Polygamist tries to use gay marriage laws as a defense

You knew this would eventually happen.  As soon as people start to play around with the definition of marriage itself, sooner or later someone would try and use that re-definition as a precedent to justify behavior that takes it even further.

The current example comes from Canada [2], which legalized gay marriage this past year.

The lawyer for one of two B.C. men accused of practising polygamy is planning to invoke Canada's gay marriage laws as part of his defence arguments.

Blair Suffredine, who's representing Bountiful resident Winston Blackmore, says they'll be making the argument that the Canadian definition of marriage, which includes same-sex couples, should then also include multiple partners. ...

The landmark cases against Blackmore, 52, and James Oler, 44, which will determine whether polygamy practised in the name of religion is legal in Canada, began Wednesday. ...

Blackmore, the spiritual leader to about 500 people in the community about 700 kilometres east of Vancouver, made it clear after his court appearance that he's not disputing that he is a polygamist.

"I'm no attorney, I'm just a Canadian and I've taken the time last night to review the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, twice . . . Not only our basic Canadian rights, but our equality rights," said Blackmore, who has 19 wives. "And I think if I'm guilty of anything, I'm guilty of being a Canadian and just living my religion."

Sound familiar?  All about "equality" and "rights".  As in the right to redefine an institution.

The problem here, as you can see from his defense, is that Canada started down the slippery slope of redefining the institution of marriage itself to give others the "right" to call something a marriage that was (and is) no such thing, and give those individuals the same recognition that traditional marriage has enjoyed for millennia.

You can't pull on such a fundamental thread in the fabric of society without unintended consequences.

The takeaway here for those in America watching the marriage debate go on at the state (and soon national) level is to remember these consequences when those who want to redefine marriage come calling.