O:9:"magpierss":24:{s:6:"parser";i:0;s:12:"current_item";a:0:{}s:5:"items";a:25:{i:0;a:13:{s:2:"id";s:59:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25646979.post-7992360648422917215";s:9:"published";s:29:"2011-08-21T10:22:00.001-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2011-08-21T10:22:43.853-06:00";s:5:"title";s:52:"How the Federal Government Decimated Private Charity";s:12:"atom_content";s:5456:"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-mY4T2VQ_YnI/TlEwj4Iwt4I/AAAAAAAABUw/EozgoGYUW4M/s1600/GovernmentCharityGovernmentTheft.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="120" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-mY4T2VQ_YnI/TlEwj4Iwt4I/AAAAAAAABUw/EozgoGYUW4M/s200/GovernmentCharityGovernmentTheft.jpg" width="100" /></a></div>Prior to the Great Depression, private charities and state and local governments did a remarkable job of taking care of those in need. Since the mistakes of the Herbert Hoover Administration, however, and the continuation of those mistakes by Franklin D Roosevelt, we've never been the same.<br /><a name='more'></a><br />In 1887, as the state of Texas faced a long and debilitating drought, the United States Congress passed an appropriation to help Texas's beleaguered farmers. As it reached President Grover Cleveland's desk, he vetoed the bill. He stated his reasoning: "I can find no warrant for such an appropriation in the Constitution." Such federal aid, he said "weakens the sturdiness of our national character. The friendliness and charity of our countrymen," he continued, "can always be relied upon to relieve their fellow citizens in misfortune." <br /><br />Donations to the plight of the drought-stricken Texans came in from all over the country, which equaled more than ten times the amount that Congress had intended to appropriate.<br /><br />The ability of private charities, along with state and local governments, was scarcely questioned until the Great Depression. Herbert Hoover signed into law the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act, which exacerbated the economic problems that the United States Federal Reserve had already caused and made more acute.<br /><br />The economic malaise had become so pronounced by the middle of 1932, that many voices began to call for a federal solution to the problem, which was quite ironic in that the <i>cause </i>of the economic crisis had been the <i>federal government itself</i>. Amid the federal-government-caused crisis, the ironic siren call for federal government to supersede private charity proved irresistible.<br /><br />Many private charities were staunchly opposed to the federal government relief programs being contemplated. Organizations such as the Red Cross were well aware that their ability to help the indigent would be decimated as federal government usurped private giving in the form of higher taxes. This is just what occurred.<br /><br />The Emergency Relief and Construction Act of 1932 appropriated $300 million to provide emergency relief to&nbsp; the various states. Ironically, the $300 million appropriation came from taxes exacted from the same people of the same states that were to be given the emergency relief. The inefficiencies are obvious. This time, unfortunately, Grover Cleveland was not on hand to veto this clearly unconstitutional appropriation.<br /><br />Of the $300 million emergency funding, eight states took none of it, Massachusetts being one of the most prominent. Various philanthropic drives and local programs allowed Massachusetts to completely provide for itself during the crisis. They received no forgiveness from the federal government however, as taxes from Massachusetts were still exacted to pay for other states that had not many any such attempts at frugality, the most profligate being the state of Illinois, which made off with $55 million dollars of the relief money--almost 20% of the national total.<br /><br />Shortly after taking office, FDR signed into law the Federal Emergency Relief Administration, substantially increasing what the Hoover administration had sadly put into motion, and making things far worse. Federal relief policies became incentives to such inefficiencies as states exaggerating what they needed for relief and making only abysmal attempts to raise local funding for their own assistance. More destructively, increases in federal taxation decimated private philanthropy.<br /><br />Enough years have intervened since the Great Depression that we have all but forgotten what life was like before then. Before that time, private charities and state and local governments were more than matches for the economic relief problems that faced them. Happily, they still can be, if the federal government would gradually extricate itself from the welfare mess that it has caused.<br /><br />Significantly, trillions of dollars in debt and projected debt have proven that the Federal Government is not fit for the task that it took for itself using the backdrop of the Great Depression as its excuse. The sooner we figure out that individuals can take care of their fellow man much more effectively than a faceless bureaucracy, the better off we'll be.<br /><br /><i>For more details, see chapter 6 of </i>New Deal or Raw Deal? <i>by Burton Folsom</i><br /><br /><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s1600-h/SUMPIcon.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5150213613403742466" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s320/SUMPIcon.JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer;" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25646979-7992360648422917215?l=economicspolitics.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>";s:12:"link_replies";s:176:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/feeds/7992360648422917215/comments/defaulthttp://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/08/how-federal-government-decimated.html#comment-form";s:9:"link_edit";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/7992360648422917215";s:9:"link_self";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/7992360648422917215";s:4:"link";s:83:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/08/how-federal-government-decimated.html";s:11:"author_name";s:13:"Frank Staheli";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01822334061980912687";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";s:3:"thr";a:1:{s:5:"total";s:1:"0";}}i:1;a:13:{s:2:"id";s:59:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25646979.post-6552938817464481687";s:9:"published";s:29:"2011-08-11T18:26:00.003-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2011-08-11T19:08:30.111-06:00";s:5:"title";s:18:"European Meltdown?";s:12:"atom_content";s:6296:"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_J03Sb91lzw/TkRyqJ8PPHI/AAAAAAAABUs/3fCYgJt89Yo/s1600/ProudBritishLooter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="100" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_J03Sb91lzw/TkRyqJ8PPHI/AAAAAAAABUs/3fCYgJt89Yo/s200/ProudBritishLooter.jpg" width="120" /></a></div>How did Europe get this crazy? I think it's because European governments have overstretched by trying to provide too much, so that when they attempt to provide the limited benefits that good government <i>should </i>accomplish, they fail. They've certainly conditioned many people to think that someone else is to blame for their various plights.<br /><a name='more'></a><br />Because short selling of stocks can be mixed with the spreading of economic rumors and falsehoods, several nations in Europe are banning the spreading of rumors and falsehoo...<a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-08-11/france-spain-italy-belgium-ban-short-sales-to-halt-rout-in-bank-shares.html">oh, wait...they're banning short selling</a>.&nbsp; That doesn't seem to make sense.<br /><blockquote>“While short-selling can be a valid trading strategy, whenused in combination with spreading false market rumors this isclearly abusive,” the European Securities and MarketsAuthority, which coordinates the work of national regulators inthe 27-nation European Union, said in a <a href="http://www.esma.europa.eu/popup2.php?id=7699" rel="external" title="Open Web Site">statement</a> after talksended late yesterday. National regulators will impose the bans“to restrict the benefits that can be achieved from spreadingfalse rumors or to achieve a regulatory level playing field.”<br /><br />Banks’ overnight borrowings from the <a href="http://topics.bloomberg.com/european-central-bank/">EuropeanCentral Bank</a> jumped to the highest in three months yesterday, asign some lenders may have need for emergency cash.&nbsp;&nbsp;</blockquote><br />I think that laws punishing financial lying would probably work better.<br /><br />In Britain, where cops seem to be disrespected because they don't carry guns, the Prime Minister is contemplating a Mubarak-style banning of social media, which has been used, unfortunately, to rally the looters. <br /><blockquote>David Cameron, the British prime minister, says curfew measures and restrictions on social media websites will be considered following days of rioting in London and other English towns and cities.<br /><br />Cameron said authorities were looking at ways of stopping people communicating via social media websites if they were suspected of plotting "criminality and violence."He said face coverings could also be banned if criminality was suspected and said authorities were considering whether wider powers of curfew for police were necessary.</blockquote><br />All because hordes of British commoners have been taught that when they don't have what they want, it is <a href="http://townhall.com/columnists/anncoulter/2011/08/10/the_sun_never_sets_on_the_british_welfare_system">someone else's fault</a>.Says pundit Ann Coulter:<br /><blockquote>Congratulations, Britain! You've barbarized your citizenry, without regard to race, gender or physical handicap!<br /><br />With a welfare system far more advanced than the United States, the British have achieved the remarkable result of turning entire communities of ancestral British people into tattooed, drunken brutes.