I have proud to I have been endorsed by the Log Cabin (Gay) Republicans of Minnesota ( http://www.mnlogcabin.org/ ), and especially Dennis Sanders, current President and someone I was proud to advise and mentor when we were both in the Minnesota Reform Party 5th Congressional District unit.
I believe it is in society's interest for adults to enter long-term, commited couple relationships. These relationships comfort us, teach responsibility and compassion, and promote social security. Also, family is the most important "mediating institution" that supports individual freedom and societal diversity vis a vis "Leviathan," that is, monolithic state power. (Other mediating institutions are neighborhoods, schools and faith communities.)
I consider myself a 90 percent supporter of Marriage Equity. I oppose putting "Defense of Marriage" (marriage is for one man and one woman) into the Minnesota Constitution, and I oppose putting it to a statewide referendum.
I believe that a same sex couple is entitled to the same rights and opportunities that a male/female couple would be. I believe it is an "Equal Protection under the Law" issue. Why should my wife and I have access to legal and institutional capital (like inheritence law, insurance benefits, visitation rights and tax benefits) that my lesbian sister and her partner might not.
That said, I believe we live in a polarized transition period when strong emotions and personal beliefs are in play, and it is important to transition to complete equality (including terminology) over a 10 to 20 year period to keep this (and the abortion/choice) issue from further polarizing and disrupting civil society. (I believe we have been divided on culture war issues for the past three decades, and important issues relating to income distribution, globalization, national defense and education quality have been given too short and too low priority attention.) For this reason, in the transition period, I would: a) try to avoid the use of the word "marriage" but prefer a term like "domestic union," and b) give higher priority access to adoption to male/female couples in stranger adoptions, all things being equal, but with the understanding that a gay person with familial (blood or though prior marriage or domestic union) relationship to a child has first adoptive rights. That is, the gay person's rights to parent a child of their relationship would be equal to what it would be if that person were hetrosexual. (I disagree reluctantly with Jonathan Raush regarding immediate use of the word "marriage" , because of the already polarized political environment we are in.)
I will note that I am pro-child, and my hope for every child is a secure home, a good education, a adequete standard of living, and loving, caring parents, preferably two. It think each child deserves upbringing in a structured environment with boundaries and limits, encouragement to achieve appropriate goals, and socialization to values like hard work, individual responsibility, respectfulness and self-respect, thankfulness, curiosity and tolerance.
Alan Shilepsky