Panic in the New York Senate!

Looks like our gay friends in New York can forget about getting married any time soon. Two Democratic Senators, Pedro Espada and Hiram Monserratte, broke with their party and elected GOP Senator Dean Skelos majority leader, changing the balance of power in Albany.

The marriage bill Governor Paterson introduced last April already passed in the State Assembly, but even before yesterday's late afternoon coup, its hopes of passing the Senate were dim. In addition to Espada and Monserratte (who claim they're still Democrats), two other conservative Democratic Senators, Ruben Diaz Sr. and Carl Kruger make up the "Gang of Four," so-called "independent Democrats" who have quite blatantly courted Republican support since the Democrats won control of the Senate in November. One of the key points of contention the four had with their party was the marriage equality bill. Now that they've handed control of the Senate to the Republicans, it's unlikely it will ever see the light of day.

It seems like such an overreaction, although the push for gay equality is probably only one factor in the four's conflict with their party. Still, drama queen much? Why not just let the bill come to a vote and "vote your conscience"? It smacks of gay panic to us, as if siding with the Democrats makes one look like a fag.

It's interesting to note that none of these politicians is from rural Upstate. Espada and Diaz are both from the Bronx, while Monserratte is from Queens and Kruger from Brooklyn, proving that even the bluest cities in the bluest states can harbor bigots. All of these men use religion to justify their hate, mixing personal religious beliefs with policy making that impacts people of all faiths and none. Monserratte in particular seems ill-suited to the moral high ground, accused of slashing his girlfriend in the face with a beer bottle last December, requiring 20 to 40 stitches. Yes, this is a man who feels he has a right to judge the relationships of other people, and use God's law to justify it.

Remember when Prop 8 passed in California, and the other side told us we had to accept it because it's "the will of the people"? Even though making the civil rights of a minority dependant on a popular vote seems ridiculously flawed and inherently unfair, but that's besides the point. "The people spoke", and we had to accept that. Well, didn't the people speak in New York last November, when they handed control of their state Senate to Democrats for the first time in 44 years? What gives these two men the right to reverse that? Vote these bums out, New Yorkers!