Laws That Make Us Cuckoo

A man phoned a California radio station to ask for advice on how to handle his 15-year-old daughter's sexual relationship with her 18-year-old boyfriend. Under US laws, this constitutes statutory rape. The caller was hesitant to throw the guy in jail because he was "a good kid" with a lot of things going for him.

This case calls to mind Mary Kay Letourneau, a grade school teacher who served over seven years in a Washington prison for having sex with her sixth-grade pupil. As a condition of her release, Letourneau, 43, can’t contact her former lover who is now 22 years old. He is the father of her two children.

Since I come from another planet, that sort of thing surprises me. In the Philippines, fourteen-year-olds fall in love and get intimate with much older partners and all their parents have to do is marry them. What better deterrent than making them realize the price of being sexually active? Losing one's childhood and taking responsibility are punishment enough. Interestingly, during my grandparents' time, marrying at fifteen was the norm. As for teachers marrying their students, as far as I know there are not that many although this is not exactly considered a taboo.

Some American politicians (Democrats mostly) say that many US laws are a joke. I agree. They remind me of that Sagwa episode on PBS channel which focused on the plump Chinese magistrate passing whimsical laws in order to raise money for his "sweet Lotus" wife's activities. One of the laws forbade villagers to sing. Knowing how his subjects found it irresistible to sing, especially after a hard day's work, the magistrate thought he could easily fine almost everyone at the end of each day. True enough, he was able to raise a lot of money that went directly to the government coffers.

In Hong Kong, spitting in public is an offense...well, not a criminal offense, thank God, or busloads of passengers will be put behind bars everyday. In Manila, cars whose license plates end with a 1 or 2 were not allowed on the roads on Monday, 3 or 4 on Tuesday, 5 or 6 on Wednesday, 7 or 8 on Thursday, and 9 or 0 on Friday.
Here in the United States, one of the commandments is "Thou shalt not spank your children". Doing so is tantamount to child abuse and is a criminal offense. It is likewise against the law to prevent anyone from calling 911 even if that person wants the police to pick up your seven-year-old daughter for throwing her toy on the floor. If you pushed that person away from the phone to protect your child, you could be arrested and charged with assault. Yes, under US laws, any unwelcome contact that can be interpreted as threatening is considered an assault.

There were many crazy laws that regulated men since the dawn of time. Even America had its share of outrageous laws like the following:

Arizona & Arkansas
• A man can legally beat his wife but not more than once a month.
California
• A man is legally entitled to beat his wife with a leather belt or strap but the belt can't be wider than two inches, unless he has his wife's consent to beat her with a wider strap.
Vermont
• Women must obtain written permission from their husbands to wear false teeth.

In Jesus' time, stoning to death was the punishment for womencaught in the act of adultery. In the Philippines, "an act of sexual intercourse by a married woman with a man not her husband constitutes the crime of adultery. On the other hand, a man’s sexual infidelity with a woman not his wife is not a crime, unless there is cohabitation." In Hong Kong, a betrayed wife was legally allowed to kill her adulterous husband but may only do so with her bare hands. The husband's lover may be killed in any manner desired. Talk of women empowerment after kicking off their ancient footbinding custom.

The Old Testament had all sorts of laws/regulations as if the patriarchs were dealing with nitwits that needed rules on practically everything. Actually, the Jews were so stubborn and rebellious that Moses had to lay down countless laws to guide their conduct. There were guidelines on guilt offering, burnt
offering, grain offering, clean and unclean food ("Do not eat any of the fat of cattle, sheep or goats; you must not eat the blood of any bird or animal"), purification after childbirth, regulations about infectious skin diseases and about mildew, and discharges causing uncleanness.

Other laws found in Leviticus 19: "Do not mate different kinds of animals. Do not plant your field with two kinds of seed. Do not wear clothing woven of two kinds of material. Do not cut thehair at the sides of your head or clip off the edges of your beard. Do not cut your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourselves."

When Jesus came, He stressed the spirit of the law - which is justice and love of God - rather than the letter of the law. We might assume He came at that period because the Jews were apparently ready for His new law of love. Still He said that He did not come to abolish the Law or the Prophets: "I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them." (Matthew 5:17) Bible scholars say Jesus meant the Ten commandments, not the endless ceremonial laws in Leviticus. But if we come right down to it, no amount of laws can prevent us from doing evil or committing mistakes. Only the grace of God can.

Still, every society needs some basic, reasonable laws. The problem is, as in the Philippines, those who pass the laws are traditional politicians who mainly protect the interests of their family and friends. And being mostly men, they tend to uphold men's rights. That is why for a long time, Filipino women were not allowed to own property. They were completely under their husbands' control. Currently, there is no
legislation that addresses domestic violence. Divorce is still a mirage because the predominantly Catholic country believes in "for better or worse, for richer or poorer, till beating me to death do us part."

Here in America, foreign women who get abused by their American husbands face deportation if they seek divorce before they get their greencard. Ask non-profit organizations like My Sister's House who help battered women with immigration issues how difficult it is to assist non-Americans get justice in this country. Call all those community resources that are supposed to help you land a job and the first thing they want to know is if you are an American citizen. No SSS number, no chance to work. No job, no life. I watch Mexican workers toiling in California plantations after risking their lives in crossing the border. Isn't it ironic when you stop to consider that California was once a part of Mexico?

I am amazed when Americans get a no-fault divorce at the drop of a hat. Filipinos can only get an annulment after years of waiting and it costs them a fortune. I shudder when American parents throw out their kids when they reach 18, and when they reach 50, they in turn throw their parents in nursing homes. On the contrary, Filipinos work as maids and entertainers in all parts of the earth just to support their children and aging parents - and they can stay at home for as long as they want.

In the meantime, the Armstrong & Getty caller was wondering if he should hand his daughter's boyfriend over to the cops for sleeping with her. Which makes me wonder how this state of affairs can be prevented when parents themselves keep their lovers in the house they share with their minor children, and teachers hand out condoms in school instead of teaching youngsters self-control and right values.

Send me back to my home planet where I can recover from this culture shock.