Steve tempted Adam with the Apple...

So there was a story over the weekend about Apple, Inc. donating $100,000 to the campaign to oppose Proposition 8 in California. Proposition 8 is a proposed amendment to the California state constitution that would define marriage as being a legal partnership between a man and a woman. At first I was a happy about Apple's financial support to oppose the proposition, but then I started thinking...this is never a good thing, by the way.

First of all, I definitely support a same-sex couple's right to a legally recognized relationship. In English, we call this marriage. Using the correct word is important to me, so I'm confused when I read that a "civil union" is the same thing as a "marriage." It makes me wonder if anyone would like to trade in their marriage certificates for a "civil union" certificate. No? I didn't think so. I have more to say about gay marriage, but I'll save it for another time.

Now what about Apple's financial contribution? This seems like a good thing. However, the article that appears in the Associated Press lists corporate contributions both for and against. For me, the question is: what would the purpose of this contribution be? Corporate entities exist to return profit to their shareholders. So why get involved in social activism? What possible gain is there for a corporation in either supporting or opposing gay marriage?

I'm not suggesting that I have the answers to those questions, but what I am saying is that I oppose corporate dollars being used to influence public opinion on political and social issues. I oppose it on principal because corporations spend millions of dollars trying to influence politicians through PAC money. There are few individuals with wealth equal to that of an Apple corporation.

What I'm saying is that I'm disappointed that Apple would try to buy my loyalty by opposing Proposition 8 in California. If Steve Jobs as an individual were to make a contribution, I would be impressed, but I think Apple should stick to making iPods and computers. In addition I think people living outside the state of California should focus on what's happening in their own state. Overturning the DOMA (Defense of Marriage Act) laws would be a good start.

You might think this is a naive or quaint perspective on the political process in America these days. Maybe I am naive, but I think real change in my country needs to come from its citizens. We have a voice. We are the electorate. We have even blogs now! If we can't make our case for gay marriage, if we cannot show how cruel and ugly Proposition 8 is, then we have failed to communicate.