I think it is a mistake to haggle over the word marriage, personally. If I were gay, and wanted to make a life committment to someone, I dont know that I'd care so much what they called our "union" so long as I was able to get equal legal rights and recognition. The fact is, this country isn't there yet, and I hope some day we will be. But fighting and arguing over a word is the wrong priority, IMHO, and it slows progress, because it inflames the prejudiced right-winged idiots out there.

My solution? Make every governmentally licensed personal partnership a "union" and save the word marriage for that which is created in a spiritual ceremony (church/Native American/etc).