Hallmark Issues Gay Wedding Cards, Sky Not Yet Fallen
The California Majority Report
By Donald Lathbury
August 21, 2008

Let us repeat the mantra: marriage equality is good for the economy. Hallmark, ever mindful of it's mission to commercialize every holiday on the planet, "is rolling out same-sex wedding cards -- featuring two tuxedos, overlapping hearts or intertwined flowers, with best wishes inside. ... Hallmark added the cards after California joined Massachusetts as the only U.S. states with legal gay marriage. A handful of other states have recognized same-sex civil unions."

It's a brave new world in the greeting card industry, but this is a phenomenon that extends far beyond cardboard. "By some estimates, weddings and commitment ceremonies for same-sex couples generate $1 billion a year in revenue. PlanetOut, a media and entertainment company that conducts surveys about gay and lesbian consumers, says gay consumers earn 20% more than their straight counterparts, on average, and spend about 10% more on nuptials."

Next thing you know, Macy's will have a same-sex wedding registry. Oh, wait.

Provided the voters reject Prop 8 this November, UCLA's Williams Institute expects nearly 120,000 same-sex couples to wed in California over the next three years, boosting California business profits and providing some nice windfall tax revenue to help Sacramento square the circles in future budget negotiations.