Simple Utah Mormon Politics

Modern-day America has been styled recently by both Republican and Democratic governments as the savior of the world. The natural result of such illogic is to claim that whatever America does is right. Out of this supposed inability to do wrong was hatched the "Doctrine of Pre-Emption"--or, in other words, to attack "them" before "they" attack us. The United States government would be more successful if it heeded the Doctrine of Self-Defense as advocated in the Book of Mormon. The United States has employed the doctrine of pre-emption to some degree for decades now, but it has been most used blatantly by the George W. Bush administration. It is now, therefore, more commonly known as the Bush Doctrine. As fine-tuned by Bush's National Security Council, the Doctrine of Pre-Emption is this : The security environment confronting the United States today is radically different from what we have faced before. Yet the first duty of the United States Gover...

It's beginning to look like we've reached the bottom as far as gas prices go. That's okay with me, as long as it doesn't return to previously exorbitant rates. I'd rather spend my money on products like books and restaurant food than gasoline whose price has become overly inflated due to speculation. I suspect, however, that prices won't get so high as they did a few months ago--at least not for the reasons that they did back then. That loophole has been closed. Update 11/30/2008 : I think it important to correctly identify for the financially flummoxed what laissez faire actually means. See below. Back in June, Republicans were It's more than coincidental that gasoline prices have gone down markedly since the Enron Loophole was closed on September 30th. claiming that oil prices had been on the rise because Democrats were blocking off-shore drilling, but they didn't talk much at all about the upward effect on prices due to speculation and the pri...

Somehow I missed this one. I was checking my site on Technorati, and I came across a post from Cliff Lyon at OneUtah that surprised and frustrated me. This time it was because I agreed with it. Except that now I'm not sure if Cliff's perpetrator really exists--or if he's an agent provacateur. Cliff's article linked to a letter to the editor of the Deseret News by one Marvin Carlsen. The letter went like this: I am ashamed of the members of the LDS Church who opposed Proposition 8. I am sick and tired of reading comments by members of the church saying they are ashamed that the church got involved. If you believe Thomas S. Monson is a prophet and this is the Lord’s true church, then shut up and let the inspired leaders lead us where the Lord inspires them to go. If you don’t support the church’s stance, keep your opinion to yourself. Marvin Carlsen - Sandy Cliff then asks why the Deseret News would allow Mr. Carlsen probably got his mind full of mush from an overdose of...

The bailout packages that have been waged against the US economy so far have had little or no positive effect. But bailouts are good, right? So why are we nibbling around the edges? If a little bailout is a good thing, then a bigger bailout must be better. With that maxim in mind, here is my plan for a gigantic bailout plan that will fix everything for good. At first glance you might think that my plan is overly simplistic. But as you read through the numbers, you'll notice that they make a great deal of sense. I should know because I just At first glance you might think that my plan is overly simplistic. But as you read through the numbers, you'll notice that they make a great deal of sense. I should know because I just returned from a week-long training course at Bernanke and Paulson Financial Consulting Inc. returned from a week-long training course at Bernanke and Paulson Financial Consulting Inc. The figures I propose are nice round figures, precisely because they ...

President-elect Barack Obama has still not proven that he is a citizen of the United States. The U.S. Supreme Court plans to meet in conference on December 5th to determine whether it will hear the evidence against him. No matter how the High Court decides, the result will cause a political and social conflagration. The large media outlets in America are ignoring the Barack Obama Citizenship issue, praying that it will go away. It won't. Barack Obama has conveniently sidestepped the issue of whether he is a citizen of the United States--a specific requirement for one to become its President. The State of Hawaii, where Obama claims to have been born, has officially stated that it has Obama's birth certificate on record, but it still has yet to say unequivocally whether that certificate certifies a United States--or a foreign--birth. Alleged reproductions of Obama's certificate float around the internet, but none are officially embossed. The Supreme Court will meet ne...

We had a great Utah blogger get-together at Squatter's Pub last Friday night. Proposition 8 was the most popular topic of discussion, but one of the other more controversial issues we discussed was whether President-Elect Barack Obama is a Marxist. Some of us expressed the opinion that he is. Others of us were very vocal that he's not. Which of us is right? Does it really matter? In my opinion, Barack Obama is quite a Marxist. On scale of 1 to 10, he's definitely not a 10, but he's way above a 5. Marx espoused a form of socialism, so for all intents and purposes, Marxism and Socialism are the same thing. The fact that a lot of Republicans are Marxist to varying degrees clouds the question at hand quite a bit. Nonetheless, a Marxist is a Marxist is a Marxist. Karl Marx believed that the free market does not work, and that it eventually leads to monopolies. Marxism focuses on the class warfare that supposedly arises in free markets. The only way to remove class ...

