Quote:
Originally posted by Timber Loftis:
I respond more substantively later when I have time.
In the meantime, let me remind you that polygamy as it exists in this nation is pernicious. At least, every example I have seen is pernicious. I've seen a few different nightly news shows where they looked at polygamous families. In every instance I've seen, there is a patriach (meaning: dominant man, i.e. the ultimate decision-maker and boss) at the center of the family who has several wives. In every instance I've seen, this patriarch takes daughters of his wives to wife, and often at an early age (13 to 15). Point me to an example that does not follow this model, and I'll demur, but I have not seen such an example.
By modern standards, I think a man dominating submissive women and marrying his daughters when they are not yet of the age of consent is "pernicious."
Not addressing your philosophical/political question, I realize, but a little "reality check" is often in order when we're discussing things that hypothetically aren't bad but in practice are.
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Granted... and I too have never seen a US application of this sort of arrangement that has not been problematic. I would suggest that the fact that it's illegal in the US might be a causal factor in this though. Polygamy has and is used in other cultures worldwide (arab comes to mind), and based on it's longevity it appears to be somewhat workable. If track records are used as a basis for decision making I'd suggest that polygamy has a more successful historical record worldwide than homosexual relationships (I do not take this as proving anything, simply that US occurances of Polygamy may not be indicative of its viability given the illegal nature of the activity in the US). Further, I'll accept that polygamy is hypothetical in the US but since it is legal and applied elsewhere today I would say that it's not at all hypothetical as a potential form of a "nuclear family" (although I personally think you'd have to be crazy to try it).
[ 12-03-2003, 04:38 PM: Message edited by: Thoran ]