Question 1

As a rule, I do not discuss politics. Not on Facebook, not on Twitter, not here. Three years ago, I made an exception to that rule and publicly commented on a political matter. Not because it affected me personally, but because I don’t believe it to be a political matter. For me it was a matter of standing up for what I believe to be right.

In November 2009 Maine had a chance to make history, to become the first state to legalize same-sex marriage via the legislative process with a governor’s signature. Instead, the law was overturned by a state referendum, 300,848 to 267,828, on November 3rd.

The defeat was a surprise. Polls had shown support for same-sex marriage, and Nate Silver forecast a narrow victory for advocates of same-sex marriage. But the loss at the polls was more surprising because the vote seemed at odds with who we are as Mainers.

Liberal or conservative, the people of Maine have something of a deserved reputation for being private. Minding your own business is a way of life in this state, which admittedly can be an adjustment for transplants. That a majority of the population, then, felt it necessary to vote in a way that negatively affects other Mainers’ lives was as baffling as it was disappointing.

In the aftermath of that decision, however, it became apparent that much of the opposition to same-sex marriage was based upon what we refer to in the technology industry as FUD: fear, uncertainty and doubt. Nor was this an accident: as the head of the campaign to overturn the law says in the first minute of this documentary, “All you have to do is create doubt. You don’t have to convince people that you’re right.”

Many Mainers believed, as an example, that the same-sex marriage law meant that homosexuality would be taught in schools, even when the Maine Attorney General had confirmed otherwise. Others whose faith prohibits same-sex relationships were concerned that their respective churches would be required to perform same-sex marriages, which was not the case.

This November, same-sex marriage is back on the ballot. It remains to be seen what difference three years have made with respect to the levels of fear, uncertainty and doubt. Certainly some have changed their minds upon further consideration. For me, however, this is still a simple matter. As an American, I – like WWII veteran and lifelong Republican Philip Spooner above – believe that “the proposition that all men are created equal” is one of the things that makes this country great, and a country worth dying for. Whether someone was born gay or straight, therefore, can have no bearing on the “unalienable rights” granted to them as an American. And as a Mainer, I believe in minding my own business. Even if I personally opposed gay marriage, I would not favor legislation that imposed my personal beliefs on someone that did not share them.

And ultimately, that’s what opposing same-sex marriage is about. It is about imposing your objections – whether those are personal, religious or otherwise in nature – on your neighbors. And that is not what this country was founded for.

If you live in Maine, then, I would ask you to please Vote Yes on Question 1. In 2009 Mainers voted to deny other Mainers equal rights. We can do better this year.