Minnesota "Family Council" wants to make extramarital sex a CRIME!

[alp227]

From Jonathan Turley's blawg:

There is an interesting fight in Minnesota where State Senator Ellen Anderson made the modest suggestion that the state repeal laws making it illegal for a married woman to cheat on her husband and another statute that makes it a crime for single women to have sex at all. The response of the powerful Minnesota Family Council is to call for the law not to be repealed but strengthened to make it a crime for men to have sex outside of marriage.

An adulterous woman today can charged with a gross misdemeanor with a prison sentence of one year, plus a possible fine of up to $3,000. This was once a standard “morality law” in the states.

Turley wrote an op-ed in The Washington Post in 2004 about this issue. He says that such laws are unconstitutional because they impose religious beliefs into law.

Of course, you never know who you're prosecuting with "anti-adultery" laws...as you may have heard, there've been instances where "pro-family" Congress members have been caught cheating...John Ensign and David Vitter just to name a couple. And then Tiger Woods might face prison time if convicted. And all the losers you see on the Jerry Springer and Maury Povich "cheater" shows. Soon, the government might be profiting off that show Cheaters, which will assist in "cheater busts".

But regarding religion, being faithful to your spouse isn't necessarily "religious" per se, right? Isn't it social tradition? But still I highly doubt if criminalizing marital infidelty would be effective. And we all know that making certain activities illegal makes things worse...think underground saloons during Prohibition, back-alley abortions before Roe v. Wade, or the effectiveness of abstinence "education". If sexual rights were restricted to married couples, those who wanna fuh...erhm, yeah, would just find another way to hide from the law. Because there'd be no need for sexual education, birth control, etc. because sex is merely for procreation like God intended, the STD rate would jump up like a cricket because Big Government kept its citizens ignorant about STDs.

Furthermore, if prosecutors and courts wasted their precious time locking up people who are unfaithful to their spouses, here are two obvious effects. (1) Prisons would swell up so much that government would need to spend a lot more on corrections and less on education, health care, and other services that help the people. (2) Justice would be delayed for people who've committed crimes that hurt others even worse than cheating, like murder, rape, scamming, robbery, and anything involving violence or deprivation of finances or civil rights.

You see, it's easy to say "____ is immoral, let's make it a crime", before considering the real-world implications. If Minnesota passes this law, then it'd be compared to Sharia, since only a bunch of Islamic nations require marriage for two people to have sexual intercourse.

[LaydeeBug]

1. Good. At least they want to walk the walk. Let them outlaw divorce too. nt

[alp227]

6. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention...

A Californian has proposed a ballot initiative to ban divorce.

[NMMNG]

14. Doubleplusgood

All the "marriage protectors" keep screaming that we need to return to Biblical Values. The Bible denounces divorce many more times than it does homosexuality, and Jesus himself spoke against divorce. Adultery is forbidden in the 10 Commandments whereas homosexuality is not. If people are so hell-bent on returning to Biblical Values then let them really do it instead of pretending the Bible contains only six verses.

[provis99]

2. except under shari'a law, you can have sex with a "temporary" wife.

Or failing that, get up to 4 permanent wives.

[seabeyond]

3. i ask you, if a married person has a number of affairs with different people is that a year per

person?

so tiger would get how many years?

[USA_1]

4. A Lot of Repukeblicans Will Be In Trouble If This Passes ...

... and the law is enforced properly.

[NMMNG]

5. Sounds good to me

In reality most of those "pro-family" asshats who keep screaming about the need to "protect" so-called "traditional marriage" are the ones who are engaging in most of the adultery, divorce, child molestation, and other things they rant about. If they're really about their Biblical Values and "protecting marriage" let them live up to their proclaimed values instead of merely going on anti-gay crusades.

[safeinOhio]

7. 100% support from the

motel owners of Wisconsin.

