April 2009 @ 9:47 am

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I saw the same thing and wondered: How do you take body language out of context?

28 April 2009 @ 9:47 am | No comments

“Gays, guns put right on defense”

The culture wars are making a comeback, but this time around, social conservatives find themselves in an unfamiliar position: playing defense.

I’m not sure that the culture wars ever left, but when can you say that social conservatives are ever NOT on the defensive? They have had successes, and failures. Certainly right now, you can say they have suffered several recent setbacks and hold little influence in the halls of power.

But are social cons ever on the offensive? What radical social innovations do they have in store? If anything, their arguments are at an inherent disadvantage as they amount to saying “No” to a rising tide of opposition. It is not very glamorous to “[stand] athwart history, yelling Stop.”

11 April 2009 @ 8:54 am | 2 comments

As rumored before, the Obama Administration has tapped BYU Law Professor Larry Echohawk to head the Interior Department’s Bureau of Indian Affairs.

Obama taps Utah Mormon to lead Indian Affairs

President Barack Obama on Friday appointed Brigham Young University law professor Larry EchoHawk to lead the Interior Department’s Bureau of Indian Affairs, making him the first high-profile Mormon and first Utahn to join the senior ranks of his administration.

EchoHawk, a Democrat who has taught at BYU’s law school since 1995, was the first American Indian elected to a statewide constitutional office when he won the Idaho attorney general’s race in 1990. He ran for governor there four years later, but lost. . .

EchoHawk, who is from the Pawnee Nation of Oklahoma, will lead the Bureau of Indian Affairs, which provides services for 1.7 million American Indians and Alaskan natives. The bureau also manages 66 million acres held in trust by the United States for the tribes.

Congratulations to Prof. Echohawk.

(I suppose his religion is noteworthy but is that headline necessary?)

10 April 2009 @ 2:46 pm | 1 comment

When Ann Coulter is too liberal – defending Mitt Romney and loving Mormons.

MORE: And when I say too liberal I don’t mean not conservative enough. Just not sufficiently whackadoo.

3 April 2009 @ 11:32 am | No comments

So proud to be a Terp.

The University of Maryland, College Park, has canceled this weekend’s screening of a hard-core pornographic film after state lawmakers objected and threatened to cut funding to the flagship state university.

3 April 2009 @ 10:45 am | 4 comments

“The Iowa Supreme Court this morning unanimously upheld gays’ right to marry.“

3 April 2009 @ 9:53 am | 14 comments

Former V.P. Gore meets with LDS Church leaders today

Gore, now an environmental activist who shared the Nobel Peace Prize for his work on global warming, is believed to have requested the meeting with the LDS Church’s First Presidency. It is not known what he wants to discuss.

I’d say it’s a safe bet that he wants to enlist the Church in his global warming crusade. Responsible stewardship is one thing but I can’t see the Church signing on to his doom and gloom prophesying (and profiteering).

BUMPED: The Newsroom has a short report on Al Gore’s visit:

Al Gore greets Church leaders. M. Russell Ballard. Quentin L. Cook

Mr. Gore had a brief courtesy meeting with President Monson and then met with Elder M. Russell Ballard, Elder Quentin L. Cook, and others members of the Church’s Public Affairs Committee. He gave a 30 minute presentation and expressed his concerns about CO2 emissions, which was followed by several minutes of questions and answers.

2 April 2009 @ 10:27 pm | 4 comments

If watching/listening General Conference isn’t good enough for you, the LDS Newsroom will be twittering during conference at #ldsconf.

Twitter is still like the 8th dimension for me but I’ll troll the tweets cautiously, knowing full well that the blogosphere is always here to comfort me.

2 April 2009 @ 4:38 pm | No comments

50 years of “Every Member a Missionary”

Fifty years ago this month, in the spring of 1959, President David O. McKay (1873–1970) addressed members gathered in the Salt Lake Tabernacle for the 129th Annual General Conference of the Church. As President McKay closed the meeting, he shared his testimony of the restored gospel and left the members a charge that remains in effect today.

President McKay related how in 1923, in response to negative public opinion in the British Mission, the Brethren sent instructions to the members stating: “Throw the responsibility upon every member of the Church that in the coming year of 1923 every member will be a missionary. Every member a missionary! … Somebody will hear the good message of the truth through you.”

2 April 2009 @ 3:35 pm | No comments

“Romney strikes bipartisan tone at GOP fundraiser”

“I also think it’s important for us to nod to the president when he’s right,” Romney said, after chiding the president’s budget. “He will not always be wrong, and he’s done some things I agree with.”

Romney, who spoke at a dinner for the National Republican Senatorial Committee, said he’s pleased with the president’s plans to “finish the job” in Iraq and Afghanistan — lines that drew applause from the partisan audience. He also applauded the president for standing up to the auto industry.

This strikes me as not only smart politics but the right thing to do. No pretending to be civil with snarky back-handed compliments, but sincere praise when it’s called for. The GOP needs to be the loyal opposition but also needs voices to tamp down any signs of Obama Derangement Syndrome.

2 April 2009 @ 11:49 am | 2 comments

The double standard of media covering protests. Again, nothing shocking but it’s one of the more egregious examples that has long bothered me. Especially since its my impression conservatives don’t protest anywhere near as much.

After reading that anti-globalisation/anti-war protests in London drew “about 4,000 protesters,” I thought that number of protesters looked familiar, so I decided to check how many showed up at last month’s “Tea Party” protesting higher taxes and increased government spending in Cincinnati. Looks like I was onto something. According to the local paper, “about 4,000 protesters showed up.”

2 April 2009 @ 11:02 am | 1 comment

Selectively Mormonizing Public Figures

2 April 2009 @ 10:52 am | 8 comments

Selectively Mormonizing public figures. It’s interesting that with all of Glenn Beck’s recent popularity (and notoriety) that he hasn’t been tagged more as a Mormon. The same has been the case for Sen. Reid.

Beck’s a ripe target for ridicule from his many critics. But that makes it all the more strange that his Mormon faith hasn’t come up like it did with Romney. Is it because he’s not threatening to certain Evangelicals?