Should Polygamy be illegal?

[Robespierre's Jaw]

Should Polygamy be illegal?

[Verily]

This is a difficult one. Polygamy opens up all sorts of legal issues relating to marriage/civil benefits, which are typically designed with a single partner in mind. Insofar as it hopelessly complicates the marital system, polygamy is a bad idea.

From a purely social point of view, polygamy would on the surface seem to be acceptable, but I would worry that it might come to have similar effects to polygamy in Muslim nations, where a relatively small group of wealthy men is able to monopolize the female population, creating a great deal of aggression among unmarried poor men. I think it is clear that even in a theoretically equal-opportunity system of legal polygamy, you'd get a lot more two (or more) women-one man groups than two (or more) men-one woman groups.

[Hatman 🍁]

Yes. Polygamists are scum. Marriage is supposed to be an equal union of two people. You can't have equality in a polygamist marriage.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

I agree that because our benefit system is designed around the concept of a single wage earning husband with only one wife, it would need some retooling.  However, the concept used to assign retirement benefits in cases where one or more ex-spouses are present in addition to a spouse can be easily extended to polygamy by applying the same principle of seniority.

However while I feel that polygamy should be legal, bigamy should not, and the consent of all the current members of the marriage should be required to add another spouse to an existing marriage.

[Undisguised Sockpuppet]

No.

[Tetro Kornbluth]

Have to re-organize society quite a bit if you want to make Polygamy legal.. never mind 'mainstream'. Ernest pretty much summed it up already. Polygamy and Group Marriage should be legal, Bigamy certaintly not.

[Ebowed]

I would be open to supporting plural unions, but I think that marriage should be confined to two people.

[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

Polygamists need their head examined.

Two nagging wives??

Let it be legal, albeit stupid.

[DWPerry]

Polygamy WAS legal in the USA until 1862, and that ban was upheld in the 1879 court case Reynolds v. United States stating "laws are made for the government of actions, and while they cannot interfere with mere religious belief and opinions, they may with practices."

As I have said before, the government should get out of the business of marriage.

[??????????]

If gay marriage is to be eventually legalized, why not polygamy?

[Small Business Owner of Any Repute]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the largest problem with the act of polygamy usually the ages of those wives the man is taking?

[Tetro Kornbluth]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the largest problem with the act of polygamy usually the ages of those wives the man is taking?

What about Polyandry in that case?

[Bacon King]

However while I feel that polygamy should be legal, bigamy should not, and the consent of all the current members of the marriage should be required to add another spouse to an existing marriage.

^^^^^

[Rob]

Yes. Polygamists are scum. Marriage is supposed to be an equal union of two people. You can't have equality in a polygamist marriage.

Correct as usual, Earl

[StateBoiler]

Should Polygamy be illegal?

If gay marriage is someday allowed in this country, there's really no basis for polygamy being illegal.

There's a new show on HBO called "Big Love" where the husband of three wives is played by Bill Paxton.

[Alcon]

I don't see how gay marriage is any closer to polygamy than heterosexual marriage.

[Hatman 🍁]

Conservatives often say gay marriage is a threat to the institution of marriage. Of course, this is complete hogwash, since gay marriage only strengthens the institution, because gay people in general have the charactaristics that make a good marriage.  However, polygamist marriages are indeed a threat to the sanctity of marriage. Unlike gays, they bring nothing good to the institution. There are just too many problems with the average polygamist union.  Of course the state can do nothing if a guy wants to live with a bunch of women, but it should never endorse these relationships by awarding them marriage liscenses. Gay marriages of course should be recognized on account of it would be discriminatory not too.

[Hash]

Yes. Polygamists are scum. Marriage is supposed to be an equal union of two people. You can't have equality in a polygamist marriage.

Correct.

[DownWithTheLeft]

Again, if you are for gay marriage you should be for polygamy to be consist in mocking marriage, however, I for one believe both should be illegal

[Ebowed]

Again, if you are for gay marriage you should be for polygamy to be consist in mocking marriage, however, I for one believe both should be illegal

Gay marriage doesn't "mock" marriage anymore than interracial marriage did in 1950.  Grow up.

[DownWithTheLeft]

Again, if you are for gay marriage you should be for polygamy to be consist in mocking marriage, however, I for one believe both should be illegal

Gay marriage doesn't "mock" marriage anymore than interracial marriage did in 1950.  Grow up.

A goal of marriage of procreation, something interracial marriage could achieve.  Marriage is between a man and woman, something interracial marriage cannot achieve.  Interracial marriage achieves the same tenets as intraracial marriage so your analogy does work as gay marriage does not achieves these tenets.  Liberal argument #4 "Your living in the past", is one of the least convincing ones in my opinion.

[Ebowed]

So you oppose the right of old, infertile people to marry?

Should straight couples that get married and fail to produce children have their marriage license revoked?

[DownWithTheLeft]

So you oppose the right of old, infertile people to marry?

Should straight couples that get married and fail to produce children have their marriage license revoked?

As I mentioned before, there are multiple tenets of marriages, the most important being man/woman and reproduction, gay marriage meets neither while old-inferitle couples do.

[StateBoiler]

There's a very simple solution to all this pointless bickering. It's so logical as a matter of fact it will never be implemented.

Marriage is a religious institution. It is no longer any business of the state and there will no longer be any tax benefits to being married. That's the only reason there are gays wanting to be married, it has nothing to deal with love, love exists outside of marriage just as well as inside, and love inside of marriage ends in divorce almost half the time. This whole big national argument that will go nowhere cause 38 states will never agree to it is just for tax reasons.

So if you're a chick and want to bang another chick, fine, go ahead, it doesn't matter to me. There are churches that marry same-sex couples already, the Unitarian Church for example I believe. They can then have their piece of paper that will hang on the wall and it can mean all the world to them if they want. I always find it funny that people will reject religion for their partnership on one hand and yet are begging for that same religion's blessing for the same partnership. It completely boggles the mind.

[MasterJedi]

Yes