<br /><br />I guess we now have the proof of what conservatives have been saying since forever: Looting is a result of liberal welfare policies. And Britain is in the end stages of the welfare state.</blockquote>&nbsp;Closer to the action, the <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-2024284/UK-riots-2011-Liberal-dogma-spawned-generation-brutalised-youths.html#ixzz1Uw4rvCAm">Daily Mail agrees</a>.. Max Hastings reminds us that during one of the largest riots in United States history-- Detroit 1967--most people didn't riot because they were angry, but instead because <i>it was fun</i>.<br /><blockquote>A few weeks after the U.S. city of Detroit was ravaged by 1967 race riots in which 43 people died, I was shown around the wrecked areas by a black&nbsp; reporter named Joe Strickland.<br /><br />He said: ‘Don’t you believe all that stuff people here are giving media folk about how sorry they are about what happened. When they talk to each other, they say: “It was a great fire, man!” ’</blockquote><br />The same thing seems to be happening in Britain today.<br /><blockquote>I am sure that is what many of the young rioters, black and white, who have burned and looted in England through the past few shocking nights think today.</blockquote><blockquote>It was fun. It made life interesting. It got people to notice them. As a girl looter told a BBC reporter, it showed ‘the rich’ and the police that ‘we can do what we like’.</blockquote><br />So much so that they are i<a href="http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Europe/2011/0811/How-much-are-Twitter-and-BlackBerry-to-blame-for-British-riots">nviting their friends to come join in</a> the celebration of debauchery.<br /><br />It's a big mess, no doubt. Banning social media won't solve the problem, and it will just create another one--loss of liberty. The real solution is easy to see, although the cancer will be a nightmare to eradicate. The sooner government recognizes that it can't be the welfare dispenser to the world, the quicker we can get back to making healthy economies.&nbsp; Government needs to begin asking people what they can do <i>for </i>their country rather than encouraging them to wonder what they can do <i>to </i>it.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s1600-h/SUMPIcon.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5150213613403742466" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s320/SUMPIcon.JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer;" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25646979-6552938817464481687?l=economicspolitics.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>";s:12:"link_replies";s:161:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/feeds/6552938817464481687/comments/defaulthttp://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/08/european-meltdown.html#comment-form";s:9:"link_edit";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/6552938817464481687";s:9:"link_self";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/6552938817464481687";s:4:"link";s:68:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/08/european-meltdown.html";s:11:"author_name";s:13:"Frank Staheli";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01822334061980912687";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";s:3:"thr";a:1:{s:5:"total";s:1:"0";}}i:2;a:13:{s:2:"id";s:59:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25646979.post-7617889907588782267";s:9:"published";s:29:"2011-08-06T11:34:00.001-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2011-08-06T11:34:29.353-06:00";s:5:"title";s:42:"US Credit Rating Downgrade: What About It?";s:12:"atom_content";s:7352:"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xFfwbZOatsI/Tj16rHFg23I/AAAAAAAABUo/dgDKULTEG4o/s1600/WallStreetBullTired.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="110" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xFfwbZOatsI/Tj16rHFg23I/AAAAAAAABUo/dgDKULTEG4o/s200/WallStreetBullTired.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>It's the first time in history that a credit rating agency has downgraded US credit. What does it mean? What are others saying about it? Who is to blame?<br /><a name='more'></a><a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/08/05/national/main20088944.shtml">CBS News reports</a> that<br /><blockquote>Credit rating agency Standard &amp; Poor's says it has downgraded the  United States' credit rating for the first time in the history of the  ratings.</blockquote>&nbsp;That history goes back to 1917, when the US was first granted a "AAA" rating. <br /><br />The rating was shifted from AAA down to "AA+", and it could be downgraded again in the next two years if the federal government cannot improve its "effectiveness, stability, and predictability [in] policymaking...at a time of ongoing fiscal and  economic challenges," said S &amp; P<br /><br />S &amp; P's rating downgrade comes on the heels of a similar opinion by Dagong, the Chinese credit rating agency. Dagong's downgrade of US credit was the <a href="http://edition.cnn.com/2011/BUSINESS/08/02/china.us.rating/index.html">second since November</a> of 2010.<br /><blockquote>The Dagong Global Credit Rating Company, which lowered the United States  to A+ last November after the U.S. Federal Reserve decided to continue  loosening its monetary policy, announced a further downgrade to A,  indicating heightened doubts over Washington's long-term ability to  repay its debts.</blockquote><br />It's interesting to see what people not invested in America's political conundrums think and observe. Just today, <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia-pacific/china-bluntly-tells-us-to-end-its-addiction-to-debts/2011/08/06/gIQABGJ9xI_story.html">China reiterated its stance</a> that America needs to overcome its addiction.<br /><blockquote>In a blistering editorial Saturday by the state-run news agency, China  said the recent downgrade of America’s credit rating by Standard &amp;  Poor’s showed the need for America to “cure its addiction to debts” and  to “reestablish the common sense principle that one should live within  its means.” </blockquote>It's important to note that other US ratings agencies <a href="http://uk.reuters.com/article/2011/08/03/uk-usa-rating-moodys-idUKTRE7716LM20110803"><i>have not</i> downgraded</a> America's credit rating--<i>yet</i>.<br /><blockquote><span id="articleText"></span><br />Moody's Investors Service and Fitch Ratings  maintained U.S. ratings for now, but said additional deficit-reduction  measures are needed for the government to put its finances in order and  retain the coveted rating.<br /><br /><span id="midArticle_2"></span>Underscoring  that threat, Moody's assigned a negative outlook to the Aaa rating,  which means a downgrade is possible in the next 12 to 18 months.<br /><br /><span id="midArticle_3"></span>Fitch  promised to conclude a more thorough review of the United States by the  end of the month and did not rule out slapping a negative outlook on  the rating.</blockquote><br />How might this downgrade affect interest rates in the United States? <a href="http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2011/08/05/sp-downgrade-is-wake-call-for-all-americans/#ixzz1UGORVg66">Here's what has recently happened</a> in a couple of other countries who suffered identical downgrades (which are admittedly much smaller than the US):<br /><blockquote>When Standard &amp; Poors <a href="http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D9GM8GBO1.htm">downgraded Spain's bonds from AAA to AA+ in January 2009</a>, its <a class="kLink" href="http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2011/08/05/sp-downgrade-is-wake-call-for-all-americans/#" id="KonaLink0" style="font-family: inherit !important; font-size: inherit !important; font-weight: inherit !important; position: static; text-decoration: underline !important;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit ! important; font-weight: inherit ! important; position: static;"><span class="kLink" style="color: blue; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit ! important; font-weight: inherit ! important; position: static;">interest </span><span class="kLink" style="color: blue; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit ! important; font-weight: inherit ! important; position: static;">rates</span></span></a> increased from <a href="http://www.tradingeconomics.com/spain/government-bond-yield">4.1 to 4.3 percent</a>.&nbsp; </blockquote><blockquote><div style="font-size: 14px;">When the same ratings agency downgraded <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/20/business/global/20punt.html">Ireland's from AAA to AA+ in March 2009</a>, their interest rate rose by about <a href="http://www.tradingeconomics.com/ireland/government-bond-yield">0.4 percentage points</a>.</div></blockquote><div style="background-color: transparent; border: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">Is the Tea Party to blame? Lots of pundits seem to think so. But this pundit would like to remind everyone that, had there not been a Tea Party, there would have been little if any discussion about our debt problem on a national level, and we would likely have just mindlessly raised the debt ceiling again.</div><div style="background-color: transparent; border: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><a href="http://www.cnbc.com/id/43984077">Not a good idea</a>, says David Walker, former comptroller general of the United States.</div><blockquote><div style="background-color: transparent; border: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">"We are less than three years away from where Greece had its debt crisis as to where they were from debt to GDP," [Walker] said.</div><div style="background-color: transparent; border: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><div class="textBodyBlack"><span id="byLine"></span>The  US is nearing the 100 percent threshold which historically shaves about  one percentage point off GDP, which was just 1.3 percent for the second  quarter and 0.4 percent for the first quarter.