Shouts from the desert

In an opinion piece in The Australian today, anti gay marriage campaigner John Heard lets rip with this:

Indeed, gay marriage creates a perverse incentive for heterosexual couples to either reject marriage outright or dissolve a marriage already contracted.

What incentive to get married would government policy provide if Joseph and John down the road get all the benefits and have none of the setbacks (school fees, increased shopping costs and so on) that marriage often brings?

I had previously suggested with my tongue firmly lodged in my cheek that opponents of gay marriage are afraid that if gay marriage were legal then heterosexual men would all want to divorce their wives so that they can marry other men, but here we have an opponent of gay marriage saying that is his fear in so many words.

I for one would like to go on record as saying that I don't find that idea the least bit tempting, but if Heard is tempted in that direction then perhaps he needs to deal with his own issues &emdash; one way or the other &emdash; rather than seeking to deprive a section of the community of the opportunity to live their lives in the manner they wish.