When will Obama defend the religious rights of the FLDS?

Here is a quote from Obama on the proposed mosque near ground zero:

But let me be clear. As a citizen, and as President, I believe that Muslims have the same right to practice their religion as everyone else in this country. ... This is America. And our commitment to religious freedom must be unshakable. The principle that people of all faiths are welcome in this country and that they will not be treated differently by their government is essential to who we are. The writ of the Founders must endure.

So, when is he going to extend the protection of religious freedom to the FLDS? Their civil rights have been trampled on. When will the Department of Justice step in?

Here is a quote from the Counsel on American and Islamic Relations:

"We welcome President Obama's strong statement of support for American Muslim religious rights and hope his remarks will serve as encouragement to those who are challenging the rising level of Islamophobia in our society," Awad said. "We urge other national political and religious leaders to speak out in defense of the freedom of religion and equality of all Americans enshrined in our Constitution."

So will Obama also speak out to defend the freedom of religion when it comes to the FLDS? Better yet, will he back it up by having the Department of Justice investigate the abuses in the Great Eldorado Roundup?

Trying to label the FLDS as criminals

Here is an interesting counterpoint to those who wish to persecute the FLDS, and justify doing it by labeling them criminals. Perhaps they should look in the mirror.

Clark Howard calls out "Monopoly Public School System"

Since I first heard the Clark Howard show years ago, I really liked it. He has a great sense of humor, great advice, and overall a great show. Also, he is from Atlanta, a place that I fondly called "home" awhile back, and is a champion of "Habitat for Humanity," which I believe is an excellent charity, and I have enjoyed the times I have helped them. So, it seems we have a personal connection there.

Typically, Clark stays politically non-partisan. It is a very pragmatic stance - focus on what you can control (your finances) and not what you can not control (government). But, this week he took a real stab at a story involving a teacher calling in police, and having them remove a student from the classroom for not following the teachers dictates.

I really recommend Clark's show. I also really agree with the point he made here. Teachers should not be in the business of ordering the arrest of students. Yet one more reason to homeschool or put your children in private school. Yet another example of JRA - Javert Run Amok.

Ulysses

Recently finished Ulysses by James Joyce, went back and skimmed over it again, and then read some parts multiple times, as there is so much depth to the book. What an amazing novel. How can a day in the life of three people possibly be so interesting? Joyce was a genius, and I am not one to use that term lightly. Ironically, this picture of Joyce looks very much like a freind of mine that is also a writer I enjoy, having earned his PhD in English, with his dissertation on Southwestern lit.

When Joyce first wrote the book, it was not allowed for import into the United States. The "Inspector Javert" types of the time deemed it obscenity. Though the book was written in 1921, it was not able to be legally imported into the United States until 1933 when Judge Woolsey overturned the charge. It is fun to read from his ruling on the matter:

After I had made my decision in regard to the aspect of "Ulysses" ... I checked my impressions with two friends of mine ... They are men whose opinion on literature and on life I value most highly. They had both read "Ulysses", and, of course, were wholly unconnected with this cause. I was interested to find that they both agreed with my opinion ... that its net effect on them was only that of a somewhat tragic and very powerful commentary on the inner lives of men and women.

It is very easy to look back now, and see how stupid it was to ban Ulysses - even though I would still not recommend it for children or youth. But, we still have Javerts running around, trying to force, coerce, and terrorize people. The "Great Eldorado Roundup" is certainly an example of this, but there are unfortunately many more examples of JRA - "Javert Run Amok."

439-0!

Fight Bigotry!

Article in National Geographic

National Geographic has an article on the FLDS. It seems to me to be very well done, with the excellent photography typical of NG (as you can see above). I think it goes a long way toward quashing the stereotypes that led to the Great Eldorado Roundup. However, I do wish they had covered some of the other polygamist groups as well.

Analysis of Housekeeping and Parent Rights

I just finished Housekeeping, an intriguing novel that seems to read more like poetry than prose. It is the story of two orphaned girls, first raised by their grandma, then their great aunts, then their aunt.

The problem is their aunt is a transient who rides freight trains. Eventually, the younger sister goes off to live with a teacher, and live a "normal" life. The older sister, the narrator, is threatened by the locals to be forcibly removed from her aunt. Instead, they burn their house, and escape to the hobo life. The town assumes them dead.

In the book, the author talks of family togetherness. It is ultimately the government that force a terrible choice: break up the family, or become a drifter. It seems that too often this is the case with various government organizations. In trying to force people, they end up creating the very situation they were trying to avoid. In trying to help, they end up hurting.

I highly recommend the book for both it's artistry, and it's depth. However, it is a book that requires you take your time.

Analysis by Criminal Defense Attorney John Floyd and Paralegal Billy Sinclair

This rather extensive analysis Floyd and Sinclair really hits the nail on the head. Thanks to Hugh for pointing it out.

we do believe that polygamy is a fundamental tenet of certain religions and we have no problem with that practice, just as we have no problem with same-sex marriage, civil unions, common law marriage, or state-sanctioned ceremonial marriage. Laws should not be based on religious tenets. Laws should be secular.