[LiberalFighter]

10. Is that where Minnesota residents go to have their affairs?

[Bjorn Against]

8. I really hope they push this loudly and vocally...

This idea is so extreme that if the public knew that there were people actually pushing to turn the majority of unmarried adults into sex offenders it would receive a major public backlash and destroy the religious right. There is absolutely zero chance of this getting through the Minnesota legislature, but there is a very good chance this will turn public opinion strongly against the right-wingers.

[LiberalFighter]

9. I was listening to NPR this afternoon and there was a recounting of NY Jews...

had their own court.

I wouldn't have a problem with there being a separate court that wasn't paid for with taxpayer money operated by churches.

As long as their jurisdiction was limited to their members, could not imprison anyone, could not execute anyone, could not file legal proceedings against anyone unless both parties were of the same faith, could not fine anyone more than $200.

I think Jewish Courts are more arbitration and mediation.

[knitter4democracy]

29. There are church courts in the RCC and Eastern Orthodox Churches, too.

The only reason I didn't have to get a church divorce is because my ex left the church and has since remarried. The bishop's dean for our area decided that means I'm good and divorced in the church, too.

[rwheeler31]

11. Why is this Anderson kook in the state house?.

[anigbrowl]

17. You're an idiot. She's the one who's proposing repealing the law

It's an outside organization that is proposing strengthening it.

[Bjorn Against]

19. Ellen Anderson is actually one of the most progressive legislators in the state

Ellen Anderson is no kook, the Minnesota Family Council on the other hand is an organization made up entirely of kooks. Read the OP again and you will see that Ellen Anderson is not doing what you think she is doing.

[Hannah Bell]

12. I agree. I think everyone having sex out of wedlock should get ten years jail time.

[alp227]

15. Did you forget the sarcasm icon?

nt

[yourout]

13. Go ahead.....that would put about 1/2 the Republicans in congress in Jail.

[upi402]

16. is STONING the penalty? n/t

[Rosa Luxemburg]

18. Definitely

the prisons will be overflowing! So stonings it is.

[47of74]

20. They'll first have to lock up all the Republicans

[regnaD kciN]

21. But, but, but...aren't we only supposed to go after ho-mo-sexuals?

I mean, making straight sex outside of marriage illegal will affect...us!!!!!!

:rofl:

[Proud Liberal Dem]

22. Good

Let them chew on this "bone" for awhile. They won't get anywhere with it and it will keep them occupied while the rest of the civilized world moves on with giving GLBT citizens full equality and allowing women the right to choose for themselves what they will do with their own bodies. We can only hope, anyway.

:eyes:

[B Calm]

23. This only applies to adulterous women! So it's okay for man to do

what they want. . .

[tanyev]

24. So the Minnesota Family Council thinks they can find Republicans willing to vote

to make it a crime for men to have sex outside of marriage? Good luck with that.

:rofl:

[alp227]

32. LOL "men's rights"

Let's see, male Republicans are willing to put their votes against gay rights as much as possible (think the Defense of Marriage act or the Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Act). But then, apparently, if you're a white, heterosexual guy, you're above the law when it comes to marriage, right?

[dgibby]

25. Does the Family council own stock in a private prison?

Just askin'.

[DavidDvorkin]

26. Do they also want limited government?

[Nikki Stone1]

27. The law is about cheating WOMEN--not men. Did you read the OP?

This is sexism and Ellen Anderson should turn in her woman card.

(And yes, in its sexism, it is sharia-like)

[Bjorn Against]

28. Read the OP again, Ellen Anderson is trying to repeal the sexist law

The Minnesota Family Council is not only resisting Anderson's efforts but they are trying to expand the law to cover men as well.

Ellen Anderson is a very progressive legislator who is trying to get a sexist law off the books, please read the OP again and you will see that she is trying to change the law so that women are treated equally.

[Nikki Stone1]

30. Ok. Got it.

..

[hippywife]

31. They are going to do more

to destroy the marriage pact than their feared same-sex marriage will ever do. These initiatives to strengthen outdated laws and to outlaw divorce will only mean that fewer people will marry in the first place.

[DailyGrind51]

33. If they REALLY want to protect marriage, why not?

[havocmom]

34. That's right! Let them arrest more GOP pols!

:woohoo: