While a Constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage is unlikely, the polarization caused by the issue is already manifest. The gay community, and most Americans, are staunchly against establishing what is fundamentally discrimination as part of the Constitution. Most Americans are too. Unfortunately, the melodramatic nature of the gay community scares away the very people it is trying to rally—the American people!

Marriage is between a man and a woman, or so the conservative right insists. Unfortunately, many in the gay community insist marriage should not be exclusive. Why are gays demanding inclusion in an institution that does not welcome homosexuals? It’s about rights. Gays seek the same validation for their relationships that straight couples enjoy, as well as, the legal rights that come with such validation. But does this validation have to be marriage?

Marriage is a failed, Christian institution. Why would a gay or lesbian person want any part in it? Conservatives argue that gay marriage would open the flood gates to all kinds of marriage—with pets, groups of people, and even children. One radical conservative quipped, “What’s next? Will I be able to marry myself?” Unfortunately such comments are a diversion from the real issue.

The fact of the matter is straight people have ruined their own institution. They don’t need gays to help! Elvis has been marrying couples in Las Vegas for years, only to have these nuptials annulled days later, as Britney Spears and Carmen Electra have so skillfully demonstrated. Who needs homosexuals to ruin the institution of marriage when you have divorce, pre-nuptial agreements, annulments, adultery, and Michael Jackson?

Domestic partnerships are on the table, and it is time for the gay community to take it. There is no difference between domestic partnerships and marriage other than the title, and the fact that it is a secular contract, rather than a religious sacrament. Unfortunately, our dramatic gay activists have decided to spontaneously begin handing out marriage certificates at city halls around the country to the dismay of straight people everywhere. This is not right, nor will it work.

You can’t come running out of city hall, invalid marriage certificate in hand, wearing your best suit from Neiman Marcus’ Last Call Sale, and not expect to scare people! Homosexuals from sea to shining sea want so badly to be on equal footing with their straight counterparts that they feel this is how to do it. The fact is that the gay cause is much more sophisticated than society. The nation has yet to catch up with it. Press pause! Gay rights have come a long way over the past decade.

Homosexuals are undermining the acceptance built by Will and Grace, Rosie O’Donnell, President Bill Clinton, and Queer Eye for the Straight Guy.

Until society catches up with the gay community, they must be willing to compromise. Just as women were able to compromise until they finally received the right to vote, and just as minorities in this country continue to compromise trying to achieve equality, gays must do the same.

Hysteria is not going to change a nation. Defiance may, but it may also back-fire. The law is the law, and it should not be broken, as wrong as it may be. An amendment to the Constitution would be a step back for this country and gay rights. To prevent that from happening, we must end the hysteria on both sides. Accept domestic partnerships, for now, and maybe, just maybe, we will someday have the right to put on a Vera Wang gown and show straight people how a wedding is done!