Those crazy progessive Iowans

Today, in a unanimous decision, the Iowa State Supreme Court ruled that the Iowa declaration that marriage is between a man and a woman violated the equal protection clause of the Iowa State Constitution. It also ordered marriage licenses to be issued to any couples so inclined within 21 days of the ruling.
Read a great analysis here by Law Dork 2.0 (via dailykos.com)
The cool thing about this ruling (other than it is an example of that famous Iowa-common-sense we all know so well) is that the justices tackled the elephant in the room: religious opposition.

• The sanctity of all religious marriages celebrated in the future will have the same meaning as those celebrated in the past. The only difference is civil marriage will now take on a new meaning that reflects a more complete understanding of equal protection of the law.

Right on.