</div></div></blockquote><br /><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s1600-h/SUMPIcon.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5150213613403742466" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s320/SUMPIcon.JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer;" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25646979-7617889907588782267?l=economicspolitics.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>";s:12:"link_replies";s:181:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/feeds/7617889907588782267/comments/defaulthttp://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/08/us-credit-rating-downgrade-what-about.html#comment-form";s:9:"link_edit";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/7617889907588782267";s:9:"link_self";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/7617889907588782267";s:4:"link";s:88:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/08/us-credit-rating-downgrade-what-about.html";s:11:"author_name";s:13:"Frank Staheli";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01822334061980912687";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";s:3:"thr";a:1:{s:5:"total";s:1:"1";}}i:3;a:13:{s:2:"id";s:59:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25646979.post-8825791037448134416";s:9:"published";s:29:"2011-08-02T20:23:00.002-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2011-08-02T20:23:38.076-06:00";s:5:"title";s:58:"Inflation is What Creates the Divide Between Rich and Poor";s:12:"atom_content";s:5928:"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4_kAsbs3CKg/Tjiwzh_8eYI/AAAAAAAABUk/ikP-LNvIOVY/s1600/InflationToiletPaper.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="100" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4_kAsbs3CKg/Tjiwzh_8eYI/AAAAAAAABUk/ikP-LNvIOVY/s200/InflationToiletPaper.jpg" width="120" /></a></div>Why are the rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer? Because the rich don't pay their fair share of taxes? Perhaps this is a minor contributing factor. However, the greatest means to increase the divide between rich and poor is actually inflation of a nation's currency. Here's how John Maynard Keynes explained it.<br /><a name='more'></a><br />Now that the recent debt ceiling talks in Congress have ended with a compromise that does little if anything to solve the long-term problem of unsustainable American debt, progressives are once again ramping up their apoplexy against the super rich, who supposedly are completely at fault because they supposedly don't pay their fair share of taxes. That's only marginally true. A much more sinister process is at work in America.<br /><br /><br />John Maynard Keynes points out,<a href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/commandingheights/shared/minitext/ess_inflation.html"> in a 1919 essay</a>, that blaming the rich is exactly how government--the <i>real</i> culprit--wants it to be:<br /><blockquote>Those to whom the [government] system brings windfalls, beyond their deserts and even  beyond their expectations or desires, become "profiteers," who are the  object of the hatred of the bourgeoisie [i.e. middle class]  </blockquote><br />How does this occur? Lenin supposedly had it right. The best way to ruin society, he is alleged to have said, is to ruin its currency through inflation.<br /><br />The effects of inflation of the currency are so hard to comprehend that governments easily shift the blame for their debauchery to the rich. Keynes explained that<br /><blockquote>...governments...seek to direct on to a class known as "profiteers" the popular  indignation against the more obvious consequences of their vicious  methods. These "profiteers" are...the entrepreneur[s], ...the active and constructive element in the  whole capitalist society, <i>who in a period of rapidly rising prices  cannot but get rich quick whether they wish it or desire it or not</i>. </blockquote>Keynes explained why inflation is so destructive:<br /><blockquote>By a continuing process of inflation, governments can confiscate,  secretly and unobserved, an important part of the wealth of their  citizens. By this method they not only confiscate, but they confiscate  arbitrarily; and, while the process impoverishes many, it actually  enriches [the few]. The sight of this arbitrary rearrangement of riches  strikes not only at security but [also] at confidence in the equity of  the existing distribution of wealth.</blockquote><br />You may have heard recently the term "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantitative_easing#QE1.2C_QE2_and_QE3">Quantitative Easing</a>", or QE1 and QE2.&nbsp; This is euphemism for a process wherein a central bank creates additional money out of thin air and uses it to "purchas[e] financial assets from <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banks" title="Banks">banks</a> and other private sector businesses", thereby enriching the owners of those banks and private businesses.&nbsp; Over the past 3 or 4 years, the US Federal Reserve has performed Quantitative Easing to the tune of trillions of dollars.<br /><br />Currently banks are not lending much of this money, further depressing the economy, because it is more profitable to hold onto it, and simply to <a href="http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Global_Economy/MG21Dj01.html">draw interest on it</a>, paid by the Federal Reserve. It is noteworthy that<br /><blockquote>immediately after the  																	Lehman collapse, the interbank lending markets were actually working. They  																	froze, not when Lehman died, but when the Fed started paying interest on excess  																	reserves in October 2008. Reserve balances immediately shot up,  																	and they have been going up almost vertically ever since. 																	</blockquote>Why, then are the rich getting filthy richer? Not because of the tax code. To blame the rich in general, such as those making more than $250,00 per year, misses the point almost entirely. The problem is not nearly so much that <a href="http://blogs.forbes.com/robertlenzner/2011/07/25/the-400-richest-americans-pay-an-18-tax-rate/">they don't pay enough taxes</a>, although that's surely a minor contributing factor. It's really mostly because government moguls enrich themselves and a handful of their friends through inflation and debauching of the dollar and then pin the blame for the increasing divide on "the rich" in general.<br /><br />How do we reverse the divide between rich and poor? By stopping inflation. Even John Maynard Keynes agrees with this assessment.<br /><br />Your government has been inflating the currency like there is no tomorrow. And you know what? There soon may not be a tomorrow--if you keep blaming the rich in general, when the real blame should be placed on your government.<br /><br /><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s1600-h/SUMPIcon.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5150213613403742466" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s320/SUMPIcon.JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer;" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25646979-8825791037448134416?l=economicspolitics.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>";s:12:"link_replies";s:176:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/feeds/8825791037448134416/comments/defaulthttp://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/08/inflation-is-what-creates-divide.html#comment-form";s:9:"link_edit";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/8825791037448134416";s:9:"link_self";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/8825791037448134416";s:4:"link";s:83:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/08/inflation-is-what-creates-divide.html";s:11:"author_name";s:13:"Frank Staheli";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01822334061980912687";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";s:3:"thr";a:1:{s:5:"total";s:1:"0";}}i:4;a:13:{s:2:"id";s:59:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25646979.post-2671626317933390568";s:9:"published";s:29:"2011-07-20T19:58:00.003-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2011-07-20T20:12:05.662-06:00";s:5:"title";s:41:"Brigham Young: Not Such an Ogre After All";s:12:"atom_content";s:1811:"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oFIGZCg001M/TieHWWkzbyI/AAAAAAAABUg/Rk-8Bk_1XJA/s1600/BrighamYoungCrackedGlass.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="120" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oFIGZCg001M/TieHWWkzbyI/AAAAAAAABUg/Rk-8Bk_1XJA/s200/BrighamYoungCrackedGlass.jpg" width="100" /></a></div>Three issues have conspired to cast Brigham Young in an almost monstrous mythical light. (1) The fact that he was the leader of a growing religious empire rubbed people the wrong way. (2) To a sex-crazed world, polygamy is seen as all about crazy sex. (3) LDS Church members, reacting against the slanders of the world, place the leaders upon pedestals of purity when they are not so pure. Because of this, the real Brigham Young is much different than we think.<br /><a name='more'></a><br />When biographers, reporters, and other interested parties came to Salt Lake City in the late 1800's they saw a very successful community, which was largely as a result of a very successful (LDS) church, which was largely a result of a very successful leader--Brigham Young.<br /><br />...developing...<br /><br /><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s1600-h/SUMPIcon.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5150213613403742466" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s320/SUMPIcon.JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer;" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25646979-2671626317933390568?l=economicspolitics.