As a brief follow-up to Charley’s post below: the so-called "grass roots group" pushing the new anti-marriage amendment is calling itself "VoteOnMarriage.org." The text of the new proposal is as follows:
When recognizing marriages entered after the adoption of this amendment by the people, the Commonwealth and its political subdivisions shall define marriage as only the union of one man and one woman.
I don’t know who (if anyone) resides at the Newton Upper Falls address that "VoteOnMarriage" lists as its contact address, but I do know this: there are seven links on the "VoteOnMarriage" website under "arguments" regarding same-sex marriage. Four of the seven link to articles published at "family.org," the website of the nefarious James Dobson’s "Focus on the Family," including one by Dobson himself. The others are to an article at the D.C.-based Family Research Council, run by Tony Perkins (as bad as Dobson), an article published in the Weekly Standard by Maggie Gallagher, another D.C.-based pundit and a recipient of Bush administration financial largesse in the form of cash-for-opinion; and a pdf of an article that appears to have nothing to do with same-sex marriage (it is about reducing divorce rates).
From the "arguments" that they have adopted, it seems clear that the VoteOnMarriage crowd, whoever they are, are not particularly interested in advocating the principle that the people, rather than the legislature or the judiciary, should set marriage policy. What they want, rather, is to bring the views of James Dobson, Tony Perkins, and the rest of the wingnuttocracy into Massachusetts. So I certainly hope it will be widely noted that VoteOnMarriage is far from a "grass roots" organization (where the Globe got that characterization I cannot imagine). They are a Massachusetts branch of a Washington DC- and Colorado Springs-based movement that, increasingly, seems to represent the "base" of the national Republican party. Gosh, do you think there’s any connection between that fact and Mitt Romney’s embrace of their activities here?
Like I say, all politics is local … and Mitt’s is from some local place that’s not here.
391 Elior Street is an office building. The siet belong to the massachusetts family institute (see www dot mafamily dot org)