Referendum

Does exactly what it says on the tin. Some of the nonsense contained herein may be very loosely related to The Sisters of Mercy, but I wouldn't bet your PayPal account on it. In keeping with the internet's general theme nothing written here should be taken as Gospel: over three quarters of it is utter gibberish, and most of the forum's denizens haven't spoken to another human being face-to-face for decades. Don't worry your pretty little heads about it. Above all else, remember this: You don't have to stay forever. I will understand.
Post Reply
abridged
Slight Overbomber
Posts: 1426
Joined: 08 Sep 2008, 10:27
Location: Derry
Contact:

Well done Ireland! Pity the North (or at least its politicians) is still 400 years behind. :innocent:
The Chancer Corporation
User avatar
Silver_Owl
The Don
Posts: 7498
Joined: 27 Sep 2003, 18:52

Better late then never. :)
We forgive as we forget
As the day is long.
User avatar
Pista
Cureboi
Posts: 17586
Joined: 25 Jun 2006, 15:03
Location: Lost In A Forest
Contact:

That there needed to be a referendum kind of angers me.
Cheers.
Steve
Just like the old days

TheCureCommunity
User avatar
sultan2075
Overbomber
Posts: 2362
Joined: 04 Mar 2005, 19:17
Location: Washington, D. C.
Contact:

Pista wrote:That there needed to be a referendum kind of angers me.
Why?
--
The most successful tyranny is not the one that uses force to assure uniformity but the one that removes the awareness of other possibilities, that makes it seem inconceivable that other ways are viable, that removes the sense that there is an outside.
User avatar
rien
Gonzoid Amphetamine Filth
Posts: 337
Joined: 22 Sep 2014, 22:44
Contact:

Pista wrote:That there needed to be a referendum kind of angers me.
Yeah, me too. Still:
Hom_Corleone wrote:Better late then never. :)
“Getting an education was a bit like a communicable sexual disease. It made you unsuitable for a lot of jobs and then you had the urge to pass it on.�
User avatar
mh
Above the Chemist
Posts: 8105
Joined: 23 Jun 2003, 14:41
Location: A city built on rock 'n' roll

It's kinda the way things are here; if it involves a constitutional change it needs a referendum. I'm not saying that's right, by the way, but I reckon one advantage is that it doesn't give certain types a chance to weasel out of it.
If I told them once, I told them a hundred times to put 'Spinal Tap' first and 'Puppet Show' last.
User avatar
Pista
Cureboi
Posts: 17586
Joined: 25 Jun 2006, 15:03
Location: Lost In A Forest
Contact:

sultan2075 wrote:
Pista wrote:That there needed to be a referendum kind of angers me.
Why?
Well the way I see it, my (or anyone else's) sexual preference is my (& their) own business & I don't see that I should have to go & ask an entire country for their blessing. It has nothing to do with them.
:)
Cheers.
Steve
Just like the old days

TheCureCommunity
User avatar
sultan2075
Overbomber
Posts: 2362
Joined: 04 Mar 2005, 19:17
Location: Washington, D. C.
Contact:

Pista wrote:
sultan2075 wrote:
Pista wrote:That there needed to be a referendum kind of angers me.
Why?
Well the way I see it, my (or anyone else's) sexual preference is my (& their) own business & I don't see that I should have to go & ask an entire country for their blessing. It has nothing to do with them.
:)
Sure. But what you're talking about here is more then just private sexual preference and private sexual activity, since the state is in the marriage business. The libertarian in me thinks that the state should probably be out of the marriage business altogether (and out of most private affairs). But if it is going to be in the marriage business, and the public understanding of marriage is going to be altered, then a referendum is probably the way to do it - if for no other reason than that a referendum will give the change a political legitimacy in the eyes of the people that it might not have otherwise (American abortion laws are a good example in this regard - the Supreme Court case finding a right to abortion [Roe vs. Wade] has been much more socially divisive than legislative action on the question might have been, because it has the appearance of being imposed by the court rather than a voluntary act of the people).

edited for word choice after I had my coffee
Last edited by sultan2075 on 24 May 2015, 14:02, edited 2 times in total.
--
The most successful tyranny is not the one that uses force to assure uniformity but the one that removes the awareness of other possibilities, that makes it seem inconceivable that other ways are viable, that removes the sense that there is an outside.
User avatar
Pista
Cureboi
Posts: 17586
Joined: 25 Jun 2006, 15:03
Location: Lost In A Forest
Contact:

