Sometimes, the faith of our fathers is better left to the revisionists.
Wow! And, Mr. Egan ought to know. His recent article in the New York Times is as revisionist as it gets. While I responded briefly to Mr. Egan, by far the best (and most biting) response, far more eloquent than mine, was posted over at Nine Moons by fellow Mormon blogger Seth R. Well done Seth, and thank you.
Previous FLDS Texas Raid Posts
Additional Coverage:
A Humble Reaction (Waters of Mormon by Paradox)
All The Prejudice Fit To Blog (Fair Blog)
Where The Lost Boys Go (Fair Blog)
April 24, 2008 at 8:30 pm
I read Seth’s blog. And while I would never invite Timothy Egan to bite me (I have not had my rabies shots), I applaud Seth’s attitude.
Moreover, Seth is right: The LDS church owes no apologies to anyone over the issue of polygamy. Our Mormon ancestors practiced polygamy for what they considered to be good reasons; I am disinclined to accept the judgement of a NYT columnist over theirs.
Nor does the LDS church bear any responsibility for the practices of the FLDS or other modern-day polygamist groups. The policy is clear: Members of the LDS church who are caught practicing polygamy face excommunication. After that, they become someone else’s problem.
April 24, 2008 at 8:32 pm
The pleasure was all mine Guy. Egan caught me on a bad week where all the criticism and crap we put up with was just starting to pile up on me. By golly, enough is enough. I’m tired of being the scapegoat for America’s feelings of self-inadequacy.
Thanks for the sound out. I read your response to Egan. You’re right, he totally misread you. I almost wonder if he did that on purpose.
By the way, this isn’t the first time Egan has dived into the polygamy issue. See here: See here
April 25, 2008 at 3:21 pm
Not to mention all the Historical inaccuracies…
For example the first anti-polygamy law was signed into law in 1862, well after Buchanan sent the Army into Utah.
April 25, 2008 at 5:40 pm
Guy – you’re awesome. This Egan fellow was just trolling for a quote he could exploit and take out of context to puff up his unprofessional attacks on the Mormon religion. I’m a bit surprised that the NY Times printed it. I’m waiting for the article about how current members of the Catholic Church should take responsibility for the Crusades and the Inquisition (which would have run nicely last week concurrently with the Pope’s visit).
April 25, 2008 at 7:19 pm
I don’t get it why Egan doesn’t get it why a Mormon such as Guy wouldn’t get it why the FLDS’s constitutional rights should be violated (as catalogued, too, in this AP piece from today http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080425/ap_on_re_us/polygamist_retreat;_ylt=AqVsR_mMowetefdA9Bpywqis0NUE )?
April 25, 2008 at 10:14 pm
I’d also point out that Buchanan’s Blunder has a lot of similarities with the current FLDS crisis, as it was based on rumors and suspicions instead of facts.
April 25, 2008 at 10:34 pm
“Bite me”? How cute. I’ve always made it a practice to make my children understand just what they are talking about when the use certain phrases. “That sucks,” or “that blows,” or “that bites” are all refering to oral sex. I’m very liberal when it comes to speech but I think people should understand just what exactly they are saying. Folks are usually taken aback when I reply to them saying “that sucks” by saying, “yes, but does it swallow?”
April 26, 2008 at 8:14 am
According to Wikipedia, the phrase “bite me” does not have any particular reference to oral sex.
April 26, 2008 at 10:18 am
Hey Guy,
Just a quick heads up that my post is over on Waters of Mormon, not Mormon Matters.
But thanks for the link! I figured you’d get a kick out of it;)
Best regards,
Paradox
April 26, 2008 at 10:30 am
Paradox,
Thanks for the correction. I knew that, but was thinking of Mormon Matters when I typed it in for some reason. Thanks.
April 27, 2008 at 4:02 pm
It has been recorded by the State of Texas that:
There are three girls under the age of 18 that the state thinks may be pregnant from FLDS.
One will be 18 years old in a month, one refused to take a pregnancy test and one whose age is yet to be determined.
Among many references to this account: The Salt Lake Tribune 04/26/2008 05:14:10 PM MDT
Bingo, no abuse, no arrests, no adults detained, no underage pregnancies. (By Texas law, underage is “under 16″).
But the State is still refusing to release the kids. Two children under two years of age are now missing by the State of Texas’s own admission! (Though I am sure some logical explanation will come up) Three or more little children are hospitalized as of Friday; one is in critical condition because he is an infant that did not adjust without his mother’s milk. (Common among infants when mothers unexpectedly die) CPS admits that many have contracted chicken pox, measles, diarrhea, flu, viruses and other diseases they were not inoculated for now that they are exposed to the “mainstream” and are blaming it on the parents. And of course, as we all now know, (providing you have some education on the subject), the State of Texas has now concluded that the original call was a hoax.
Those of you who judged and made accusations should hope someone other than a person like yourself is around to defend you should you have the misfortune of having your life torn apart if someone should take your child.
Tragic.
http://origin.sltrib.com/news/ci_9056589