Mr. Speaker, let me respond to two things. I wish I had more time to respond to a number of things that have been said by the hon. member opposite, but I know I do not.
First, he has made some kind of convoluted argument about how the real problem is that same sex marriages do not actually have anything to do with children. I think that was sort of the argument. I have to say that my dearest and closest childhood friend from the age of two, with whom I grew up and actively engaged in the Baptist church, has a wonderful, beautiful daughter who entered into a same sex marriage and has one of the most beautiful children I have ever known. If the member does not understand anything about how that, in today's world, is a modern miracle, then I hope he can do his homework and find out.
Let me just quickly read for him a letter from a lesbian couple in my riding. I do not know them personally. Here is what they said on that subject:
We are a same-sex couple who have been together for almost twenty years. We are planning to have a family, and we feel that recognized social support of marriage will make the country a far less discriminatory place for our children.
Now, let me--