by Alex Kee

Created on: April 24, 2008

Yes and only on the condition, premise and sole purpose of weilding state control on a personal matter that has social ramifications beyond the private and personal confines of the individual behind close doors.

Legalizing polygamy or plural marriages ought not be viewed as granting legitimacy or promoting the practice, but just as legalizing any of the other social vices like prostitution, gambling, substance abuses like soft drugs, alcohol and tobacco, the primary purpose is control.

Societal abhorrence to certain cultural oddity like homosexuality and polygamy, away from the traditional and more often than not ingrained and institutionalized religious inspired values of monogamy and heterosexual practices is very much culturally bias.

In most Judeo-Christian values based society where monogamy and heterosexual relations are the norm and practice; Islamic and other "pagan" practices such as polygamy is much frowned upon.

However, in an ever globally secularized world, societies are morphing and evolving to the extent of being more liberal, accepting, tolerant and pragmatic in embrassing diversities and deviations as part and parcel of the diversity in life and Nature.

"Christian Europe" is a perfect case in point where increasingly, countries like France, Holland and Germany which were the bastions of traditionalistic Roman Catholic and Reformist fervor have now been "humanized" and "secularized" to the "unthinkable" practice of legalizing homosexual marriages, personal consumption of marijuana, euthanasia but not polygamy or plural marriages, as yet maybe?

While I am personally against the practice of homosexuality and polygamy, not so much on grounds of religious values but more so because it is incompatible with the object and purpose of having intimate relationships with a fellow human being, I support legalizing for the sake of control.

It is pointless in banning a certain practice just because we want to appear "holy" and is seen to be doing the right thing to the targeted electoral audience whereas the reality is that the driving of such practices underground only serves to undermine the purpose of extermination by prohibition.

Take the case of the oldest profession known to mankind: prostitution.

Really, who does prostitution harm? The prostitute who fairly exchange his or her services to a willing service purchaser for services rendered or the prostitute himself or herself, the betrayed loved ones behind the commercial transaction or the State, in lost tax revenues?

Take the case of smoking and tobacco, who does it harm? I would say, unlike prostitution; not only the abusers themselves but everybody around the smoker, through second hand smoke and the State and taxpayers, through additional medical expenses arising from a harmful indulgence of the wanton individual.

I support the legalization of polygamy and plural marriages on the balance of controlling the practice, no more unlike the basis of legalizing other vices like gambling, prostitution, homosexuality, smoking and other substance abuse like alcohol and soft drugs consumption.

It is better for the State to legalize and for the sake of wielding control, than to legislate against and live in denial while the real situation fester into a future disaster for the next government to handle.

It takes an enlighten pragmatic government to be savvy enough to do the real thing on top of the right thing, for being right basically starts from being real and not just ideal!

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