The Top Story: Responding to gay marriage

Between last week's California Supreme Court decision to uphold Proposition 8, and waiting to see if New Hampshire would finally work out the details, gay marriage has been in the news a lot this week.

So what stands out as some of the most interesting discussions of gay marriage? Lets take a look at the issue:

5. Carrie Prejean on Fox and Friends

Easily the worst media coverage came when Miss California Carrie Prejean guest-hosted Fox and Friends, (a moment that earned Prejean an Asshat Smackdown nomination). Bad enough to have Prejean simplify the court's decision as a personal justification, but considering that Fox and Friends is the show that turns political discourse into inane moments (like battering and deep-frying the federal budget ... seriously), hosts Steve Doocy and the guy who isn't Steve Doocy certainly made sure that Prejean wasn't the most ill-informed host on the couch.

4. Sex with Ducks

Responding to the "slippery slope" argument often offered by anti-gay forces, Riki "Garfunkel" Lindhome and Kate "Oates" Micucci hope that argument has merit, since they plan to have sex with ducks. I think they've ruined Disney with some of their euphemisms.

3. Keith Hartman's The Defenders/The License

In response to the decision upholding Prop 8, writer and director Keith Hartman created two short films where the idea of restoring traditional marriage is taken to the extreme. In "The Defenders" Sharon King leads a group to work against marriages that weren't considered traditional until recently. In the darker "License" a city clerk informs an engaged couple about the city's new attitude towards women, now that it has passed a traditional marriage ordinance. While these arguments have been made before, I think Harman does a nice job of turning the issue into a question of "What's so different about the changes made back then?"

2. Rob Tisinai "Talking Equality"

One new voice I've been happy to hear is Rob Tisinai, who has been focused on tearing down anti-gay talking points since Prop 8 was passed on election day, doing some great research and not letting a distortion or lie go unquestioned. His latest video, "Talking Equality" tears down the talking points in heavy rotation on cable news. What makes Tisinai's videos even more effective is how well designed they are. The way he combines visuals and bullet points in his discussion, these videos could be a case study in how to put a presentation together.

1. Mrs. Betty Bowers explains traditional marriage

I've been a fan of "America's Best Christian" Betty Bowers (aka comedian Deven Green) of the satirical Landover Baptist Church for a while, and this week she released a video explaining what biblical marriage really is. It turns out Bowers is like Christine Baranski playing Stephen Colbert as a televangelist, which has to be one of the greatest things I've ever seen. It's another way to point out how things have changed over time and how ridiculous it is to be screaming "Tradition!"