Friday’s Big Idea

Ascendant Ideas

Of all the big ideas that have risen to the top of our discourse in 2012 and will have a significant impact in 2013, there are a few ideas in particular that stand out because they have become ascendant very quickly.

The argument for gay marriage as a right, for instance, has rapidly advanced in the court of public opinion and is also likely to win in court, argues Steven Mazie. In today's lesson, Mazie shows how the leading arguments against gay marriage have unraveled in the face of a sea change in public opinion.

"If principle and logic hold," Mazie argues, and "if the Court takes an honest look at the failure of each revision of the case against marriage equality," the new consensus in favor of same-sex marriage "will be joined by a legal recognition of the equal right of gay and lesbian Americans to marry."

The Demise of the Case Against Same-Sex Marriage

by Steven Mazie

Here is the story of how far the argument against marriage equality has come, and how feeble it has become, in three steps.

Five Ways to Change the System from Within

by Richard Tafel

We all have something about the world we want to see changed in our lifetimes. Here's how you can go about doing it, starting today.

Opponents of Gay Marriage Should Not Be Vilified

by Ed Koch

They must be educated, says Ed Koch, who was an early champion of anti-discrimination measures in the mid-1980s.

Same Sex Marriage Isn’t Everything

by Tim McCarthy

Human rights advocate Tim McCarthy worries that there’s been an overemphasis on fighting for a right that shouldn’t be at the forefront of the gay rights movement.

21st Century Living

Friday’s Big Idea

Ascendant Ideas