Utah Sued for Banning Gay Marriage
End of the Age News
By Jim Stigleman
Utah Sued Gay Marriage Ban
On December 20th, 2013, a US federal district judge ruled that Utah’s ban on gay marriages was illegal. 1,400 gay couples rushed to get married. The State of Utah, which is heavily Mormon, appealed the verdict and on Monday, January 6th, the Supreme Court of the United States put a stop to gay marriages in Utah until the state’s legal appeals are exhausted. Governor Gary Herbert refuses to recognize gay marriages transacted during those 18 days.
In the meantime, 4 same-sex couples that were married during the time-frame gay marriages were considered legal in Utah have joined forces with the American Civil Liberties Union to sue the state, demanding that their marriages be acknowledged as legal.
The lawsuit states, “By retroactively stripping plaintiffs’ marriages of legal recognition, the State of Utah has put these couples and their families in legal limbo and prevented legally married same-sex couples from accessing critical protections for themselves and their children.”
Meanwhile Herbert’s office has stated that the state cannot formally recognize the marriages. As of yet, his office has not commented on the lawsuit leveled against the state. If the four same-sex couples win their lawsuit, Utah will become the 18th state to recognize same-sex marriage as legal.
EU: Israel to Become “Increasingly Isolated” If Peace Talks Fail
After more than five months of negotiations there has been little or no hint of a breakthrough in the Israeli/Palestinian stand-off for peace. According to European Union ambassador, Lars Faaborg-Anderson, both sides have a lot to lose when it comes to EU trade and relief.
Even though Israel is closely aligned with the United States, the European Union is Israel’s largest trade partner accounting for 33% of Israel’s trade. The EU has also sent 1 billion euros a year as aid to the Palestinian Authority.
Faaborg-Anderson has stated, “I think it is realized in Israel that this money is key to the stability of the West Bank and in Gaza. If we don’t provide the money … I think there is a great likelihood that Israel would have to provide far more.”
The Ambassador also warned of growing European Union frustration over settlement construction stating, “If Israel were to go down the road of continued settlement expansion and were there not to be any result in the current talks, I am afraid that what will transpire is a situation where Israel finds itself increasingly isolated.”
Pope Supports March for Life Ralley
In news from the Vatican…
Pope Francis has used twitter to inform his 11.5 million followers that he supports the March for Life anti-abortion rally, which took place in Washington D.C on Wednesday. He tweeted, “I join the March for Life in Washington with my prayers. May God help us respect all life, especially the most vulnerable.”
Even though the pontiff caused concern among some in the church earlier this year by not “driving home” the church’s beliefs on abortion, contraception and homosexuality, he has also called abortion “horrific.”
He also took a strong stance against abortion by telling one group of Catholic gynecologists, “Every child that isn’t born, but is unjustly condemned to be aborted, has the face of Jesus Christ, has the face of the Lord.” He further pleaded with them to honor their morals by bring life into the world rather than taking it away. The issue of abortion is one of the most polarizing topics in America today.
“Pro-lifers” view the March for Life rally in Washington as one of their biggest events of the year.
I’m Jim Stigleman and this has been today’s ETA NEWS.