Marriage is not dependent on having or raising children

Re Liberals challenge Scheer to attend gay pride festivities, Aug. 23

Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer, referring in 2005 to gay couples, stated, “they cannot commit to the natural procreation of children. They cannot, therefore, be married.”

Using this reasoning, neither can heterosexual couples for whom infertility issues preclude “natural procreation.” Or those loving couples who have opted to remain childless. Should parents who have lost their children through tragedy have their marriage licences suspended? After all, they are now childless.

I would say the logic is laughably silly, except its application is hurtful and cruel. Please, Mr. Scheer, show a little more acceptance and humanity. Jack Weiner, Guelph Although same-sex couples may not be ideally suited for the natural procreation of children, as Andrew Scheer noted in 2005, many are quite well suited for the raising of children.

If measured by educational outcomes, the children of same-sex couples do better than the children of alternate-sex couples. They do better on standardized tests than the children of more traditional couples and have a high level of success in post-secondary education.

In 2005, much of this information was not yet available, so I am not going to be too critical of Mr. Scheer. In the long run, the ability to raise children is more important than the ability to conceive them naturally. Bruce Couchman, Ottawa Re Michael DeAdder cartoon, Aug. 23 I find it laughable that Michael De Adder’s cartoon shows Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer as the only one voting against same-sex marriage. Many Liberals over the years have voted the same way. This cartoon is quite hypocritical. Hana Stern, Toronto