Great news today for my gay friends!

Vermont has done it! And they did it by choice.

Today, that American state became the fourth in the country to recognize equal marriage for its citizens. After its legislative bodies passed a bill legalizing equal marriage, the Governor, Jim Douglas, vowed to veto it, and yesterday he went through with the threat.

But less than 24 hours later, the state Senate voted 23-5 to override his veto, and the House recorded a 100-49 vote to override — the absolute minimum they had to have to do so. And now it’s law.

And there was much rejoicing throughout the land!

Of course, the Republican Douglas couldn’t be gracious about it, and grabbed the opportunity to try to make citizens resent gay people:

“What really disappoints me is that we have spent some time on an issue during which another thousand Vermonters have lost their jobs.”

Riiiiight. A Republican governor all concerned about joblessness. Which was of course why he vetoed the bill so even more time had to be spent on it. Riiiiight.

Vermont is the only state so far who legislated equal marriage into existence. Three other states recognize equal marriage (Massachusetts, Iowa, and Connecticut), but it was the courts who legalized it in those places.

And guess what! The married gays and lesbians from those four states will now have their marriages recognized in Washington, DC! The District of Columbia Council voted unanimously today to recognize same-sex marriages from other states.

Of course there’s the little matter that DC, like New York, recognizes these marriages but doesn’t let these people get married there. How stupid is that? But surely it won’t be long now.

As this Carnal Nation article mentions, two other states seem to be pretty close to recognizing equal marriage as well:

New Hampshire’s House passed a marriage bill in March, which now awaits a Senate vote. In New Jersey, Gov. Jon Corzine has pledged to sign a gay marriage bill that has been introduced in its legislature.

Isn’t it a great day for gays and lesbians today? And the great thing is that Americans now have the second-largest country (as far as land mass goes) in the world sitting just up north of them, proving that the sky doesn’t fall and the earth doesn’t swallow you up if you give equal rights to all citizens. Now there are four states (and could soon be six, or even seven if California smartens up) that will demonstrate the same thing.

It’s going to get harder and harder to play the hysteria card and expect anyone to listen.