Slog - Comments on Marriage is Good for Kids! But, You Know, Not Your Kids http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids So says Jeff Kemp, Seattle's kinder, gentler anti-gay bigot. Kemp heads up Families Northwest, a Redmond-based "pro-family" group, and he's got an op-ed in today's Seattle Times. (It's across from some days-old Dowd and Friedman.) Kemp's piece oozes concern, tosses out some alarming numbers ("With a trillion-dollar cost nationally, everyone is paying the price for fractured families"), throws around some dubious stats ("...similar marriage preparation and mentoring programs have helped to reduce divorce and teen pregnancy by 29 percent"), and promotes marriage intervention models very like ones developed by Families Northwest. It's just another paid advertisement masquerading as an opinion... Copyright 2008 Tue, 06 May 2008 13:32:43 -0800 Tue, 06 May 2008 20:38:19 -0800 http://www.movabletype.org/?v=3.34 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Comment by Non Unhappiness or financial ruin....


considering most Americans would choose status (wealth) over being content, I bet the divorce rate would be much higher.

]]> Non http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016158 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016158 Media Tue, 06 May 2008 13:41:04 -0800 Comment by Non (if people didn't care so much about the former, @1)

]]> Non http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016159 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016159 Media Tue, 06 May 2008 13:42:38 -0800 Comment by Trevor Does the Seattle Times not require that guest columns be fact-checked?

]]> Trevor http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016160 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016160 Media Tue, 06 May 2008 13:42:49 -0800 Comment by brad Shawn Kemp on the other hand ... he has a kid in every NBA city.

]]> brad http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016187 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016187 Media Tue, 06 May 2008 13:52:55 -0800 Comment by Will in Seattle Is Kemp going to run as VP for McCain so he can comment on McCain's Cialis commercials like he did Bob Dole's ads?

]]> Will in Seattle http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016202 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016202 Media Tue, 06 May 2008 13:58:12 -0800 Comment by kk I guess this means that Kemp will be supporting "still-married" Obama or Clinton over "I dumped my wife (who raised my kids alone while I was a POW) for a young, attractive mulimillionaire heiress" McCain.

]]> kk http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016227 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016227 Media Tue, 06 May 2008 14:03:59 -0800 Comment by OR Matt Dan, maybe the point is NOBODY is supposed to get married. Maybe it's better to have a relationship held togethor by trust, love, compassion etc. rather than insecurity and insurmountable logistics of separation and outright fear.

]]> OR Matt http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016281 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016281 Media Tue, 06 May 2008 14:21:59 -0800 Comment by orson What a asshole. But aren't they all?

I came across this news story this morning:

Mildred Loving died today at the age of 68.

"I am still not a political person, but I am proud that Richard’s and my name is on a court case that can help reinforce the love, the commitment, the fairness, and the family that so many people, black or white, young or old, gay or straight seek in life. I support the freedom to marry for all. That’s what Loving, and loving, are all about.

http://www.positiveliberty.com/2007/06/mildred-lovings-statement.html

]]> orson http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016299 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016299 Media Tue, 06 May 2008 14:31:38 -0800 Comment by PopTart Staying married would not have been good for my kid. And fuck you to anyone who tries to tell me otherwise. Getting divorced was one of the most painful experiences of my life and believe me if I didn't think it was the best outcome for all of us I wouldn't have pursued it.

My son is happy, well adjusted, and has a great relationship with both of his parents. And, since we don't have to live with each other anymore his dad and I have a mostly amicable relationship as well.

]]> PopTart http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016302 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016302 Media Tue, 06 May 2008 14:32:35 -0800 Comment by Hernandez Softer rhetoric than Hutch, for sure, but when you see a line like "Too many children are growing up without the benefits of having both a mother and a father in the home" it's pretty obvious that they're both in the same camp when it comes to teh gays.

@7 - That is a great point, and a big part of the reason that I have never been so much as tempted to get married.

]]> Hernandez http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016308 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016308 Media Tue, 06 May 2008 14:34:48 -0800 Comment by Seth Kolloen It may be of interest that Jeff Kemp, like Hutch, is a former Seattle Seahawk. He's also the son of former VP candidate Jack Kemp.

]]> Seth Kolloen http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016312 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016312 Media Tue, 06 May 2008 14:37:32 -0800 Comment by Justy At least Kemp is cuter than Hutch (and probably has better luck when trolling for men on the side, as all the anti-gays do).

]]> Justy http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016358 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016358 Media Tue, 06 May 2008 15:03:34 -0800 Comment by JenK Dumb question, but how is Hutch Redmond-based when his kid goes to school in Seattle? Does he ship her over to a private school? Or does he live in Seattle and only worship over here?

]]> JenK http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016363 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016363 Media Tue, 06 May 2008 15:07:11 -0800 Comment by JenK That reminds me...I always thought Antioch Church was in Kirkland, but I've seen the office in Redmond. Turns out they have services in Kirkland, offices in Redmond, and do something else at a school in Kirkland.

I wonder if having the office in Redmond isn't about Hutch's "we're going to take on Microsoft" shtick.

Sunday Worship Service:
Lake Washington High School
Gymnasium
12033 NE 80th Street
Kirkland, WA 98033
Get Directions

Antioch Bible Church Office
15135 NE 92nd Street, Ste. 240
Redmond, WA 98052
Phone: (425) 556-5905
Fax: (425) 556-1333
Get Directions

Seventh Day Adventist School
5320 108th Ave NE
Kirkland, WA 98033
Get Directions

]]> JenK http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016381 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016381 Media Tue, 06 May 2008 15:12:43 -0800 Comment by Vince More right-wing smoke and mirrors. It's like Adam and Eve roaming the planet with T-Rex. "More tea, Mr. T?" Idiocy parading as truth. Too bad it gets so much print space. It only confuses those less able to do any cognitive reasoning.

]]> Vince http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016440 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016440 Media Tue, 06 May 2008 15:43:51 -0800 Comment by COMTE @13:

Hutch's kid goes to school at Mt. Si H.S., located just east of "downtown" Snoqualmie; not Redmond, but definitely NOT Seattle, either.

]]> COMTE http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016470 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016470 Media Tue, 06 May 2008 15:56:43 -0800 Comment by ellarosa oh, just let these maroons dribble on. the time will come. it's a generational thing. i know that's cold comfort for those of you who want to get married in your lifetime, but...sigh. women who wanted to vote in 1900 were sol, too.

]]> ellarosa http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016771 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016771 Media Tue, 06 May 2008 19:53:34 -0800 Comment by Gay Seattle @17 is so correct. The anti-gay movement is so dead with the new generation that it would make the heads spin with old school bigots like Hutch and Kemp.

]]> Gay Seattle http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016807 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/05/marriage_is_good_for_kids#c1016807 Media Tue, 06 May 2008 20:38:19 -0800