Who is Christopher Clark, and how is he related to Rozita?

This is a very interesting question of who Christopher Clark is, and how exactly he relates to Rozita Swinton. Perhaps I will have more to post in the near future.

UPDATE -- Hugh McBride at Modern Pharisee came up with the answer.

He's a bartender in Albion ID, and has made statements regarding Rozita that would make it appear she is his foster child. He had a MySpace page plastered with her pictures from Thanksgiving of 2008, some of which were from the "Ace Hardware" store in Burley ID. Rozita in turn commented on that MySpace page several times. I have copies of all of them. I am unable to publish them here because someone gripes that I am infringing on copyright, and again I don't have the wherewithal to dispute that.

According to alleged or claimed foster "mom" Mary Catharine Nelson, Ms. Nelson has been in the pacific northwest as well. There are a lot of confusing stories about Rozita's youth out there, and no one with the time and money has been willing to investigate them.

Thanks for the answer, Hugh. Christopher Clark is possibly the one complaining about copyright infringement. There was a "Christopher Clark" signature on the takedown notice I received. "Chilling Effects" is slow posting takedown notices but after asking google I received a scan of the letter with personal information removed. Since it will be posted on Chilling Effects anyway, I do not feel bad about breaking out his role.

Now, it is entirely possible that someone else wrote and signed the letters. That is the reason I wanted to contact him directly. It would be nice to know if someone else was writing up the letters and signing them in his name.

I publicly invite Christopher Clark to comment on this matter.

Scoreboard: FLDS 439, Texas 0

Last child was released today. Combine that with the earlier veto, the actions of the Texas Supreme Court, and time on the Oprah Winfrey show. It seems that many crucial parts of the battle are not going the way the anti-FLDS planned. There is still a ways to go, but it is wonderful to see such amazing progress.

New Blog focusing on political concerns

I have started a new blog to better address some of the more political problems I see that are not as closely related to parental and family rights. You might find it interesting.

Innovation and Politics

Video from Iran

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Video from the street in Tehran. Unbelievable. Of course, given the Eldorado roundup, maybe it will happen here as well. I could well imagine a mob calling themselves "kindred spirits" with helmets and batons, swinging away.

I hope you wear green in support of Iranian youth.

Green Ribbon on my antenna to support the youth of Iran

This morning I purchased green electrical tape and put it on the antenna of my car. This evening, I added a green ribbon. When I go out tommorrow, I will be wearing a green ribbon on my wrist.

For one of the first times in my life I feel there is hope for peace in the middle east. That hope rests, in part, on the youth of Iran, and their courage in the streets of Tehran. I am reminded of a song I love - "Chimes of Freedom Flashing" as sang by the Byrds, but in this video by their lead singer Roger McGuinn.

$2 Million Parking Ticket?

What if your child or grandchild got hit with a $2 Million parking ticket? Would you think that is excessive? So would I. Yet it is the punishment the jury decided on in a recent court case for something that I believe is fair use. Here is the letter I wrote to my senators and representative.

Can you imaging paying $2 million for a parking ticket? In my mind this is what has happened today in a trial in Minnesota. A Woman has been fined $2 million for non-commercial sharing of music. If this same penalty were applied to all shared music, it would result in a fine of $400 Trillion. Let me repeat that number: $400 Trillion. How is there any sanity in this kind of award? However, even though the damages were excessively high, the industry felt an award almost twice as high was appropriate.

You represent Virginia. It is your duty to stop this nonsense. Non-commercial sharing is far different than commercial piracy, and should be treated as such. Sharing songs should not carry a penalty similar to a parking ticket, not a penalty similar to murder, especially when the music industry has yet to prove they are damaged.

Please hold hearings on non-commercial file sharing, and call the music industry to task for this gross abuse of justice. Also, please support and/or sponsor legislation that gives a sane penalty for non-commercial sharing, commensurate with the 79 cent price of the file.

"Race to the Pole" and anti-Mormonism

I recently finished a very interesting book - Race to the Pole: Tragedy, Heroism, and Scott's Antarctic Quest, by Sir Ranulph Fiennes. When I picked it up I thought it would be an interesting book about how early explorers lived and died in their quest for the antarctic. I only later found out I was stepping into a historical controversy.

Sir Fiennes is a modern explorer of note. He has apparantly crossed Antartica on foot, and performed a number of other extrordinary feats. In the mid-1970s a biography came out that was highly critical of explorer Robert Scott. From this book, the contemporary view of Scott has become one of a bumbling idiot, according to Fiennes. According to Fiennes, the book even went so far as to accuse Scott's wife of an affair, and the head of the Royal Geographical Society of being a homosexual, all with no substantive evidence. Further, Fiennes pointed out that the other author had never been to Antartica.

