(Note: The “Big Changes” I promised are still coming, but I had to get this post off my To-do list first. This was supposed to be a guest post last week, but I ran out of time and energy. Writing an open thread to a small audience is a recipe for lameness and non-commenting, (especially in light of GIGANTE, but I wanted to post it anyway for my own sake.)
As the past several posts have indicated, I spent the past week guest blogging at By Common Consent. All in all, I wrote 3 posts (with one other post that was a wee-bit problematic, and thus died an ignominious death about 10 hours after publishing), and sort of participated in the 15th edition of Police Beat Roundtable. Despite my earlier reservations, the experience was great, and I was sorry to see the week end last night after I sent my final post to the admins for publishing. In the name of being self-indulgent, let me now favor you with some disorganized reflection.
The 4th and final round of guest posting at BCC is now up, for any interested parties to view.
Round 1 here.
Round 2 here.
Round 3 (sort of) here. (PBR–if you’re not familiar with this feature, and some inside jokes at BCC, this will not be nearly as much fun as it could be. Also, please ignore my contribution to it, as I was on a conference call and busy at work during the entire thing.)
This time, when I say that commentary regarding my experience guest posting with the big kids will follow, I mean it.
Stay tuned also for MASSIVE changes at DeadSeriously.net in the next couple of days.
If you’ve read my drivel for any lengthy period of time, you know how I feel about immigration. (hint: Me = Fan of Foreigners). In this spirit, I offer you some free Toothpaste:
Round 2 here, and Round 3 (Police Beat Roundtable) can be found here.
Incidentally, I have never been more humiliated humbled in my life than to be asked to participate in PBR. Unfortunately, as you will see if you read it, I was thoroughly out-classed. My self-censoring button was on a little too tight.
Commentary on the rest of the experience so far at BCC is forthcoming.
I have been informed that a first helping of yours truly is now available on By Common Consent. More posts will follow during the next week.
As an aside, I think it fitting that the post on BCC immediately preceding my own is the merciless skewering of a BYU student. And I thought I was mean.
An email exchange between myself, a Mormon Utah State Aggie, and an ex-Mormon Texas A&M Aggie discussing the theological implications of today’s wonderful result.
I mentioned a couple of posts ago that I might not be posting here very frequently for the next bit because I was working on a “special project” of sorts. The special project I spoke about was an invitation to guest blog at By Common Consent* for a week, and I’ve been writing a handful of posts ahead of time for that gig. I had planned to start posting there this week, but I decided to put it off until next week. So I’ll be around here for the rest of the week, though posting may still be erratic.
I will be away from my desk for a bit this week working on a special project (more on that later), and may not be posting too frequently here during that time. However, I want to introduce a new guest author before I get too far along. Because he is currently on the job market and need not have his name attached to some lame Mormon blog, I’ll just call him “Fletcher”, as he is known in the comment section of several posts on this blog.
Fletcher is on the verge of being handed a PhD in Economics from UC Irvine. His fields of specialization are econometrics and urban economics, though I’ve been told that, with the job market being what it is these days, he’d even be willing to teach macro (Boo! Hiss!) if room and board for his wife and kids were part of the deal. Other things you should know about him include:
-To this day, Fletcher remains the only person I know who has actually played water polo.
-Fletcher served a mission to Brazil many moons ago.
-His talents include crashing on his bicycle, sucking all the fun out of economics by focusing on the data, and spouting random trivia from the Star Wars expanded universe.
-Although I won’t say his name here (as mentioned above), he did approve a link to his own site, where you can read more about him and the research he’s done.
Without question, since I decided to quit pretending that I’m not a Mormon blogger, the most-used search strings in Google for finding my site are variations on Mormon-related topics.
Running solidly in second place, however, are queries about rectal exams.
I’m so glad I can be of service.
For the Newport Beach California Stake, in which I happen to reside, Stake Conference will be held this coming Saturday and Sunday. I am usually really excited for the conference weekend, because as odd as it may sound, I actually enjoy the extra meeting or two on Saturday without the kids where the local leadership is able to give us specific instruction and counsel for the current challenges in the area. Over the years, some of the most meaningful spiritual experiences in my life have come in these meetings. Additionally, I like Stake Conference because the 10am start time on Sunday means that I can sleep in an extra hour. Lastly, it is just a nice break from the normal 3-hour block routine.
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From a comment thread a couple of weeks ago on MormonMatters regarding the lifting of the Priesthood ban:
To add one more factor to MH’s summary:
After Pres. McKay died, Pres. Smith only served for two years – then Pres. Lee served for less than two years (dying of an unexpected heart attack even though he was the youngest president to take office in decades at 73). I don’t think lifting the ban was a priority for either of them, especially since Hugh B Brown (one of the strongest proponents of lifting the ban) was not kept in the presidency of either President Smith or President Lee after Pres. McKay passed away.
