A very good day for all the Women and Female Kids cought up in this. Also long overdue.If you thought, Jeffs being put in Jail was going to bring an end to this Cult think again. The Women where perhaps less Free after his Arrest then before. They can get some cloths and take the 1800's costumes off. They can be enter viewed and checked by qualified Medical Staff. What Mormons can do is obtain Foster Care Licenses. It is my 20th Wedding Anniversary today, my wife and I consider cleaning this Cesspool of Sexual Abuse out to be a good present. Thank the Baptist and anyone else for their help.

Does anyone else see this as the authorities slightly overstepping their bounds? Were the Texicans just waiting for any excuse to raid the compound? I am not for unvolintary poligymous marriage and I consider the FLDS to be a cult, but how are these people behaving any differently than, say, a college basketball or football player? (Except the athlete would only get a slap on the wrist for abusing a minor)
Raiding the compound and taking out all the children is the same as removing all the children from a school that has a pedophile teacher. Why not just remove the offender?
Any why were Baptist buses used? Why not school buses that at least belong to the government?
I hope that if there are people being held in the compound against their will, they will be assisted in any way possible to leave, but I also hope the authorities will respect the civil rights of all involved.

Thank you, Texas! Why can't Utah do the same thing? Or Arizona? I moved from Utah last June to Texas. I am so happy Texas will not allow these young girls to be married off to these old geezers and forced to have children at such a young age. If an adult woman chooses to live this lifestyle, then so be it. But, the children have no choices. Utah needs to protect its children like Texas seems to. Hurray for this great state!

The girls are GONE!
Hallelujah!
Now, if that WONDERFUL 16-year-old girl would just give her name . . .

my sadness is that this story will also reflect badly on the Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter Day Saints right across the world,with whom this evil sect has no links. I am grateful that these women and children have been rescued though. I pray that the world as community will see that this sect has no ties with the genuine and honourable LDS CHurch and our own dear President Monson.

YFZ =

Yipes, its the Fuzz, Zeke!

Warren Jeffs must be proud to have his new Temple ransacked.

He must be banging his head against his PRISON cell wall.

I should think that pretty much all of these 'compound' based reclusive religions engage in abuse. Force and fear are their stock in trade; isolation and ignorance their partners.
For better or worse we've answered the question "does anything fly if it is done in the name of religious freedom?"
Thankfully, no, it does not.

This is not a halleljah day. These women and girls may not want new clothes and exams by doctors unknown to them. Age and maturity may differ drastically from our society. There is no clear black and white answers for all involved. NO WOMEN AND CHILDREN DO NOT NEED TO BE CAPTIVE AND ABUSED. However, who determines that is how they feel. Some of these girls will not ever recover from being rescued. They need to be kept away from society and protected from these victory celebrations. This is their only way of life, it is all they have. People realize this is a sad serious situation and is not over by "rescuing and saving" these women and children. I am a Baptist, Christian mother who has seen the good, the bad and the ugly of CPS. The system is not perfect. I do believe they are doing their best to be fair, but to be truly honest and objective, now is not the time to tear their very foundations from underneath them. Now is the time to pray and let those directly involved come to terms with what is going on and move on from here.

I have some weird neighbors. I think I will go call the police. I will tell them I am a 16 year old girl and am being abused. Based upon what the ignorant Texas officials are doing the police will come and raid there house and take not only there children but there relatives. This is so wrong! They don't even know if this girl really exsists and even if she does this is not the way to handle the situation.

"sufficient evidence of possible abuse and neglect," that basically means. Is that a way of saying, we don't really have any evidence?

Looks the the law enforcement of Texas has more gumption than Utah and Arizona. Seems to me this type of thing should have happened several times in Colorado City (and other polygamous compounds) instead of the infamous once in history. If it is a staple of a religion to not only break polygamy laws of the state and country, but to break age of consent laws for marriage, then the children should be removed from all members of the community as the fate of breaking one of these 2 laws is almost guaranteed for these children. Now we need to wait and see if they enforce polygamy laws and begin to charge those who are in such illegal unions.

Polygamy violates woman. Brainwashed to do this is totally wrong. These male deviates who treat woman in this way are child molesters and pedifiles, who choose to use God and religion for their dirty work.

"Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it."

I think what they mean by abuse is they have underage girls that are pregnant. The abuse is obvious to the casual observer.
And adult women consenting to polygamy is one thing but a 14 or 15 year old girl being assigned a husband is quite another. I believe that is rape because she is not old enough to consent.
But I did reflect on all the 14 and 15 year olds that are pregnant across the country and wondered if they are arresting the perpetrators of those crimes. Not that I agree with either scenario, but why go after one and not the other.