I have yet to read the other book, so I can not comment on it directly. However, much of what Fiennes said about the way Scott kept his diary and the nature of scientific expeditions resonates with my own experiences. Thus, it gives merit to his book in my mind.

Now, I have not researched the history of Scott enough to resolve this historical question to my satisfaction. However, I see Sir Fiennes engaged in a very similar struggle to that of polygamists. They are contending against sensationalist writings that have become considered "common knowledge." Just as such things as the weather conditions in March 1912 have come to light with further research, items such as the "FLDS on welfare" fallacy have been debunked by adversarial witnesses such as Texas officials. It is clear that "common knowledge" has been wrong, it is more a matter of seeing how far it has drifted.

A couple of good parenting sites

Commenter Saif Ali Pervez has a couple of good parenting sites. Since it was in the comments, which can often get lost, I thought readers would appreciate it if I "bumped" the sites in the post.

Parenting Tips

Early Childhood

I will say, though, the question has been raised as to whether the NAEYC should be renamed the "National Association for Acreditation Nightmares. ;)

Copyright infringement a $150,000 Crime?

Note - Given the pointing out of errors in my earlier post, I have edited the earlier edition. This may leave some comments sounding strange.

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Copyright infringement carries a fine of up to $150,000 per incident. While the penalties on copyright infringement are ridiculous, so are the penalties on polygamy. But those who promote the importance of following stupid and overreaching laws should first make sure that they are obeying all the stupid, overreaching laws.

Very Interesting Take on Abuse at School

Kurt Schulzke really picks up the "story behind the story" on this one. Sex abuse in the public school system is a serious problem. How often does it happen? Is there a better way that is less prone to abuse?

My children are in public schools right now. The schools have a policy of trying to keep parents away from the schools. I had to be fingerprinted during normal working hours to be a volunteer! It made me wonder if it was worth it. Certainly, there needs to more parental oversight of public schools. Like the mother in the article, am I being intellectually dishonest if I say "I’m very protective about my children,” since my children are in public school? Of course, my wife would say I'm not being protective when I allowed and encouraged them to wrestle this year. ;)

Has she been a bad girl this year?

While nothing has been proven, it seems there is a preponderance of evidence that Swinton made the fraudulent phone calls. She is free, and Texas is totally dragging their heels in bringing her case to court. I can not say with certainty that Rozita is responsible for the kidnapping of 460+ children. Bigotry certainly played a large role. But she is certainly an accomplice to kidnapping, guilty of fraud, and guilty of religious persecution if the charges are true. When is Texas going to bring her in for a hearing? Why have they not persued her case with any speed or interest? How can this possibly be reconciled under the "equal protection" clause?

Fall of Reynolds - Coming soon to a nation near you!

There is some interesting insights posted on a blog with the provocative title "The Fall of Reynolds." Renn OldsBuster posts a very insightful article on "Siamese Polygamy." Why would it be wrong the two ladies joined together to marry one man, or two? Would it be illegal? Would the law allow them to live their own life the way they choose, as it is certainly not hurting anyone else? I would hope sanity would reign.

Unfortunately, a BluesMan did not respond to that article as near as I can tell. Also, BluesMan neglected to tell Mr. Oldsbuster how his predictions were wrong about the appeals court, wrong about the Texas Supreme Court, and wrong about the question of the search warrant coming to trial, and is wrong about a JD being a real doctorate. Perhaps the last error is part of the reason for the first three, as his ego and "Javert Syndrome" prevents him from seeing imperfections in laws.

Mohammad's birthday

The Jawa report says that today is the birthday of the prophet Mohammed. I must admit I have not found corroborating evidence, but since the Muslims use the lunar calendar it may be difficult to track.

Either way, I once participated in a "Interfaith Dialogue club" that was started by Islamic students. In addition to participating in discussions, I was MC at a three-night guest speaker seminar, and spoke myself at a Ramadan dinner. In addition, we have had Islamic neighbors from Egypt who were good friends, let their children come over to our house, and even came to a 4th of July picnic with us. One of my sons best friends had a father from Lebanon, and the family was also Islamic.

Ironically, the father had been betrothed to a cousin in Lebanon before he fled to the United States. His wife confessed to mine that at first she was worried if he ever went back to Lebanon he would marry her, since the betrothal can not be broken. But, when they did go back, she met the lady, and was really impressed. She said that if her husband did decide to marry her, it wouldn't be a terrible thing. Though this is all third hand, I thought it an interesting attitude as my wife absolutely abhors polygamy -- one reason among many others I will never become a polygamist.

Anyway, back to Mohammed. Wikipedia reports that he had 13 wives, and it is commonly assumed that several thousand Muslims practice polygamy. It seems to me that many people have found spiritiual inspiration in the teachings of Mohammed, and have lived a better life because of it. I think Muslims that want to practice polygamy should be allowed to practice it without the government forcing them to choose between their conscience and the law. It seems to be a very reasonable arrangement for families to have that flexibility.