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>";s:12:"link_replies";s:181:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/feeds/2671626317933390568/comments/defaulthttp://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/07/brigham-young-not-such-ogre-after-all.html#comment-form";s:9:"link_edit";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/2671626317933390568";s:9:"link_self";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/2671626317933390568";s:4:"link";s:88:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/07/brigham-young-not-such-ogre-after-all.html";s:11:"author_name";s:13:"Frank Staheli";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01822334061980912687";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";s:3:"thr";a:1:{s:5:"total";s:1:"3";}}i:5;a:13:{s:2:"id";s:59:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25646979.post-7634440893560338384";s:9:"published";s:29:"2011-07-04T09:48:00.002-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2011-07-04T09:54:29.386-06:00";s:5:"title";s:20:"America the Peaceful";s:12:"atom_content";s:7844:"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-BIy-x2tBU8Y/ThHghDAa9mI/AAAAAAAABTw/fEWvMI9Fn4k/s1600/Coexistence.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="90" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-BIy-x2tBU8Y/ThHghDAa9mI/AAAAAAAABTw/fEWvMI9Fn4k/s200/Coexistence.jpg" width="120" /></a></div>On July 4th, 2011, I still think that the United States of America is the greatest nation on earth. But not because we are a superpower. America is not great because America is warlike. We are great <i>in spite of </i>that dismal fact. In order to survive, the United States as a political entity will have to learn from its citizens and from its churches how to be peaceful.<br /><a name='more'></a><br />Yesterday morning, as I awoke, I felt the distinct impression to read an international news magazine that I visit on the internet every so often. I had some other things I needed to get done, so I ignored the feeling, but it didn't go away. Eventually I typed in the URL. In the next couple of hours, I learned something new about the people of Pakistan, the people of China, the people of Russia, and the people of Palestine. And in general, I learned that in far more ways than not, the citizens of those countries are just like me. They have families. They laugh. They cry. They get sick. Their family members die. And they mourn. They go to work. They exercise. They go to concerts and sporting events. And they yearn for freedom. They yearn for peace--not war. In sort, I learned that we are all children of God.<br /><br />The Doctrine and Covenants of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints teaches that one of the most important pursuits we can engage in while in this life is to learn. And one of the most important things we can learn about is <a href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/88.78-79?lang=eng#77">people and other cultures</a> that are different than we are. What I learned when reading that news magazine yesterday was that we can't learn much about other peoples and cultures when we are at war with them all the time.<br /><br />The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in my opinion, is the only true church on the earth. I don't say that to belittle anyone else's beliefs, but merely because I believe it to be so. I have great respect for anyone who disagrees with me. The reason I bring this point up in this context, though, is that I believe that my Church will save my country.<br /><br />The United States is currently the world's only superpower and, unfortunately, proud of it. I see the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which Leo <a href="http://www.angelfire.com/ut/ldsyw/leotolstoy.html">Tolstoy called "the American religion,"</a> as a peaceful counterbalance to a US government bent on militaristic and financial war and world domination. United States foreign policy, in short, goes against the grain of teachings of Jesus Christ.<br /><br />In order for the LDS Church to continue to grow, it must be a beacon of peace, which, at least in the short term, would put it more and more at odds with the government of the United States. A revelation in the LDS Doctrine and Covenants teaches that the United States Constitution promulgates principles that are applicable to all people--not just Americans. <br /><blockquote><span class="verse"></span>According to the laws and <sup class="studyNoteMarker">a</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/101.77-80?lang=eng#" id="footnote100" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=101&amp;noteID=77a&amp;lang=eng">constitution</a> of the people, which I have suffered to be established, and should be maintained for the <sup class="studyNoteMarker">b</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/101.77-80?lang=eng#" id="footnote101" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=101&amp;noteID=77b&amp;lang=eng">rights</a> and protection of all flesh, according to just and holy principles;<br /><br /><div class="highlight"><a class="bookmark-anchor dontHighlight" href="http://draft.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=25646979" name="78"></a><span class="verse"></span>That every man may act in doctrine and principle pertaining to futurity, according to the moral <sup class="studyNoteMarker">a</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/101.77-80?lang=eng#" id="footnote102" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=101&amp;noteID=78a&amp;lang=eng">agency</a> which I have given unto him, that every man may be <sup class="studyNoteMarker">b</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/101.77-80?lang=eng#" id="footnote103" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=101&amp;noteID=78b&amp;lang=eng">accountable</a> for his own sins in the day of <sup class="studyNoteMarker">c</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/101.77-80?lang=eng#" id="footnote104" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=101&amp;noteID=78c&amp;lang=eng">judgment</a>.</div><div class="highlight"><br /></div><div class="highlight"><a class="bookmark-anchor dontHighlight" href="http://draft.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=25646979" name="79"></a><span class="verse"></span>Therefore, it is not right that any man should be in <sup class="studyNoteMarker">a</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/101.77-80?lang=eng#" id="footnote105" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=101&amp;noteID=79a&amp;lang=eng">bondage</a> one to another.</div><div class="highlight"><br /></div><a class="bookmark-anchor dontHighlight" href="http://draft.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=25646979" name="80"></a><span class="verse"></span>And for this purpose have I established the <sup class="studyNoteMarker">a</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/101.77-80?lang=eng#" id="footnote106" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=101&amp;noteID=80a&amp;lang=eng">Constitution</a> of this land, by the hands of wise men whom I raised up unto this very purpose... </blockquote><br />The principles enshrined in Constitution of the United States--that all men are free to act according to their own consciences--cannot be promulgated by war. They cannot be promulgated by anger. Those principles must be promulgated by peaceful means.<br /><br />As the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints becomes more and more an international church, I see it as the organization that can most successfully (i.e. most peacefully) promulgate the eternal principles vouchsafed in the Constitution of the United States. Hopefully, the government of the United States can learn a thing or two about peace in the process. And hopefully, America can become peaceful again.<br /><br /><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s1600-h/SUMPIcon.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5150213613403742466" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s320/SUMPIcon.JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer;" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25646979-7634440893560338384?l=economicspolitics.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>";s:12:"link_replies";s:160:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/feeds/7634440893560338384/comments/defaulthttp://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/07/america-peaceful.html#comment-form";s:9:"link_edit";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/7634440893560338384";s:9:"link_self";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/7634440893560338384";s:4:"link";s:67:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/07/america-peaceful.html";s:11:"author_name";s:13:"Frank Staheli";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01822334061980912687";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";s:3:"thr";a:1:{s:5:"total";s:1:"1";}}i:6;a:13:{s:2:"id";s:59:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25646979.post-5972253098610972450";s:9:"published";s:29:"2011-07-03T10:05:00.001-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2011-07-03T10:24:39.832-06:00";s:5:"title";s:45:"Pakistan: Time To Disengage the Corrupt Elite";s:12:"atom_content";s:5187:"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AH7YPDmlUOo/ThCTGA-1RzI/AAAAAAAABTs/RGIh0HCeHj4/s1600/PakistanPaperBinLadenDead.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="90" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AH7YPDmlUOo/ThCTGA-1RzI/AAAAAAAABTs/RGIh0HCeHj4/s200/PakistanPaperBinLadenDead.jpg" width="120" /></a></div>Is it possible that the political and military leadership in Pakistan didn't know that Osama Bin Laden was living under their noses? No. This is one of the growing list of reasons why average Americans and Pakistanis should get to know each other instead of believing the mutually reinforcing lies told by their governments. <br /><a name='more'></a><br />Since 9/11, the United States has been kept relatively safe from terrorist attack. This is not, however, the result of a healthy American foreign policy. The world itself, as dry tinder in fear of just the right match, is much less safe than it was ten years ago. And that is largely the result of American foreign policy, which--intentionally or not--invites intrigue, unease, and danger. One of the greatest casualties of the global war on terror has been the population of Pakistan.