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I did indeed have some issues with the way the raid was carried out- the problem is those pesky problems with the Constitution can be used against any and all of us. We should all be concerned with LEO doing things the right way even if they are after folks that need to be taken down.

This cult needs to be broken apart somehow; Warren Jeffs is definately a pervert that needs to be in jail but he is not the only one. I have seen raids on polygamist Mormon sects since I was a small child and there was a huge raid on Short Creek, Arizona beginning in the 1950s and into the 1960s that was supposed to solve the problem. There have been many raids on the polygamists over the years and yet the group size is growing rapidly. I have no idea why any woman would want to or allow herself and her children to be treated like that, but until someone can reach the women it will never end. There are endless numbers of men like Warren Jeffs to lead the group- until the women stop going for it there is no solution. The raids and prosecutions make people feel good but don’t work to stop it.

It is a very sad thing for the children, I don’t know what the solution is- gut feeling is take all the children away- but after the big round-up in Texas that did just that, that was not a solution- the women won’t talk, the children won’t either so they had to be returned. Brainwashed I guess. As much as we can be happy that Warren Jeffs and others are on trial or convicted already- the children are still in the middle and there has been no solution for them.

A sad thing I still remember is after one of the Short Creek raids one of the women came to live with one of our neighbors who was a relative. My mother told me to be very nice to the little girl because she had lost her home- mother did not tell me what was going on because I was only about 6 or 7. I felt sorry for the girl and gave her one of my dolls- she didn’t even know what to do with it. She was like a little adult, she helped her mother do all the cooking, cleaning, etc. and I never once saw her play. I will never forget that. No doubt that little girl is one of the favored older wives today.

I don’t know what the answer is to this problem, but so far raids have not been the answer. A few years ago after a raid many of the women were settled into Phoenix and Social Services tried to break the bond and were sending some of the women to college and preparing them for careers. I heard the other day that only a handful did not return to the group. I do want to see an end to this cult, but we have to remember if we stand by and let the Constitution be trampled against them or anyone else we lose a bit more of our freedom and protection in the process. I have no idea if the Constitution was violated or not with the raid in Texas, but did comment on media reports of things that were supposedly done that I did not agree with.