Timothy Kincaid over at Box Turtle Bulletin, has the party line vote on the first of the so-called "common ground" bills put forward in Utah.  These bills actually do very little to insure equal rights for gay and lesbian citizens…almost the bare minimum you could imagine.  The first of these to come to a vote, simply made it possible for financial dependents, other then legally married spouses, parents and children, to sue if their breadwinner suffers wrongful death.  Keep in mind that these so-called "common ground" bills were introduced after the passage of Proposition 8, when the Mormon church’s staggering level of involvement became widely known, and the Mormon leadership, while in the glare of the public eye, averred they had no problem with extending gay people many of the rights of marriage…just not marriage itself.

Many of us found that statement interesting, since nothing was stopping them from giving gay Americans in Utah those rights and gay Americans in Utah have damn few if any.  The only places as bad to be gay are the deep south

The bill failed along party lines.  Republican verses democrat?  Oh my, no…

Let me be clear. There is no legitimate reason to exclude those who rely on someone for their livelihood from suing should that livelihood be taken away due to the wrongful actions of another. If a woman is killed directly due to the reckless or wrongful actions of another, why should her partner who stays home and raises the kids not be able to sue?

But because this bill was understood to benefit (among others) those gay persons who rely on each other, Sen. Buttars’ committee killed the bill 4 – 2.

And did the Mormon Church live up to its claim? Did it encourage its members to allow for probate rights for gay couples? Let’s see.

Voting “no” were:

Chris Buttars, Mormon
Lyle Hillyard, Mormon
Mark Madsen, Mormon
Michael Waddoups, Mormon

The three non-Mormons either voted Yes or were absent.

As Kincaid notes, this fits pretty well with recent polls showing that Utah Mormons are hugely against granting their gay neighbors any rights whatsoever, other then maybe, possibly, the right to breath.  So long as they don’t flaunt it.

Expect the Mormon church to claim it has no influence over the state legislature.  They’ve shown repeatedly that they can look you right in the eye, smile, and lie through their teeth.  Your hopes, your dreams, every smile you ever gave the one you love, and every smile you ever received in love, and placed somewhere deep within your heart: these things are their stepping stones to Godhood.  Nothing else matters to them.  Nothing.  They will walk over your every hope and dream, and grind them into dirt, for that promise of Godhood at the end of the road.

I know…I know…  But there are Mormons who don’t hate their gay neighbor…  Yes.  And they are either silent or they are on the road to excommunication.  We, that is America, saw it all during the battle over Proposition 8.  There are no Mormons who are not on board for the war on gay Americans…only Mormons who are about to leave, or be shown the door.