The Real World.

Dale Carpenter, law professor at the University of Minnesota, stops being polite and starts making sense:

More bluntly put, the Obama DOJ is saying that DOMA doesn't discriminate against gays and lesbians because they are free to marry people of the opposite sex. No "homosexual" is denied marriage so homosexuals qua homosexuals suffer no hardship.

Gay man? Marry a woman, says the DOJ. Lesbian? There's a nice boy across the street. It's identical in form to the defense of Texas's Homosexual Conduct law in Lawrence v. Texas: a law banning only gay sex doesn't discriminate against gays because it equally forbids homosexuals and heterosexuals to have homosexual sex and because it equally allows homosexuals and heterosexuals to have heterosexual sex.

This sort of formalism has incited howls of laughter over the years when made by religious conservatives. Now it's the official constitutional position of the Obama administration.

My point here is not to claim that the DOJ's arguments are anti-gay, homophobic, or even wrong. Much of the brief seems right to me, or at least entirely defensible. My point is only to point out how much continuity there is in this instance, as in others, between the Bush and Obama administrations. In short, there's little in this brief that could not have been endorsed by the Bush DOJ. A couple of rhetorical flourishes here and there. Perhaps a turn of phrase. But, minus a couple of references to procreation and slippery slopes, the substance is there.

Obama says he opposes DOMA as a policy matter and wants to repeal it. Nothing in the DOJ brief prevents him from acting on that belief. He is, he says, a "fierce advocate" for gay and lesbian Americans. When does that part start?

You know, once we come of age and realize that it really is within our powers to change ourselves, but others? Not so much... It got me to thinking: much as we'd like, America really is powerless to enforce the human rights policies of counties like Iran, say. I mean, we could protest, educate, influence and encourage change in terms of financial incentives, boycotts, etc. But for the most part, we are powerless to "force" another county to evolve their culture more quickly...

Not so true here in the U.S. though. Here, again, we have the power to cajole, influence, lead, educate, protest, etc. And here, odds are more fellow Americans will be influenced by such techniques than Iranians would hearing the views of Westerner's halfway across the world.

Pres. Obama's people promise that a fresh face, a new voice, a softer set of diplomatic skills can work wonders in the world. So where the heck is he on this one?

Stuck back in the relative Stone Ages, it appears, unwilling to risk minor political capital that it would take for him to stand on principle on these issues. Bully pulpit leadership -- even if in reality, it doesn't force a vote or change legislation -- can influence American minds. A progressive black man, not just voicing words of equality but showing that he supports equality for all in his policy actions -- could change young black minds, I would think. Older black minds too.

Bully pulpit leadership that helps change laws and policies in America, in my humble opinion, would do more to "lead" counties like Iran forward -- "do as I say, and as I do" -- than all the moral lectures in the world -- "change thyself!" delivered by a Western "enemy".

Heck, I'll come out of the identity politicking box for a minute and go so far as saying that if President Obama would only exhibit a bit of political courage on these issues -- he might prove to be a true world leader, and influence all those minds that haven't already been slammed shut and locked tight on this issue. Personally, I suspect there's a lot of folks still in that grey area, who would be influenced by a new administation's approach.

Sadly though, I think we're learning that what got him in -- likeability, is the same exact thing that will keep the Obama administration toeing the Bush administration line on so many current policies: the fear of being disliked.

You know, they say for every door God shuts, He opens a window. (My mom told me that.) Some things that maybe don't seem like a blessing at the time can actually strengthen a person in many ways. (think a blind person with an extraordinary sense of sound, or smell). Let me just conclude then, by counting all my blessings that have allowed me to act in my life without fear of what other people will think.*

They say he's a quick learner; I wonder if it's too late for the new president to learn an old skill, or character trait: courage in the face of opposition, especially if you honestly believe in the principles you are promoting.

I mean, if he can't stand up for professed principles on evolving domestic issues like this one, then I suspect President Obama'll back down quicker than a frightened rabbit on other positions as well, if the risk of losing popularity overrides previously promised policy goals.

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* This title, and The Pugilist at Rest, are two favorites in my collection, for the titles alone.