Here's something I was asked to post while Brooke Adams is shuttling between Las Vegas and Washington County.

The arrest of Warren Jeffs captured time on cable news channels this week. But it's not a big cable news story without one thing: People shouting at each other.

The Jeffs story hit that mark Wednesday when Tucker Carlson had Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff on his show.

"I don't feel safer with this guy behind bars," Carlson told Shurtleff, as noted in a transcript of the show. "I would much rather you spend your time capturing, you know, rapists and armed robbers and murderers."

Interesting that Carlson included "rapists," since Jeffs is charged with felony rape counts in two states, for his alleged role in arranging underage marriages. [It is not alleged that Jeffs had physical contact with the girls.]

"Guess what, Tucker?" Shurtleff replied in a raised voice. "You haven't been victimized by this guy. I didn't do this for you. You have no idea the thousands of women and children who have been victimized by this guy who we've charged with first-degree felony rape."

You can read the back and forth shouting between Carlson and Shurtleff that followed. Shurtleff has appeared in public and on talk shows numerous times to discuss Jeffs and the FLDS, and this was the first time I can recall him yelling at someone.

In fairness to Carlson, he's not the first person to wonder why there was such a big manhunt for Jeffs and what Jeffs was doing on the same list as terrorists, mobsters and murderers.

-- Nate Carlisle

I am about to head over to the Clark County Regional Justice Center for Warren Jeffs' extradition hearing. I expect a circus: there are dozens of media outlets here as well as numerous characters who've been part of this long saga, from Flora Jessop to Gary Engels.

It will be the first time many of the onlookers have ever seen Jeffs -- and it will be the first time in years that many of his loyal
followers see him in the flesh (via television) as well.

A tidbit: When Nevada Highway Patrol troopers asked fugitive polygamous prophet Warren S. Jeffs for some identification, he
produced a receipt for a pair of contact lens made for a "John Findley."

It is after midnight here in Las Vegas and in the casino many floors below me, hundreds of tourists are flipping cards, rolling the dice or punching the slot machine buttons.

But I am still thinking about one unlucky gambler -- Warren Steed Jeffs, who is spending this night just a couple blocks awway on one of the many floors of the tan-colored cement structure that is the Clark County Detention Center.

I walked by the building this afternoon. The detention center consists of two towers, a 12 story north tower and the 6 story south tower. The sounds -- loud, aggressive noises -- of inmates in the recreation yard of the south tower drifted down to the street, audible above the traffic. A reception clerk explained it to me.

Sometimes, she said, you can even hear the inmates in the north tower banging on the windows from the street.

There was just one news truck outside the detention center and its news crew was doing the same thing I was: trying to get a sense of Jeffs' new, if temporary, home.

I scanned the many windows, but saw no one looking out. No one banging the windows.

Jeffs, I was told, was still being processed and had yet to be taken to any particular floor, though I assume that is not information any one would share even if they actually knew where he was.

Jeffs will have a short journey to the courthouse for Thursday's early morning extradition hearing. The building is just across the street from the detention center.

A few hours later I went to a press conference with Trooper Eddie Dutchover of the Nevada Highway Patrol. One interesting thing he said is that Jeffs had told him he was just in Las Vegas for a day. That didn't jibe with all the luggage stuffed into the rear of the maroon Cadillac Escalade, though.

Did it appear Jeffs had been living out of the car? I asked. Dutchover said it was clear he had been traveling extensively.

Months ago, some sources told me that it was most likely that Jeffs was traveling around in single vehicle, accompanied by one or two loyal followers -- not in the convoys of armed guards described by some.

I was also told he might be donning female clothing at times. The three wigs found in the Escalade seem to support that theory.

One curiosity: Why didn't Warren and Issac have their stories straight? That is the same thing that tripped up Seth Jeffs, his
brother, when he was arrested after a traffic stop in Colorado in October 2005.

John Dougherty of Phoenix New Times is leaving the alternative weekly to travel around the West searching for book ideas. Dougherty has written extensively over the years about the FLDS. Here is a link to a story about his departure:

http://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/Issues/2006-08-24/news/news2.html?src=newsletter

And another view:

I believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous and in doing good to all men. I believe that by living a certain set of principles I can create the person that I want to become. I have traveled to surrounding communities since I was a small child.

I work every day with people of all walks of life. While I enjoy many of my associations with these people, there way of living is not for me. I have had every opportunity to see what their lifestyles have to offer and it isn't what I want.

