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Diaz wins, for now
Chalk one down for Bronz bigot Ruben Diaz: in his bid to keep gay people down and unwed, he seems to have carried the first round: Democrats won't introduce marriage equality legislation for the time being.
But now, party leaders have sent strong signals that they may not take up the issue during the 2009 legislative session. Some of them suggest it may be wise to wait until 2011 before considering it, in hopes that Democrats can pick up more Senate seats and Gov. David A. Paterson, a strong backer of gay rights, would then be safely into a second term.
Of course, all that could change the instant there's a special election for a Senate seat. Stay tuned, because there will be special elections this cycle.
http://dailygotham.com/blog/bouldin/diaz_wins_for_now
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Philosophy vs. Reality
For those who take a "philosophical attitude," it's easy to say that while Senator Diaz may have won this round he's bound to lose in the long run. After all, over the next two cycles Democrats are all but certain to pick up several seats, between Republican retirements and the result of redistricting. By then, we will not only have passed those bills, but also ensured that they will not be overturned before people who still harbor silent (or loud) bigotry get used to the idea of equality.
For those who have a personal stake in this, and those with friends and family who are personally affected, the sad reality is that it will be at least a couple more years before we take the next step toward equality. That means 730 days during which too many people are not given the benefits of citizenship in our society (in some cases, including a friend of mine, that includes actual denial of citizenship itself).
Meanwhile, don't lose sight of the fact that even if every state in the country passed full equality measures there still would be federal denial of equality. It's gonna be a long, hard fight, no matter what happens in New York.