"Last week's public hearings in the sensational case were longer on suspicions than hard evidence. Since then, the authorities have clamped down even on basic information that should not be sensitive — such as the ages and genders of those removed.
With so much unknown, it is difficult to assess whether Texas officials have acted appropriately, perhaps even belatedly, or whether they've overreached. But if answers are elusive, the questions that will lead to them are increasingly clear:"
"* Did the state infringe on the group's right to practice its religion? FLDS members have invited fear and suspicion by cutting themselves off from society. It is likely that the sect built its isolated West Texas compound in 2004 to avoid outside interference. In recent days, FLDS mothers have appeared on TV wearing prairie dresses and old-fashioned hairdos. Different, yes, but the Constitution protects religious freedom, as long as it's practiced legally."
http://news.yahoo.com/s/usatoday/20080424/cm_usatoday/intexascompoundcas...
I don't want to defend a religious sect that condones the abomination of marriage between underage girls and older men and allows the sequestering of children and women in a medieval-type compound, but I am suspicious of the government in the first place. They have not found who made the original phone call or even know whether it originated from within the compound. The call very likely was bogus to begin with and just served as a pretext for the raid.
Second, taking away all those children from their mothers is cruel and inhumane. The state, once again, is using a heavy and unfeeling hand in its dealings with people and their children. I would think separating the men from the women and children should be enough. But taking young children away from their mothers and placing them in foster homes is wrong.
Third, the suppression of information about the raid just fuels my sense that something is very wrong about what the government is doing. It is typical of government to clam up when it is unsure about the legality or justifiability of its actions.
I have to agree pete. Too much govt poking it's nose into private people's lives. While I do agree than any reports of child abuse, rape, forced marriage of minors, incest, etc. need to be investigated, it seems to me that the govt. has taken a very hard handed approach to this. I heard on the news that the reason they removed the kids from the parents (except the children under age one who are, or may be still nursing) was because of the govt.'s fear that the parents would 'coach' the kids as to what to say. Not a good enough reason to me to cause the trauma to these kids by forceably taking them from their parents. I could only imagine how my kids would have felt - terrified beyond description. I also question the expense & time of doing dna testing of everybody from that compound.
I don't know how many of you watched "Big Love" when it was on HBO - yes, it was a tv show - but it was actually researched very well, very accurate in it's portrayal of modern day poligamists (they had a special on 'the making of "Big Love" & had interviewed the experts who worked to keep it very accurate.) Of course, not all poligamists live on what they call the 'compounds' - only those who live the 'way' in it's strictist, earliest belief system live on these compounds - their dress, culture, way of life, customs, etc. are what is now in the news. However, many poligamists live & look just like anybody who lives in your neighborhood (as was shown in "Big Love") - living the secret life of poligamy, keeping the lifestyle very private - but you'd never know it by looking at them. The series did depict some of the problems of the lifestyle - the toll it takes on the kids & wives. According to the statistics put out by the experts who worked on "Big Love", there are currently about 30,000 poligmists in Utah alone. It did show where one young, minor girl who had been 'promised to' the leader of the sect - an old man, old enough to be her grandfather. It was supposed to be an honor to be 'selected' by him to be his bride. In the show, she came forward & spoke out (but had devious reasons for doing so) - caused all kinds of havoc within the sect - both in those who lived in the suburbs & also the compound (all related in some ways). Anyway - it was a facinating look inside a different culture/lifestyle - but it was always a type of cult/sect looked down on by outsiders & the govt. The Mormon church outlawed poligamy years ago, but it still has many followers. Those followers, really believe they are living the life God wants them to live - so in a sense, the govt is interfereing with their right to worship the religion of their choise (supposed to be a free country).
I guess my gripe with how the govt is interfering in all this is that they should stick to investigating the minor/forced marriage, rape & incest accusations, but not to the extent they remove children from their parents.