I think Curtis you are totally right, this is wrong. Especially for the children, they are pulled out of the surroundings (and family) they know. This is a traumatic experience for them. I couldn't imagine someone taking my children away suddenly without warning, my children would be heart broken and scared to death. I am positive there would have been a better way of doing this. Sounds like the people didn't oppose law enforcement coming in, maybe they could have observed first instead of jumping the gun. I really think this is tragic. I do believe it is time to crack down on child abuse but please, be gentle when you drag children out of their homes. Children don't understand they are being abused and are still loyal and love their families, this is really traumatic. I hope they will give all the children access to counselors for years to come.

This may be a hard situation for these children, but ultimately, what is more wrong? Allowing them to be physically and emotionally abused or trying to protect them? The children don't understand right now, but ulitmately, this may be what is best for them. How many of you have met polygamist families? I have.... Memories that I can not and would not want to erase. There were teenage mothers, men with multiple wifes... This is Not a good situation for them. Hopefully these children will be able to stay with their mothers, but if underage girls are pregnant (sufficiect evidance) and married, how can we just stand by? Abuse itself is not to be neglected.

Would you allow your 14 or 15 year old daughter to be forced into a "marriage" with a 50 year old man?

It's about time that the government stepped in to protect these children from further abuse. Abuse, whether church-sanctioned or not, is still abuse.

Consenting adults entering into a polygamous relationship is one thing.

Forced marriages of children to adults is quite a different animal.

Please don't use the first to justify the second.

If a 16 year old girl, in an average neighborhood, called the police and said she was being abused, would not law enforcement come to the home investigate, and if enough evidence is found take not only the girl but other children there that were at risk?
This is a difficult situation for all involved... BUT from my understanding polygamy is against the law, therefore, surely something needs to be done.
Especially if 14,15,16 year old girls are being married!
Let's think of the children!
My heart goes out to all involved, what a MESS.

This is not "protecting" them, or really helping them to have their families ripped apart like this. The way this is being handled is violating the rights of the very women and children they are claiming to help. This is very sad day in America. Especially because so many can't see what's wrong with this. I'm sure those women just want their children back.

And even more, I'm sure those chilren want to be back with their mothers, even at home.

This is not a happy thing and none should be shouting "Halleluja.

It is easy for us to call other peoples way of life an abomination and then use that as justification to tear appart their families and destroy their homes, but what does that gain us or them?

It is BIGOTRY of the worst kind to assume that all polygamists are brainwashed child abusers.

It's one thing to storm the compound and inspect the children for signs of abuse and search for an anonymous girl who may or may not have been telling the truth...but to then take HUNDREDS of children away from their parents when most showed NO SIGNS of abuse is CRIMINAL and a TERRIBLE ABUSE OF AUTHORITY.

I hope more details of this come to light...

This is a GREAT day in america! Being an abuse survivor myself, I know the "mind control" these woman and children have been through. It is not a pretty site I am in therapy and will be for years, because of the mind controlling.. At least now the woman and kids have a choice on what they want to do with there lives. I read that 1/3 of these woman are on anti depressants that must tell you that these woman are not happy with there lives. Big KUDO'S to the 16 year old who had the courage to speak out and try to better her life and the others around her!

There is OBVIOUS signs of abuse going on for the state to even get custody of 132 of the children. And FULL custody of 18 of those children. The courts cannot and will not grant CPS that authority unless there is abuse or an imminent risk of the children being abused!

I only feel sad that the WHOLE entire polygamy group weren't in Texas when they made their raid and bust! Then they would have all these Poligamist deviates.Keep movin movin movin
Though their disapprovin
Keep them doggies moving
Rawhide Don't try to understand them
Just rope, throw and brand them
Soon well be living high and wide. Move em up (head em up)
Head em up (move em on)
Move em on (head em up)
Rawhide
Rollin rollin rollin
Rollin rollin rollin
Rollin rollin rollin
Rollin rollin rollin

Unbelievable! The bias here is unbelievable!

You survived ABUSE.. NOT LIVING IN A POLYGOMIST COMPOUND. I know polygomists and not all of them are living in a world of child bride marriages and physcial abuse. To assume all polygomists live in an abusive sitution is purely bigoted.

Just as bigoted are all these people that question the Baptist church for helping. This is a town with limited resources. If good Christian folk want to step in and help where they can then more power to them. The true LDS church helps people not of our faith all the time. Why should Baptists be any different?

Why does one person's comments get printed, and not mine?

I wasn't aware what I said was inflammatory....Far less than some of the posted ones anyway.

