Gay Marriage in...Iowa?

Gay Marriage is now legal in Iowa, as discussed in http://www.thenation.com/state_of_change/424085/gay_marriage_in_iowa?rel=hp_pi, by Ari Berman. The Iowa Supreme Court ruled that the state cannot bar gay couples from seeking to marry. Gay marriage is legal in corn state but, in a state who's Republican Party has been overtaken by social conservatives this is predicted to have wide-ranging ramifications. Democrats have had success at the statewide level in recent years, and as Berman says this is due partly to the fact that the Republican party has been overtaken by social conservatives. The Republicans are sure to react with fury, and I think this is great anything to get their blood boiling! A February 2008 poll was listed in the Des Moines Register that showed six in ten Iowans believed that marriage should be between a man and a woman, but the same number supported civil unions for gay couples. This shows a pretty split opinion, but as we know the court's ruling is not based on just that poll. Some membersreacted to the ruling with caution, while others such as Iowa Senate Majority LeaderMike Gronstel and House Speaker Pat Murphy, both Democrats, reacted with joy, noting that "Iowa has always been a leader in the area of civil right. I think the decision is great, I myself am heterosexual, but I believe regardless of one's sexual orientation, one should have the right to marry who he/she chooses, this is a personal decision and doesn't even effect any one other than the parties involved. Will the cause cultural conflict in Iowa? Who knows, probably not though.