Sister Wives

[Markie]

Do you think the cul de sac dream will come true?

That would cost a lot - much more than TLC would be willing to cough up, I imagine. Meri - prob a 3 br house, Janelle and Christine - prob 5 br houses, Robyn - prob a 4 br house (perhaps 5 if they plan to breed like rabbits).

Not sure what real estate is like in LV, but that would be very expensive. I am sure that's what the Browns would like but no one seems that intent on actually working and making money for that to happen.

[Terrasola]

Honestly, I don't know what the big fuss is. Polygamy is not for me personally, but, if that's how GROWN ADULTS want to live their lives, and it makes them happy, what do I care? It's the same with gay marriage! I'm not gay and do not desire to marry anyone of the same sex. But if a grown man or woman wants to marry someone of the same sex, what do I care? In fact, I wish the best for them.

Their "polygamist arrangement" seems a lot better than many of these patriarchal fundie marriages. And it seems the wives want their kids to choose their own paths in life, which is also a lot more than I can say for many patriarchal marriages, such as the Maxwells. Gotta give them kudos for that.

So, while I don't want to be in a polygamist marriage myself, or a gay marriage, I do want to support these people in making lifestyle choices, as long as they are not hurting their children or other people.

Mormon fundamentalists advocating religious plural marriage often liken their arrangements to gay marriage, but they are not the same. Gay folk do not tell their children and community members that gay marriage is the ONLY method by which they can attain the highest levels of heaven or that if they leave their gay marriages that they will be "utterly destroyed". Gay folk do not tell their family and community members to distrust people who are not gay because non-gay people will burn in hell.

Religious plural marriage is NOT an adult choice. Children of this "lifestyle" (as the Browns like to call it) are told (brainwashed from birth) that this is their only way to achieve the highest level of heaven (and for women the ONLY way to reach heaven period). Children are told from a young age that to live any other way (than to live the Principle of plural marriage) is to suffer the consequences of eternal damnation. They know of no other viable options because their access to knowledge is tightly controlled; many are home schooled or attend religious schools (as did the Brown children until they moved to Las Vegas). In many communities and families, women who finally break under the pressure and choose to leave must surrender their children to their husband and co-wives. The women who escape (with or without their children) are held up to the entire community, especially community youth, as examples of either the most evil creatures or the most pitiful souls deceived by Satan, who will dwell for eternity in the outermost depths of hell because they knew the Truth and lived in the Light and then rejected it. How is that conducive to exercising free choice?

[valsa]

Religious plural marriage Christianity is NOT an adult choice. Children of this "lifestyle" (as the Browns some Christians like to call it) are told (brainwashed from birth) that this is their only way to achieve the highest level of heaven (and for women the ONLY way to reach heaven period). Children are told from a young age that to live any other way (than to live the Principle of plural marriage as a Christian) is to suffer the consequences of eternal damnation. They know of no other viable options because their access to knowledge is tightly controlled; many are home schooled or attend religious schools (as did the Brown children until they moved to Las Vegas). In many communities and families, women people who finally break under the pressure and choose to leave must surrender their children to their husband and co-wives Christian ex-spouses. The women who escape (with or without their children) are held up to the entire community, especially community youth, as examples of either the most evil creatures or the most pitiful souls deceived by Satan, who will dwell for eternity in the outermost depths of hell because they knew the Truth and lived in the Light and then rejected it. How is that conducive to exercising free choice?

[xDreamerx]

Even in mainstream LDS I believe, the husband and wife are told their 'secret names' for each other in heaven when they take Temple endowments. The husband is told he will call out his wife's name and thus allow her into heaven. They are taught that they can only achieve salvation through a priesthood holder.

This belief is the same in FLDS, except they believe a man has to have at least three wives to enter the highest level of the celestial kingdom and achieve exaltation. But they take the calling out a wife's name thing a step further, believing that if a wife is not 'in harmony' with her husband he can choose to have her be slave to him and his other wives in the celestial kingdom. (Carolyn Jessop talks about this in her book).

[Terrasola]

Valsa, you rock. That was provocative food for thought.

[xDreamerx]

Ok the Valentine's Episode is hilarious.

WTF was Kody doing?! That kick in a circle dance thing? Also there hardly seems to be any other children there...

[tropaka]

are they still doing the real estate thing - just saw an article here in Canada how house auctions in Vegas are going strong with people scoring major deals...RE market can't be good at all. Fail?

