As far as polygamy goes, I say leave it alone. There is nothing in the Constitution preventing polygamous marriages. It is an area best left to state and local governments. I fault Mr. Green for the age at which he married these girls, not at the number of wives.
There are many religions in the world which practice ploygamy. In my opinion, the first amendment takes precedence unless there is a "clear" danger to society.
One aspect of the case was disturbing. Even though Mr. Green divorced all but one of his wives, he was still living with all of them. The state declared that by cohabitating they were his "common law" wives and therefore he was committing polygamy.
In theory, this means that if you set up housekeeping with two women, even without exchanging vows, in a state with common law marriage, you run the risk of becoming an "accidental bigamist". This could open up a whole new way for the goverment to interfere in personal lifesytles.
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05-21-2001, 10:31 PM
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