It's amazing how fast things have changed in this arena.

I was a little confused by this sentence, and now I feel the need to be annoying and clarify: same-sex marriage is not legal in Mexico. Civil unions are legal in Mexico City and the State of Coahuila. Nation-wide same-sex marriage is legal only in the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, South Africa, and Canada.

And the ANC's pro-gay history goes back to the '80s. It was in part driven by the embarrassment the leadership felt when trying to solicit funds from Western liberals who confronted them about homophobia, but also from a dedicated person to person, hearts and minds campaign by Peter Tatchell. Nelson Mandela didn't need much convincing. Cecil Williams, a white gay South African, helped Mandela avoid arrest by disguising him as a chauffer (his bleeding heart ended up doing them both in. He felt so terribly guilty about forcing Mandela to pose as a servant that he gave him a break and started driving him around for a bit. A white man driving a black man was far too conspicuous, and they were pulled over and caught). Gay people had been part of the black liberation movement in South Africa from the beginning, and unlike some politicians I can name, he didn't forget those that helped him. Thabo Mbeki continued this support, and it's considered a settled issue within the ruling ANC.

It makes total sense too. In ever nation colonized by the British, they shot their mouths off about their superior system of government and the philosophies behind it, and just like they absorbed Marx, they aborbed Locke, Jefferson, and the rest. Only they made good on it.

Cellphones, tv and the internet involves a far greater percentage of people and have made a far greater impact on social life than same sex marriage ever will.