In my state, more people my age and older have to die off. . .it's maddening to live around bigots.

You're assuming that people don't get more conservative the older they become.

Sadly, this isn't the case.

Seany, I'm sure that happens a little but more for economic stuff. I don't think this young generation is going to go back on this issue.

Yeah, seany, I was wondering that, but I don't know how people's social perceptions and values change with age. I know that fiscally people become more conservative... hrm.

I'm actually pretty amazed at how far people's attitudes (including my own) in the twenty five years since I was a young adult. Just being gay was barely talked about, gay marriage wasn't even on the radar.

I don't know how people's social perceptions and values change with age

I don't know either, but I'm seeing a large number of my peers becoming less tolerant to people that are different to them. Now, this is usually a race thing, and may just be a sign of the times. I may be wrong.

That's not to say that things aren't better than they were 25 years ago. They most definitely are.

But, my theory though is that people get scared the older they get, and that fear pretty much always translates to intolerance. I do think people get more sexist, racist & homophobic with age.

I'm actually pretty amazed at how far people's attitudes (including my own) in the twenty five years since I was a young adult.

Yes. This. The very fact that gay marriage is even a serious part of the political debate is a sign of progress, no matter how slowly things are progressing in the actual political sphere.

Back in the 80s, the ultrarightists were howling about a lot of things, but not gay marriage. Know why? Because it would have been like talking about UFOs and Greys and abductions and the suchlike. Crazy talk that sober adults did not indulge in and which wasn't worth time arguing about.

The only thing on the chart that surprises me is how far down Maryland and Delaware are.

I'm surprised at how high Pennsylvania is on the chart. Although we are more progressive than we often get credit for, we're still Pennsylvania.

I'd like to see one where instead of "X All" there was a graph point weighted for the electorate.

People may get less tolerant as they age, but I don't think that would translate to this issue, which is really properly framed as one of equal rights under the law. Even people who have become more aware of and intolerant of other races/ethnicities as they've aged (though I can't say I've seen that amongst my friends, more the kind of economic thing as they get some money and want to protect it more) aren't arguing to roll back the Civil Rights act. Instead, they fight their battles on the current issues of today instead - things like affirmative action, reparations for slavery, politics.

As I age I find myself getting less tolerant of power. I am less tolerant of police, armed forces, courts, religion, and elected officials. I am less tolerant of the financial system in general. I like George Orwell and Lindsay Anderson even more than I did years ago.

I am becoming a weird old crank.

It should be: No marriage equality, no federal money. For anything. Because most of the lower states take more money than they give.