Could Las Vegas be the Gay Marriage Capital of the World?

Back in 2000 and 2002, a man named Richard Ziser made it his life's mission to get a Nevada state Constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage.  The campaign was much the same as later ones in Maine, California and elsewhere. Basically, they ramped up the fear quotient, played to religious sympathies, and cried:



What the hell same-sex marriage had to do with the children, besides those children already headed by gay parents is anyone's guess.  But the real jaw-dropper was that they were playing the sanctity of marriage card. In Nevada. Home of Las Vegas, the quickie marriage, and the equally quickie divorce.  Not to mention legal prostitution, legal gambling. . .they don't call it "Sin City" for nothing.  So pushing this faith and family crap here of all places was really ballsy.  But it worked.  We were only the second state to pass such a thing, and even though it had to pass in two successive votes, it was successful.

Since that time, five and a half states have legal same-sex marriage (the half being California, which is perpetually up in the air). The Perry v. Schwarzenegger case declared California's ban un-Constitutional.  Las Vegas and Nevada itself are in a economic crisis.  Wouldn't a repeal of the anti-gay Constitutional amendment go a ways toward relieving some of our financial burdens?  Why, yes, yes it would.  And even conservatives are starting to think so. . .

[Excerpt]

Let’s Make Nevada the Gay-Marriage Capital of the World

(Chuck Muth) – Considering the budget crunch facing Nevada, the commitment of both candidates for governor not to raise taxes to deal with it (yes!), and the court ruling in California last week striking down the ban on gay marriages, perhaps now is the time for Nevadans to embrace the age-old wisdom of “If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em.”


Let me make a bold prediction; not bold in the sense that I have access to an infallible crystal ball, but bold in the sense that it will offend so many of you: Gay marriage will become a national reality. . .

Read more at: Nevada News & Views