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wweek.com readers speak on… "Troubled Family"

"So..right-wing and religious zealots really believe that marriage is solely for the purposes of raising children??? I am not saying this article implies guilt, but it does imply dysfunctionality. These people are allowed to marry over and over and over again, and intermingle the children with multiple parents and step parents, yet same-sex couples cannot get married because allegedly it is not in the best interests of children? Just more 'proof' that the traditional marriage arguments hold no water." —"David"

"These were not 'traditional' marriages. In a traditional marriage, the spouses stay together 'until death do us part.' They stay together for the sake of keeping their commitment, out of maturity because they know love can be difficult at times, and for the sake of the children. This case is a sad reflection of our modern times, when a 'no fault' divorce is easy to get, and one parent can leave the marriage for no reason at all. This case has nothing to do with gay marriage. It has to do with selfishness on the part of the adults, who just assume that their children can cope with a divorce, while they do what they please. Studies show that divorce is hard on children. It is always hard on children. Even when they are smiling, they are hurting inside. If we had more 'traditional' marriages, we would have children who are more loved. That is my belief." —"ducksgirl"

"…Hundreds of kids turn up missing every year in this state, but i don't recall all this attention being heaped upon them…I wonder how many Black, Hispanic, Asian [and] American Native children go missing every year in OR without so much a CliffsNotes mention?

Now, all this attention…is being heaped upon the family (& extended family) over the sort of "normalities," right or wrong, that you'd find in just about EVERY American family! I can't help but wonder if all this collective hysteria isn't simply another case of "Missing White Woman Syndrome." Again, not to sound cruel or anything…but if Kyron have been a 'minority' child, would he have carpet-bombing media coverage, thousands of fliers/billboards, & thousands of folks weighing in online on HIS behalf?" —Damos Abadon

"An estimated 44,000 children go missing in India every year (these are just the ones that are reported). I highly doubt many of you are aware of this. Yes, the news coverage has everything to do with the child's ethnicity and the family's social and economic status, along with the extremely abnormal circumstances "where this kind of thing doesn't happen here." And that is just how it is, always has been, and always will be. May you be in peace, young man. We are all praying for you in our own individual ways." —"Leroy"

Editor's note: Go here for the latest news in the investigation into the disappearance of 7-year-old Kyron Horman.

WWeek 2015

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