California Supreme Court Upholds Proposition 8

I have to admit, I was surprised that our supreme court here in the golden state upheld Proposition 8, which  in California, establishes the definition of marriage as being between a man and woman. The voters spoke, and they listened:

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - The California Supreme Court upheld a voter-approved ban on same-sex marriage Tuesday, but it also decided that the estimated 18,000 gay couples who tied the knot before the law took effect will stay wed.

Demonstrators outside the court yelled "shame on you!"

The 6-1 decision written by Chief Justice Ron George rejected an argument by gay rights activists that the ban revised the California Constitution's equal protection clause to such a dramatic degree that it first needed the Legislature's approval.

The court said the Californians have a right, through the ballot box, to change their constitution.

The rest of the article from the Associated Press can be read here.

The ruling did not mention of course the court's opinion as to whether they agree with Prop. 8, but they did say they were "limited to interpreting and applying the principles and rules embodied in the California Constitution, setting aside our own personal beliefs and values."

You mean to tell me that a court is there just to interpret laws and stay true to their intent, and not create their own laws? Go figure.

And kudos to the California Supreme court for doing the job they were supposed to do, instead of attempting to legislate from the bench. And thank you, justices, for listening to the California voters, and not giving in to pressure, even if of you do personally disagree with Proposition 8.