The Me and Vinnie Show Sirius XM Stars Too interviewed Mark Henkel - Jan 2010

National Polygamy Advocate

National Polygamy Advocate ™ Mark Henkel was interviewed on "The Me And Vinnie" show with host, Vinnie Politan, on January 19, 2010. The host occasionally shared the mic with the show's "newsman," Michael Billy. The purposes of the interview sought, generally, to discuss UCAP, Unrelated Consenting Adult Polygamy, and, specifically, to discuss how the then-ongoing Perry v. Schwarzenegger case in California which was then-seeking to overturn Proposition 8 might impact polygamy rights. (Prop. 8 was a referendum passed by 52% of California voters in November 2008, amending the California State Constitution to add the following amendment, "Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California.") From the start of the interview, the host made it clear, saying, "I am pro-choice" as long as the polygamy involves consenting adults. He asked many good questions which provided opportunities for Henkel to offer more of his repeated, known sound-bites. Henkel also explained polygamy in the Bible. The host's fellow "newsman" wanted to take religion out of the argument for marriage, citing how his fellow activists for same sex marriage sought to persuade scientific sources to advance the "born that way, not a choice" argument for getting same sex marriage approved (legally and socially). The "newsman" then said, "You can't argue that polygamists are born that way... "It's called being a guy, isn't it?" Henkel did not accept that "pseudo-science" of the "born that way" argument because, as he said, it denies human choice based on genetics. Thereby, Henkel agreed that polygamists would not use that argument of such "pseudo-science." The discussion also asked how government could even construct legal rights for polygamists, as both the host and the "newsman" focused on the special rights that legally married people get from government and "how complicated" it would be for applying them to polygamy. Henkel gave the loaded sound-bite, "It only gets complicated by getting into bigger and bigger government... We have corporation law, partnership law, and we have differentiation of corporation: from profit, non-profit, and sub-chapter s. We could simply create a corporation law" for polygamy. The host humorously interjected, using his own name, "The Politan Family Corporation!" The host concluded the interview, asking about the impacts on the children of UCAP polygamy families. Henkel responded with the powerful sound-bite, "This is not a flinging thing, but rather a commitment thing. So, this is an opportunity for children to thrive. The issues that are negative for children are the tyranny of law against it." In the end, Henkel, the host, and the "newsman" were in positive agreement about rights and freedom for Unrelated Consenting Adult Polygamy. (NOTE: Later that year, on August 4, 2010, a US District Court overturned that "Prop. 8" of Perry v. Schwarzenegger. The original Petitioners of Prop. 8 subsequently appealed to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals and then on up to the Supreme Court in the case re-named as Hollingsworth v. Perry. Ignoring any merits entirely, the Supreme Court, on June 26, 2013, remanded the case on a technicality of "legal standing," bringing the final decision-result to being the original District Court's decision of Perry v. Schwarzenegger 2010.)

http://www.NationalPolygamyAdvocate.com