chrisgaff1000,

It is understood that the returned forms will be checked mechanically by a reader and at the same time the address of the voter will be checked off. That would still permit fraud, but the opportunity would be very limited.

Regarding the sentiments expressed in your closing paragraph, it doesn't bode well for after SSM is introduced does it?

Scratch a federal politician, male or female and find a bullying authoritarian beneath. No surprise that young men who were denied the vote and couldn't legally buy a beer were drafted (thanks to a big turn out of women voters for Menzies) and sent to war in Vietnam. There is no real Left in Australia.

Joe, you should give a trigger warning before you start on about looking for firm vegetables in your crisper. Nearly sprayed my screen with coffee!
Now you've started off my memories of discussions with emergency room nurses about all the different and bizarre objects shoved into anuses that were presented to emergency for removal lol.

Hi Big Nana,

Yeah, I just bought one of those continental cucumbers, about a foot long - I thought, yeah, that might do it: I have to make a quiche, so that should do. Maybe a bit bland ?

On the whole, I'm not much in favour of marriage at all, except that it offers women a slightly stronger sense of commitment, and a slightly stronger disincentive to the bloke to piss off when the wife is at her socially and financially weakest.

But I'm intrigued by the attacks by Gramscian communists (having been one myself a few decades ago), and how their tactics are moving towards Anarchism, and away from standard Leninist Socialism. Either way, I suspect that both paths inevitably lead towards Fascism. So their attempts to destroy marriage and family structure and stability by enlisting homosexuals is intriguing.

I expect much more racist references in the coming 'discussions', that if Blacks and Whites can marry, why not male and male ? I would have thought that 'male and female' would have been a more appropriate analogy, given that inter-marriage has always been legal - and even encouraged - in Australia. I certainly never experienced any discouragement.

I suppose homosexual advocates can't go too far with the analogy: white-white marriages ? Black-black marriages ? Therefore male-male marriages etc. ? But wait for even more racist comments and angles, more contemptible 'comparisons', even from some OLO contributors.

Joe

Joe,

I’m not sure why you have a problem comparing opposition to same-sex marriage with opposition interracial marriage. The two are suitably analogous: both are irrational.

The fact that interracial marriage has always been legal in Australia is irrelevant to the analogy, because the question is not about what HAS been legal, it’s about what SHOULD be legal.

Your assertion that such comparisons are racist is quite bizarre, too, and makes no sense at all. If someone is comparing opposition to interracial marriage with opposition to same-sex marriage, then clearly they find both abhorrent. How on earth could that possibly be considered racist?

The only prejudice the analogy exposes, if any, is homophobia on your part because you apparently find it offensive when mixed marriages analogised with same-sex marriages. Presumably, you find it an insult to mixed marriages that they be compared with same-sex marriages.

homophobia?

"The gay people against gay marriage"
http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-22758434

Yes, leoj, you read that correctly: homophobia.

If the gay opponents of same-sex marriage in the article you linked to believe that it is an insult to mixed marriages to be comparing them with same-sex marriages, then they too are homophobic (and homophobia does exist within the gay community, believe it or not). Somehow, I doubt they would, though.

Speaking of self-hating gays, the article you linked to briefly mentions how this is the result of an internalised hatred. In my observations, this seems to occur most frequently among gay people who are raised in ultra-religious households where the indoctrination borders on psychological abuse.

My gay brother-in-law once dated a card-carrying member of the Liberal Party. This bloke was against same-sex marriage and even believed that homosexuality was immoral. He had never once dated a woman, mind you, so I’m not sure how he reconciled such conflicting beliefs, but there you go…