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2011/05/02/the_lies_they_tell_us">Charles Kenny wrote recently</a> in <i>Foreign Policy</i> magazine that<br /><blockquote>If Americans are confused about exactly what Pakistan is up to, they need to get in line. Pakistanis are more confused -- utterly so.<br /><br /><br />This confusion has been carefully cultivated by a national elite whose singular focus is the accumulation of wealth, at all costs. In the near-decade since 9/11, Pakistan's generals, judges, politicians, and bureaucrats have constructed two separate and equally effective narratives. To the West, they sold the bin Laden version of Pakistan: a fanatical nation, full of restless natives armed to the teeth with hatred and -- if the West wasn't careful -- nukes. To ordinary Pakistanis, they sold the Ugly American version of the rest of the world: a big bad Uncle Sam and friends who were always burning Korans, knighting Salman Rushdies, and violating the Land of the Pure (the literal meaning of "Pakistan").&nbsp;</blockquote>Why would the United States want to do business with a government like that, let alone perpetuate it? It's no wonder that the Egyptian people hate the American government, because for thirty years we did business with a corrupt and dictatorial butcher. Similarly, because we do business with the riffraff of Pakistani politics, the average Pakistani has every bit as much of a reason to hate the United States of America as the average Egyptian does. American foreign policy has to change.<br /><br />We should have disengaged the corrupt elite in Pakistan years ago, and instead encourage free and fair elections, rather than trying to get the chips to fall wherever our government wants them to in order to have predictable but corrupt leadership there.<br /><br />Why has it been so hard to disengage from such corruption? In large part because we Americans continue to elect corrupt bureaucrats ourselves. Electing Ron Paul as president of the United States would go a long way toward diluting and destroying the intrigue and the corruption that seems to be the preferred way of doing business for Pakistani and American <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apparatchik">apparatchiki</a>.<br /><br />Many--if not most--Pakistanis don't like everyday Americans, because they have been fed a lie by their government as to what we think of them. Unfortunately, they may be right; many everyday Americans look down on everyday Pakistanis because we, in turn, believe the lies that our government has told us about them.<br /><br />Pakistanis are generally freedom loving people, just like Americans generally are. We need to connect on a new level--person to person. If our corrupt American leaders won't disengage Pakistan's corrupt leaders, we may not be able to fix that whole problem overnight. But we can begin to fix it by getting to know more about each others' <i>real</i> cultures and dreams and aspirations.<br /><br />Refusing to believe the mutually reinforcing lies that both of our governments are feeding us is a great place to start.<br /><br />Here's a more accurate portrayal about what Pakistan is really like <br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/51LiUJfLkKY" width="425"></iframe><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s1600-h/SUMPIcon.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5150213613403742466" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s320/SUMPIcon.JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer;" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25646979-5972253098610972450?l=economicspolitics.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>";s:12:"link_replies";s:178:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/feeds/5972253098610972450/comments/defaulthttp://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/07/pakistan-time-to-disengage-corrupt.html#comment-form";s:9:"link_edit";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/5972253098610972450";s:9:"link_self";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/5972253098610972450";s:4:"link";s:85:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/07/pakistan-time-to-disengage-corrupt.html";s:11:"author_name";s:13:"Frank Staheli";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01822334061980912687";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";s:3:"thr";a:1:{s:5:"total";s:1:"0";}}i:7;a:13:{s:2:"id";s:59:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25646979.post-4541232940685137366";s:9:"published";s:29:"2011-06-24T07:33:00.005-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2011-06-24T07:33:32.637-06:00";s:5:"title";s:30:"Prophets Don't Know Everything";s:12:"atom_content";s:5742:"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-shMI9ovlzh4/TgSRtNeAcgI/AAAAAAAABTo/uzcTxLBWJ24/s1600/NoManKnoweth.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="70" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-shMI9ovlzh4/TgSRtNeAcgI/AAAAAAAABTo/uzcTxLBWJ24/s200/NoManKnoweth.jpg" width="120" /></a></div>One of the most difficult things to say is "I don't know". But it's often the right thing to say, even for prophets. For reasons only known to him, God hasn't yet revealed everything about this earth, our existence, and eternity. But some day he will.<br /><a name='more'></a><br />Christians denominations all teach that Christ will come to earth again soon. But despite the occasional flourish to the contrary, nobody knows exactly when that will be. If you ask the president of the LDS Church when Christ will come, he'd probably tell you "I don't know" or "When he gets here." For whatever reason, that's the way God wants it to be.<br /><br />Prophets don't know everything--on purpose.<br /><br />Joseph Smith once prayed about the answer to this question. <a href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/130?lang=eng">This is the answer</a> that he received:<br /><blockquote>Joseph, my son, if thou livest until thou art eighty-five years old, thou shalt see the face of the Son of Man; therefore <sup class="studyNoteMarker">a</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/130?lang=eng#" id="footnote30" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=130&amp;noteID=15a&amp;lang=eng">let</a> this suffice, and trouble me no more on this matter.</blockquote><br />This didn't help him understand the answer to his question any more than before. <br /><br />I was left thus, without being able to decide whether this coming  referred to the beginning of the millennium or to some previous  appearing, or whether I should die and thus see his face.<br /><br />Some people will tell you that they are sure that the earth and everything on it came about without any help from evolution. If you ask an LDS Prophet, he will tell you that he doesn't know the answer to this question. Why, because almost nothing has been revealed about the matter. What has been revealed is this:<br /><blockquote>The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...declares man to be the direct and literal offspring of deity...Man is a child of God, formed in the divine image and endowed with divine attributes. </blockquote><br />However:<br /><blockquote>Our mission is to bear the message of the restored gospel. Leave [science] which has [nothing] to do with the salvation of the souls of mankind, to scientific research...<br /><i><br /></i><br /><i>Evolution and Mormonism: A Quest for Understanding</i>, pages 9-10</blockquote><br />It turns out that saying "I don't know" is also simply a matter of patience. Eventually we will know all things--<a href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/101?lang=eng">when God chooses</a> to reveal them.<br /><blockquote><span class="verse"></span>Yea, verily I say unto you, in that <sup class="studyNoteMarker">a</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/101?lang=eng#" id="footnote52" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=101&amp;noteID=32a&amp;lang=eng">day</a> when the Lord shall come, he shall <sup class="studyNoteMarker">b</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/101?lang=eng#" id="footnote53" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=101&amp;noteID=32b&amp;lang=eng">reveal</a> all things—<br /><br /><div class=""><a class="bookmark-anchor dontHighlight" href="http://draft.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=25646979" name="33"></a><span class="verse"></span>Things which have passed, and <sup class="studyNoteMarker">a</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/101?lang=eng#" id="footnote54" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=101&amp;noteID=33a&amp;lang=eng">hidden</a> things which no man knew, things of the <sup class="studyNoteMarker">b</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/101?lang=eng#" id="footnote55" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=101&amp;noteID=33b&amp;lang=eng">earth</a>, by which it was made, and the purpose and the end thereof—</div><div class=""><br /></div><div class=""><a class="bookmark-anchor dontHighlight" href="http://draft.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=25646979" name="34"></a><span class="verse"></span>Things  most precious, things that are above, and things that are beneath,  things that are in the earth, and upon the earth, and in heaven.</div></blockquote><div class="">When will we know all things? Sometime following Christ's return to earth. When will that be? Like I said before, "I don't know!!!" ;-) </div><br /><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s1600-h/SUMPIcon.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5150213613403742466" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s320/SUMPIcon.JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer;" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25646979-4541232940685137366?l=economicspolitics.