The gay rights movement has been gaining many victories in the past decade, particularly in America, but now we have the shock of formerly conservative Catholic Ireland having a referendum on gay marriage, with the final vote being 62-38 accepting it.
This is the first nation where popular vote has been the method for gay marriage, but that does not mean that the issue of marriage should be voted upon by the people.
The idea that who one wants to marry should have his or her decision left up to others is disgraceful, and imagine if that had been done about interracial marriage in the 1960s in America, instead of a Supreme Court decision.
Allowing people to utilize their prejudices and hate to deny others basic human rights is unacceptable in every way!
So while it is a great victory in Ireland, asking the masses of the population to decide whether someone has a right to marry, it is not a trend that should be encouraged, as it should be left up to the courts, or the legislative branch to deal with such an issue of civil and human rights!