that doesn't mean examining the marriages of others, the lifestyles of whom you don't approve.

And, for a slightly more irreverent look at what this is really all about, check this out.

How long, by the way, before the Christian taliban goes after childless couples? Just askin'.