Prop 8's day in court

We attended Wednesday's "Eve of Justice" rally in LA. Thousands of people there, despite the rain. We rallied, then marched from Nuestra Senora (the old church for which Los Angeles is named) to the US Courthouse. I snapped this photo of a fellow marcher, whose sign quoted one of Harvey Milk's best speeches.

I listened to the oral arguments from my desk (while reducing data.) It did not go well. The justices, especially Justice Kennard, seem ready to rule that California voters are entitled to make laws as discriminatory as they want, with no check on that power. Which means that Article 1 means nothing, that equal protection means nothing -- unless 50.001% of the voters agree that you deserve equal protection. That no one has any rights, except as bestowed by the California constitution. And that you have no rights that can't be stripped from you by 50.001% of the voters.

The justices repeatedly asked what rights are "unalienable". Hard to pronounce, easy to understand. Unalienable rights are those that cannot be made alien to you, by anyone, no matter what -- because they come from GOD, not from your fellow voters. "That among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." That's what Jefferson meant in the Declaration (which the California constitution quotes.)