I have been exposed to both sides of the equation and have made an informed and educated decision. I am making choices to create the character I am pursuing. I like what I see in my home, I like what I see in my community. I claim the privilidege of worshipping almighty God according to the dictates of my conscience and allow all men the same priviledge, let them worship how, where or what they may. I do claim this priviledge. I require this right for me and I require this right for you.

I have permission to be exactly who I am. I have the right to feel what I feel and to believe in the vision that I see. It is OK to think what I think and to dream what I dream, to love everything that I love. I never ever have to deny my trueself or pretend to be something I am not.

I am worthy of love and respect. I am unafraid to use my mind. I strive for health and peace. I trust my heart. I take pride in the integrity of my spirit.

I believe in what is true to me. Trust yourself. Think for yourself. Act for yourself. Speak for yourself. Be yourself.

- Theral, 22

Another view from Saturday's pro-polygamy rally:



If you judge me, then you'll have no time to love me. That is quote from Mother Teresa, which I feel is very true. I hope that one day I can be judged for who I am, not for the way my parents choose to live.

I go to school, I want to have friends, I play sports, I am just like any other teenager. But why am I treated differently just because of my parents?

If you judge me before you knew me, you would never know I am just like you.

For those of you who judge me as abused, as uneducated or somehow less than you because of my parents' choices, your intolerance hurts us kids.

I've been made fun of, my religion has been made fun of, and I've been excluded because of your prejudice. If you don't like to be judged, why is it so easy to judge me? Because I have more than two parents who love me, does that mean I should not be loved by you? Because I have more brothers and sisters, who respect me, does that mean I do not deserve your respect?

If nothing else comes about from today, it would be for the world to know I do not want to be judged because of my parents beliefs, because of my beliefs or because of how many parents I have.

- Amanda, 14

And another one:

I get a lot more support than most kids do but that's only because I have a bigger family and there's more people to support me. I think I get my homework done faster because I've got a lot of brothers and sisters who can help me with it.

If one person can't help me with something, the other person probably can. And that makes me feel really good because I've always got somebody that can help me.

- Sara, 10

And another one:

Hey everybody. I come from a polygamist family. I've enjoyed a great upbringing by smart, fun-loving parents. And, yes, I have several dozen siblings. I wouldn't trade my family for anything. I feel I've been very blessed being part of a polygamist family, not disadvantaged. A big family has helped me to learn how to interact and maintain relationships with a diversity of personalities. Education as a priority at home and generally we get good grades. We are encouraged to go to college if we want to. I have many family members with successful careers; some have graduated from college and/or graduate school, while others have never attended but are smart, hardworking and resourceful. Several of my brothers and sisters have had their bosses tell them they are the best employees they've ever had.

We are not brainwashed, mistreated, neglected, malnourished, illiterate, defective or dysfunctional. We are useful, responsible, productive members of society. I have in my life come into contact with several mental health professionals and they all said I was fantastic. I put a lot of thought into and decided they are right.

But I have been classified as a perfectly healthy well-adjusted teenager.

My brothers and sisters are free-thinking and independent people. Some have chosen this lifestyle while others have branched out to a diversity of religions and are loved and accepted for whatever they choose to be.

My religious education has always been easygoing and enjoyable, never harsh or forceful. I wouldn't refer to my family as average or typical but what I can say, and I say this on behalf of numerous children, teens and adolescents - it's been a great one.

- Jessica, 17

And another view:

There are a lot of negative myths told to the public about my family's lifestyle that are simply not true. I have never experienced any of these horror stories I have heard in the media. Nor do I know any one who has.

I was raised in the Salt Lake Valley by parents that gave me a wonderful childhood, teaching me strong, moral beliefs about freedom of choice and respect for others.

One of my strongest beliefs, given to me by my parents, was the belief that everyone should have the right to choose their mates and what lifestyle is right for them.

Along with that, is the belief that one must be educated to make wise decisions. Because of the help and support of my family, my father and all of my mothers, I was able to graduate from high school two years early and am currently attending college.

I am on the President's Honor Roll and will be receiving my associate's degree in business next summer. I hope to one day be an attorney to fight for the civil rights of others.

I have never felt my opportunities or choices were limited by the lifestyle I was raised in but rather by the prejuidices of others toward my family. Who should be able to choose what lifestyle is right for you, the government or you?

I believe every individual should have the right to choose for himself. God bless America, the land of the free.

- Katherine, 16

Another view from Saturday's pro-polygamy rally in Salt Lake City:

I am really happy to be able to participate in this rally. I see myself as an independent fundamentalist Mormon and I believe everyone should be free to live his or her own religion. I do not know right now if I want to live polygamy in the future, but I do want to have that as an option. My parents encourage me to make my own decision.

