Polygamy upsets gay activists

Kansas City Star ^ | Mar. 19, 2006 | CHARLES KRAUTHAMMER

[neverdem]

WASHINGTON — And now, polygamy.

With the sweetly titled HBO series “Big Love,” polygamy comes out of the closet. Under the headline “Polygamists, Unite!” Newsweek informs us of “polygamy activists emerging in the wake of the gay-marriage movement.” Says one evangelical Christian big lover: “Polygamy rights is the next civil-rights battle.”

Polygamy used to be stereotyped as the province of secretive Mormons, primitive Africans and profligate Arabs. With “Big Love” it moves to suburbia as a mere alternative lifestyle.

As Newsweek notes, these stirrings for the mainstreaming of polygamy (or, more accurately, polyamory) have their roots in the increasing legitimization of gay marriage. In an essay 10 years ago, I pointed out that it is utterly logical for polygamy rights to follow gay rights. After all, if traditional marriage is defined as the union of (1) two persons of (2) opposite gender, and if, as gay marriage advocates insist, the gender requirement is nothing but prejudice, exclusion and an arbitrary denial of one’s autonomous choices in love, then the first requirement — the number restriction (two and only two) — is a similarly arbitrary, discriminatory and indefensible denial of individual choice.

This line of argument makes gay activists furious. I can understand why they do not want to be in the same room as polygamists. But I’m not the one who put them there. Their argument does.

Blogger and author Andrew Sullivan, who had the courage to advocate gay marriage at a time when it was considered pretty crazy, has called this the “polygamy diversion,” arguing that homosexuality and polygamy are categorically different because polygamy is a mere “activity” while homosexuality is an intrinsic state that “occupies a deeper level of human consciousness.”

But this distinction between higher and lower orders of love is precisely what gay rights activists so...

[jdm]

What's worse: Being gay or having 8 wives? End of story.

[Vicomte13]

It's less offensive than gay marriage.

[ElkGroveDan]

not far behind is bestiality

[bad company]

With every wife comes another ste of inlaws. No thanks.

[Gordongekko909]

Nope, child marriage comes next. It's gay marriage -> polygamy -> child marriage (NAMBLA starts acting up again at this point) -> bestiality.

[Gordongekko909]

Gay or eight wives, gay or eight wives... being single isn't an option, is it? How about suicide?

[weegee]

Sodomites are fooling themselves if they think they can argue FOR the rights of the bisexual and against their right to marry someone of EACH sex. Why that would be asking him or her to deny half her/his existence... to choose a sexual preference.

[BenLurkin]

Hollywierd has moved on to 'normalizing' the next perversion.

Doesn't that mean that the gays have won?

[Graybeard58]

homosexuality is an intrinsic state that “occupies a deeper level of human consciousness.”

My, isn't that special?

[jazusamo]

Hey, you're looking at the practical side. :-)

[SteveMcKing]

Must take an incredibly weak woman to accept such a living arrangement.

Then again, it's the same irony that explains why felons and drug dealers get more ladies than responsible guys...

[Gordongekko909]

No. It means that the left is opening up a new front. They haven't won the first one.

[Fielding]

Both sound painful to me!!!!

[uglybiker]

Yeah! And if each wife comes from a polygamist family, you could get a dozen new in-laws with each one!

YIKES!!

[Do not dub me shapka broham]

LOL.

Good point.

[freedumb2003]

YOu want to watch a Gay person go into spasms, ask them why a father can't marry his daughter if he gets a vasectomy. The "union" meets all the gay criteria:

It can't produce children

It is all about Love

It is 2 people.

They sputter but can't answer.

[Gordongekko909]

That happens because responsible guys don't chase women like felons and drug dealers do. Responsible guys also don't pass women around, or marry women who get passed around.

Take a look at some of the women these felons and drug dealers do their thing with. That should explain a few things.

[Gordongekko909]

Oh yeah, forgot about incest. That comes after child marriage.

Gay marriage -> polygamy -> child marriage -> incest -> bestiality

[Thunder90]

I bet that buggary with animals does not offend the LGBT community.

[A. Pole]

As Newsweek notes, these stirrings for the mainstreaming of polygamy (or, more accurately, polyamory) have their roots in the increasing legitimization of gay marriage. In an essay 10 years ago, I pointed out that it is utterly logical for polygamy rights to follow gay rights. After all, if traditional marriage is defined as the union of (1) two persons of (2) opposite gender, and if, as gay marriage advocates insist, the gender requirement is nothing but prejudice, exclusion and an arbitrary denial of one’s autonomous choices in love, then the first requirement — the number restriction (two and only two) — is a similarly arbitrary, discriminatory and indefensible denial of individual choice.

This line of argument makes gay activists furious. I can understand why they do not want to be in the same room as polygamists. But I’m not the one who put them there. Their argument does.

Bump

[poindexter]

arguing that homosexuality and polygamy are categorically different because polygamy is a mere “activity”

There he goes tying to shove his opinion down our throats. How dare he! /sarc

[freedumb2003]

Gay marriage -> polygamy -> child marriage -> incest -> bestiality

Gay marriage -> polygamy -> child marriage -> incest -> bestiality -> Hillary Clinton

[Young Scholar]

Polygamy does have considerably more Biblical precedent than homosexuality does. Not that I'm advocating it, but it's probably less repulsive than gay marriage.

[Cicero]

Not Charles Krauthammer at his best. He eviscerates the objections of gay marriage advocates, but his own position is no better.

[gidget7]

""What is historically odd is that as gay marriage is gaining acceptance, the resistance to polygamy is much more powerful. Yet until this generation, gay marriage had been sanctioned by no society that we know of, anywhere at any time in history. On the other hand, polygamy had been sanctioned, indeed common, in large parts of the world through large swaths of history, most notably the biblical Middle East and through much of the Islamic world."



