Charged With Felony For Lesbian Relationship

ren wrote: In the universal declaration of human rights. Obviously the US aren't big on human rights, but surely even over there there should be protection from interference with people's privacy,family,home ?

There is protection in place. The problem is that in addition to U.S. federal law there are 50 states, each with their own systems of law. Texas law seems particularly unsupportive of basic human rights, but perhaps someone who lives there could comment on this more adequately. This lesbian situation would never have happened in the state where I live (re: we're too busy smoking pot and getting gay married).

So each state can "break" federal law?

I like french fries...

crazy!

Anyone who calls them french fries instead of freedom fries is an enemy of freedom and should be shot on sight. :silly:

rugadd wrote: If I raised a hand to my wife she'd knock me through the wall and then make me fix it.

I'm pretty sure your not implying its legal to beat your spouse over here because it isn't.

No, rugadd, I really wasn't ...

I was just grumbling about the community I had to deal with over there. It was a red-neck bled in Central Illinois which was about as much of a cultural vacuum (if not more) than Triton. There were several wife beaters, drunks, and thoroughly respectable paedophiles who quite often went on righteous anti-gay tirades. They also went on anti-university tirades too - "going to collage is a waste of tax-payers dollars" (spoken in whining fake-rich country drawl).

*sigh* 'One has to love people for what they are, not for what one thinks they should be' counsels Krishnamurti. Okay ... love them like they are, I shall. Yet from a safe distance.

For ren:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ap-tSd5aulM

LOL! Believe me, I understand. I live in Central Illinois.

ren wrote: So each state can "break" federal law?

Basically, yes. If there is a federal law in place that a state doesn't like, the state can challenge the federal government. That is exactly what's happening in Colorado and Washington State at the moment with the marijuana legislation. The people in these 2 states voted to legalize marijuana (even though it is illegal on a federal level) and are more or less saying to the federal government, "Okay, what are you going to do about that?" So far, the Obama administration has agreed to overlook it, but if a more conservative administration were in power they would still have the legal backing of the federal government to reverse state law if they so pleased. The more states that enact the same laws, the more likely it is that the federal government will amend its laws.

This is also what's occurring right now with marriage equality. The federal government enacted the "Defense of Marriage Act" in 1996, which prevents recognition of same-sex marriages by the federal government and gives each individual state the right to choose whether or not they recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states. The Defense of Marriage Act also means that even if gay couples are married in states that have legalized same-sex marriage, those couples are not recognized by the federal government and therefore don't receive over 1,000 benefits and protections (beyond the state level) that heterosexual couples receive. So there's a huge battle happening right now in federal court pushing for the removal of the Defense of Marriage Act - which would lead to the legalization of same-sex marriage on a federal level, but still give states the right to choose whether or not to legalize it. Again, the more states that recognize marriage equality, the more likely it will be that the federal government will do the same.

In the case of Texas, there are still a lot of antiquated laws on the books. The southern and middle America states tend to be the slowest to adjust to change, while the west coast and northeastern states tend to be the quickest to make changes (especially if they strengthen or increase the rights of the people). However, some of this has to do with the diverse perspectives that come from the vast cultural differences that span the country. Some parts of the country are more conservative, more religious, more liberal, more atheistic, poorer, richer, and so on. Certain states in the United States are arguably as different from each other as countries in the European Union.

I read recently that Mississippi didn't officially abolish slavery until February 7th of this year. Granted, it was an oversight, but it's a humorous illustration of how slow the southern states are when adopting or dismissing laws.

lol in that case i think the EU is more a country than the US And the UK is like a bigger, rainy version of puerto rico.