Personally I've always had a soft spot for the man (in case anyone requires the clarification, I'm talking about the Prime Minister of Britain and leader of its Conservative Party), but I couldn't possibly tell you why. He's a skillful and convincing orator and has shown a real capacity for leadership - but he's also most definitely an opportunist, and as the Economist argued recently, his leadership seems unlikely to save his party from impending defeat at the next British election, even though that election is still two years or more away.

However, the events of today have established once and for all something that's been a long way coming, and what could be one of Cameron's best shots of getting into the history books: he has shown social conservatives not only in Britain, but all over the world, that supporting same-sex marriage makes a lot of sense for anyone who is serious about defending marriage and family as essential elements of society.

Today, the British House of Commons voted 400 to 175 to legalize same-sex marriage in England and Wales (the Scots will no doubt follow suit). Perhaps more significantly, there were 127 votes in favour from the Conservative Party, with 136 votes against and 40 abstentions. Yes, the majority rejected it, and many are already saying that that is a defeat for Cameron, but it seems to me those 127 votes in favour constitute a victory, and a big one. Perhaps it's true that if Cameron had spoken himself in the debate, he would've swayed enough votes to get the majority of his own party on board, but that handful of votes does not ultimately matter much. The bill will still need to be approved in the upper house, the House of Lords, but considering the size of the majority in the Commons, this is not expected to be a serious obstacle.

It's worth quoting what Cameron said on the issue several years ago:





That really is the crux of it. When one stops believing in the delusion that homosexuality is some kind of lifestyle choice that people choose or reject, but does believe that stable, monogamous, committed relationships are important in society and should be promoted, legalizing same-sex marriage becomes the most logical thing in the world. In Britain, conservatives have realized this - or enough of them have, anyway. Now I can only hope their counterparts around the globe will see the light as well.

Oh, and as it happens, the French lower house also passed a same-sex marriage bill, three days ago - but with only marginal support from the right. It's becoming a good week for gay rights in Europe, but it's interesting to note the contrast, in case some American readers were thinking "what does it matter how British conservatives vote, those Europeans are all pinko liberals anyway". We are not - leadership matters.