Following the Massachusetts Supreme Court ruling mandating that gay men and lesbians be granted the right to marry, and nothing short of that, President Bush has apparently signaled to the religious right his intention to pursue a constitutional amendment permanently banning the recognition of same-sex marriages in this country. (
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20040205/ap_on_go_pr_wh/bush_gay_marriage_4)
This decision, when announced, will undoubtedly be regarded by the millions of gay and lesbian Americans as nothing short of apocalyptic, something close to a declaration of war. While it is unclear if such an amendment could even pass in Congress, let alone clear the high hurdle of being endorsed by the states, its endorsement by the president, and its consideration by the congress, will certainly be met with mass demonstrations across the country and civil disobedience on a scale perhaps never seen in ths country.
And should it pass in congress, be signed by the president, and even so much as appear likely to be passed into law by the states, I fear that the acrimonious, but nevertheless mostly non-violent culture war of the past several decades, may become a shooting war in this country. The prospect of a full civil war between "red" and "blue" states may very well not come to pass, even under these circumstances, but I fear that political violence aimed at conservative politicians, pundits, organizations, and news media is unfortunately quite possible, even likely. That would be terribly sad and tragic, but I also suspect it may be inevitable should this amendment approach passage. A great many in the gay and lesbian community, myself included, would probably simply leave the country for Canada or western Europe should the amendment become the law of the land, but others will undoubtedly stay (and their ranks replenished every generation), and some of those would almost certainly engage in violence.