Gay couples wed in Utah after judge overturns ban.

The article can be found here.

   Just yesterday Salt Lake began issuing marriage licenses to gay couples. The U.S. District Judge Robert J. Shelby has declared Utah's voter-approved ban on gay marriage unconstitutional saying that the ban violates the constitutional rights of gay couples and ruled that Utah failed to show that allowing same-sex marriages would affect opposite-sex marriages in any way. This doesn't mean that everyone is on board with this recent change. Utah Governor Gary Herbert said, "I am very disappointed an activist federal judge is attempting to override the will of the people of Utah. I am working with my legal counsel and the acting attorney general to determine the best course to defend traditional marriage within the borders of Utah." Soon after the ruling, the state filed both a notice of appeal of the ruling and a request for an emergency stay that would stop marriage licenses from being issued to same-sex couples. Though the LDS church do not support this ruling, a group called Mormons for Equality applauded it. The group has been among the leaders of growing movement among Mormons to push the church to teach that homosexuality isn't a sin. If this ruling stands, Utah would become the 18th state to legalize gay marriages.

   I think that this is absolutely fantastic. I never thought I would see a day where Utah becomes accepting enough to allow gay marriage. Although it is still banned here in Utah County, acceptance of same sex marriage in Salt Lake is still a HUGE step even though the state is currently trying to fight it. But with the way gears are turning, I think that complete acceptance here is closer than it may appear. Of course there are activists here in Utah who openly support gay marriage, but even many members of the LDS church who do not support same sex marriage do feel that we do not have a right to deny these couples a legal marriage license. We are definitely one step closer to greater acceptance here in the United States. Within the next 15 years, it is very possible that we will see same sex marriage legalized in every part of the United States and we will see that all of this hate and fear is completely silly. Love is nothing to fear.

Supreme Court to revisit death penalty for mentally disabled.

The article can be found here.

   In Atkins v. Virginia, the Supreme Court prohibited states from executing anyone with "mental retardation." Mental health professionals define it as substantial limitations in intellectual functions such as reasoning or problem-solving, limitations in adaptive behavior or "street smarts," and evidence of the condition before age 18. This spring the Supreme Court will revisit their previous ruling from 12 years ago that left the details in the hands of the states. "Most likely, the case won't result in a dramatic shift in national criminal justice policy, but will further clarify who should and should not be eligible for execution", said Ronald Tabak, an attorney who has represented multiple clients with intellectual disabilities and chairs the American Bar Association's death penalty committee (article).

   I think that it would definitely be best for the Supreme Court to clarify who should and should not be eligible for execution and set that standard for all of the states. The death penalty is quite a heavy punishment (The heaviest punishment.You can't really just bring someone back from the dead and have them retried.) and I think that if it is allowed in a state, no matter what state it is, the requirements should be the same. This revisit from the court won't change a whole lot for the states who still practice the death penalty, it will just set more of a standard. This topic is always a hard one. I'm not entirely sure how I feel about all of it. There are always going to be those borderline cases, and I agree with the advocates who want the Supreme Court to revisit these cases. There should be no doubts in a ruling when someone is sentenced to the death penalty. Maybe one day there will no longer be a death penalty anywhere in the United States. And maybe one day we will do more to help convicts so that they are able to function successfully in society. And then there's that impossible hope that one day people will stop doing such awful things to other people that get them sentenced to the death penalty.
 

President Obama's law faces hurdles beyond the Supreme Court case on the birth control mandate.

    Article can be found here.

 
   In courtrooms across the country, Republicans are challenging the way the Affordable Care Act was passed and the bureaucracy it created. Namely contraception. But for Obama and the millions of Americans who stand to benefit from the law, the good news is that the lawsuits are long-shots.

   In my opinion: whether or not people agree with birth control, they should not prevent those who do request it the opportunity to receive it with their health care plan. "It is essential that the women's preventive coverage benefit, including contraception, be available to all women, regardless of what health plan they have or where they work - as Congress intended. Providing access to birth control just makes good sense" (Gwen Moore). Yes, being sexually active bears consequences but women have the right to be in charge of when they are ready to bear children. I believe that it's a good idea that the government include birth control in the required heath care standards because it is very important to the lives of many families today. "I'm pro responsible choice. You know, there is choice to abstain, choice to do contraception. There are all kinds of good choices" (Sharron Angle).  It is not responsible in any sense to have more children than you can afford to take care of. I feel like the ability to regulate how many (if any) children a family is ready to have is the most responsible thing to do. "For most women, including women who want to have children, contraception is not an option; it is a basic health care necessity" (Louise Slaughter). Whatever pros or cons you want to throw out there are fine and dandy as long as each woman has the ability to make her own informed choice on the matter.