While I do not agree with his entire article, the above is quite ironic. And who are homosexuals to criticize ANYONE on the merits of what they are claiming to be rights?

Neither should be considered legitimate or legal, IMO. You give one group and inch, they take a mile, and the rest of the groups want their mile too. We think it's bad with the schools teaching of homosexual sex, wait till others get their agenda included!

This country is headed down a slippery slope alright, and not only to h3ll, but to communism as well.

[pandoraou812]

These guys with all these kids and wives are not supporting them all, maybe a few are but if you look into the whole mess many are on welfare and theres lots of incest involved. I know many families that have a hard time supporting their one wife and family. They dont have the time to give their families that they want to. You tell me how one man can give his children if they number in the 10's 20'and 30's the time each child needs. These sects are known for taking young males out of their families and sending them out in the world at young ages like 14 yrs old with nothing but the clothes on their backs. Just so the bishops and older men can get the young cute girls. And these sister -wives are crazy. How one man can think he can do his best with countless wives and children is way beyond me. All I know is that if my man comes home with a sister-wife for me i plan to hit him hard with a cast iron frying pan and send her out the door with my boot.

[rbg81]

And what company is going to cover health insurance for you, your three wives and 10 children? Oh wait, the Government will just MANDATE that they do it.

[TeleStraightShooter]

arguing that homosexuality and polygamy are categorically different because polygamy is a mere “activity” while homosexuality is an intrinsic state that “occupies a deeper level of human consciousness.”

The big difference is the children {or lack thereof} that are produced from such unions.

"mere activity"?
Yes, there would be a lot of activity involved in in providing for a family of several dozen.

[SteveMcKing]

"That happens because responsible guys don't chase women like felons and drug dealers do. Responsible guys also don't pass women around, or marry women who get passed around."

I'd be the first to lock those guys away forever, however I mainly blame the girls themselves. Tony Blair said the same thing recently - that most crime and social problems would be solved if only young women would stop choosing loser boyfriends. (Naturally, Tony got steamed for speaking this truth.)

"Take a look at some of the women these felons and drug dealers do their thing with. That should explain a few things."

Surely, however it starts out young. It's a tragic loss when they throw their lives away at 15 or whatever.

[JRochelle]

And slavery also had Biblical precedent.

Your point is?

[dk/coro]

My head is spinning.

In my generation, we didn't even sleep with our prospective wives before marriage.

I think I will pack it in; zero out this cra*; and concentrate on honing my hold-em skills.

At least at the poker table I can leave this cultural craziness to the cupcakes that have wallowed in an essentially peaceful world that has afforded them the luxury of dabbling in such trivial matters.

In the not too distant future, when suitcase nukes are triggered at Wall and Broad, all these issues will acquire their proper perspective in the larger scheme of things.

And, I will have been picked up by the Neptune Society -- with a smile on my cold lips.

My timing was perfect.

[JRochelle]

There is a family in Ohio who have 31 children. One man and one woman.

10 sets of twins.

[demoRat watcher]

Let me get this right:

The gays steal the "equal rights" campaign from the black activists, and now the polygamists are trying to take the "equal rights" campaign away from the gays, so the gays DON'T LIKE IT???

Who's gonna take it away from the polygamists? Muslims?

[Honcho Bongs]

Krauthammer has it right in the first part. When the premise that there's nothing special about 1 man and 1 woman becomes the law, then there will be nothing special about a couple. Polygamy will prevail in the courts.

Insurance companies will suddenly be required to cover ALL the "spouses". They'll go bankrupt or quit the business. The Government will say they HAVE to step in with national health insurance.

After that's settled, then they'll proceed to the "inter-generational" relationships and "inter-species" relationships, but it will be too late for civilization by then...

[Muleteam1]

On the bright side, since Americans refuse to believe FDR's social security pyramid scheme needs some help, polygamy will certainly accomplish more than homosexuality to fix the system.</sarcasm Neither does anything for a sustainable moral society though.

[CJ Wolf]

You forgot gay polygamy

[Young Scholar]

That polygamy is certainly no worse morally than homosexual marriage.

[Free ThinkerNY]

Polygamy upsets Gays. So does a missing buttplug.

[JRochelle]

Is it incest if two sisters share a husband?
Or a mother and daughter share one?

I've seen shows about those polygamist freaks in Utah and that actually happens.

[JRochelle]

Polygamy affects more people though. All the children, who have to get along with all their half-siblings, their many squabbling moms, and one worn out dad.

[JRochelle]

Or bi-sexual polygamy.

Good grief, the possibilities are endless....

[jdm]

"Who's gonna take it away from the polygamists? Muslims?"

The Amish.

[Intolerant in NJ]

Nope, child marriage comes next...and then maybe brothers and sisters......

[CindyDawg]

One husband is enough.

[luckystarmom]

My husband and I watched the HBO show, and it certainly doesn't make polygamy look like fun.

Yeah, the guy gets lots of sex, but all of the wives are demanding things like redecorating their homes, a new car, etc.

It really doesn't look good from a woman's point of view.

[Porterville]

Better than saying that love between two men means sex.

What a horrible state of society when we relate male bondage, love, admiration, adoration, and mutual respect as homosexual. It is no wonder there is so much violence among the ignorant.

[annie laurie]

You tell me how one man can give his children if they number in the 10's 20'and 30's the time each child needs.

An excellent point.

[XR7]

Polygamy upsets gay activists

Bwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhh-haaaaaaaaaaaaaaa-haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh!!!!!

[BamaGirl]

Why do gay activists get mad about polygamy?