...really? *headdesk*

[cheshire23]

1) NO. Marriage equality is NOT something that falls under the heading of "very complex matters". Seriously, it's not. Religious entities don't have to marry anyone that they don't want to NOW. You do NOT need to carefully craft "religious exemption" clauses - just enforce what currently exists. You know what's a "very complex matter"? The utter nightmare that happens when your life partner is not your legal next of kin and unexpected tragedy hits. I've seen that one up close and personal involving very dear friends, and I've felt the mix of relief and guilt that I had those rights when my spouse was inpatient in a psychiatric hospital. 2) I understand that Renee's Law is well-intentioned, but as currently written? Implementation would be an unqualified disaster. Seriously, this bill is so badly written that it's going to have a whole bunch of kids going right back into limited secure facilities - you know, the same limited secure facilities that are in the process of being closed? I'd also like to see a version of this bill that understands the difference between sexual activity and sex offenses, especially because regulations worded the way this one is get used against queer youth ALL THE DAMN TIME and I'd like to NOT undo the progress made on this issue in New York over the last 10 years. You could accomplish most of what you want to accomplish by means of this law, at much lower costs, by simply saying that any group care program that accepts juvenile delinquents must be staffed two-deep at all times. (And honestly? I'm totally on board with that! The ONLY program type that I don't think needs two-deep staffing if it's small enough would be for transition-age youth who are in care for child protective-related reasons and can't go home because their parents either kicked them out or got TPRed. Any program that takes JDs at all SHOULD have two people on staff at all times. And I'm dealing with a very angry-making situation at work right now trying to explain that yes, this is a necessary expense. GAH.) 3) Interpersonal drama is just on my last nerve right now. 4) Also having LJ formatting fail for no apparent reason. Sorry if this renders really strangely on your screen.