Vermont legalized same sex unions when the legislature overrode the governor's veto. The three previous states were unable to do it in the legislature and needed to use the courts to get their laws passed.

The gay rights lobby made it a priority to "convince" Vermont legislators to vote on this issue. The governor thought they could have been balancing the budget and finding ways to put people back to work.

Healthy thinking means setting wise priorities. Which issues do you think are more important?

One of the complaints the gay lobby voices is discrimination. Yet statistics show that gays have a higher proportion of professional and high-paying positions than the general public. And in a society where more and more heterosexual couples are living together, what is the unspoken message behind legalizing gay marriage?

Vermont legislator Craig Benson commented that the gay lobby was a "highly funded, extremely well-oiled machine with all the political leadership except the governor pushing" for it. He estimated that the spending for passage was $20 for each $1 spent against it.

What does that spending ratio say? Somebody had a lot of money to invest in a special interest. Where did the lobbyists spend that money? Who got what perks for voting? How many legislators voted against what they believe? One deciding vote was a freshman rep who, though against gay marriage, thought voting with his party would give him political power in the future.

Yes, it is a victory. But when the spending is 20 to 1, what is the real message when the vote tally was only the absolute minimum? Who are the real winners and who are the real losers? There is an old adage: "If you stand for nothing, you will fall for anything."