We all have two sides gay and ugly

The fight over legalizing gay marriage in New York is getting ugly online as the Republican Senate plans to finally consider the bill in closed-door conference Thursday. The leader of the state Senate, New York Archbishop Timothy Dolan and at least one other lawmaker say they have been besieged by offensive posts, forcing them to curtail comments.

Dolan has blogged that he loves gay people who want to get married but still ardently opposes gay marriage. The church says Dolan's been one of the targets of cyber abuse and vulgarities prompted the banning of some commenters on the Catholic church's Facebook and Twitter pages.

Senate Republican leader Dean Skelos, who opposes gay marriage, has also closed down the comments on his Facebook page after supporters used vulgarities and posted the home addresses of senators opposed to gay marriage.

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Democratic Sen. Diane Savino of Staten Island, who supports gay marriage, says she also had had an onslaught of offensive postings by opponents of same-sex marriage. The question in New York is viewed as a pivotal moment in the national gay rights movement. Skelos said his Republican caucus will meet behind closed doors Thursday to decide whether to send it to the floor or kill it.

Several amendments are being proposed to better protect religious groups from discrimination lawsuits and to entice Republican senators, most of whom oppose gay marriage, to send the bill for a full vote advocates think they will win. Andrew Cuomo. Meanwhile, the anxiety level appeared to rise on both sides as negotiations dragged toward the end of a second week.

It was most keenly observed online. One post used a vulgarity to disparage the Virgin Mary, among other web posts and emails that prompted the New York State Conference of Bishops to ban from its Facebook page some users who accuse Dolan and the church of bigotry. I'm sure there are certain unstable members of both sides who are prone to excess," Poust said.

The Senate's Republican majority, which is the key to whether same-sex marriage will be passed or killed in New York, stopped allowing posts to Skelos' Facebook page this week. She said the worst commenters appear to have stopped. In the capitol building where we all have two sides gay and ugly and opponents have peacefully coexisted since last week, singing hymns like "This Little Light of Mine," or "Amazing Grace," the mood was turning more anxious, too.

But the two opposing groups, kept segregated by state troopers, largely stayed on opposite sides of the hallways. Though there were bursts of tension all week, including chants of "Get your hate out of our state" by gay marriage supporters Wednesday night, advocates reported no major conflicts early Thursday.

No gay marriage. Dozens of gay couples were planning to converge on the capitol to witness what would be a historic vote to legalize gay marriage in New York, the sixth state to do so and a potential bellwether in the national gay rights movement. But for that to happen, Cuomo's considerable political skills will be tested as never before to engineer one of the biggest social changes in a generation.

The Democrat has been using a kind of shuttle diplomacy to privately test proposals for additional religious exceptions within the Senate's Republican majority. He's talked to individual senators or small groups of lawmakers privately, breaking down barriers and letting them take his message to others in the Republican caucus.

The proposed protections are aimed at saving religious groups from discrimination lawsuits if they refuse to recognize gay marriage based on their principles. So I also have the same concern. Even if Republicans agree to the religious exemptions, that's no guarantee the bill will pass.

New York's action is being watched closely as a pivotal moment in the national gay rights movement. With the country's third-largest population, the international cultural cachet of New York City and a vast media presence, the state represents a major objective for both sides.

Two Republicans clearly undecided are Sen.