December 5, 2009

Sanctity of traditional marriage update

Woods is in negotiations with Nordegren to up the stakes of their prenuptial agreement — replete with sports-contract-like incentives that would keep her standing by her man. She is reportedly being offered a "re-signing" bonus of $5 million to stay married to Tiger — about half of what A-Rod got when he reupped with the Yankees. She'd get $80 million to hang with him another seven years.
Such a deal. I wonder what was Gloria Allred's cut.

Greg Norman's got nothing on that shark.

6 comments:

Jeremy R. Shown said...

You'll have to forgive me. I'm dubious that the irresponsibility of an overpaid celebrity-athlete is any kind of comment on the sanctity of traditional marriage.

illusory tenant said...

I agree, and that's what I'm sayin'.

So, tell me, why does our society tolerate — indeed, facilitate — those elements of a sham marriage but at the same time forbid gay people from entering into far less questionable arrangements?

Jeremy R. Shown said...

Tiger Woods cheats on his wife therefore we should redefine marriage so that it means something that it doesn't, and hasn't historically, simply doesn't strike me as a very sound argument.

I got your point. I just don't buy it.

illusory tenant said...

If "redefining" is the concern, then how is the Woods's reported redefining acceptable, but a same-sex couple whose relationship is based on some bond deeper than a multi-million-dollar renegotiated pre-nuptial, not?

Clutch said...

Tiger Woods cheats on his wife therefore we should redefine marriage... I got your point.

No, you really seem not to have.

The point is that "sanctity of marriage" and related boilerplate is for the most part gross hypocrisy, since practically nobody feels compelled to hold prayer vigils or launch state constitutional amendments in opposition to any of the degrading, crass, undignified or blatantly commercial implementations of heterosexual marriage. Woods's prenup renegotiation coming by way of illustrative example -- unless California has a Woods-specific Prop Eight-and-a-half in the works that I haven' yet heard about.

Simillarly, nobody campaigned to make it illegal for Britney Spears and others like her to get married, after her first drunken dare of a marriage lasted only a few hours. The invitation for devotees of "opposite marriage" to explain why Spears's legal right to wed is consistent with the sanctity of marriage (etc) while a committed gay couple's right would not be is a useful (often entertaining) way to force them to find new doublespeak for "Because gayness is evil!" without actually saying it.

illusory tenant said...

Yeah, that too.

a Woods-specific Prop Eight-iron

I've seen him hit it 185 yards.