Rational Nation USA
Liberty -vs- Tyranny
America is indeed changing. More accepting and tolerant. For certain the nation has a long way to go before bigotry and prejudice is finally eradicated for good. But the movement is encouraging and no amount of religious right influence or latent racial prejudice will stop the trajectory.
Some interesting snippets of the changing times.
USA TODAY -... Last year was the first time a majority of Americans had backed gay marriage.
The only major demographic groups in which a majority oppose same-sex marriage are Republicans (68%) and seniors 65 and older (51%). Even in the South, which continues to be the only region that doesn't show majority support for gay marriage, opposition has slipped below 50%.
• By a narrower margin, 48%-43%, those surveyed favor the Supreme Court's decision declaring unconstitutional part of the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act, which barred the federal government from providing benefits to same-sex spouses. Views on the issue are intense. Those who feel strongly about the issue split 29%-29% in favor and against the ruling.
• By 53%-37%, Americans say affirmative action programs are still needed to counteract the effects of discrimination against minorities. That reflects a rebound in support after the court's ruling. In an NBC/Wall Street Journal poll taken a few weeks before the court's decision, the nation split 45%-45% over whether such programs were needed or had gone too far.
In a case involving the University of Texas, the Supreme Court ruled that affirmative action programs in college admissions were permissible but set a tough legal standard the programs have to meet.
• By 49%-40%, those surveyed oppose the decision by the court to strike down the provision in the Voting Rights Act that required some states, mostly in the South, to get federal approval to change election laws. Two-thirds of African Americans oppose the decision.
The country divides 43%-44% in approval-disapproval over the way the Supreme Court is doing its job. That's the lowest level of approval in eight years and nearly 20 percentage points lower than it was as recently as 2001... {Full Report Here}
The only thing that is inevitable is change. Best to accept change and work to make things better. Without giving up the many good things that have always been America.
Via: Memeorandum
