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It was part of the social contract to keep society humming in the past. A woman who lost her husband in their patriarical society had no options other than prostitution. Nomadic tribesmen just institutionalized their extended family into a polygamous relationship.

Seriously, (in proper Islam) a husband has to get his wife to agree to a second wife, and must have the capital to keep a second house for the #2 wife. The thinking is that he also needs to provide her with "relief", although the original idea is closer to providing an heir for her lineage. Kinda like what Abraham went through.

The version of Islam that we see today is truly a strange blend of Arab customs, ideas from many religions, and compromises between humanity and divinity. It's not that I think that Islam is the one true religion, but it is a a very idealistic religion (oriented to good works) living in a world populated by sinners (unable to be perfect).

My post above (#26) is also fairly idealized. My company used to do work in Riyadh, and we saw many examples of the weird way their custure works.

Flights from London would be completely Western, including booze, porn and Western clothes. About an hour before landing, everything would be put away and many men would put on robes over their clothes.

One of our employees decided to visit the airport customs office, in Riyadh, hours before his flight to ensure that he had all of his proper documents. The customs desk was deserted, so he followed the concourse to the offices in the back. There sat customs officials in a cloud of smoke, reading men's magazines and drinking some European liquor. They reacted to his appearance like a 10 year old caught with a Playboy, but they were also angry to have been busted by an infidel.

Everyone pretends that good Muslims have no problems with alcohol, lust or other vices. The reality is that they explain away every failing somehow, and have a complex dance with the concept of personal sin. Reference the last nights of the 9/11 nineteen for a good example of the compromises of real life Islam at work.

Their attitude toward polygamy is similar. In Islam, if you choose to have a second wife, you must treat them as equals. The reality is that only the rich get socially approved harems, while the poor (read: non-Royals) have what little they have taken away or outlawed. Men are supposed to cherish and respect their wives, but too often these men use women in ways that we can't comprehend. Islamicist countries may be the only place on earth where Feminazis still have work to do.

Islamicists have NO problems declaring us as infidels and sinners, but they never personalize the concept of sin. Hypocrites? I prefer to think that, like all socialists, some pigs are more equal than others.