The polygamist families I have met are very good people and I think it is cruel for someone to try and break up such happy families. The anti-polygamists trying to break up these families do not think of the families' best interests, but only of what they want. And that hurts people.

Though I haven't told anybody of the things I believe in, there are some people who know in my neighborhood. Sadly, those people tease me over and over and yell at me, 'At least my parents aren't polygamists.'

Here's some advice: Don't let that kind of stuff get to you like it did to me. I was smart enough to just ignore them.

Other than one B in my math class, I am a straight A student who wants to go to law school. My dream is to become a Supreme Court justice like Christine Durham.

I want to be able to defend people who fight for their rights like polygamists do. These people should be treated better and get more respect.

- Sylvie, 13

Another speaker's thoughts from Saturday's pro-polygamy rally in Salt Lake City:

I have lived in a polygamist culture for most of my life. I have made the choice to someday live this Principle and I don't expect you to understand the reasons for this choice. But I do expect you to defend my right to make that choice.

This is a choice so many people have made in the past. And because they have made this choice, they have been alienated. They have persecuted and prosecuted but their resolve remained. Mankind has always persecuted what they don't understand. Sadly, that has been a natural reaction to anything that challenges the status quo.

But because you are ignorant of something is no reason to want to destroy it. Understanding and reason are two of our greatest tools as human beings. In the heart of every American is written the immortal second sentence of the Declaration of Independence. This promise has been a source of hope and promise for a better life for immigrants from all over the world. But because of our beliefs, we've been denied this promise.

Because of their beliefs, many of our people have been incarcerated and had many of their basic human rights stripped from them -- mainly life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. I did not come here today to ask for your permission to live my beliefs. I shouldn't have to. I came here to defend a principle I hold so dearly. As Thomas Paine once wrote, 'The time of the sunshine patriot and the summer soldier is over. These are the times that try men's souls.'

- Tyler, 19

Here is what one young woman had to say at the Polygamists' Youth and Family Rally in Salt Lake City, which attracted about 300 people:

I am the 14th child in a large family and I have several moms. My mothers are talented people, working at a variety of careers. Among them I can find the advice that I need. All my mothers love me and work hard to create a family environment that will help us to grow and be happy, productive people.

Throughout my teenage years, I felt the same as any other teenager. My mother drove me crazy. However, in my family I was able to find understanding and support through another mother, a younger one, who connected more with my generation. I could talk openly with her about my problems. She knew the situation because she was in the family and was able to give me the help I needed. Throughout my [troubles] my own mother was able to relax because she was confident the mother I was turning to shared the same value system she did and would help and encourage me to make good choices.

My family loves me and will support me in my process of becoming what I want to be. Today, I am 18 and on the brink of adulthood. I have many avenues available to me. I love school. Last year, I was a junior and the classes I took were world history, trigonometry, physics, graphic design, speech and choir. Now, I want to go to
college. Whatever career I pursue or choice I make, the choice will be mine.

I will, however, have a lot of experience from my parents to help me make the choice that is right for me.

Here, children my age are encouraged to learn the history of our world. Next spring, I will be traveling the Mediterrean with my senior class and our high school history teacher. We will tour the land while learning the architectural past and garden structures and the story of the people who inhabit those lands.

As I think about the opportunities and support I have had all of my life, I feel bad for those that have no parents, no home, and no love. Those are the three things that I will always be able to claim. I am grateful to my family for the life I live and hope that I can do the same for my children.

-- Mary, 18

Stephanie Losee, a blogger on The Huffington Post Web site, takes "Outside" magazine to task for not including comments from Jon Krakauer in its 10-year anniversary story on the 1996 Everest climbing disaster.

Krakauer chronicled the events on the mountain in his best-selling book "Into Thin Air."

Losee laments that Krakauer wasn't included in the review story and is, in fact, bashed by many who did contribute to the piece. She writes this: "Krakauer has had to be surpassingly careful about revealing his whereabouts after receiving death threats in the wake of the publication of his book Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith."

I don't know about the threats, but it is true that Krakauer has doggedly followed events in the FLDS community since his book.

I do know the LDS Church had a fit over the book. Its critiques are available here.

This just in: The Hildale City Council lost two members today.

The Council accepted resignations of William T. Jessop and Dan
Jessop, who offered little explanation for why they are stepping down
from their offices.