Well, put that way I can see your point, but it still irks me that the state needs to sanction same sex marriages.
It's like saying, "Hey you lot with the freedom of choice & speech etc. Yeah. About that freedom part...."
Still, at least the Irish people got it right.
Cheers.
Steve
Just like the old days

TheCureCommunity
User avatar
markfiend
goriller of form 3b
Posts: 21181
Joined: 11 Nov 2003, 10:55
Location: st custards
Contact:

sultan2075 wrote: (American abortion laws are a good example in this regard - the Supreme Court case finding a right to abortion [Roe vs. Wade] has been much more socially divisive than legislative action on the question might have been, because it has the appearance of being imposed by the court rather than a voluntary act of the people).[/size]
On the other hand IIRC the Roe v. Wade decision found that the right to an abortion already existed as part of the constitutional right to privacy under the due process clause.

The pro marriage equality argument in the States is (as I understand it) of the same kind; proponents argue that "equal protection under the law" already permits same-sex marriage, it's just that this permission needs to be enforced.

It seems to me that the "legislating from the bench" argument only ever gets thrown out by people who disagree with the courts' rulings.

But anyway, all that aside, well done Ireland :notworthy: :notworthy: :notworthy:
The fundamental cause of the trouble is that in the modern world the stupid are cocksure while the intelligent are full of doubt.
—Bertrand Russell
User avatar
sultan2075
Overbomber
Posts: 2362
Joined: 04 Mar 2005, 19:17
Location: Washington, D. C.
Contact:

markfiend wrote:
sultan2075 wrote: (American abortion laws are a good example in this regard - the Supreme Court case finding a right to abortion [Roe vs. Wade] has been much more socially divisive than legislative action on the question might have been, because it has the appearance of being imposed by the court rather than a voluntary act of the people).[/size]
On the other hand IIRC the Roe v. Wade decision found that the right to an abortion already existed as part of the constitutional right to privacy under the due process clause.

The pro marriage equality argument in the States is (as I understand it) of the same kind; proponents argue that "equal protection under the law" already permits same-sex marriage, it's just that this permission needs to be enforced.

It seems to me that the "legislating from the bench" argument only ever gets thrown out by people who disagree with the courts' rulings.

But anyway, all that aside, well done Ireland :notworthy: :notworthy: :notworthy:
My point is simply that social changes are more stable when they arise from the bottom up, not from the top down. Hence SSM proponents in the US focused much of their energies on state legislatures and public persuasion rather than the Court in order to avoid precisely the questions about legitimacy that surround Roe vs. Wade (the argument of the majority there is not unassailable, either. One does not need to be an anti-abortion zealot to recognize such difficulties).
--
The most successful tyranny is not the one that uses force to assure uniformity but the one that removes the awareness of other possibilities, that makes it seem inconceivable that other ways are viable, that removes the sense that there is an outside.
User avatar
stufarq
Popweazle Piddlepoop
Posts: 3209
Joined: 19 Jan 2008, 17:09
Location: my own imagination

I think sultan's argument is fine in hindsight but I suspect Pista's real point (and please correct me if I'm wrong) is that it should never have been illegal in the first place and society should never have got to a stage where it had a problem with same-sex relationships. It needed a referendum and legislation because of that (and not just in Ireland, of course), but it's sad that it ever should have.
Any more of that and we'll be round your front door with the quick-setting whitewash and the shaved monkey.
User avatar
markfiend
goriller of form 3b
Posts: 21181
Joined: 11 Nov 2003, 10:55
Location: st custards
Contact:

sultan2075 wrote:My point is simply that social changes are more stable when they arise from the bottom up, not from the top down. Hence SSM proponents in the US focused much of their energies on state legislatures and public persuasion rather than the Court in order to avoid precisely the questions about legitimacy that surround Roe vs. Wade (the argument of the majority there is not unassailable, either. One does not need to be an anti-abortion zealot to recognize such difficulties).
OK that makes sense. I agree.
The fundamental cause of the trouble is that in the modern world the stupid are cocksure while the intelligent are full of doubt.
—Bertrand Russell
User avatar
mh
Above the Chemist
Posts: 8105
Joined: 23 Jun 2003, 14:41
Location: A city built on rock 'n' roll

stufarq wrote:I think sultan's argument is fine in hindsight but I suspect Pista's real point (and please correct me if I'm wrong) is that it should never have been illegal in the first place and society should never have got to a stage where it had a problem with same-sex relationships. It needed a referendum and legislation because of that (and not just in Ireland, of course), but it's sad that it ever should have.
Well it wasn't actually illegal prior to this. Civil unions had been recognised, but same-sex marriage actually had no legal status; similar to the current situation in Germany or Australia, for example.

