On opposite sides of the world, Gay Marriage made significant advances.  US President Barack Obama’s adopted home state is almost sure to make it law following some legal technicalities.  And the Emerald Island’s PM placed his country on a path to step further away from its staunch Roman Catholic past.

Lawmakers in Illinois approved a measure to legalize Gay Marriage the largest state in America’s heartland.  The bill had been delayed for several months as the main sponsor, state Representative Greg Harris of Chicago, rounded up votes and activists fired up the public. 

A near-identical version was already passed by the state’s upper house; this version will be sent back to the senate for formal approval and then on to Governor Pat Quinn.  The Illinois Assembly, Senate, Governor’s office, and other key positions are held by Democrats, usually of the liberal-to-moderate variety.  But even a few republicans crossed the aisle to support simple freedom.

Spin the globe across the Atlantic Ocean to Ireland, where Taoiseach Enda Kenny is calling for a referendum on Gay Marriage by 2015, and placing his Fine Gael party squarely in favor of it.  Prior to these events, the PM had steadfastly refused to give an opinion on the issue.

The move to give same sex couples full equality in relationships comes five years after they were first given the right to civil partnerships.