Palfrey's life

Re the slightly bonkers situation in the US, this does appear to be an entirely vote-related endeavor. Why? Because at the same time as banning gay 'marriage', the Shrub is also putting through changes in the law that will allow same-sex 'civil unions'. So, we'll give you the same legal status, the same tax breaks etc, but you aren't allowed to call yourself 'Married' :lol:

Tyrshundr and meself had a look into the etymology of the word, on the theory that if it wasn't Hebrew they couldn't say it was a Biblical concept. Unsuprisingly, it's Latin, and I can't remember if the Romans had a policy on it.

Anyway, what 'Marriage' traces down to is the state of being a 'Husband', which then traces down to a man who owns a farm. So by that dint, Queen Victoria was right, gay men could be 'married', but lesbians can't!