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>";s:12:"link_replies";s:173:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/feeds/4541232940685137366/comments/defaulthttp://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/06/prophets-dont-know-everything.html#comment-form";s:9:"link_edit";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/4541232940685137366";s:9:"link_self";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/4541232940685137366";s:4:"link";s:80:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/06/prophets-dont-know-everything.html";s:11:"author_name";s:13:"Frank Staheli";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01822334061980912687";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";s:3:"thr";a:1:{s:5:"total";s:1:"0";}}i:8;a:13:{s:2:"id";s:59:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25646979.post-6107842986989149117";s:9:"published";s:29:"2011-05-26T08:42:00.000-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2011-05-26T08:42:32.488-06:00";s:5:"title";s:69:"Smart Kidnapper Brian David Mitchell Deserves What He's Got Coming???";s:12:"atom_content";s:3593:"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-HJWpnhzHzb4/Td5lSGDQZ7I/AAAAAAAABTk/vSNB3111Umo/s1600/ElizabethEdSmart.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="100" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-HJWpnhzHzb4/Td5lSGDQZ7I/AAAAAAAABTk/vSNB3111Umo/s200/ElizabethEdSmart.jpg" width="120" /></a></div>I'm glad that Elizabeth Smart's kidnapper, rapist, and abuser, Brian David Mitchell, is going to prison for a long time. But to hear other people say that he deserves the same sort of abuse when he gets to federal prison is very disturbing. <br /><a name='more'></a>Yesterday at the federal courthouse in Salt Lake City, <a href="http://www.deseretnews.com/article/705373351/Brian-David-Mitchells-life-sentence-is-beginning-of-a-very-beautiful-chapter-Elizabeth-Smart.html">Brian David Mitchell was sentenced</a> to life in prison for his heinous crimes against Elizabeth Smart. Following the sentencing, Smart said<br /><blockquote>Today is the ending of a very long chapter and the beginning of a very beautiful chapter for me...I want you [Mitchell] to know that I have a wonderful life now. No matter what you  do, you will never affect me again. You took away nine months of my  life that can never be returned. But I know that in this life or the  next, you will be held responsible for what you have done and I hope  you're ready for that when it comes.</blockquote><br />If only other Utahns could have handled the sentencing with as much grace and aplomb as the victim. <br /><br />Maybe it's a result of so many of us having become jaded in the face of torture of enemy combatants, I don't know. But I was very disturbed yesterday to hear caller after caller on the Rod Arquette show in Salt Lake City opine--sometimes with glee, other times with faux righteous indignation--that Mitchell should be "...held responsible for what [he has] done..." by deserving the same kind of abuse--that they expect he has coming--in maximum security federal prison.<br /><br />'The kinds of people that other inmates hate worst', said one caller, 'are rapists and pedophiles. So I can imagine that when Mitchell gets there, there are gonna be a lot of other prisoners wanting to get a piece of him. And I think that's good.'<br /><br />Subsequent callers agreed that he deserves what he's got coming--and then they described quite graphically how they hoped he would be beaten, tortured, and raped, so that he could feel the pain of what he did to Elizabeth Smart.<br /><br /><br />Elizabeth Smart doesn't want that. To be sure, she was very happy that her abuser would be behind bars for the rest of his life. I agree that he deserves to be behind bars. She deserves to be happy. But Elizabeth didn't express any glee or indignation similar to the radio show callers in expecting Mitchell to 'get what he deserved' in prison.<br /><br />Elizabeth Smart is not that cruel. No one should be.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s1600-h/SUMPIcon.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5150213613403742466" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s320/SUMPIcon.JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer;" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25646979-6107842986989149117?l=economicspolitics.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>";s:12:"link_replies";s:180:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/feeds/6107842986989149117/comments/defaulthttp://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/05/smart-kidnapper-brian-david-mitchell.html#comment-form";s:9:"link_edit";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/6107842986989149117";s:9:"link_self";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/6107842986989149117";s:4:"link";s:87:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/05/smart-kidnapper-brian-david-mitchell.html";s:11:"author_name";s:13:"Frank Staheli";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01822334061980912687";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";s:3:"thr";a:1:{s:5:"total";s:1:"2";}}i:9;a:13:{s:2:"id";s:59:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25646979.post-4469792037346797660";s:9:"published";s:29:"2011-05-22T17:25:00.000-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2011-05-22T17:25:49.258-06:00";s:5:"title";s:40:"Why Does Everything Fail Except Charity?";s:12:"atom_content";s:5214:"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RxPrFtB5854/TdmbK0VyIgI/AAAAAAAABTg/BRWd9EZe5wk/s1600/GregOlson-LostButFound.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="100" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RxPrFtB5854/TdmbK0VyIgI/AAAAAAAABTg/BRWd9EZe5wk/s200/GregOlson-LostButFound.jpg" width="120" /></a></div>1st Corinthians chapter 13 in the New Testament has this to say:<br /><blockquote>Charity never <sup class="studyNoteMarker">a</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/1-cor/13?lang=eng#" id="footnote13" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=nt&amp;bookUri=1-cor&amp;chapterUri=13&amp;noteID=8a&amp;lang=eng">faileth</a>: but whether <span class="clarityWord">there be</span> prophecies, they shall fail; whether <span class="clarityWord">there be</span> tongues, they shall cease; whether <span class="clarityWord">there be</span> knowledge, it shall vanish away.</blockquote>Here's what I think that means. <br /><a name='more'></a>One of the things that distinguishes the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from other religions is our belief in eternal progression. For example, LDS Church President Lorenzo Snow taught that<br /><blockquote><br />As man is, God once was. As God is, man maybe become.</blockquote>&nbsp;The first President of the LDS Church, Joseph Smith, said this: <br /><blockquote>"God himself was once as we are now, and is an exalted Man, and sits enthroned in yonder heavens. That is the great secret... It is the first principle of the Gospel to know for a certainty the character of God and to know...that he was once a man like us. Here, then, is eternal life--to know that only wise and true God, and you have got to learn how to become Gods yourselves..."</blockquote>To become God's ourselves, we must be possessed of perfect love--charity. That is why charity never faileth. But why, then does everything else "fail"? Why is charity greater than faith or hope? Why is the following scripture true?<br /><blockquote><br />Charity never <sup class="studyNoteMarker">a</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/1-cor/13?lang=eng#" id="footnote13" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=nt&amp;bookUri=1-cor&amp;chapterUri=13&amp;noteID=8a&amp;lang=eng">faileth</a>: but whether <span class="clarityWord">there be</span> prophecies, they shall fail; whether <span class="clarityWord">there be</span> tongues, they shall cease; whether <span class="clarityWord">there be</span> knowledge, it shall vanish away.</blockquote><br />The Book of Mormon teaches that perfection entails perfect love:<br /><blockquote>Wherefore, my beloved brethren, <sup class="studyNoteMarker">a</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/bofm/moro/7?lang=eng#" id="footnote82" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=bofm&amp;bookUri=moro&amp;chapterUri=7&amp;noteID=48a&amp;lang=eng">pray</a>  unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that ye may be filled  with this love, which he hath bestowed upon all who are true <sup class="studyNoteMarker">b</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/bofm/moro/7?lang=eng#" id="footnote83" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=bofm&amp;bookUri=moro&amp;chapterUri=7&amp;noteID=48b&amp;lang=eng">followers</a> of his Son, Jesus Christ; that ye may become the sons of God; that when he shall appear we shall <sup class="studyNoteMarker">c</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/bofm/moro/7?lang=eng#" id="footnote84" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=bofm&amp;bookUri=moro&amp;chapterUri=7&amp;noteID=48c&amp;lang=eng">be</a> like him, for we shall see him as he is; that we may have this hope; that we may be <sup class="studyNoteMarker">d</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/bofm/moro/7?lang=eng#" id="footnote85" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=bofm&amp;bookUri=moro&amp;chapterUri=7&amp;noteID=48d&amp;lang=eng">purified</a> even as he is pure.</blockquote>Perfection does not, however, entail perfect faith or perfect hope.&nbsp; When we will have become like  God, we will no longer need to live by faith, I don't think. Neither will we live by  hope, because we will, rather, live by perfect knowledge.<br /><br />But the one thing that we will always need is charity. Of the things that should daily motivate us, charity will always be required, even when we have become perfect. And thus, it will never fail. <br /><br /><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s1600-h/SUMPIcon.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5150213613403742466" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s320/SUMPIcon.JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer;" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25646979-4469792037346797660?l=economicspolitics.