Update: The curators of the blog where this was originally posted have issued an apology.

Weddings are political. Historically, the role that weddings have played in the consolidation of a national identity has been foundational to how we think about a country, who belongs in that country, who gets to have rights in that country and what their race, class and gender should be. And while some of the more obvious historical exclusions are being pushed against by many eschewing traditional values and having offbeat weddings or gay marriage becoming legal in some (great and awesome) states, the fundamental role that weddings and being married plays into how we think about society has barely shifted, at all.

But this old, but ...