In Virginia we seem to have a major election every year, not just biennially. This year we’ll elect all of our state House of Delegates as well as a new governor. (All signs point to our getting a real winner there, a guy for whom 1952 is not just the “good old days,” it’s where he thinks we actually are now. Look for Virginia to resegregate our schools and outlaw the Pill completely in coming months.)

So every October and early November we suffer a deluge of automated phone calls and political junk mail. Amongst today’s seven (7) pieces of political mail was a “letter” to me “from” the wife of Bob Marshall, our seven-term state delegate.

Against my better judgement, I opened the letter, wondering what language a wife would use to defend her husband’s 30 years of actively working against a woman’s right to have any authority over her own body.

Funnily enough, she didn’t mention all the times her husband has fought to outlaw women’s access to contraception and abortion. But she did brag, “I am proud that my husband authored the Virginia One Man – One Woman Marriage Amendment”.

Aw. But, really, what woman wouldn’t be proud of her husband for framing the words with which his commonwealth moved from discriminating de facto to discriminating de jure?

This woman, for one. So Byron, I apologize. I have been too hard on you. You aren’t perfect, but you would never ask me to beam proudly as you trampled on people’s civil rights. Tell you what – mess up all you want this weekend. I’m giving you a freebie.