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>";s:12:"link_replies";s:183:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/feeds/4469792037346797660/comments/defaulthttp://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/05/why-does-everything-fail-except-charity.html#comment-form";s:9:"link_edit";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/4469792037346797660";s:9:"link_self";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/4469792037346797660";s:4:"link";s:90:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/05/why-does-everything-fail-except-charity.html";s:11:"author_name";s:13:"Frank Staheli";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01822334061980912687";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";s:3:"thr";a:1:{s:5:"total";s:1:"0";}}i:10;a:13:{s:2:"id";s:59:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25646979.post-2944656334720551470";s:9:"published";s:29:"2011-05-15T09:53:00.002-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2011-05-15T10:27:09.596-06:00";s:5:"title";s:59:"Red Clothing and Resurrection: Jesus Christ's Second Coming";s:12:"atom_content";s:20970:"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hj4VBBQIH6I/Tc_-xdSt8rI/AAAAAAAABTc/9kWUOZb_Vo0/s1600/SecondComingOfChrist.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="120" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hj4VBBQIH6I/Tc_-xdSt8rI/AAAAAAAABTc/9kWUOZb_Vo0/s200/SecondComingOfChrist.jpg" width="100" /></a></div><a href="http://ldsblogs.com/media/blogs/jesuschrist/SecondComingOfChrist.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><br /></a><br />The scriptures teach that when Christ comes again to the earth, that he will be wearing red apparel. Why <i>red</i>? They also teach that at Christ's coming, many of the dead will become resurrected. Will this <i>only </i>include members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints? Not by a long shot, no matter what some Mormon might tell you.<br /><a name='more'></a><br />Do you picture that when Christ comes again to earth that he will be robed in white? There exists a popular painting in Mormondom (included at the top right of this article, as a matter of fact) that conveys this impression. But according to the scriptures, this will not be so. The Doctrine and Covenants indicates that when Christ returns, <a href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/133.46-48?lang=eng#44">his clothing will be red</a>:<br /><blockquote><a class="bookmark-anchor dontHighlight" href="http://draft.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=25646979&amp;postID=2944656334720551470" name="46"></a>And it shall be said: <sup class="studyNoteMarker">a</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/133.46-48?lang=eng#" id="footnote88" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=133&amp;noteID=46a&amp;lang=eng">Who</a> is this that cometh down from God in heaven with dyed <sup class="studyNoteMarker">b</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/133.46-48?lang=eng#" id="footnote89" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=133&amp;noteID=46b&amp;lang=eng">garments</a>; yea, from the regions which are not known, clothed in his glorious apparel, traveling in the greatness of his strength? </blockquote><blockquote><div class="highlight"><a class="bookmark-anchor dontHighlight" href="http://draft.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=25646979&amp;postID=2944656334720551470" name="47"></a><span class="verse"></span>And he shall say: <sup class="studyNoteMarker">a</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/133.46-48?lang=eng#" id="footnote90" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=133&amp;noteID=47a&amp;lang=eng">I am</a> he who spake in <sup class="studyNoteMarker">b</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/133.46-48?lang=eng#" id="footnote91" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=133&amp;noteID=47b&amp;lang=eng">righteousness</a>, mighty to save.</div><div class="highlight"><a class="bookmark-anchor dontHighlight" href="http://draft.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=25646979&amp;postID=2944656334720551470" name="48"></a><span class="verse"></span>And the Lord shall be <sup class="studyNoteMarker">a</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/133.46-48?lang=eng#" id="footnote92" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=133&amp;noteID=48a&amp;lang=eng">red</a> in his apparel, and his garments like him that treadeth in the wine-vat.</div></blockquote>The Book of Revelation is slightly more descriptive of <a href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/rev/19.13?lang=eng#11">what the color red indicates</a>:<br /><blockquote><a class="bookmark-anchor dontHighlight" href="http://draft.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=25646979&amp;postID=2944656334720551470" name="13">&nbsp;</a><span class="verse"></span>And he <span class="clarityWord">was</span> <sup class="studyNoteMarker">a</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/rev/19.13?lang=eng#" id="footnote23" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=nt&amp;bookUri=rev&amp;chapterUri=19&amp;noteID=13a&amp;lang=eng">clothed</a> with a vesture dipped in blood: and his <sup class="studyNoteMarker">b</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/rev/19.13?lang=eng#" id="footnote24" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=nt&amp;bookUri=rev&amp;chapterUri=19&amp;noteID=13b&amp;lang=eng">name</a> is called The <sup class="studyNoteMarker">c</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/rev/19.13?lang=eng#" id="footnote25" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=nt&amp;bookUri=rev&amp;chapterUri=19&amp;noteID=13c&amp;lang=eng">Word</a> of God.</blockquote>Christ's garments will be red--or "dipped in blood"--in order to remind us that he <a href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/luke/22.44?lang=eng#43">sweat great drops of blood</a> as he suffered for all of our sins and weaknesses in the Garden of Gethsemane and on the Cross of Calvary.<br /><br />When Christ comes again soon in the last days of this earth, <a href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/133.56?lang=eng#55">many will be resurrected</a>.&nbsp; <br /><blockquote><br />And the <sup class="studyNoteMarker">a</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/133.56?lang=eng#" id="footnote109" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=133&amp;noteID=56a&amp;lang=eng">graves</a> of the <sup class="studyNoteMarker">b</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/133.56?lang=eng#" id="footnote110" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=133&amp;noteID=56b&amp;lang=eng">saints</a> shall be <sup class="studyNoteMarker">c</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/133.56?lang=eng#" id="footnote111" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=133&amp;noteID=56c&amp;lang=eng">opened</a>; and they shall come forth and stand on the <sup class="studyNoteMarker">d</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/133.56?lang=eng#" id="footnote112" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=133&amp;noteID=56d&amp;lang=eng">right</a> hand of the Lamb, when he shall stand upon <sup class="studyNoteMarker">e</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/133.56?lang=eng#" id="footnote113" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=133&amp;noteID=56e&amp;lang=eng">Mount Zion</a>, and upon the holy city, the New Jerusalem; and they shall <sup class="studyNoteMarker">f</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/133.56?lang=eng#" id="footnote114" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=133&amp;noteID=56f&amp;lang=eng">sing</a> the <sup class="studyNoteMarker">g</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/133.56?lang=eng#" id="footnote115" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=133&amp;noteID=56g&amp;lang=eng">song</a> of the <sup class="studyNoteMarker">h</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/133.56?lang=eng#" id="footnote116" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=133&amp;noteID=56h&amp;lang=eng">Lamb</a>, day and night forever and ever.</blockquote><br />This will be just as it was when Christ rose from the Garden Tomb in the meridian of time, as<a href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/matt/27.52-53?lang=eng#51"> many were resurrected at that time</a>.<br /><blockquote>And the <sup class="studyNoteMarker">a</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/matt/27.52-53?lang=eng#" id="footnote52" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=nt&amp;bookUri=matt&amp;chapterUri=27&amp;noteID=52a&amp;lang=eng">graves</a> were opened; and many <sup class="studyNoteMarker">b</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/matt/27.52-53?lang=eng#" id="footnote53" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=nt&amp;bookUri=matt&amp;chapterUri=27&amp;noteID=52b&amp;lang=eng">bodies</a> of the <sup class="studyNoteMarker">c</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/matt/27.52-53?lang=eng#" id="footnote54" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=nt&amp;bookUri=matt&amp;chapterUri=27&amp;noteID=52c&amp;lang=eng">saints</a> <sup class="studyNoteMarker">d</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/matt/27.52-53?lang=eng#" id="footnote55" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=nt&amp;bookUri=matt&amp;chapterUri=27&amp;noteID=52d&amp;lang=eng">which</a> slept <sup class="studyNoteMarker">e</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/matt/27.52-53?lang=eng#" id="footnote56" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=nt&amp;bookUri=matt&amp;chapterUri=27&amp;noteID=52e&amp;lang=eng">arose</a>,<br /><br /><a class="bookmark-anchor dontHighlight" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=25646979&amp;postID=2944656334720551470" name="53"></a><span class="verse"></span>And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the <sup class="studyNoteMarker">a</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/matt/27.52-53?lang=eng#" id="footnote57" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=nt&amp;bookUri=matt&amp;chapterUri=27&amp;noteID=53a&amp;lang=eng">holy</a> city, and appeared unto many. </blockquote>The Doctrine and Covenants gives a little bit more <a href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/133.54-55?lang=eng#53">detail as to those who were resurrected</a> just after Christ became the first in human history to be resurrected.