All of the others prohibited from joining are anciently recognized landmarks of Freemasonry. This prohibition bothers me so much because:
a. In the US this is a hotly debated political issue,
b. The GL has no business banning this, oddly enough it makes part of the MM obligation easier to obey for gay men,
c. Masonry is declining and GL's in the USA are scrambling to "fix" this "problem". This goes against what most young people believe and will be a turn off for them. (FYI pun intended)
a. So, we should only make our membership restrictions based on what the public in our country wishes?
b. What rule indicates a GL may not ban this, particularly when we allow only Christian GL's. All Obs are not the same. Utah prohibits inappropriate acts with a Master Mason's children since 2009.