Scotland is ready for gay marriage, whether Cardinal O'Brien likes it or not

[cbayer]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/belief/2012/jul/26/scotland-gay-marriage-cardinal-o-brien

Postcard campaigns run by Catholic opponents indicate how nervous they feel about Scots' attitude to same-sex marriage

Jane Carnall
guardian.co.uk, Thursday 26 July 2012 04.49 EDT



My lodger, a nice Catholic librarian, once told me that at her Highlands church the anti-gay marriage postcards were put on a table at the back, no one taking much interest. A Glaswegian friend told me those postcards were actually being handed out to each mass-goer, and those signed collected back at the end of the service.

In 2011, Cardinal O'Brien had the Catholic Parliamentary Office send 200,000 postcards, pre-printed with a message against gay marriage, one for every mass-going Catholic to sign, to every parish in Scotland. They got 28,000 of them back: about 170,000 Catholics ignored them. Thirty-six per cent of the total responses to the equal marriage consultation in Scotland are those postcards.

"Scotland for Marriage" and other opponents of same-sex marriage point to figures stating that 77,508 responses to the Scottish gay marriage consultation, only 36% were in favour of gay marriage and 64% were against. While civil rights in a democracy are not awarded by majority vote, this does sound fairly conclusive, doesn't it?

But Cardinal Keith O'Brien has announced a fundraising Sunday in August – he wants £100,000 to run an advertising campaign against same-sex marriage. Odd, since they claim to be supported by the majority.

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