Maryland is About to Legalize Same Sex Marriage

Vote counters at the Washington Post say the votes are there in the Maryland Senate to pass a bill legalizing same-sex marriage; since the House has already approved the bill and the governor has said he will sign it, passage seems just days away. Yippee for my adopted home!

The Post's editorial writers passed on this interesting observation:

In Maryland, several formerly undecided lawmakers have listened to the arguments of opponents - and recoiled at the vitriol they heard. State Sen. James Brochin, a Baltimore County Democrat who previously backed same-sex civil unions but not marriage, changed his mind after taking in what he called the "appalling" views of opponents at a Senate hearing. "Witness after witness demonized homosexuals, vilified the gay community and described gays and lesbians as pedophiles," he said in a statement, adding: "For me, the transition to supporting marriage has not been an easy one. But the uncertainty, fear, and second-class status that gays and lesbians have to put up with is far worse and clearly must come to an end."