Protecting Choice

This last week's news of a federal judge overturning Proposition 8 in California, brought out both supporters of, and those against, same-sex marriage.  Most of these people are against same-sex marriage for pretty much three reasons: it's morally wrong, God says no and it's a choice.


While the first two are normally positions that are taken by ultra religious people, the last excuse is easily debatable.  Supported positions against gay marriage normally echo such statements like "it's their choice" and "they are welcome to marry a person of the opposite sex."


Yet, when thinking about other forms of choice that are protected under law, religion seems to come up as a large and glaring omission in their arguments.


While we can argue about being forced into religion by family, it's still our individual choice to belong to an organized religion.  It's also our choice to believe in Jesus, God, Satan, Allah, Buddha, a golden calf or nothing at all.


Yet, religion and belief is a protected status in the eyes of our government.


So here's my question to those against same-sex marriage because they feel being gay is a choice: why should your choice of what religion you belong to be protected?


Of course, for me personally, I do not believe that being gay is a choice. People are born gay and science and other studies have pretty much concluded that sexual orientation is not a choice.  But for the sake of argument here, I'll let others believe it's a choice, hoping for some thought-provoking honesty in their hypercritical view of the rights of others.