Kissing Cousins

Centre Daily. com and AP ^ | Mon, Apr. 04, 2005 | DAN NEPHIN

[soundandvision]

Prohibitions on cousin marriage mostly a U.S. phenomenon

DAN NEPHIN

Associated Press

PITTSBURGH - It started out as the kind of childhood crush that often becomes family lore shared at reunions years later.

Eventually though, first cousins Donald W. Andrews Sr. and Eleanore Amrhein realized they had a deeper love and wanted to marry. But they couldn't do it in their home state of Pennsylvania, or 23 other states that prohibit first cousins from marrying.

Instead, they tied the knot last month in Maryland, and their nuptials highlighted a relationship that often draws scorn but advocates say is just misunderstood...

[soundandvision]

My favorite quote "My dad was very supportive. He said, 'At least you're marrying into a good family this time'"

Well... hmm.

[RockinRight]

"Nothin' says lovin' like sleeping with yer cuzin" - Jerry Lee Lewis

[lilylangtree]

First Cousins? Too close. Explains the dysfunction and scary creatures inhabiting the various monarchies.

[TRY ONE]

Incest: "A fun game the whole family can play."

[hispanarepublicana]

And, then you don't have an excuse for spending holidays away from your own family.....

[Paradox]

First Cousins? Too close. Explains the dysfunction and scary creatures inhabiting the various monarchies.

According to a well placed source of mine (formerly well placed), this custom is quite common in the Arab world..

[socal_parrot]

If you go to family reunions looking for a date.....

[kingattax]

[Zeppelin]

Christie Smith, 40, of Las Vegas, founded Cousins United to Defeat Discriminating Laws through Education, or CUDDLE International, in 2002 to overturn laws against cousins marrying. So far, the group hasn't found much success.

HAHAHAHA

[dirtboy]

Hey, in my family, you go to family reunions for your dates. And marrying beneath you refers to generations, not station in life. "Yep, ol' Fred sure married beneath him - that cousin was TWICE removed!"

[lilylangtree]

That definitely explains all the crazies in the arab world.

[dirtboy]

A high dive into a shallow gene pool.

[theFIRMbss]

>Incest: "A fun game the whole family can play."

[Zeppelin]

Does that include the scary creatures and dysfunctions within the Clinton Monarchy?

[sinanju]

Does anyone out there know if the stricture agains cousins marrying just a nineteenth-century Darwinian hangover or perhaps a wee bit more ancient and universal? These advocates and their fashionable academic enablers seem to want to make it look like the next worst thing to eugenics.

[Rytwyng]

....you might be a redneck!

[Logophile]

"Me and her's been through pure hell from the get-go and our love has survived that and will survive anything else that comes up against it," said Donald Andrews, 39.

I don't object to the marriage, but I do object to his grammar.

[teenyelliott]

Me and her's been through pure hell

Well, the grammar is telling . . .

bertha, puke ping.

[soundandvision]

According to a well placed source of mine (formerly well placed), this custom is quite common in the Arab world..

I did a search for more reports on this specific story and found varying reports that mentioned this also. My first thought was.. yea and look how backwards they are. It's not exactly a badge of honor.

I've often wondered about Cain and Abel..but that was the dawn of man, at least there was an excuse.

[dirtboy]

And, then you don't have an excuse for spending holidays away from your own family.....

And when your mother-in-law is also your aunt, that's one less Christmas present under the tree.