Seeing that they are losing on the Gay Marriage front, some conservatives are now trying a new tactic. Or rather, they are moving one of their side arguments against gay marriage to the forefront. Reports are now surfacing about "triad marriage" aka polygamy and the going sentiment in these stories is that if homosexuals are allowed to marry then what is next? Why not allow polygamists to marry as well?

This is a classic diversionary tactic; when you can't win your argument, make up some sort of hypothetical strawman. It's somewhat similar to the approach the right is taking on torture. Most people think waterboarding crosses the line so they are now moving from "Did we torture?" to "Was torture helpful in saving American lives?"

And like with the torture debate, the inclusion of "triad marriages" into the gay marriage debate is completely off-point. First off, polygamy requires a completely new set of laws. Whereas homosexuals are just looking for the same laws that straight people get, polygamy doesn't translate. The rules about tax breaks, divorce, child custody, etc. would have to be completely rewritten in order to work around the multiple spouses. Second of all, allowing polygamy could alter existing marriages. If gays are allowed to marry, straight marriages aren't affected. Adultery, for instance, is still adultery. With polygamy on the books, adultery could get erased; explained away as someone just looking for their new spouse. Bigamy becomes a gray area as well. All in all, it's just a completely different discussion and really has no bearing on the gay marriage issue.

And finally, if you allow gay marriage, it doesn't mean that you are opening the floodgates and have to allow everything. I have no problem with drawing the line somewhere; in this case I (and many people) just have a problem with where the line is drawn. 

Personally, I'm still for taking the word marriage out of the law books and giving straight and gay people civil unions but I have a feeling that that will never fly because it's too much of a compromise and the extreme elements that seem to be running the left and right won't go for it.