The point that's been missed here is that the reason for a referendum was because a change to the constitution was being made, and changes to the constitution require a referendum in Ireland. Otherwise it could have been done without one.

The end result is not to legalize same-sex marriage, but rather to make any challenges to it be unconstitutional.
If I told them once, I told them a hundred times to put 'Spinal Tap' first and 'Puppet Show' last.
User avatar
eastmidswhizzkid
Faster Than The Light Of Speed
Posts: 9857
Joined: 24 Mar 2005, 00:01
Location: WhizzWorld
Contact:

all i can say is its about f**king time.
Well I was handsome and I was strong
And I knew the words to every song.
"Did my singing please you?"
"No! The words you sang were wrong!"

:bat:
User avatar
markfiend
goriller of form 3b
Posts: 21181
Joined: 11 Nov 2003, 10:55
Location: st custards
Contact:

Kerry's Nan: "Isn't it good that Ireland have given the vote to gay people?"
The fundamental cause of the trouble is that in the modern world the stupid are cocksure while the intelligent are full of doubt.
—Bertrand Russell
User avatar
radiojamaica
Overbomber
Posts: 4873
Joined: 11 Apr 2005, 16:51
Location: Tower of Bass

eastmidswhizzkid wrote:all i can say is its about f**king time.
yup, totally.

Still, kinda happy it happened on my birthday although next time they don't really have to wait for it :innocent:
in dub we trust
User avatar
eastmidswhizzkid
Faster Than The Light Of Speed
Posts: 9857
Joined: 24 Mar 2005, 00:01
Location: WhizzWorld
Contact:

markfiend wrote:Kerry's Nan: "Isn't it good that Ireland have given the vote to gay people?"
pissing myself laughing, rolling around on the floor etc. :lol: (not going to be sarcastic or horrible about nans...i miss mine awfully. bless 'em)
Well I was handsome and I was strong
And I knew the words to every song.
"Did my singing please you?"
"No! The words you sang were wrong!"

:bat:
User avatar
Being645
Wiki Wizard
Posts: 15170
Joined: 09 Apr 2009, 12:54
Location: reconstruction status: whatever the f**k

Pista wrote:That there needed to be a referendum kind of angers me.
Basically, I fully agree - it's just ridiculous.
Though, a fact it is, obviously, and insofar a referendum is a good thing for the people in that country
and for other countries to learn HOW MANY ACTUALLY think the law oughta be changed (after centuries of paternalism).
User avatar
Pista
Cureboi
Posts: 17586
Joined: 25 Jun 2006, 15:03
Location: Lost In A Forest
Contact:

& (rather predictably) the WBC get in on the act but with one minor error
Cheers.
Steve
Just like the old days

TheCureCommunity
User avatar
markfiend
goriller of form 3b
Posts: 21181
Joined: 11 Nov 2003, 10:55
Location: st custards
Contact:

Voltaire's prayer O Lord make my enemies ridiculous answered once again :lol:
The fundamental cause of the trouble is that in the modern world the stupid are cocksure while the intelligent are full of doubt.
—Bertrand Russell
abridged
Slight Overbomber
Posts: 1426
Joined: 08 Sep 2008, 10:27
Location: Derry
Contact:

It'll be interesting to see how it plays out in the North (where the Abridged lives). Though I don't see us coming into the twenty-First century for a while yet sadly.
The Chancer Corporation
User avatar
markfiend
goriller of form 3b
Posts: 21181
Joined: 11 Nov 2003, 10:55
Location: st custards
Contact:

I understand that in NI Jeff Dudgeon is planning to sue for the right to get married.
The fundamental cause of the trouble is that in the modern world the stupid are cocksure while the intelligent are full of doubt.
—Bertrand Russell
User avatar
Being645
Wiki Wizard
Posts: 15170
Joined: 09 Apr 2009, 12:54
Location: reconstruction status: whatever the f**k

Pista wrote:& (rather predictably) the WBC get in on the act but with one minor error
Image

We're having large discussion now here in Germany, which is clearly a good thing.
PLUS, certain members of allegedly Christian-oriented parties make themselves so obviously look behind times ... a pleasure.
Post Reply