February 19, 2009
Dear Governor Schwarzenegger,
I hear things are tough out in California right now, and your budget talks aren’t going very well. Things are rough here in Michigan too, and, as a point of trivia, we have a Governor from another country as well. But that’s a different story. I was recently going over my credit card statements in preparation for my yearly tax appointment, and we shocked to see how much money my partner (now husband) and I dropped in your fine state back in August. Yes, we came to California with the express intent on getting married. Our week long trip to your fine state ran us about $2500 when all was said and done. It could have been more if we didn’t have family and friends there to stay with during our visit. Thankfully, we had a great place to stay with a cousin and her family which gave us not only free lodging, but a playmate for our three year old daughter as well.
Word on the street is that over 18,000 couples tied the knot in your fair state during the window that we were allowed to do so. Some probably had very simple courthouse ceremonies; others had very elaborate and expensive weddings, some, like my family, traveled to California to make it happen. I am not a mathematician, nor am I an economist, but if each of those 18,000 couples spent what we did, $45 million was spent on weddings, flowers, venues, and what not during that brief window.
Yes, I know that Proposition 8 was the will of the people, but sometimes common sense wins out over hatred and bigotry at the ballot box, especially when it comes to finances. Please work with your courts and Attorney General to overturn this ridiculous ruling, and ignore any calls for boycotts should that happen. The Gays got your back on this one, trust me. Plus, you have some of the best vacation spots in the whole country, so when Focus on the Family calls for a boycott, laugh and send them tickets to Disneyland.
Sincerely,
Tom, Tod, and Anna Laura
Jackson, MI.
Brilliant letter!
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