One of the strongest arguments against gay marriage has always been that it would somehow damage the “sanctity” of marriage. With all due respect to my fellow betrothed nerdlings, every drop of marriage’s sanctity jumped out of the window when a priest agreed to let the bride and groom dress as Klingons.
We’ve all seen the pictures or heard the story. Two people, most often middle aged and with an adequate amount of wealth, decide they love their obsessions just as much as each other, and have a themed wedding in the style of Star Wars, Mario and maybe even Battle Star Galactica (the old cheesy show usually, not the new one with the attractive female robots). I have no problem with this in itself.
I think that the definition of “freedom” in America should be as open as possible, so if a man wants to peel off all his skin and replace it with saran wrap, then that’s his perrogative. What bothers me is that the bible thumping men in Washington recoil with horror when two people of the same gender want equality with the rest of the general populace when it comes to love, but then chuckle or maybe even let out a mild “aww” when two people dress up as Zelda and Link during their ceremony.
It’s baffling, and that’s not even when you factor in Las Vegas’s ten minute ceremonies and the concept of online marriages. Take for instance the story of David Pollard and Amy Taylor, two people from the UK who met and got married in the online socializing hub, Second Life, and who are also currently seeking a divorce.
As reported by Metro.co.uk, the two had been married, both in real life and also with a lavish ceremony online, since 2003. Things turned sour, however, when Taylor caught her husband online with another female avatar, cuddling on a couch.
Apparently this was enough evidence for Taylor to end things. She is currently with a new man she met in (get ready for it) World of Warcraft. The reason I find this story interesting, other then the fact that the online marriage ended the same way many do, is the fact that a gay marriage still somehow sounds so much more appalling and ludicrous to those in seats of power. Even in the lawless wild west of the internet and video games, same sex marriage can be a taboo.
Two players in the online game “The Lord of the Rings Online” are only allowed to have an “official” marriage if the avatars are two different genders, which I still think is ridiculous to this day, heavy religious themes in Tolkien’s work be damned.
The best example of this insanity, I believe, will always be Fable. Originally released for Microsoft’s Xbox in 2004, the game allowed the player to betroth local computer AI ladies in addition to action adventure questing. You could even marry a dude. Except you wouldn’t have a ceremony. Let’s all take a minute to think about that for a second.
