I agree with you, Origynal, at least on the surface of what you're saying. But gay marriage isn't a sudden push. The gay 'community' has been testing the waters for over a decade, The Hawaii and Vermont court decisions came years before Massachusetts, and had begun as lawsuits years before that.

While I agree that for some, myself included, marriage rights are not a huge priority right now. There are those in the community for whom it IS a priority, and an urgent one at that.

I knew a couple a few years ago. One became very sick and died. His partner wasn't allowed by the sick man's family to visit him. He was barred from the funeral, and his house and any possessions he (provided he didn't have a receipt proving that he and he alone had bought it) or they owned were taken by the dead partner's family. Marriage rights would've solved my friend's suffering with a simple stroke of a pen.

It's only been since Mass. that the public backlash began, and it was because the Reigious Right had (has) a patsy in the White House at the time who was looking to be reelected.

The same thing happened with the Gays in the Military fight. There were lawsuits challenging the policy for many decades prior to Clinton's congressional hearings which lead to country-wide debate and argument and eventually settled on the compromise policy of Don't Ask, Don't Tell.

Ultimately, all these fights are going on simultaneously. There are still lawsuits in the courts right now fighting DADT. There are lawsuits pushing for gay marriage. There are lawsuits pushing for equal housing and employment rights. But the media spotlight today is on marriage.