It’s been more than 24 hours since the Iowa Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage and I can’t see any pillars of salt from my window. I’m a little embarrassed that our neighbors to the south beat us to the punch on recognizing marriage equality. Minnesotans have long lorded a sense of superiority over our Iowan cousins and made them the butt of jokes, but the Iowa decision makes us look backward and square. Local advocates for marriage equality will probably play it cool for a while as events unfold in our sister state. But I’m confident that Minnesota will follow suit in the not-too-distant future.
We should also note that many of the jurists coming out in favor of marriage equality are Republican appointees. The clarity and plain rationality of their decisions is a refreshing reminder that, when it comes to recognizing the fundamental issue of fairness at stake here, not all conservatives are blinded by fear and bigotry
