Heterosexual nutjobs place their sacred marriages in a lockbox and brace for deep impact
People are getting gay married in New York like you wouldn’t believe, and so far, the universe seems okay with it.
First up? Kitty Lambert and her partner Cheryle Rudd, who have waited more than a decade for New York to recognize their relationship:
According to a press release from New Yorkers United for Marriage, the first same-sex couple to legally wed in New York State will be Buffalo residents Kitty Lambert and Cheryle Rudd, who will tie the knot on Luna Island in front of Niagara Falls. Also, “For the first time, to commemorate the wedding, monumental Niagara Falls will be lit in hues of the rainbow equality flag.”
The release notes that:
Kitty Lambert and Cheryle Rudd have waited over a decade for New York to recognize their relationship; and after five children and twelve grandchildren, these Buffalo residents do not want to wait one second longer. So, at exactly 12:00:01, one second after marriage equality becomes the law of their home state, Kitty and Cheryle will finally say, “I do,” in the presence of family, friends, local and statewide elected officials, national VIPs and thousands of well-wishers.
(Can you imagine how many couples have gotten married and divorced during the more than ten-year period that Cheryle and Kitty were waiting around for New York to get its shit together? I’m not sure of the exact number, but I’m going with “lots.”)
Aaaaanyway, Kitty and Cheryle were married just after midnight today:
Against a cascade of rainbow-colored falls, and with cicadas humming in the background, Kitty Lambert and Cheryle Rudd married at the first possible moment in Niagara Falls. After a bell tolled 12 times to ring in the new day, Ms. Lambert, 54, and Ms. Rudd, 53, held hands and kissed in front of more than 100 friends and family members.
That article goes on to discuss a bunch of crap spewing from the National Organization for Whatever and their ridiculous homophobic fear-mongering, but who needs to read that nonsense?
If you’re lucky enough to find someone you love and can stand to be around for more than a few minutes a day, then by George you should take that person out back and get him/her pregnant marry him or her. The idiots who are freaking out about it will calm the hell down once they realize that gay is not contagious. Kitty and Cheryle’s marriage has absolutely nothing to do with anyone but Kitty and Cheryle.
And those nutjobs too far gone to grasp that concept are too stupid to worry about in the first instance. Let them throw their tantrums. Their irrelevancy looms.
The bottom line is this: It’s a celebration, bitches.
I mean, just look at this picture:
And tell me it doesn’t make you grin from ear to ear.
To top it all off, Niagra Falls showed its pride:
It doesn’t get gayer than this, folks.
Good times.
[cross-posted]
Baron Jrod of Keeblershire
Awesome.
Joey Maloney
Those idiots will never calm the hell down. Because from their perspective, gay is contagious. Every single mention of gay in the media, every rerun of Will and Grace, every rainbow bumper sticker they see is just that much more pressure on their own sad, repressed lives. Until one day they can’t stand it any longer and – BAM! – they caught the gay. It might be in a Minneapolis airport bathroom, or a Colorado Springs hotel room, or a Caribbean vacation – nowhere is safe.
lacp
Nice post, and best wishes to Ms. Lambert and Ms. Rudd. And if Maggie Gallagher haz a sad, well, that’s just too fucking bad, isn’t it?
CT Voter
Thanks ABL. With all the crap out there, this was a nice post to read.
And The Falls look AWESOME.
Linda Featheringill
Congratulations to all of the newlyweds. Many years of happiness and joy.
And yes, about time.
Kevin
Good morning, ABL. I’m so glad I caught this post “early” before your dedicated troll fans start complaining about whatever nonsense their tiny minds can come up with about this happy little observational post. I’m so glad you and SPTL are now contributing to my present favorite site. I wonder what your small but persistent critics will come up with on this one to get their perverted jollies? Keep up the good and entertaining work.
gwangung
This IS is fuckin’ big deal.
gelfling545
Congratulations Ms. Lambert & Ms. Rudd. Go Buffalo!
geg6
I can’t love this story, and the many more to come, more.
Thanks,ABL. Terrific post and fabulous pic of the Falls!
PurpleGirl
This was off-topic in the thread where I posted a slightly different version of it this morning:
Time Warner’s NY1 televised the first same-sex marriage ceremony in NYC (Manhattan I presume). The couple — Phyllis and Connie — have been together over 20 years and are aged 85 and 75. The Clerk’s ending comment to the ceremony was wishing that their love would grow and enable them to cope with life’s challenges (paraphrase). For all the craziness this past week, I think this is an excellent start to the new week. This day is good.
ETA: NY1 video of story
http://www.ny1.com/content/top_stories/143554/marriage-equality-comes-to-the-city
Ecks
On a weekend of such regress, glad to see some actual real progress making real people happy. Good for this happy couple.
Rp
Anyone see the ridiculous comments from Larry Kramer?
Xof
SNIF!
RalfW
Congrats and hooray for NY!