I don’t think lifting the ban was a priority for either of them, especially since Hugh B Brown (one of the strongest proponents of lifting the ban) was not kept in the presidency of either President Smith or President Lee after Pres. McKay passed away.
Not disagreeing, but…correlation = causation? Hmm…
Although I suppose in the case of the latter, President Lee = causation for correlation
Just a little correlation committee humor for you, folks. I’ll be here all week.
(UPDATE: If you don’t get or like the joke, then don’t feel bad. As I note in the comment section, you’re not alone.)
I have been informed that I failed to make good on a promise–I had said that I would re-post the audio to the BYU-Aladdin song that I heard on PMS a while back (read this post if you need a reminder), since the file I linked to then has been removed from Youtube. I said I would take a vote, and since only 2 people voted, the audio goes up. We’ll see how long my fragile conscience survives and I decide to take it down for being too mean.
I think re-posting this will qualify as the “really bad thing” that makes me deserving of having my site banned by BYU (which, by the way, is still in force. I’m so proud.)
Recently I read this post on New Cool Thang about whether or not Jesus could have failed. In particular, the following bit caught my attention:
“[Could] Jesus have not lived a perfect life and brought forth the atonement? If he couldn’t fail, then is Jesus different than us, and our trying to be like Jesus is merely vanity, something we cannot accomplish?”
The second question–is Jesus different than us?–was the real kicker to me, because it had never even occurred to me that He was possibly the same as everybody else, and it actually struck me as odd that such a difference between Savior and Saved would be troubling to someone. I don’t mean that condescendingly–I am not intelligent enough to be condescending toward anyone–but rather in kind of a “Huh. Wow. Never thought about that before. Weird.” sort of way. In any case, a C.S. Lewis quote popped into my head, and I wanted to relate it in the thread, but elected not too because I was late to the conversation and I’m sure someone else already said something far more profound, so I’ll post it here instead: Read more…
Wow. That was fast. So says the L.A. Times, anyway.
Apparently Prop 8 is here to stay. Until the next election, anyway.
I wasn’t evening paying attention to the news–I hadn’t expected any indication one way or the other for a couple of months. Read more…
Remember my idea for an Ikea Merit Badge? Yeah, well, apparently someone else thinks this is a grand idea, too. And not just anyone–but the actual official writers and declarers of The Articles of Men. Given the date of the creation and ratification of this article, I am inclined to believe that they ripped off my idea, but I will not be bitter. They saw a need, and they addressed it.
If only they would address the paucity of legislation concerning Man-Crushes.
Who’s with me?!?
Time* for another installment of Answers to Mormon Questions.**
Are Mormons really worried about the California Supreme Court overturning Prop 8? Or, having fought the good fight, are they satisfied with their effort and just content to let the chips fall where they may?
This question was raised (sort of) in the comment section of an earlier post, although I have actually been thinking about it for a long time. It’s a fantastic question, and I, as a California Mormon and resident know-it-all, am clearly qualified to opine on the matter. Unfortunately, like so many interesting questions in life, the answer is the ever-unsatisfying, “Well, it depends.” Read more…
I love people from Finland. I realized that I haven’t written anything about Finland for a good long while, which may be a good thing to those uninterested in a country and people who could, but for their language, be mistaken very easily for Canadians (Finns and Canucks share two primary focal points in life: Beer and Hockey. And Socialized Medicine. And Moose.), but it’s bad for the other four people who read this blog and happen to love all things Suomi. Lucky for me, Finland landed on me this past weekend. Read more…
There’s this thing in California–maybe you’ve heard of it. It’s called Proposition 8. I’ve been told that lots of people care about it.
Oral arguments start this week. I had almost forgotten.
Predictions?
[NOTE: This post is my response to a guest post about whether or not a "Libertarian Mormon" is an Oxymoron. In particular, one of the arguments the author--Dan Weston--has made is that capitalism is an anti-Biblical philosophy. One assumption throughout is that libertarians subscribe to such a philosophy out of a love for capitalism. I addressed this point as a comment, but decided it is best to start a new thread. Thus, I re-post my comment below, with a few minor modifications.]
One important point of conflict here is that I think many people might be mistaken about why LDS people–if they are–might be drawn to libertarianism in the first place. If you have taken your understanding of “Mormon Libertarianism” from me, then the fault for this confusion lies with me–as I looked back over my older posts, I embarrassed to realize that I’ve never talked about this to begin with. In short, it has nothing to do with anything Jesus said or didn’t say–or Bible-based doctrinal circles that Joseph Smith “squared” via modern revelation.
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