Morris Gildemeister of Hastings, wrote a letter to the Hastings Star Gazette titled, “Iowa is a good example of why amendment should pass.” With a title like that, you’d think that Mr. Gildemeister would actually speak to the impact that same-sex marriage has had in Iowa. He does not. Instead, he shares:

Anyone who believes children are best nurtured in a setting which includes both a man and woman must vote “Yes” on the proposed constitutional amendment this fall.

Hmmm. After reading Mr. Gildemeister’s letter, I got to thinking: I wonder what the impact of same-sex marriage has been in Iowa. So I did some research. Turns out:

• The Iowa economy sees an annual net gain of approximately $5.3 million by allowing same-sex couples to get married (UCLA)
• From April 2009 until March 2010, just over 2,000 same-sex couples were married in Iowa (10% of total marriages during that time)
• An August 2011 Public Policy Polling survey found 70% of those polled support the legal recognition of same-sex couples

Maybe Mr. Gildemeister should pick another state to compare Minnesota against if he’s trying to make a point that this amendment should pass. Sounds like marriage is still humming along in the Hawkeye State!