"Marriage between one man and one woman is the only domestic legal union that shall be valid or recognized in this State. This section does not prohibit a private party from entering into contracts with another private party; nor does this section prohibit courts from adjudicating the rights of private parties pursuant to such contracts."
This is where I steer left of my Libertarian friends. Since marriage is legally binding and ministers who perform ceremonies have to be licensed by the state, it should be governed by the state. How can we tell the government to "get out of the marriage business" when we hand the dissolution of it over to the courts to sort out? For legal purposes though, it should be called a "legal partnership" across the board. Religious ceremonies should be left up to the church you attend.
The state should not be in the business of making lifestyle or morality choices for it's citizens. This would rank us on level with Shari'a Law. Is there property damage? Does gay marriage infringe on the rights of others? Is there physical or emotional damage if we allow homosexual marriage to be recognized by the state? Of course not! Thus limits the power the state has over deciding who gets married to whom. We shouldn't add personal opinion or preference to either the State or Federal Constitution.
I'd rather fight against the freedom of "no fault" divorce. It's far more damaging to family dynamics and the security of our children, making marriage a temporary status until you get bored, unhappy, or find someone new.
Gay marriage is already illegal in the state of North Carolina. Adding this amendment to our state constitution is simply unneccessary and goes against the purpose of having a Constitution which is to protect the citizens from an overreaching government.
