Tuesdays with Muerte

Nixon predicted the current state of U.S.-Russian politics back in 1992. Say what you will about Nixon's involvement in the Watergate coverup, he was one smart guy and a heck of a statesman. Despite his shortcomings, when Nixon was right, he nailed it. After the U.S. "won" the Cold War with Russia in 1991 , the ideals of freedom (free-market capitalism and educated democracy) have stood trial on the world stage. The Cold War isn't over. The opponents of liberty and justice for all are lying in wait. As the Great Experiment of democracy has succumbed to the consequences of pride (e.g., a false sense of security ) and constant subversive influences (e.g., Russian imperialism ) over the years , free nations (including the U.S.) have begun to revert to (not communism, which has failed) but a new despotism or authoritarian demagogism . The Book of Mormon demonstrates this same dynamic in the book of 3rd Nephi. In Chapter 1, we read that though signs and wonders abound,...

TL;DR Dogs are just another (cute) vehicle for racism. The subject of racism has been on my mind pretty much all of 2020. I just finished reading the book,  Race Without Racism , which argues that the chameleon-like system/institution of racism is alive and well despite a cultural shift toward racial "colorblindness." My interest in America's new racism led me to an article from a decade ago that shocked me— How dogs help keep multiracial neighborhoods socially segregated . Author and Editor of The Conversation, Beth Daley's findings went against my natural assumption that dog owners would be drawn naturally together in friendship. I naively imagined multicultural neighbors walking their dogs, stopping to chat, finding common ground, resulting in BBQs or even vacations together. Daley painted quite a different picture with her robust sociological investigation of a multicultural, North Carolina neighborhood between 2009-2011. She offers readers three alarming examples...

Introduction This post is an exploration of the tension that exists between the two seemingly contradictory commandments, (a) Love thy neighbor as they self, and (b) sustain Church doctrine, officers, and policies. As Buddhists (and Stephen Covey) say, there is a "middle way" to the Christian dilemma of feeling like one must either love their neighbor or support the Church. Three Contemporary Examples of The "Love-Law" Paradox These three stories illustrate real-life struggles of people whom I know. When I hear emotionally-charged stories like these, my knee-jerk reaction is to hide from the controversial issue. (a) "The Church or My Sons" An LDS mother had two gay sons. After a few years of wrestling with supporting her sons' lifestyles while still supporting the teachings of the Church, she ultimately left the Church. While she claimed to have a number of other faith-based concerns, it seemed like her main concern stemmed from this one issue, and wh...

Who is Tim Ballard? (O.U.R. History) Timothy Ballard spent over a decade working as a Special Agent for the Department of Homeland Security where he was assigned to the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and deployed as an undercover operative for the U.S. Child Sex Tourism Jump Team. He has worked every type of case imaginable in the fight to dismantle child trafficking rings. Ballard specializes in undercover work, in the United States and in multiple foreign countries, to infiltrate child trafficking organizations. During one of his routine training visits to South America, he threw the training book out the window and actually helped them plan an op! But a problem arose. Their plan was dependent on U.S. support, and unfortunately they were outside U.S. jurisdiction. When the U.S. government was ultimately unable provide the resources ($80,000 and 10 operatives for 3 months) to rescue dozens of trafficked children in South America, Ballard decided to leave government ...

What are all my options in Utah?  In Utah this year, we only have 25 eligible presidential candidates for whom we can legally vote: There will be  10 presidential candidates on the ballot . There are an additional  15 eligible names that can be written in . Links to all the 2016 candidates  and their positions on issues (including Evan McMullin ). Who can I write in? Between the #NeverHillary and the #NeverTrump folks, there's a lot of talk about write-in votes this year. Based on past experience, it is likely that most of the people threatening this course of action won't actually do it, and will either line up behind the major party candidate they find less odious, or will choose a third party candidate like conservative independent, Evan McMullin. But for those who really do attempt a write-in, though, what will happen? The answer to that varies by the state in which the voter resides: Seven (7) states do not allow write-ins at all—Arkansas, ...

Preface tl;dr —  I feel confident in my vote because: I know what my vote means to me. I know what I believe. I know the candidates, to the best of my ability. Which of the Two-Party Candidates is Right? Joseph Smith's First Vision  remixed with cc permission During this time of great excitement my mind was called up to serious reflection and great uneasiness; but though my feelings were deep and often poignant, still I kept myself aloof from all these parties, though I attended their several meetings as often as occasion would permit. In process of time my mind became somewhat partial to the Republican  sect, and I felt some desire to be united with them; but so great were the confusion and strife among the major political parties , that it was impossible…to come to any certain conclusion who was right and who was wrong…In the midst of this war of words and tumult of opinions, I often said to myself: What is to be done? Who of all these parties a...

Background In celebration of International Women's Day (March 8th, 2016), I dedicated some time to reflecting on my beliefs surrounding gender equality. According to popular feminist pundits, a feminist is anyone—male or female—who is in favor of gender equality. For me, identifying as a feminist was just another way of saying I rejected bigotry. I championed the idea that feminism  meant gender  egalitarian , and I believed that any decent person should believe in equality between the sexes in terms of political, economic, and social power. I am grateful for the courageous generations of liberal feminists who have fought for women's rights to do things like own property, wear pants, vote, and go to college. I'm especially grateful for the industrial feminists during WWII who proved that women were capable of factory work and paved the way for other social equality. However, modern feminism is different kind of beast. I've discovered that feminism today is...