After an up and down week for SJR-7 that had it slowly dying, only to receive a quick jolt of life, it finally has died with House Rules and Legislative Procedure Committee Chairman Scott Pelath saying he wasn’t planning on having a hearing. This after Senate Pro Tem and Republican David Long assured the media there would at least be a Senate Hearing. Without the guarantee of a House hearing, the bill and the amendment are pretty much dead for this cycle.

So with it’s demise, I plead with everyone, socially conservative, socially libertarian, socially liberal, gay, whatever, (myself included) can we please move on to talking about other substantive issues besides gay marriage, SJR-7 and how bigoted conservative Christians are, fully understanding that we’re probably never going to see eye to eye? (Funny, those who call Christians bigots seem to be intolerant themselves of Christians and their views and the views of scripture. Maybe it’s just reciprocal bigotry.)

Here’s what I suggest. 2008 is shaping up to be the most incredible year in politics in Indiana and the United States in a long time. In Indiana, property taxes are the biggest issue with several proposals to fix the problem thrown out there. The Governor’s plan seems to have the head start, while the House GOP would consider total elimination of residential property tax and the total elimination crowd still seems to be charging full bore with their plan while threatening legislators who don’t support them with defeat in either the primary or the general. Immigration proposals seem to be the only other piece of legislation that could make a dent in the legislative conversation.

(Read the rest of my rant below the fold)

But let’s not forget elections. The Governor’s race could be a tight one despite the Democrats inability to put forth a legitimate challenger. The congressional race in the 5th CD has the potential to get interesting again, while the massive retirements on the Democrat side on the state legislative level threaten their majority.

Nationally, the White House, for the first time in over sixty years is an open seat and the Democrat and Republican candidates seems to be giving each other black eyes in this all-out dogfight. The Democrats in the House and the Senate seek to maintain their majorities in the fall, while Americans have a mood of anti-incumbency and desire change at the top all the way on down.

Again, I know I’ve been a part of the conversation on SJR-7 so this post is as much of rant on me as it is on everyone else involved. This issue is dead. Let’s move on. There are other issues going on in this state we should be talking about. So let’s do it. I will be the first to be resolved not to discuss the gay marriage ban anymore on Hoosier Access. Who’s with me? (Methinks I hear crickets starting to warm up)

Oh, btw, consider this an open thread.