November 29, 2006
More and More Mormons in the Media
Have you noticed all the hoopla about The Church of the Latter Day Saints lately? A wise friend suggested that perhaps we, the American public, are being innured, rather, prepared, to clasp a centrist Mormon to our respective bosoms.
Mitt Romney, everyone's favorite Mormon politician, has been running for president ever since he was elected Governor of Massachusetts four years ago. His company, Bain, scooped up Clear Channel (famous for banning The Dixie Chicks) this month. How convenient to have his very own media outlet for the 2008 election. As you may know, Mormons are required by doctrine to be prepared.
Mitt, no doubt thinking of his future in politics, was savvy enough to limit himself to one wife, which is not the case with Warren Jeffs, husband of 90, father of 272, who has been on trial for two first degree felony charges of rape (and a little sodomy on the side). Jeffs is president and patriarch of The Fundamentalist Church of the Latter Day Saints.
A couple of days ago the depressed, gay, neoconservative , Andrew Sullivan, published a shot of Mormon underwear on his blog and caused quite a flap (forgive the expression) (P.S, he was scooped by yours truly in 2004}
Tom Ashbrook did a great polygamy program this week with guests Mary Alfred, a Happy Poly wife #3, and Vicki Prunty, Director of Tapestry Against Polygamy, among others.
Then there were last year's Mormon best sellers, Jon Krakauer's "Under the Banner of Heaven" a shocking true crime tale of Mormon murder, and Martha Beck's Leaving the Saints. Martha's dad, Hugh Nibley, a professor at Brigham Young, was the apologist for Mormonhood when The Book of Abraham Papyri, an important Mormon text, translated from the Egyptian by Joseph Smith, was discovered at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, retranslated, and proved to be a complete fraud. Dr. Nibley was very stressed by the situation, and he sexually abused his daughter, as patriarchs are sometimes known to do under duress..
On the lighter side, the big hit of the HBO season, the new "Deadwood", "Six Feet Under the Covers", "Big Love", is a noirish comedy about a polygamous family, now out on DVD. Even though the show is highly recommended by the intelligentsia, Mormons are not amused
I , personally, have nothing against polygamy. I can think of a number of dear and close personal friends with whom I'd gladly sisterwife. I do, however, detest a patriarchy. Number 9 on the list of the characteristics of fundamentalism is, "led by males". Oh well. I'd of course, want to do the blog, and distribute my alloted trysts among the more nubile.
Photo note: I'm sure most Mormon women aren't this drab, (their underwear not withstanding), but It's hard to find a shot of a group of ladies in the archives -- and I just used this one last month
Posted by Dakota at November 29, 2006 06:50 AM