As of October 1, 2005, gay civil unions will be legal in Connecticut.

We now have three states in this country that grant gay couples all the rights and responsibilities of marriage. From the border with Canada at the north, to the Long Island Sound to the south, there’s now a contiguous area in this country in which gay couples have access to all the state-granted protections that marriage can offer.

And in Connecticut, it was done by the legislature and the governor, not by the courts.

But that doesn’t seem to mollify those who are supposedly opposed to so-called “activist judges.”

Brian Brown, executive director of the Family Institute of Connecticut, said Wednesday was “a sad day for the state of Connecticut.”

Brown, whose group is hosting a major rally against gay marriage Sunday on the grounds of the state Capitol, criticized both the legislature and Rell for “fast-tracking” the measure. There will be repercussions when lawmakers run for re-election in 2006, he said.

“This vote will not be forgotten,” Brown vowed. “If the goal was to push this through in a non-election year, they were 100 percent wrong.”

So there you have it. Here’s a gay-marriage opponent who has a problem not just with “activist judges” but also with an “activist legislature” and an “activist governor.” In your face, Brian Brown. Your popularly-elected legislature just passed a civil unions bill – not at the behest of any court – and your governor just signed it into law. Your problem was never with “activist judges” (’cause guess what – conservatives are activists, too) but with judges who disagree with you. It’s just like Tom DeLay’s rant against the Schiavo judges, many of whom were (a) Republicans who (b) actually exercised judicial restraint in reaching a decision DeLay and his ilk were against.

There’s a lesson here. You can never believe someone who says he’s arguing for political/legal/judicial process unless he trusts that process even if it leads to a result that person doesn’t like. If you’re going to make an argument, at least be honest about your reasons for doing so.

Congratulations, Connecticut gays.

Connecticut Approves Civil Unions for Gays

Conn. approves gay civil unions

Connecticut governor signs civil unions bill

Rell signs same-sex union bill

Bells Peal For Landmark Law (editorial)