[MarsGirl]

Even in mainstream LDS I believe, the husband and wife are told their 'secret names' for each other in heaven when they take Temple endowments. The husband is told he will call out his wife's name and thus allow her into heaven. They are taught that they can only achieve salvation through a priesthood holder.

This belief is the same in FLDS, except they believe a man has to have at least three wives to enter the highest level of the celestial kingdom and achieve exaltation. But they take the calling out a wife's name thing a step further, believing that if a wife is not 'in harmony' with her husband he can choose to have her be slave to him and his other wives in the celestial kingdom. (Carolyn Jessop talks about this in her book).

Wow... This is fascinating as I know nothing of the Mormon religion... other than, I dont answer the door when they or the JWs come knocking.

Anyway, wtf is my response. ;)

[SomewhatFundy]

Even in mainstream LDS I believe, the husband and wife are told their 'secret names' for each other in heaven when they take Temple endowments. The husband is told he will call out his wife's name and thus allow her into heaven. They are taught that they can only achieve salvation through a priesthood holder.

This belief is the same in FLDS, except they believe a man has to have at least three wives to enter the highest level of the celestial kingdom and achieve exaltation. But they take the calling out a wife's name thing a step further, believing that if a wife is not 'in harmony' with her husband he can choose to have her be slave to him and his other wives in the celestial kingdom. (Carolyn Jessop talks about this in her book).

In the mainstream LDS church, the woman reveals her temple name to her husband but her husband is told NOT to reveal his to his wife. Also, the Mormon temples pick a pair of names each day, and use the same male and female name for everyone that comes into the temple for their ordinances that day, which is something that most LDS folks are not aware of. So if your secret names were "Mary" and "Joseph" for example, everyone else that visited the temple that day got the exact same names you did. : p

[IceQueen]

How are they going to afford the cul de sac homes? The two that have already been built are beautiful! They complain about making 4 rental payments. How could they make three mortgage payments a keep up a house in Utah??? It also looks like Kody got a new car. How do these people get $$$ TLC can't pay that much? Can they?

[2xx1xy1JD]

Mormon fundamentalists advocating religious plural marriage often liken their arrangements to gay marriage, but they are not the same. Gay folk do not tell their children and community members that gay marriage is the ONLY method by which they can attain the highest levels of heaven or that if they leave their gay marriages that they will be "utterly destroyed". Gay folk do not tell their family and community members to distrust people who are not gay because non-gay people will burn in hell.

Religious plural marriage is NOT an adult choice. Children of this "lifestyle" (as the Browns like to call it) are told (brainwashed from birth) that this is their only way to achieve the highest level of heaven (and for women the ONLY way to reach heaven period). Children are told from a young age that to live any other way (than to live the Principle of plural marriage) is to suffer the consequences of eternal damnation. They know of no other viable options because their access to knowledge is tightly controlled; many are home schooled or attend religious schools (as did the Brown children until they moved to Las Vegas). In many communities and families, women who finally break under the pressure and choose to leave must surrender their children to their husband and co-wives. The women who escape (with or without their children) are held up to the entire community, especially community youth, as examples of either the most evil creatures or the most pitiful souls deceived by Satan, who will dwell for eternity in the outermost depths of hell because they knew the Truth and lived in the Light and then rejected it. How is that conducive to exercising free choice?

The Brown children so far have been remarkably frank about saying that they don't necessarily want to be polygamist. Robyn was previously divorced, so I doubt they are preaching that divorce = eternal damnation. I don't think they are doing a great job of making polygamy look wonderful or even functional, but they aren't the FLDS cult.

[MarsGirl]

So far, the only Brown offspring I've heard say that she wants to be polygamist is Muriah. Muriah seems a little bit like an only child (which she really is). She seems afraid of much outside of her own little world. She was the only kid who "couldnt handle" public school, refused to go, and ended up remaining in what I assume was an AUB private school... I sense that she drinks the Kool Aid. The oldest boy has said he was going to go to college and kind of see what God has in store for him as far as what kind of family he will have later. Sounds like a typical teenager/young man minus the God stuff.

[Mela99]

1. I hate Kody's hair with the passion of a thousand fiery bottles of Aquanet burning through the ozone layer.

2. I just don't get it. I just don't. Maybe Mariah wants the friendship/camaraderie between women? Maybe she'd have a chance in the world to meet other girls and make friends that don't have to be married to her husband.

