Each Thursday, we put one of our local newsmakers On The Spot.

This week: Assemblyman Gary Finch

This week's question: Eliot Spitzer has called for “civil marriage equity” for all New Yorkers. Where do you stand on same-sex marriage and civil unions?

The subject of same-sex marriage has been one that has gained substantial attention in the news since Governor Spitzer proposed taking up the issue. I do not support same-sex marriage because I believe that permitting it dilutes the traditional meaning and understanding of what marriage is and what it provides to our society. There are a multitude of religious objections to same-sex unions, but rather than debate theology, we need to focus on the practicalities of the matter.

The call for same-sex marriage is part of a larger ambiguous challenge to the values that many people, particularly upstate, have accepted as traditional norms. By continually questioning something, the certainty of well-established norms waver and can be forced to change, often for the greater good. However, redefining marriage to be gender neutral is one that will irreversibly unravel learned norms for the worse.

Never in the history of Western Civilization has marriage been meant to be anything other than between a man and a woman. This traditional idea of marriage constitutes a commitment between a man and a woman representing several long-established norms fundamental to our American way of life. This idea of marriage is one that has created the basis of a strong, stable society in America for many generations. Any redefinition of marriage would cause additional instability to an already strained institution that continually faces other issues that threaten to exterminate its legitimacy.

By expanding its meaning, certain rights and benefits can be conveyed between same-sex couples, however, that would downgrade a marriage license to the same level of a driver's license and in the process devalue the significance of a marriage in relation to honoring its traditional meaning.

There are other legal avenues, such as civil unions, that other states have explored which can ameliorate perceived disparities and not construe the meaning of marriage into something new.

I am encouraged by the ongoing debate and support exploring options as we continue to discuss the issue this legislative session.