Marriage Equality

I'll admit that I've never really understood the intense drive that LGBT couples have for marriage equality. I guess the drive is partly because they want to feel that they are being seen and/or treated the same way as others. In theory I can understand this, but in the microcosom of society everyone treats everyone differently. As long as people judge one another (even if it's on the clothes they wear), there will never be equality. Thus, I've always said that if same-sex couples were extended all the benefits of opposite-sex couples, that would be enough.

However, I just read the report by the NYC Comptroller and in it is estimated that "the economic impact of marriage equality would add $142 million, on a net basis, to NYC's economy during the three years that follow legislative approval. It would add about $184 million, on a net basis, in spending to the State's economy." This would arise, in part, from spending on weddings from those who live here and those who would come here to get married. In addition, it is estimated that "the State will collect about $8 million more in taxes and save more than $100 million in outlays on health care, while the City would collect about $7 million in taxes in fees and experience no impact on outlays."

So, does the average New Yorker just not know this information? Or is keeping marriage between a man and a woman more important than our bottom line? It's hard to imagine the latter is true given the fiercely capitalistic mentality of New York, but maybe I don't have my finger on the pulse of New York after all.

Off to Toronto

It's been over 6 years since I've been in Canada. I've been promising to go back for years, but for one reason or another it just never panned out. For those that don't know I lived in Canada for two years while I got my M.Sc. So, it will be very nice to go back. This time, though, I'm going to Toronto. This will be a very different Canadian experience as Toronto is much different than the maritime cities I lived in (Charlottetown, Antigonish). I probably won't see any of my Canadian friends since I'm not going to the maritimes, but a great many of my soccer buddies are going, so there are sure to be good times, both on and off the field. :)

24 TCG Content Launches

For those that are unawares, the 24 TCG launch is fast approaching. Content for the game has begun to roll out. You can get information at Essential 24 and also Trevor has created a 24 TCG Blog. The current entry is a playtesting article by yours truly, so check it out!