William T. Jessop -- described as an FLDS bishop and advisor to
fugitive leader Warren S. Jeffs -- had served for a couple years on
the council; his term would have expired in 2007. Dan Jessop had been
a councilman for "a lot of years." His term would have expired in
2009, according to Hildale Mayor David Zitting.

Town gossip is that Dan Jessop was either sent to repent afar or
called on a mission to some faraway post. You can see a discussion
about his fate here: texaspolygamy.blogspot.com

The mayor said he had no idea what led Dan Jessop, who is in his
late 70s or early 80s, to resign.

William T. Jessop has not attended a city council meeting in over
a year, perhaps to avoid being served with a subpoena related to
ongoing investigations into Jeffs whereabouts. Earlier this year, the
council gave him an indefinitely leave of absence.

The council now has a bare minimum for a quorum.

All three council members "have to be there to operate," Zitting said.
Zitting said the city will post notices of the open seats and the
council will likely consider nominees for the open seats at its
September meeting.

Their replacements would serve until the municipal election in
2007; Dan Jessop's replacement also would stand election in 2009.
"We posted a notice once before, two or three times, and it took
quite a while to fill the openings," Zitting said. "I'm optimistic
and hope we can come back in the September meeting and have some
recommendations for the council."

How does a state court manage to avoid supporting an illegal behavior -- polygamy -- in the restructured United Effort Plan Trust? With careful wording.

In her decision ordering the reformation, Third District Judge Denise Lindberg said:

"The Court cannot sanction or provide support for illegal practices including, but not limited to polygamy, bigamy, or sexual activity between adults and minors. Accordingly, the Trust's reformation cannot be structured to benefit, advocate, or facilitate such illegal practices even in the name of sincerely-held religious beliefs."

The dilemma for special fiduciary Bruce Wisan and his attorneys was how to accomplish that without creating a "polygamy-free zone" -- recognizing that most people now living on UEP land support or are engaged in the practice of plural marriage.

So they crafted three paragraphs that get them over that hurdle:

"The structure of the Trust shall not benefit, advocate or facilitate illegal practices including, but not limited to, polygamy, bigamy, or sexual activity between adults and minors."

"The reformation and administration of the Trust shall be based on neutral principles of law; the reformation shall not be based on religious doctrine or practice and shall not attempt to resolve underlying controversies over religious doctrine. The reformation shall allow for ecclesiastical input of a non-binding nature and a mechanism -- independent of priesthood input -- for establishing benefits under the Trust."

"In administering the Trust, the Board of Trustees shall not consider whether any Trust Participants participates in polygamy. In so doing, the Trustees shall not be deemed to be benefitting, advocating or facilitating illegal practices."

A small study by a psychology researcher shows Mormons and non-Mormons are equally opposed to polygamy and its legalization, but that knowing a polygamist softens such views.
The study, which explores what shapes people's opinion on the practice, also found that people who attend church infrequently, are more educated, are older and have cohabitated are more accepting of polygamy.
And, not surprisingly, being male helps, too. But overall, just 10 percent of Mormons and 8 percent of non-Mormons who participated in the study voiced any level of acceptance of plural marriage.
The author of the study is Michael Nielsen, an associate professor of psychology at Georgia Southern University in Statesboro, Ga. He presented his findings Friday at the American Psychological Association annual meeting in New Orleans.
Nielsen, a Salt Lake City native, got interested in polygamous culture while attending Southern Utah University in Cedar City. He played in the band and sat next to a trombone player from Colorado City, Ariz. That town and adjoining Hildale, Utah, are home to the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.
"I never fully understood where he was coming from," Nielsen said. "That was the beginning of my interest."
In time, that personal interest grew into his scholarly pursuit of understanding what attitudes lead people to be more accepting of or opposed to polygamy.
Nielsen collected responses to his survey between September 2005 and about June, eventually amassing 2,433 participants culled from psychology, religion and pro and con polygamy Web sites.
Participants were asked to rank their attitudes on a series of polygamy related statements on a scale from strongly agree to strongly disagree.
The statements summarized current issues surrounding polygamy, from prosecution to decriminalization to how women are treated and whether children are able to leave the lifestyle.
About half of his respondents were current or former members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which abandoned plural marriage in 1890 and excommunicates those who support or practice it.
Nielsen, himself LDS, acknowledged that self-selection is a weakness of his study.
Nevertheless, his findings mirror a Canadian study that found men and young adults were more likely to be accepting of polygamy, he said.
One analysis showed that men and church-goers were more likely to see that legalization of polygamy would lead to legalization of gay marriage, or vice versa. The more highly educated were least likely to see a causal relationship between the two.
Nielsen said one surprise among LDS respondents was that men were more apt to believe it is possible for youth to leave polygamous cultures.
He also found that active LDS women were more likely to see treatment of polygamous women "through a more generous lens" than non-Mormon women.
Those respondents were more likely to disagree that polygamous marriages were unfair to women. They also were more likely to agree that plural wives were more independent than those in monogamous marriages, Nielsen said.
In his paper, Nielsen said a possible explanation for this may be "the relatively strict gender role separation found in the LDS Church, which may lead [women] to accept traditional roles women play in typical polygamous marriages and to view how 'fair' or 'independent' women are within a more constricted range of possibilities than do people who were not frequent LDS Church attenders."