PurpleGirl
Rp: link please
Hawes
I have told me wife that in order not to get sucked into the vortex of Teh Ghey that we need to have opposite sex three times a day. I told her God said we should.
She said to take a cold shower and get back to her when the FSM weighs in on the subject.
RalfW
No no don’t link to Larry Kramer.
RalfW
I mean, his anger was appropriate in the cataclysm of AIDS in the 80s/90s. But because he was right to rage then doesn’t make it right now…
PurpleGirl
RalfW: Some people may not know what he said or when he said it. I Googled him and found a range of cites from different years. But there didn’t seem to be any direct comments made recently.
PurpleGirl
Hhhmmm… I didn’t get an edit line.
I meant to add:
Some people may not know what he said or when he said it. (I didn’t.)
burnspbesq
@ABL:
Didn’t Sun Tzu say something about the importance of knowing the enemy?
Uncle Clarence Thomas
.
.
Everybody knows that once you let two people get married, it opens the door to man on woman marriage, woman on dolphin marriage, man on woman on woman marriage, man on manimal marriage, and so on and so forth. Shouldn’t we, as a society, seriously consider abolishing marriage and all the perversions it inevitably leads us to?
.
.
Ken
lacp @3:
I consider it one of the fringe benefits, actually.
Gromitt Gunn (formerly JMC_in_the_ATL)
lovely. :)
Steaming Pile
Waiting for New York to get it’s shit together? Seriously? Is New York like the 53rd state to legalize gay marriage (behind South Carolina) or something? Really? Getting its shit together? Last I checked, the number of states where gay marriage is currently legal is still in the single digits, and New York is the largest state – by far – where it is currently legal, so this fully qualifies as leadership on Albany’s part, in my not-at-all humble opinion.
So save your accusations of foot-dragging for those who actually deserve it. You are doing liberalism a serious disservice.
Death Panel Truck
Congrats to the happy couple. Cool to see one of them shares my last name. It’s so easily pronounceable, but so many people can’t seem to get it right. If I had a nickel for every time someone called me “Mr. Rude,” I’d be richer than Bill Gates.
And I’m not rude at all :). I’m generally a nice guy, except when dealing with Republicans. I don’t suffer fools gladly.
debg
Thanks for this lovely post, ABL. This story makes me so happy–a little for me, more for the human race, and TONS for the happy couple.
WereBear
Thanks for the lovely post; the happy couple look ecstatic and adorable.
As someone who spent ten years looking at Long Island wedding videos; trust me, this isn’t common enough :)
Jude
Wow, you made it to over two dozen comments before some shithead troll showed up. Is that a record? Also: @Steaming Pile–first, appropriate name for what you offer. Second, munch on a bowl of my nuts.
Angry [Redacted] Lady
No. “Waiting for New York to get its shit together.”
asiangrrlMN
Too much awesome in one post. It’s a beautiful sight to see, and I know it’s only the beginning. We’re continuing forward on this issue, America–like it or suck it.
harlana
Meh. I hate happy couples. Marriage, schmarriage.
rikyrah
the pic of the FALLS is wonderful
Alison
My parents’ anniversary is in a couple of weeks. I hope they manage to make it even though Little Maggie says their marriage is doomed. Otherwise I’ll have to sell these Willie Nelson tickets I got them…
…hmm, actually – I bet I could get well over face-value for them. Might not be so bad.
:P
Also yay NY, yay gays, yay happiness! Haters gonna hate and they can go fuck themselves.
4jkb4ia
Even though this particular topic has been done to death….
The people in the link in the eyes of what marriage means in our society are already married. But this must be a completely joyous day for many others.
(3-3, top of the 8th, runner on 2nd, 0 out.)
(You thought this pennant race thing would be exciting?)
/This is traditionally a time of year with no weddings because…read The Jewish War. You wouldn’t want to get married either.
Rp
The Kramer quotes were in today’s ny times article.
4jkb4ia
A lot of NYT articles today, and no quotes from Kramer.
Here is the link. Due to general curmudgeonliness, not going to repeat in this thread, but one of the people in my link mentioned the lack of federal marriage rights, too.
Rich2506
Heh! My roommate back in college had what I thought was a pretty good criteria for marriage: “If you can wake up with her and stand to look at her, marry her!” Will the anti-happiness people ever calm down? Eh, probably not.
DogMom
Nit – picking. Niagara Falls
burnspbesq
@4jkb4ia:
I get where Kramer and Chauncey are coming from, and I’m not unsympathetic to their views, but jeez Louise, pissing on progress because it comes more slowly than you’d like is hardly a winning strategy.
lightning
For a long time now, right-wingers have been obsessing over other people’s sex lives far more than is healthy. People are finally starting to get tired of their shtick. About time.
And mazel tov to all those getting married in NY today. Including the straight ones, if there are any (:-).
Jamie
Now that’s a fiscal stimulus. Well done, New York!
Angry [Redacted] Lady
that’s not nit-picking! my comment at 31 is nit-picking (and, now, ironic.)
heh.