“What's does consent have to do with marriage?”
I’d say all of it?
I asked her for her hand, i didn’t offer her dad a dowry.
We both agreed to where we had the marriage and what tradition the ceremony celebrated.
She can say ‘no’ to sex at any time, even after entry. I suppose i, too, could turn down sex. Hypothetically.
We both agreed to the bases we moved to when the detailers offered us billets near each other.
We both agreed to kids and after the twins were born, both agreed that a vasectomy for me was less risky or invasive than getting her tubes tied.
We split the chores and the bills.
We split the cooking.
If she goes vegan, I will support her decision though i won’t share it. And i’ll cook vegan options on my nights.
She’s allergic to dogs and cats, so my pet is a Venus flytrap.
So, yeah, everything.
OH! Unless what you’re questioning is the bare minimum for gay marriage, two consenting adults? Same incredibly high bar for cis-het marriages, really.
"I think it's time proponents of same-sex marriage spell out exactly what they think marriage should be,”
They did. CONSTANTLY. They want the same thing that other couples have. The same legal partnership, the same responsibilities, the same privileges, and make it national. That way there won’t be a legal fight with every government agency at every level, and every private business, to argue about whether their partnership ‘counts’ as a marriage with respect to picking up kids from school, medical proxy, adoption, legal proxy, insurance dependent, tax benefits, and the other hundred special privileges enjoyed by married couples.
"and then defend it before the American people.”
THey did that, too. THey asked if there’s any non-bigoted reason to deny it in a secular government. And the SCOTUS said no, there isn’t.
