Quote:
Originally Posted by Fiannan
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LOL at that Fian^.
One thing I have to say is, I apologize for some of my heated remarks in this thread and another one concerning the FLDS. I don't always think before I type and I certainly don't care to hurt anyone's feelings or insult their thoughts or ideas. For this I specifically direct my apology towards Fian and Kosher.
I'd say that 95% of the people in my family are lawyers, police officers, social workers and judges. Due to this, I often exhibit overconfidence in our judicial system. So when I see people like Warren Jeffs in jail I often think "well, he must have done something to deserve being there." Of course we all know that often people are targeted due to race, religion, etc and are sometimes falsely accused or imprisoned. I sometimes forget my bias for our government officials and quite often jump to conclusions due to it.
I think that controversies like the situation at YFZ ranch are especially talked about in this community because we are LDS. Lets face it, as Mormons we get nitpicked a lot and when something so controversial is even remotely linked to us we jump to defenses and perhaps judge even MORE harshly than others . Like the missionaries who reportedly desecrated church property, a good number of us were quick to start stoking the fires for the witch burning.
Because, god forbid, we don't want anyone thinking we are like THEM and make our "normal" church look bad. It is a severe error to think in this way.
Are the members of the FLDS guilty of abusing children physically, sexually or emotionally? I don't know, and I certainly hope they are not. Every community harbors the occasional abuser, no matter what religion they prescribe to. I'm sure the YFZ ranch is no different in that regard. But is the entire community one of promoting abuse? I cannot say for sure.
I can say one thing, in my mind this is a great example of why consenting polygamy should just be legal in the first place. This probably would have never happened if it were just legalized so that the government could regulate it in such a way that would assuage their fears. Like many other things that have been banned in the past, people will just find a loophole and do it anyway. Then the government REALLY has no control over the situation and becomes suspicious of other illegal activities.
Until it is legalized (which I believe it eventually will be) people just need to be content with one wife. I understand that these men aren't LEGALLY married to more than one woman, but mocking the law by finding a loophole and just shacking up with a bunch of them and calling them "spiritual wives" is typically not a good idea. It simply draws unwanted attention to yourself from the government. Perhaps they can't arrest people for polygamy, but if the chip on their shoulder is big enough they will certainly dig for evidence of other crimes to smack you with to make up for it.
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06-10-2008, 07:15 AM
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