Interesting Links for 24-06-2013

[fearmeforiampink]

• Humanist marriage move could open way to surge in sham weddings, claim registrars - Telegraph
  The people who currently do non religious marriages are bitching about the idea that other people might get to do 'em. Somehow, I think they may have a bias…
  (tags: law politics humanism atheism equal marriage UK interesting marriage )
• Batman And Wonder Woman Costume Backpacks e - ComicsAlliance
  Silly, but could be quite cool
  (tags: via James Graham amusing DC comics comics )

Comments

[omniscient-fool.livejournal.com]

I have the best solution: no marriages for anyone! :D

[fearmeforiampink]

Making all marriage civil marriage I can see the arguments for. Getting rid of marriage? I see more issues coming from.

There's inheritance stuff there, but also there's things like immigration – marriage is useful for Working out a sufficiently close bond to let someone in/stay, and other things like that. Some stuff (e.g. Next of kin & the right to make decisions regarding treatment of you're in a coma could be just designated, given the legal means to do so).

Finally, it's useful for non-religious relationships to have a means to solemnise themselves - in the absence of legal marriage, religious groups would still hold their ceremonies, but there wouldn't be the same for those who don't believe, except through groups like the humanists, and I don't think they'd work for everyone.

[omniscient-fool.livejournal.com]

Dude, you seem to have missed the big grinning emoticon indicating that I was kidding...

That said, personally I don't think that marriage should be required for any of that stuff, especially immigration. It's all just bureaucracy which is to say, control. But then again, my political beliefs are not exactly practical. At least not in terms of an achievable move from the system we currently have, and so of course there are legal reasons why people might want to be married.

As a side note, I also don't understand why in order to solemnize a relationship people feel the need to have it validated by the government. (NB Obviously I have no objection to people doing what they want even if I don't understand it, but am just making an observation that people take it as read that this is how you solemnize a relationship.)