What was the result when enough members of Congress were suckered into voting for the $700 billion bailout? It "surprisingly" turned out not to be enough. What happened when the government gave AIG 85 billion dollars? They had some really nice parties, and then they wanted--and got--more. What do you suspect will happen if a bloated General Motors gets money from the federal government? Here are your multiple choices: (A) It won't be enough, (B) GM will want more, or (C) the taxpayers will get taken to the cleaners yet again? The correct answer is (D), all of the above. America's new motto has seemingly become "If it sucks, subsidize it." Are Here's a novel idea: General Motors...get this...could declare...are you ready...bankruptcy! People who have actually spent some time thinking about it have come to the conclusion that this would be the best economic choice. But then again, maybe it's not a very good idea after all. Because bankruptcy is so...

Keith Olbermann is very entertaining, although I seldom agree with him. When it comes to things he doesn't know much about, his feigning of passion and emotion are little more than theatrics. In a recent monologue, he's become a fine shill for the "H8" lobby. If he really cared about homosexuals he would get his facts straight. Some people watch the follow video segment "In a time of [the] impermanence and fly-by-night relationships" that Mr. Olbermann clearly observes (along with the rest of us) in society, Mr. Olbermann apparently thinks it's okay to have more of them. and try without success to hold back tears. I watch it and I try without success to hold back mountains of dismay. Is Olbermann mixing the issues--as well as the truth with fiction--so flippantly in an effort to garner ratings for his show? Conflating "Homosexual Marriage" with Civil Rights . The issue-mixing shell game is the oldest trick in the homosexual lobby's t...

There's a lot of hatred going around right now for Mormons. In the name of tolerance, many homosexual marriage advocates are being grossly intolerant of our beliefs. There are, however, the notable exceptions. Among them are those who realize that hatred doesn't get anyone to change their point of view. But in the case of Mormons and others who oppose "homosexual marriage", what happens if loving them doesn't get them to change their minds? Is this "love" sincere, or is it only a short-term tactic? The statistics surrounding Proposition 8 are interesting: 70% or more of blacks voted in favor of Proposition 8. 84% of regular churchgoers voted for it, which 83% of never-churchgoers voted against it. A significant majority of Hispanic voters supported Proposition 8. Catholics supported Proposition 8. Jews supported Proposition 8. Yet the bulk of the protests are targeted against the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. That's actually fine ...

Inexplicably, Republicans held up George W. Bush as their presidential candidate for not one, but two terms. That was followed by the shocking encore of John McCain. Some Republicans are just now admitting that John McCain was a flop as a candidate. Why did they wait? They knew that at least a year ago. If Republicans really want to have a competitive party, they have got to stop listening to the Establishment fringe and offer an alternative. Socialism lite is a weak attempt at uniqueness. John McCain had no chance of beating Barack Obama. Given a fair shake by the media and the Republican Establishment, Ron Paul could have run circles around our President-elect. Answer me honestly now--on election day (and even months before) did you ever really get the feeling that Barack Obama was going to lose? Why should And which candidate really represented Reagan principles? That would be the candidate that Glenn Beck kept trashing throughout the campaign--until he sought out that now ...

Often when people so completely mischaracterize an opponent's position, it turns to the opponent's benefit. I'm predicting that a silly video will get a lot of people wondering what the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is all about, and they'll be pleasantly surprised to find that Mormon missionaries don't work for the KGB. Could the video producers be sued in court for hate crimes? Maybe, but they won't be. Is the video's content so inane that no one can take it serious? Unfortunately, a few people already claim to believe that the video tells the truth. A friend of mine at work was very distressed about a new commercial that has begun playing recently against Mormons who are in support of California's Proposition 8, which would make it illegal for homosexuals to marry. I expected to encounter a tour-de-force, something much more truthful and effective, something that would cause me to question my stand against homosexual marriage. Ins...

I went to the polls this morning, and I found a couple of things that really bothered me. Find out what they are below. What will you be doing tonight after you vote? Will you be sitting with eyes glued to your television set? Do you prefer to get your updates from the internet? Or do you not care at all? I'm actually very intrigued by what will happen tomorrow, both on a state level as well as nationally. Here's my battle plan. This Really Bugged Me when I Voted this Morning. One Party is More Important Depending On Where You Live. Did you get a chance to look at the official ballot for Utah County that was being provided to voters as they waited in line? In every single case, the name of the Republican candidate was placed at the top of the list of candidates for that particular office. In Salt Lake County , the Democrat candidate was always listed first. Imagine that--the politicization of politics. Normally, in all fairness, the names for each office are alphabe...