According to the Jakarta Globe, there are now about 100,000 legally married same sex couples in the world, representing about 0.003% of the world's population.
There will be no advancement in equal marriage rights in the United States for at least a year, but that doesn't stop progress around the globe. A number of countries are moving, some quickly, some slowly, towards equality.
Finland is on the path towards recognizing same sex marriage.
Regardless of the outcome of next year's Finnish parliamentary elections, the governing majority is expected to implement a motion in support of gender-neutral marriage and adoption...
Taru Tujunen, the National Coalition Party secretary, said an initiative would be put forward at the next party congress which would call for gender-neutral marriage.
Portugal is having problems, but is still expected to have equal marriage rights soon.'
Portuguese President Anibal Cavaco Silva will veto a gay marriage bill approved by lawmakers in February...
Cavaco Silva will veto the bill soon after Pope Benedict's arrival on May 11.
Once the President vetoes the bill, it goes back to Parliament where
Social Democrats -- led by Prime Minister Jose Socrates -- say they have the votes needed to override the veto.
No reporting on how long it will take procedurally to override the veto or, when Parliament does, how long until the new law goes into effect.
Iceland is also on the legislative path towards equality, despite volcano eruptions and a complete financial meltdown:
The tiny island nation of Iceland (pop. 320,000) is preparing to legalize gay marriage. The government introduced its gender-neutral marriage bill on March 23, CarnalNation.com reported.
The bill has the backing of Prime Minister Johanna Siguroardottir, the world's first openly lesbian politician to be elected to helm a country.
Nepal is continuing to advertise itself as a destination for gay couples, particularly those who want to get married on Mt. Everest. The legislation is, you guess it, still winding its way through the nation's Parliament.
What a difference a couple of years makes. Nepal -- a country where just three years ago being a homosexual could get you two years in jail -- is now intent on becoming Asia's top gay tourism destination. In light of a same-sex marriage law currently under review by the country's parliament, Nepal's Tourism Board hopes gay and lesbian couples will get hitched on Everest.
Argentina is having a battle of judges. One judge allows a same-sex marriage, the next one annuls it.
A judge in Argentina has annulled the first gay marriage in Latin America, state media said Thursday, but the two men in the groundbreaking union said they would appeal the decision.
Legislation is indeed before Argentina's Congress, but unless it passes, this bizarre situation seems destined to continue.
Lawmakers in the Argentine Congress are currently debating a gay marriage bill. If approved, Argentina would become the first Latin American country to legalize gay marriage and only the second country in the Americas, after Canada.
The United Kingdom is having an election. And what was once considered an easy win for Cameron and his Tories has been thrown wide open in the last few days, with Nick Clegg, the leader of the third party Liberal Democrats, having a chance to become Prime Minister, possibly in a coalition government. And what of his view on equal marriage rights?
"Yes, I support gay marriage."
Penultimately, consider the sovereign state of Texas. Can you say Catch-22? Or should that be Catch 222, since Texas always does it bigger?
Texas is appealing a decision of one of its judges to grant a divorce to a same-sex couple who were legally married in Massachusetts. Since they are now residents of Texas, they can't just go back to Massachusetts and get divorced.
So if Texas grants the divorce, would they be recognizing same-sex marriage? You can't very well divorce someone who in your eyes isn't married, or can you? But if they don't issue a divorce, wouldn't they be sustaining the status quo -- a legal same-sex marriage. What's a Longhorn to do?
And finally we bring you the gay marriage news from the nation's capital:
Uh, wait. Actually there's no real news. Despite the claims of the Catholic Church and various other homophobic groups, the fabric of the District's society has not collapsed (at least any further than it already had...), heterosexuals are still getting married, its citizens still do not have representation, and Congress is still bloviating.