Same Sex Marriage Referendum Mega Thread - MOD WARNING IN FIRST POST

Deleted User wrote: »

I share your fatigue - and I am not even gay. But I have seen as much good and heartening as I have horrific and hateful. So I hope at the end it is a nice balance in my mind.

The story about the Yes Bus Driver was nice. As were most of the stories I heard directly from people I know personally who worked on the bus - and indirectly through people I know of who met the bus. That group seems to have left good feeling every where it went and were wonderful ambassadors.

Another friend of a friend has a story that examples many I have experienced directly and indirectly in the last weeks. He - a gay guy himself but living here as an Inpat from England - went over to check on his 85+ old neighbour as he usually does when he sees her out and about - especially as it was particularly rainy that morning. She informed him she was "off for a little pray" and then patting his hand said simply "by the way, I'm going to be voting Yes."

A group of people came over to the house unannounced and very apologetic this week too. Since we are known to some in the area as having an odd relationship (mff) a couple of "yes" people thought to bring a small group of "no" people down to talk. They apologetically asked "Sorry to walk in unannounced but we were just hoping for an oul talk about things...." and I invited them in for tea and biccies and what turned out to be a long talk culminating in wine and cheese and crackers.

And during it all the "no" people politely and enthusiastically raised their concerns and ideas - and we addressed them. It was a peaceful meeting of minds - and I was even able to bring up posts on boards.ie on my projector where concerns similar to theirs were raised - and we read through some of the "yes" responses. So you guys were great! Genuinely think we converted some - even most - maybe even all of them to "yes" voters by the time they left. And they had _loads_ of questions about our children and future children and how we viewed parenting in setups like our own - gay families - single parents - and more. They were really taken with our daugther and it was wonderful to show them a healthy - happy - engaging - intelligent 4 year old prospering wonderfully in a house with an alternative parenting configuration.

We sat in a few public places with a couple of yes flags and tshirts over the time too. Keeping to ourselves but visible. And we had people come up - sit down - and ask us questions like we were - which was our intention really - an informal table/booth on the street canvassing. The kind of people who would not walk up to a real booth or table on the street - felt better approaching an informal group like ours. And our experiences there - especially with the "no" people - was very positive and I think we influenced people.

But then there is the bad side. The Hateful letter sent to Una Mullally only the tip of the things I have read being sent to people - and even had a couple of (as always massively badly hand written with grammar errors galore) letters shoved into my door. The feeling that old hatreds and intolerances to any out of the ordinary PDAs has flared up again a little (my girlfriends have not had the worst of it but some audible tutting and name calling popping out of random passer bys - and one person who even literally hissed at them). And last weekend there were literally violently physically accosted on a dark public street.

And as you say "The fact that my life has been debated for weeks on every media outlet in Ireland." is tiring even though we are affected by it less than you. It is still simply - draining is the word - to have the entire society you live in debate whether you are evil immoral or dangerous - whether you can be a good parent at all to the children you genuinely love - or whether you only have children as fashion accessories that you are abusing emotionally - mentally - and in the minds of some even physically - merely to tout your lifestyle to the world.

As I say - the relationship we are in does not mean we are living in the world you are during this referendum - but we have one foot in each world in a way - and I can feel the drain and the fatigue. And it gives me at least enough perspective to get into the mind space you must be in.

But chin up and hopes high. All my friends coming over with drinks and foods and fun stuff tomorrow. We go to vote en masse together - then we return to make a day party of it and celebrate come what may. Let us welcome our gay twin Jedward married presidential over lords

kunst nugget wrote: »

I think a No majority vote would put paid to any notion of it being a modern and tolerant country.

arayess wrote: »

this is crap of the highest order.
The yes side continually tell us that this is about marriage alone - nothing else.

arayess wrote: »

Accordingly the label of modern or tolerant cannot weight on a singular topic alone. - that is hyperbole in the extreme.

kunst nugget wrote: »

That's because it is only about marriage.



It is a powerful indicator of how we as a society empathise with others in our society, our ability to embrace change and how far we have progressed in terms of our views of homosexuality. You might think it's hyperbolic but whatever way the vote goes tomorrow, this is a watershed moment in our history.