Gates & Balmer Helping WA-R74
Bill Gates and Steve Balmer are coming to the aid of the Washington United for Marriage group in a big way. Bill and Steve just donated $100,000 each in support of **Referendum 74 (R74). They cut their checks Friday and got them cleared through the Public Disclosure Commission Monday. The pair join the ranks of high profile people / corporations like Nike and Starbucks which support R74.

On the other side of the issue, the Preserve Marriage Washington group had no trouble getting about double (240,000) the signatures needed to have R74 put on the ballot. They have received less than 1/10th the donations that Washington United for Marriage has so far, but that is sure to change. Even with the 1.7 million that Washington United for Marriage has collected, anti-R74 can make the vote very close. The donations for advertising are one-sided so far. However, that will probably change when the Catholics catch wind of it. Hopefully the Mormons continue to stay out of it. You almost have to be religious to vote for this referendum. With the dollars rolling in and the commercials rolling out, they might sway the undecided, unbelieving vote – but I doubt there are many swing votes.

Just remember: whether they signed up at wal-mart or their church, people had to go out of their way to sign this petition. There are sure to be a lot more people across the state that – given a chance – would have signed. Which means all you peeps out there need to spread the word to your friends in Washington State. Make sure to tell them to vote YES in support for R74. And, for all of us Washington residents, get to your ballot boxes and vote on November 6th.

Everybody out there that thinks same sex couples should have the right to marry – with all of the rights afforded to hetero married couples, and be just as miserable as any straight married couple out there needs to vote YES on R74. 😉

Don’t forget to support R74 and it’s supporters. Maybe even buy a copy of Windows 8 upgrade when it’s released.  Buy a pair or Nikes and grab a Mocha Frappe before passing out a stack of flyers.  Just get involved – if only to donate a couple dollars and vote on 6/11.

PS: When this passes – and it will pass with everyone’s help – Washington residents will make this the first state in the union to vote and pass a referendum like this in the country. The few other bills across the nation were enacted at the state government level – never voted on by the people. Pretty damn kewl, right?

Thanks for reading my ramblings… I’m going to go enjoy the sun a while.  I hope everyone had a safe and semi-sane fourth of July.
~Wesley

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**If you live under a rock in Washington State and have not heard of this – or, more likely – in some other corner of the world, read the following:

The ballot measure reads:

The legislature passed Engrossed Substitute Senate Bill 6239 concerning marriage for same-sex couples, modified domestic-partnership law, and religious freedom, and voters have filed a sufficient referendum petition on this bill.

This bill would allow same-sex couples to marry, preserve domestic partnerships only for seniors, and preserve the right of clergy or religious organizations to refuse to perform, recognize, or accommodate any marriage ceremony.

The ballot measure summary reads:

This bill allows same-sex couples to marry, applies marriage laws without regard to gender, and specifies that laws using gender-specific terms like husband and wife include same-sex spouses. After 2014, existing domestic partnerships are converted to marriages, except for seniors. It preserves the right of clergy or religious organizations to refuse to perform or recognize any marriage or accommodate wedding ceremonies. The bill does not affect licensing of religious organizations providing adoption, foster-care, or child-placement.