Gay marriage became legal a year ago in New York today, and to commemorate the event, Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Council Speaker Christine Quinn announced that New York City alone made $259 million from all festivities that the 8,200+ gay-marriage licenses spawned. That's over three times what Brokeback Mountain grossed at the domestic box office. Gay pays.

A Bloomberg report says $55 million came in from hotel stays alone:

More than 200,000 guests have since traveled from outside of the city to attend same-sex wedding receptions, and more than 235,000 hotel room nights were booked at an average daily room rate of $275, according to the mayor's statement.

(The MTA is still operating on a $68 million deficit, FYI.)

Since money is our country's official religion, this is one more step in the direction of it being impossible to deny that letting gay people get married is a good thing. Even a megachurch owner could see the value in an assload of money like this.

[Image via Getty]