To Pam, How can you say these people have no ties with the main stream LDS church? Where do you think these people got all of their doctrine from? The difference is they refused to give up polygamy when the Government required the Church to give it up to receive State ship.

...is this article even printed in the Dnews? Ask any mormon and they'll tell you that the FLDS is not recognized as being a part of the "true" LDS church. And...the church supposedly no longer recognises polygmy as one of it's doctrines. Or does it????? If not then why is this mormon news??

Agreed,

ROLLIN' rollin' rollin' keep those buses rolling.

It's all for the good of those mothers and children. They are no longer being mistreated. The Gov., will do good and help them.

I am saddened by the whole thing. Involving children in the debate of religious freedom and the response by the public especially in Utah just saddens me. While I do not support polygamy, these people believe that they are called by God to engage in the practice of multiple wives. Putting their leader in jail will not stop the behavior as the belief in a higher law will prevail. The only one that can stop the polygamy is Mr. Warren. They are taught, as are we, to follow the Prophet. While we can debate about his being a Prophet, THEY believe him to hold the keys. Outsiders cannot change their beliefs...change MUST come from within. They, like us, are willing to die for their beliefs. No price is too high when you are answering to God. I truly believe that we should stop involving children who are taught that the "world" is trying to destroy them and use our energy in working miracles with Mr. Warren.

Ah! Look here folks! The men in the old days were just the same sort of characters running around as of today. The church has always like to have control over it's people. They only gave up polygamy because the government of the good old days would have none of it! Polygamy on the most part is practiced only by a small amount of chauvinistic men who are control freaks! It has nothing to do with religion. Woman on the other hand are much more easily controlled if religion plays a part in the practice, otherwise these good woman would be gone in a flash, and if they truly knew the truth about things. It's easy to pull the wool over a very young womans eyes while the brainwashing session are occurring.

It is a given that the law has been broken by this group. It is also true that these young women need protection from those that have abused their position of trust. Is it also true that the young men living in this twisted arrangement are due some counciling to understand the reasons for the laws our country has regarding underaged sex and marrage? Warren Jeff is a twisted man, how many others follow his lead? How many others are yet to muture into someone like him? Please consider the young men too!

The DesNews isn't Mormon news. Just because they print things about our church doesn't mean it's the church's paper. The first presidency isn't editing and authorizing each edition, are they? It's national news. That's why it's being prinited.

I have no idea if there has or has not been abuse at that compound, and neither do any of those who are hollering Hallelujah.

People are way too quick to cheer when someone who is living a lifestyle different than theirs has that lifestyle destroyed. How dare they be different? They believe that everyone should live the way they do, the "right way".

The folks in that compound believe that too, except, in their eyes we're the ones that are wrong.

As for pregnant "underage" females being proof of abuse, it's not. The minimum age with parental consent in most states is 16. In many States it can be lower with the proper State permissions. In Texas, for instance, a female can be married at 13 with parental consent and a judge's ok.

That means that "abuse" is ok with the States blessing, but it's a crime without it.

Since most cultist seem to believe that they live in a free country and that their opinion is a good as the states, I suspect some violated the letter of the law.

But, why are all being punished?

So much for a Free Country.

To state polygamy has nothing to do with religion shows you are not familiar with the Old Testament. Let's see...Abraham, Moses and Jacob (to name a few) all had multiple wives. They were also prophets of God. I would say that religion had something to do with it.

UH Brainwashed ...Show me where their is a commandment from GOD for polygamy. I'm sorry that your mind is in the gutter!

Uh uh uh...3:10 pm
Wishful thinking on your part! perhaps the authorities should hunt you down too. I hate sex abusers!

I hope they get these innocent children away from those pedophiles. Those girls didn't ask to be born into this perversion. Good job Texas!

Whatever your view of the past practice of polygamy by the LDS Church, no one can claim that the "revelation" ending the practice was not driven ENTIRELY by the extreme pressure put on the Church and it's leaders by the U.S. government. If the government would have turned a blind eye and allowed the early Church to practice however they desired, today's LDS Church would be no more than a small, fringe band similar to the FLDS group. The Church we enjoy and participate in today owes a tremendous amount of gratitude to the U.S. government and the pressure exerted because of polygamy. Similar external pressures regarding blacks and the Priesthood were the final push needed to move into the largely mainstream persona that exists today.

Dnews is absoluteley the Churchs' paper. They OWN it!! And I guarantee that the first presidnecy has set strict guidlines as to what they can print and what they cannot. You must be as brainwashed as the people from Texas living in the flds compound. My point is....I know if I were running a mormon paper and were trying to disconnect the age old stereotype of "LDS=Polygamist", I certainly wouldn't print it.