News that youth and families from Utah's polygamous communities will stage a rally next Saturday is drawing barbs from anti-polygamy activists.

Nancy Mereska of Canada calls it a "stupid rally." Nancy said she chose to not distribute news of the rally on her email list because: "I am not in favour of decriminalizing polygamy and do not wish to give voice to pro-polygamists. Yes, I am on only one side of this debate. I am totally against polygamy!"

Here's what Andrea Moore Emmett, author of God's Brothel, has to say: "This pro-polyg rally is something to ignore. It doesn't deserve notice. These poor kids are being exploited by adults...Mary Hypocrite Batchelor, who organized it, doesn't even live polygamy."

From Roch Longueepee of the Canadian INTERNATIONS' JUSTICE FEDERATION My God! What a bunch of lost souls. I am astounded they are trying to use gay marriage and abortion rights as a genre to excuse polygamist lifestyles. Maybe we should have a group of adult polygamist survivors come out and counter protest! That should make for an interesting day!

From critic and former polygamist John Llewellyn, in an essay distributed by Mereska: Keep in mind that Mormon polygamy is a (male dominated) priesthood controlled lifestyle - yet, it is the women who are the advocates. Where are the men? And now The Salt Lake Tribune informs us that on August 19th polygamist children will demonstrate and tell us how wonderful it is to be a polygamist child. According to The Tribune, some of these children will come from the Kingston Group where we are told by apostates that marriages between uncles and nieces are a common practice. Anyone familiar with Mormon fundamentalism knows that priesthood would never allow women and children to demonstrate without approval. So on August 19th will we see a genuine display of altruism, or just another example of priesthood deception?

During sentencing for polygamist Kelly Fischer Wednesday, Mohave County Superior Court Judge Steven F. Conn made one thing clear.
The practice of plural marriage isn't the only religious belief he finds odd.
Conn said he believes Fischer was motivated by "sincere religious" conviction when he took his 16-year-old stepdaughter as a plural wife.
But, Conn said, he personally finds polygamy an "abominable" belief. "I find it very hard to accept [that] someone can subscribe to a religion that allows them to have multiple wives at the same time," Conn said.
He then admitted he has a hard time with some other religions' tenets, too.
Muslims, for instance.
"I am not sure that I understand certain Muslim philosophies that would allow a person to do things that may be unacceptable to society and you're guaranteed to go to Paradise and be greeted by 70 or 80 or whatever the number is of virgins that will be available to them," Conn said.
And Catholics.
"One could even argue that I may find it hard to accept as a premise that one could go into a church and eat a piece of bread and drink some wine and, because there's a person who recites something in Latin, that is transformed into the body and the blood of someone who died 2,000 years ago," the judge said. "That's an interesting concept that I find hard to accept as a religious premise."

It was a from Roger Hoole, the attorney representing six teens who sued the FLDS church's United Effort Plan Trust, which Wisan now runs. Wisan just wrapped up a successful effort to collect about $1.4 million in property taxes owed by the polygamous sect.
Hoole was impressed and wrote Wisan to tell him so. Here' the text
of his letter:

Dear Bruce:
The news reported this morning that you have successfully collected all of the remaining property taxes on the United Effort Plan trust property in Hildale and Colorado City, with the exception of the taxes owed on one trailed in Colorado City in the amount of $150.
Congratulations on that remarkable achievement.
Consistent with the Lost Boys' objective of protecting the homes of UEP Trust participants, please accept the enclosed donation of $150 on behalf of the Lost Boys. Our clients greatly appreciate your work on behalf of all Trust participants.
Sincerely yours,
Roger H. Hoole.


P.S. to Roger: You apparently missed out on the other story this week, the one that said the FLDS teens don't want to be known as Lost Boys any more. They are Children of Diversity.