The vilification of the same sex marriage postal vote

For those of you living outside of Australia, or for those of you living under a rock, Australia is conducting a voluntary postal survey to amend the marriage act.

Now before we really kick this off, this is not a debate on what way you should vote, I have no right to tell you that or try to persuade you either way. My voting preference at this stage is still undecided for matters that you will read as we go along.

The LNP Government went to the 2016 Federal Election on a platform of conducting a plebiscite to determine this issue. Many people within society wanted the government to just make the decision for us. I agree with the path that the government took, sure they could have very effectively made a decision, but it was an election promise that couldn't be broken. Of course the lefties in the Senate stood in their way and wouldn't allow the will of the voting people.
The left of the society argue that we should not have a plebiscite because it will open up a can of hatred and vilification towards the LGBTIQ community. Personally i didn't think this would happen, but I appreciate the concern and can understand their trepidation on this.

So we are going to a postal vote and the heat is on now, the government has created a bi-partisan bill (this is a true miracle when it comes to Billy Shorten to agree on anything) to protect people from hate speech. The undertones of this bill are biased towards protecting the LGBTIQ community. I thought this was already protected but I was wrong.

BUT..... now that the campaigns have been flowing for a few weeks, it turns out that the lefts fears have been realized. There are hate filled rallies, abuse, assault and vilification. But the problem is, its coming FROM the LGBTIQ side or as I heard one radio caller label it, the Pink Panthers (as opposed to the Black Panthers)

This is where my decision on where to vote become blurred and confusing. I personally have no issue with marriage between homosexuals, they should have the same right to be as miserable as the rest of us. But what I DO have an issue with is the way the staunch NO voters are being treated. If the Pink Panthers are going to be this vile and militant with absolutely no regard for other peoples opinion on this issue, what else will be next? Will there be demand for compensation and reconciliation?
The other issue is, we really don't know what we are voting for, what is the wording of the bill, what are the changes and what are the protections to stop this kind of vilification from BOTH sides happening in the future?

There is just too much unknown, maybe I should abstain from voting, maybe I just vote no until its all cleared up. I don't know.

Lastly, I've seen friends of mine putting posts on Facebook stating that if you vote NO then let them know so that they can delete you from their friend list. Are some people seriously that petty that they can't be friends with someone that has a differing opinion to them? For this reason alone I feel like voting NO just as a big Fuck You to those people. Its just like all the wankers that said they'd leave the USA if Trump won the election, we're still waiting for you to move De Niro and Amy Schumer!!

Either way, at the end of the day there are going to be a lot of very pissed off people come November 15. This vote will have 1 winner and 1 looser, some people aren't going to get their way. But what is great, and makes this country one of the best democracies in the world is that we got to have our say and make our opinions heard.

Below are the links to news stories of some of the horrible acts that have played out so far in the lead up to this survey.
University of Sydney Assult
Brisbane Church Assault
Assault of Kevin Rudds God-son