I was abused in a cult and very very mind controlled! so yep I do know!

History Lesson:
2 points -
1) the church would not be small...think of all the kids we would have had! Too bad the gene frequencies would be rather limited...
2) I highly doubt public pressure was the reason the church changed its stance on priesthood authority. What public pressure did do, however, was prepare the Church membership and the public for the Gospel principle of equality. Correlation does not equal causation.

In my view, outlawing polygamy between three or more consenting adults is wrong. There may be any number of reasons from economic to actual love that consenting adults would want to enter into such a relationship. However, there is only one reason that absolutely no one should enter a polygamous relationship: religion. Face it, it is always the controlling man that uses "God's will" as the way to convince spiritually struggling religious-minded women to accept polygamy. It is nothing less than mind control, and is completely unacceptable in a civilized society. Multipy that a thousand times when religion is used to convince children and adolescents to enter into a polygamous sexual relationship!! Thanks to those authorities in Texas that had the gumption to investigate and act on this awful abuse. Unfortunately, I'm afraid that most of the FLDS members are too indoctrinated to see their church leaders for who they are: controlling, abusive, misogynists that hate women and hate themselves, with the arrogance to claim that they speak for the Almighty.

Geez! I really don't want to be critical of these poor unfortunate woman. It's not their fault, but these polygamist have inbred for so long with these woman, that many of them walk funny, and have hunched over backs. I noticed the Mongoloid ones on tv. Why has the government not stepped in sooner. Inbreeding and incest, well we all know the results. These woman are in my prayers.

Let's get evidence and cause before we tear babies out of their mothers' arms. This is sick. I wish more people read and understood the constitution and I wish they understood what freedom means. Having your children carried off and you treated as a criminal without cause and evidence is not freedom.

What happened to innocent until proven guilty??

These people are being treated guilty until proven innocent -- how do you prove innocence in this case even if you are? And until then, what about those tiny scared children ripped from their mothers?

This is evil.

Oh, would all of you real Mormons stop worring. Your okay. No one will suspect you are involved.
A lie is a lie is a lie, and a FLDS lie, is a lie, is a lie. Makes not difference.
The question is WHY??? Did it take so long?
Why did law inforcement overlook all of the problems in this ilicit community, and let it happen. The answer is, religion is taboo, tread carfeuly respect rights, and be afraid of a big law suit, which will be next, and then movie.

My thoughts - for what they are worth:
What is the plan for these women and children? What provisions are there for their well-being and way of life?
1. CPS is basic to providing social services, guidance, and support to help these children and their mothers back to normal living.
2. Until the offenders are removed from the compound these women and children are in temporary housing and their uprootedness should not be prolonged.
3. The Christian community should provide these women and children with fellowship, support, and spiritual guidance in establishing a proper perspective on family life and self-worth.
4. Hopefully, the children will not be placed in foster care. Children should remain with their mothers, unless this places them in danger. They should remain a community, but no longer reclusive and remote.
5. The transition into modern society should not be rushed. Let the children learn and grow inside their immediate, renewed community. CPS could work with BYU and other colleges, churches, and government agencies to develop a customized educational program, resources, and teachers for these families.

There is always hope, and there is always the prospect of overcoming adversity. But there has to be a plan.

OH, my goodness gracious! I watched the news tonight, and I am simply wondering where on Gods great and wonderful heavens did those woman come up with those hairdos? The LDS pioneers never ever wore their hair styled like that. The FLDS woman have a roll across the tops of their heads that kind of look like something form an old star trek movie. I don't see anything fundamentalist about their hair. Was this hair stuff in their cult also a mans idea as well? I do know though of a good hair dresser here in town that cost next to nothing, if any of those woman are interested in a real make over.

Bayou Vol, yes that is the reason the LDS stopped polyigamy, thats why he said its a "Historty Lesson" he wasnt just assuming, they actually stopped because
the government outlawed polygamy, and the others didnt want to stop and so the FLDS was born.
And no I cant speak for everyone, but I dont think people are just saying whooo hoo because these people are different from us, if you have read any of the books on this group and there are at least 10 to 15 that I have seen . Abuse is the norm, alot of the women dont consider whta they do abuse. It is actually rare for a husband not to be abusive although I knoe there are a few non abusive ones. And alot of the wives will beat others wives children, this is very common.
So no its not just because were all idiots and just glad cause their different.
This is not just a cult with differetn beliefs, there beliefs cause much harm to women children and the younf teenage boys. something needs to be done.