In looking in to "who can marry whom" I found some interesting facts.
Fact: It is estimated that 20 percent of all couples worldwide are first cousins. It is also estimated that 80 percent of all marriages historically have been between first cousins!
Fact: In some cultures, the term cousin and mate are synonymous.
Fact: The range of consanguinity in Saudi Arabia is between 34 to 80+ percent. A study has been done on birth defects resulting from consanguineous marriages in this country. Read about it.
Fact: Albert Einstein married his first cousin. And so did Charles Darwin, who had exceptional children.
Fact: Franklin D. Roosevelt, the longest serving US president in history married his cousin (not a first cousin, however they shared the same last name).
Fact: The first Prime Minister of Canada, Sir John A. MacDonald married his first cousin.
Fact: Leviticus 18 lists all forbidden sexual relationships. Cousin relationships are not included.
Fact: God commanded many cousins to marry, including Zelophehad's 5 daughters, Eleazar's daughters, Jacob (who married both Rachel and Leah, first cousins), and Isaac and Rebekkah (first cousins once removed). All were ancestors of Jesus Christ.
Fact: Current studies indicate that cousin couples have a lower ratio of miscarriages -- perhaps because body chemistry of cousins is more similar. The verdict is still out.
http://www.cousincouples.com/info/facts.shtml
Glow, your argument in favor of FLDS practices is beginning to sound hollow and desperate!
During the early years of settling this continent, it was not uncommon for cousins to marry. Most of the settlers were farmers and courtship was limited to how far you could ride a horse & buggy in a few hours. Since families oven lived close to other relatives, a person of marrying age might be a first cousin. However, gradually many families moved west, and that changed the dynamic.
Did you also know that in those "olden days" it was not uncommon for women to become pregnant BEFORE marriage? The reason for this is two-fold. 1. Women needed to prove they were fertile. Having many helping hands on the farm was a necessity. 2. Often there was no preacher in the area, and couples had to wait for the arrival of a circuit preacher to perform the ceremony, and the wait might be several months.
Here's another tidbit of information from the "good old days." Women and children were considered the property of the man of the household. Therefore, beating your wife or child, EVEN TO THE POINT OF DEATH, wasn't considered a crime. They rationized that the man must have had a good reason.
Needless to say, in those days women and blacks couldn't vote. White adult males held all the power.
I think we've become enlightened as a society since the "good old days." Women and blacks are allowed to vote. Young people of dating/marriage age can interact with many more people, so that
choosing a spouse is not limited to the girl next door. We now have supermarkets and gasoline powered machines, so the need to breed a bunch of farm workers is not necessary.
So let me add to your fact list.
Fact: Marriages within the FLDS can and do occur between niece and uncle and close relationships other than cousins like half bothers-sisters.
Fact: Children produced by incest and close blood relationships have a much higher incidence of birth defects and genetically transmitted diseases (fermase deficiency).
Fact: The YFZ ranch is bounded by fences, gates and guards to serve not only to keep out intruders, but also to keep
in the women and young girls.
Fact: It is not an uncommon practice for FLDS men to "teach" their daughters how to satisfy a man in bed in preparation for their marriage - incest AND child abuse.
Fact: Their acknowledged leader Warren Jeffs is a convicted and incarcerated felon, a sex abuser, a pedophile, and a tyrant.
