Same-Sex Marriage Passes in New York State

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Tonight, New York has become the largest state (in population) in the United States to legalize same-sex marriage.

Democrats and Republicans both voted to approve it in both the Assembly and State Senate. All that is left to do is for our governor, Andrew Cuomo (D), to sign it into law. Seeing as though he is one of the ones that proposed it, its safe to say that he will follow through.

And they even managed to include a clause protecting churches and other religious institutions from potential law-suits if they don't want to perform the marriage. A piece of the puzzle that I strongly backed.

Previously, New York recognized same-sex marriages performed in other states.

As New York approves it, other states should follow suit in the near future, as NY is, as I may have stated earlier, the 3rd most populous state in the nation, and is considered to be very influential.

New York has blocked similar legislation the last 3 times it was brought to the Senate.

Before tonight, only 5/50 states granted same-sex marriages: Massachusetts, Connecticut, Iowa, Vermont and New Hampshire. Most of these (5/6 of the states, including NY) are in the North East, Iowa being in the mid-west. Most of these tend to lean Democrat (again with the exception of Iowa). The District of Columbia also grants same-sex marriage licenses.

Today is a step forward for a better tomorrow for all. Its even more special since NY is considered to be the birthplace of the Gay Rights Movement.

There is still plenty of more work ahead in other states.

EDIT - Here is a great article predicting the effects that this will bring to the rest of the country: What to look forward to

LEGO Star Wars To Get Television Treatment

According to CominSoon.net, a brand new television special featuring the charm from the LEGO video game series, specifically Star Wars, is set to launch as soon as September. Spotting a poster at the 2011 Licensing International Expo, the show will join one other mysterious Star Wars animated series although they will both deal with the Clone Wars era of the science-fiction franchise. No word on if the characters will grunt or be provided with actual voice-work. I prefer the grunting.

"Jackass" Star Ryan Dunn dies at 34

From TMZ:

Ryan Dunn, one of the stars of MTV's "Jackass" films and TV series, was killed Monday in a car wreck, close friends of his family told CNN.

Police did not immediately release details of the crash, which happened on a state highway in West Goshen, Pennsylvania early Monday.
The red-bearded Dunn, 34, was famous for his pranks and dangerous stunts on the show, which evolved into a successful film franchise. He also hosted "Proving Ground," which premiered on the G4 channel in June.

Further details also reveal that speeding may have been a factor in the crash as well as a possible case of driving while under the influence as speculated by a photo of Dunn and friends apparently drunk on his Twitter account hours before his accident. Police also found his car engulfed in flames. I woke up to this earlier this afternoon. I wish I hadn't. Rest in peace, Dunn.