'The Institution of Marriage Has Been Preserved in Maine and Across the Nation'

Time for a temper tantrum up in Maine. No matter where in the country gay marriage has been put on a ballot it has lost every time. No getting around that fact. Deep blue states, red states, purple states, California, you name it. Defeated every time.

So I guess we can call this a narrow victory for Barack Obama, who (allegedly) supports traditional marriage.

The stars seemed aligned for supporters of gay marriage. They had Maine's governor, legislative leaders and major newspapers on their side, plus a huge edge in campaign funding. So losing a landmark referendum was a devastating blow, for activists in Maine and nationwide.

In an election that had been billed for weeks as too close to call, Maine's often unpredictable voters repealed a state law Tuesday that would have allowed same-sex couples to wed. Gay marriage has now lost in all 31 states in which it has been put to a popular vote — a trend that the gay-rights movement had believed it could end in Maine.

"Today's heartbreaking defeat unfortunately shows that lies and fear can still win at the ballot box," said Rea Carey, executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force.

Sorry, sweetie, it's not lies and fear. It's the belief people have that marriage is between a man and a woman. No lies and fear there.

Here's some advice for gay marriage proponents: Stop calling people homophobes and bigots. Some day you might win one of these, but until you grow up and learn to be tolerant of others, you're just going to have your spirits crushed again and again.

Having an endless series of temper tantrums, like those that followed the defeat of Prop 8 in California last year, isn't helping the cause.

Brian Brown of the National Organization for Marriage, a conservative group that steered substantial funds to fight gay marriage in both California and Maine, was elated by Tuesday's result, saying it shows that "that even in a New England state, if the voters have a chance to have their say, they're going to protect and defend the commonsense definition of marriage."

Traditional marriage supporter Obama was too busy watching a basketball game to offer comment.