- 20 Apr 2008 03:40
#1511462
The San Angelo children, more than 400, are very liable to be separated permanently from their mothers, I read. The State of Texas seems to have convinced the presiding judge, Judge Walthers, that its allegations of abuse of these children are true. The evidence presented does not seem to be in the reports I have seen. What is prominently reported is that the religious leaders of that sect have been teaching that conventional society is bad.
To teach that is not in my judgment, in itself, sufficient to justify the court's action. Other religions also teach that the larger society is bad and filled with the work of the Devil. I think the Amish teach their young a similar view of the outside world. Many arguments are possible to sustain such a belief: our militarism, high rate of incarceration, drug use, destruction of the natural environment.
Another claim in the media is that the leaders of that community do not view the family as the nuclear family that most of us know. Other societies also view the family as a broader group, and in some cultures there are many "fathers" and "mothers" for each child, because they all live together and share parental responsibilities.
I think that unless the children are being physically or sexually abused, Texas may be causing great harm to these children in its do-good frame of mind. So far, no reports claim any pattern of physical or mental abuse.
If we truly believe that government must not impose the predominant religious culture on individuals, then what Texas is doing may be in contradiction of that principal of our constitutional law.
To teach that is not in my judgment, in itself, sufficient to justify the court's action. Other religions also teach that the larger society is bad and filled with the work of the Devil. I think the Amish teach their young a similar view of the outside world. Many arguments are possible to sustain such a belief: our militarism, high rate of incarceration, drug use, destruction of the natural environment.
Another claim in the media is that the leaders of that community do not view the family as the nuclear family that most of us know. Other societies also view the family as a broader group, and in some cultures there are many "fathers" and "mothers" for each child, because they all live together and share parental responsibilities.
I think that unless the children are being physically or sexually abused, Texas may be causing great harm to these children in its do-good frame of mind. So far, no reports claim any pattern of physical or mental abuse.
If we truly believe that government must not impose the predominant religious culture on individuals, then what Texas is doing may be in contradiction of that principal of our constitutional law.
Bring back the tumbrils, and
The sweet vengeance machine,
La Guillotine!
The sweet vengeance machine,
La Guillotine!