3. I love that 99% of the kids have the HAAAAIL NOOO ideology. But it irks me that Kody seems snarkiest about them.

[pomology]

1. I hate Kody's hair with the passion of a thousand fiery bottles of Aquanet burning through the ozone layer.

2. I just don't get it. I just don't. Maybe Mariah wants the friendship/camaraderie between women? Maybe she'd have a chance in the world to meet other girls and make friends that don't have to be married to her husband.

3. I love that 99% of the kids have the HAAAAIL NOOO ideology. But it irks me that Kody seems snarkiest about them.

Yeah, I don't get Mariah's deal either. I've seen her tumblr and she is a normal teenage kid obsessed with things like Harry Potter and the Hunger Games. She wants to be a doctor. Why on earth does she want to be a pawn in this patriarchal as fuck religion?

[valsa]

Why on earth does she want to be a pawn in this patriarchal as fuck religion?

Maybe for the same reason women are Christians, despite the Bible and most denominations of Christianity being patriarchal and misogynistic as fuck- she's a believer.

[xDreamerx]

Maybe for the same reason women are Christians, despite the Bible and most denominations of Christianity being patriarchal and misogynistic as fuck- she's a believer.

It could be that and it also could be that she doesn't really know her religion as well as she thinks she does. She was raised in it sure but that doesn't mean she's actually sat down and read the Book of Mormon and asked herself why she believes it. I went to church until I was 12/13 every week and it wasn't until taking a Biblical Criticism course in university that I saw a lot of the crap that was in the Bible. Examples include: a guy returning from battle and offering his daughter as a human sacrifice and a man sending his concubine out to a mob to be raped and beaten to death only to then chop into pieces. It's not like they teach that stuff in Sunday school and not many young people would sit down and read the Bible. A lot of people cherry pick gems from holy books and are ignorant about the rest.

I read the SWs book. It was interesting that Mary (sorry habit, her name is just fucking weird) and Janelle seemed to feel they could take or leave their sister wives whereas Christine described them as her best friends. It seems like if they didn't believe what they do, they wouldn't be together. Meri seems very angry. Like way more angry than she ever looks on tv.

I found this YouTube vid about their bankruptcies and Christine being on food stamps:

[moreorlessnu]

Did anyone watch this on Sunday night, when Kody made it so clear he didn't find Christine attractive when they first met? How cruel of him...

[Guest Anonymous]

I felt so bad for Christine when Cody said she disgusted him while she ate nachos. He's such an ass. I still get the vibe that he just is not into Janelle and Christine.

[moreorlessnu]

Someone on TWOP made an insightful comment. They said Kody's dig at Christine may have been payback for all the times she claimed that she wanted the sister wives, not the man.

[Eclipse]

So Kody was not attracted to Christine at all after watching her eat a plate of nachos? So why did he continue to court her? Either it wasn't for love and blows out of the water all the talk about why limit love and let love multiply or it was arranged and their religion seems a lot scarier. The interviewer really should have followed up more on that. There is something more to the story that they are not telling the audience. That and Kody really showed his true colours and they are awful.

[moreorlessnu]

Were there so few polygamist women to choose from that Kody started marrying women (specifically Janelle and Christine) even though he admittedly wasn't attracted to them?

Or, maybe Meri wanted him to marry women he wasn't attracted to so that he would still get into the inner circle of heaven (or whatever it is called), yet Meri wouldn't have to share him w/ an woman he actually loved.

[MarthaMarcyMayMarlen]

For those that follow this show, it comes back on November 18. Looks like they are acknowledging ALL their dept problems (5 bankruptcies), and Kody gets very mad about it. Its interesting that in the trailer the wives are all sad about their lifesyle but in their tweets over the summer it was all hugs and kisses for their sister wives.

[xDreamerx]

In the preview, Kody was seen slamming the door on what looked to be a mobile home. Did they lose one of their homes?

[carebear]

For those that follow this show, it comes back on November 18. Looks like they are acknowledging ALL their dept problems (5 bankruptcies), and Kody gets very mad about it. Its interesting that in the trailer the wives are all sad about their lifesyle but in their tweets over the summer it was all hugs and kisses for their sister wives.

In my opinion, I'm going to have to say TLC editing. They are notorious for making the previews look like something is "wrong" to pull viewers in.

[Deleted06]

So Kody and the Krew are coming back? More cringe-worthy television.