Ok, yeah, it's easy to cheer SCOTUS for DOMA and...

Ok, yeah, it's easy to cheer SCOTUS for DOMA and jeer it for the Voting Rights Act, but should there be any bewilderment? This is shaping up to be the most states' rights oriented Court since World War II, and both decisions said (in different ways and for different reasons): the states get to decide their own issues. (Quick aside: if you're at all in favor of marijuana legalization, get Colorado or Washington sued quickly so this issue can get in front the Supreme Court before it starts siding with the federal government again.)

I'd argue this is a good thing. The other event in this busy 24 hours in democracy -- Wendy Davis and her iron feet -- showed why. In a largely anti-abortion state with a clear popular leaning toward the pro-life camp, a nakedly pro-life (and borderline unconstitutional) bill was fought tooth and nail to a bizarre, confusing, and ultimately parliamentary defeat. It's exactly this sort of widely publicized and sometimes ugly fight that gets an issue on the table with the common voter, and gives a populace a chance to change its mind. THIS is how democracy should work. The worst side effect of Roe v. Wade was that it forced the issue without debate, and let a lot of folks sit around with unchanged minds while the world changed around them. It's the fight -- the force of argument and the groundswell of active support -- that moves democracy forward, not the result. (Remember the lesson of DOMA and VRA -- one person's victorious result is another person's devastating defeat.)

The victories for gay marriage were more like an inside-out Roe v. Wade, and more likely to continue the swift and remarkable wave of change that has already begun. A fiat-like decision ("All states must allow gay marriage") would have probably frozen the movement in time, leaving states like Texas behind. People in favor of equal marriage would have celebrated for a day and moved on quietly, secure in the knowledge that the Fed had their back. Meanwhile, the majority of voters, angry and motivated by the decision being taken from their hands, would have yet another wedge issue to exploit in local politics, giving rise to more social issue idiots like Rick Perry who could just say "I'm against gay marriage" and get into office on popular resentment alone.

On the passionate issues, we'd all like there to be some big queen alien you can take out and suddenly the world changes and everyone's happy. But the wonderful truth of democracy is that the best results come from generations-long battles of public opinion that culminate in a wave of surprisingly sudden change -- change based in people's hearts, not legal verdicts.

So: worried that the VRA decision will lead to voter discrimination? Put on some special t-shirts and pack the gallery when such discriminatory acts are being debated on the floor. Press the candidates on their stance during primaries and press conferences. Vote your conscience (not necessarily always your party affiliation). Fight with your feet and your voice.

Last night at the State Capitol was simultaneously troubling and inspiring. Troubling because it took a mob of the statewide minority to stand up for the will of the nationwide majority. Inspiring because, for the first time since I moved here five years ago, I saw Texans reacting with something more productive than resigned cynicism to Texas politics.

Even this state can change. Even this proudly stubborn state.