Libertarians often argue - I think with good reason - that the arrangements people make for marriage should be nothing to do with the state. However as this post from the Australian site Catallaxy demonstrates, defining marriage is not simple...
One area where the LDP is different to other parties in the current election is same-sex marriage. During the course of the current election, both the ALP and Liberals have reaffirmed their opposition to same sex marriage.
By contrast, the LDP has highlighted it’s supports for permitting same sex marriage and devotes an entire section of it’s web site to explaining it’s policy position and the principles behind it. In brief, the LDP position seems to be that marriage is a private matter between those involved and that the government’s role should be to register the marriage, and not to dictate it’s terms or who may marry.
If this is the principle for the LDP’s support of same sex marriage, one may ask wether the LDP is also prepared to recognise the right of people in polyamourous relationships to engage in multiple simultaneous marriages. In short - is there room for Poly folk in the LDP bed?
