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After President Obama’s announcement, opposition to same-sex marriage hits record low

StillBallin75

StillBallin75

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After President Obama’s announcement, opposition to gay marriage hits record low - The Washington Post

Public opinion continues to shift in favor of same-sex marriage, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll, which also finds initial signs that President Obama’s support for the idea may have changed a few minds.

Overall, 53 percent of Americans say gay marriage should be legal, hitting a high mark in support while showing a dramatic turnaround from just six years ago, when just 36 percent thought it should be legal. Thirty-nine percent, a new low, say gay marriage should be illegal.


The poll also finds that 59 percent of African Americans say they support same-sex marriage, up from an average of 41 percent in polls leading up to Obama’s announcement of his new position on the matter. Though statistically significant, it is a tentative result because of the relatively small sample of black voters in the poll.
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So what does everyone think? Was Obama's endorsement of SSM really capable of changing that many minds? Or are other factors at work? Or was the poll flawed?

Personally I believe that the recent media focus on the issue after the Biden Meet the Press interview, NC Amendment One, and Obama's endorsement combined to put the media spotlight on the gay rights issue once again, causing some people to reconsider and rethink their own position.
 
Re: After President Obama’s announcement, opposition to same-sex marriage hits record

StillBallin75 said:
After President Obama’s announcement, opposition to gay marriage hits record low - The Washington Post



So what does everyone think? Was Obama's endorsement of SSM really capable of changing that many minds? Or are other factors at work? Or was the poll flawed?

Personally I believe that the recent media focus on the issue after the Biden Meet the Press interview, NC Amendment One, and Obama's endorsement combined to put the media spotlight on the gay rights issue once again, causing some people to reconsider and rethink their own position.
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I think that 59% of African Americans who took that poll support same sex marriage. I don't put much stock into any polls. Your article states that 53% of Americans say it should be legal but we don't see those results in the votes. Either those people need to start voting or the polls are biased. Maybe both. Honestly these people saying it on abc.com don't really matter if they sit home instead of voting. Those who oppose gay marriage are good at getting people to the voting booths. The reality of these things are that its the people who vote who's opinions really matter when you break it down.
 
Re: After President Obama’s announcement, opposition to same-sex marriage hits record

muciti said:
I think that 59% of African Americans who took that poll support same sex marriage. I don't put much stock into any polls.
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Well the poll does indeed state that the results are statistically significant but we should be careful about drawing conclusions due to the limited sample size.

Your article states that 53% of Americans say it should be legal but we don't see those results in the votes. Either those people need to start voting or the polls are biased. Maybe both. Honestly these people saying it on abc.com don't really matter if they sit home instead of voting. Those who oppose gay marriage are good at getting people to the voting booths.
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Agreed. I do believe that overall public support for SSM is increasing, but it's not reflected in the referenda because the demographics that tend to oppose are doing a better job of getting the vote out while the opposite is true for those who support.

The reality of these things are that its the people who vote who's opinions really matter when you break it down.
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In the short term, yes, but longer term I think these trends are still important and demonstrate social acceptance of gays, or at least recognition that marriage inequality is unjust.
 
Re: After President Obama’s announcement, opposition to same-sex marriage hits record

StillBallin75 said:
In the short term, yes, but longer term I think these trends are still important and demonstrate social acceptance of gays, or at least recognition that marriage inequality is unjust.
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I think that gays are pretty socially accepted. Most people support their choice or simply don't care what goes on in their bedrooms. But it is the voting that matters. Getting those who support SSM to vote is significant. Politicians don't care what non voters think. They care about staying in office. And it is those who vote who are going to keep them there, or remove them.
 
Re: After President Obama’s announcement, opposition to same-sex marriage hits record

I wonder if gays will have the same divorce rate? Damn fools, little do they know......... :lol:

Unlike hetero marriages where the husband is always wrong, in a male homo marriage, they're both wrong. :lamo Of course they're balanced by female homo marriages, in which both are always right.
 
Re: After President Obama’s announcement, opposition to same-sex marriage hits record

muciti said:
I think that gays are pretty socially accepted. Most people support their choice or simply don't care what goes on in their bedrooms.
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Say what now?
 
Re: After President Obama’s announcement, opposition to same-sex marriage hits record

StillBallin75 said:
After President Obama’s announcement, opposition to gay marriage hits record low - The Washington Post

So what does everyone think? Was Obama's endorsement of SSM really capable of changing that many minds? Or are other factors at work? Or was the poll flawed?

Personally I believe that the recent media focus on the issue after the Biden Meet the Press interview, NC Amendment One, and Obama's endorsement combined to put the media spotlight on the gay rights issue once again, causing some people to reconsider and rethink their own position.
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I don't know if his statement in and of itself changed minds, but I think that the conversations and thought processes that followed his statement probably changed minds. That said, I would wait a few months before definitively accepting these results. Even so, I believe that they are accurate for two reasons: First, peoples' opinions on this have been changing rapidly as it is. Second, there were probably a lot of people who were conflicted about SSM and it's plausible that an endorsement from such a significant political figure pushed them in the pro-SSM direction.
 
Re: After President Obama’s announcement, opposition to same-sex marriage hits record

muciti said:
?

123456789
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I was just questioning your use of the word "choice" in regards to homosexuality.
 
Re: After President Obama’s announcement, opposition to same-sex marriage hits record

ThePlayDrive said:
I was just questioning your use of the word "choice" in regards to homosexuality.
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I think he was referring to their "choice" to get married. I may be wrong though.
 
Re: After President Obama’s announcement, opposition to same-sex marriage hits record

StillBallin75 said:
I think he was referring to their "choice" to get married. I may be wrong though.
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You are somewhat. People have a choice in everything they do. Marriage and who they have sex with included.
 
Re: After President Obama’s announcement, opposition to same-sex marriage hits record

Damnit, we need for more chairs for the gay party then!
 
Re: After President Obama’s announcement, opposition to same-sex marriage hits record

muciti said:
You are somewhat. People have a choice in everything they do. Marriage and who they have sex with included.
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"Somewhat." Do you think people choose to be gay?
 
Re: After President Obama’s announcement, opposition to same-sex marriage hits record

muciti said:
yes I do.

890
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That's what I thought. That's all I wanted to know. I'm not going to argue with you.
 
Re: After President Obama’s announcement, opposition to same-sex marriage hits record

This graf was also particularly interesting to me:

Americans divide about evenly — 49 to 46 percent — on whether gay-marriage laws should be made at the state or federal level. Most backers of same-sex marriage support a federal approach, while opponents prefer letting states decide. That is a stark shift from 2004, when a CBS News-New York Times poll found widespread support for federal authority over gay marriage among its opponents, not its supporters.
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Re: After President Obama’s announcement, opposition to same-sex marriage hits record

muciti said:
I'd like to see it passed at a national level. Or at least voted on.
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I think the Supreme Court will rule on the issue within the next decade or so, but in any case I do believe it should be done at the federal level, not the state level.
 
Re: After President Obama’s announcement, opposition to same-sex marriage hits record

StillBallin75 said:
I think the Supreme Court will rule on the issue within the next decade or so, but in any case I do believe it should be done at the federal level, not the state level.
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Yea, when it is done at a state level people still do not get the same benefits or recognition as a hetero married couple.
 
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