<br /><blockquote><br />Yea, and <sup class="studyNoteMarker">a</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/133.54-55?lang=eng#" id="footnote104" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=133&amp;noteID=54a&amp;lang=eng">Enoch</a> also, and they who were with him; the prophets who were before him; and <sup class="studyNoteMarker">b</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/133.54-55?lang=eng#" id="footnote105" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=133&amp;noteID=54b&amp;lang=eng">Noah</a> also, and they who were before him; and <sup class="studyNoteMarker">c</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/133.54-55?lang=eng#" id="footnote106" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=133&amp;noteID=54c&amp;lang=eng">Moses</a> also, and they who were before him; <br /><div class="highlight"><a class="bookmark-anchor dontHighlight" href="http://draft.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=25646979&amp;postID=2944656334720551470" name="55"></a></div></blockquote><blockquote><div class="highlight"><a class="bookmark-anchor dontHighlight" href="http://draft.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=25646979&amp;postID=2944656334720551470" name="55"></a>And from <sup class="studyNoteMarker">a</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/133.54-55?lang=eng#" id="footnote107" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=133&amp;noteID=55a&amp;lang=eng">Moses</a> to Elijah, and from Elijah to John, who were with Christ in his <sup class="studyNoteMarker">b</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/133.54-55?lang=eng#" id="footnote108" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=133&amp;noteID=55b&amp;lang=eng">resurrection</a>, and the holy apostles, with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, shall be in the presence of the Lamb.</div></blockquote><div class="highlight"></div><div class="highlight">The Doctrine and Covenants is marvelous as to the detail that it provides that we cannot find in the Old and New Testaments. Who are <a href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/138.12-14?lang=eng#11">those that will be resurrected at the second coming</a> of the Savior?</div><blockquote><div class="highlight">And there were gathered together in one place an innumerable company of the spirits of the <sup class="studyNoteMarker">a</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/138.12-14?lang=eng#" id="footnote23" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=138&amp;noteID=12a&amp;lang=eng">just</a>, who had been <sup class="studyNoteMarker">b</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/138.12-14?lang=eng#" id="footnote24" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=138&amp;noteID=12b&amp;lang=eng">faithful</a> in the <sup class="studyNoteMarker">c</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/138.12-14?lang=eng#" id="footnote25" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=138&amp;noteID=12c&amp;lang=eng">testimony</a> of Jesus while they lived in mortality;</div><div class="highlight"><br /></div><div class="highlight"><a class="bookmark-anchor dontHighlight" href="http://draft.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=25646979&amp;postID=2944656334720551470" name="13"></a><span class="verse"></span>And who had offered <sup class="studyNoteMarker">a</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/138.12-14?lang=eng#" id="footnote26" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=138&amp;noteID=13a&amp;lang=eng">sacrifice</a> in the <sup class="studyNoteMarker">b</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/138.12-14?lang=eng#" id="footnote27" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=138&amp;noteID=13b&amp;lang=eng">similitude</a> of the great sacrifice of the Son of God, and had&nbsp;</div><div class="highlight">suffered <sup class="studyNoteMarker">c</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/138.12-14?lang=eng#" id="footnote28" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=138&amp;noteID=13c&amp;lang=eng">tribulation</a> in their Redeemer’s <sup class="studyNoteMarker">d</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/138.12-14?lang=eng#" id="footnote29" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=138&amp;noteID=13d&amp;lang=eng">name</a>.</div><div class="highlight"><br /></div><div class="highlight">All these had departed the mortal life, firm in the <sup class="studyNoteMarker">a</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/138.12-14?lang=eng#" id="footnote30" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=138&amp;noteID=14a&amp;lang=eng">hope</a> of a glorious <sup class="studyNoteMarker">b</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/138.12-14?lang=eng#" id="footnote31" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=138&amp;noteID=14b&amp;lang=eng">resurrection</a>, through the <sup class="studyNoteMarker">c</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/138.12-14?lang=eng#" id="footnote32" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=138&amp;noteID=14c&amp;lang=eng">grace</a> of God the <sup class="studyNoteMarker">d</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/138.12-14?lang=eng#" id="footnote33" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=138&amp;noteID=14d&amp;lang=eng">Father</a> and his <sup class="studyNoteMarker">e</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/138.12-14?lang=eng#" id="footnote34" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=138&amp;noteID=14e&amp;lang=eng">Only Begotten Son</a>, Jesus Christ.</div></blockquote><div class="highlight">It is a great misnomer that only those who have been members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in this life will come forth in the first resurrection. Once again, the <a href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/137.7-9?lang=eng#6">Doctrine and Covenants comes to the rescue</a>, clearing up that misconception held by many Latter-day Saints.</div><blockquote><div class="highlight">All who have died <sup class="studyNoteMarker">b</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/137.7-9?lang=eng#" id="footnote23" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=137&amp;noteID=7b&amp;lang=eng">without</a> a knowledge of this gospel, who would have received it if they had been permitted to tarry, shall be <sup class="studyNoteMarker">c</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/137.7-9?lang=eng#" id="footnote24" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=137&amp;noteID=7c&amp;lang=eng">heirs</a> of the celestial kingdom of God;</div><div class="highlight"><br /></div><div class="highlight"><a class="bookmark-anchor dontHighlight" href="http://draft.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=25646979&amp;postID=2944656334720551470" name="8"></a><span class="verse"></span>Also all that shall die henceforth without a knowledge of it, who <sup class="studyNoteMarker">a</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/137.7-9?lang=eng#" id="footnote25" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=137&amp;noteID=8a&amp;lang=eng">would</a> have received it with all their hearts, shall be heirs of that kingdom;</div><div class="highlight"><br /></div><div class="highlight"><a class="bookmark-anchor dontHighlight" href="http://draft.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=25646979&amp;postID=2944656334720551470" name="9"></a><span class="verse"></span>For I, the Lord, will <sup class="studyNoteMarker">a</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/137.7-9?lang=eng#" id="footnote26" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=137&amp;noteID=9a&amp;lang=eng">judge</a> all men according to their <sup class="studyNoteMarker">b</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/137.7-9?lang=eng#" id="footnote27" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=137&amp;noteID=9b&amp;lang=eng">works</a>, according to the <sup class="studyNoteMarker">c</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/137.7-9?lang=eng#" id="footnote28" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=dc-testament&amp;bookUri=dc&amp;chapterUri=137&amp;noteID=9c&amp;lang=eng">desire</a> of their hearts.</div></blockquote>In other words, like many other religions, we do believe that our Church is the "only [completely] true church". But unlike many other religions, we do <i>not </i>believe that you will burn in hell if you don't accept it.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s1600-h/SUMPIcon.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5150213613403742466" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s320/SUMPIcon.JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer;" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25646979-2944656334720551470?l=economicspolitics.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>";s:12:"link_replies";s:179:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/feeds/2944656334720551470/comments/defaulthttp://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/05/red-clothing-and-resurrection-jesus.html#comment-form";s:9:"link_edit";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/2944656334720551470";s:9:"link_self";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/2944656334720551470";s:4:"link";s:86:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/05/red-clothing-and-resurrection-jesus.html";s:11:"author_name";s:13:"Frank Staheli";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01822334061980912687";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";s:3:"thr";a:1:{s:5:"total";s:1:"2";}}i:11;a:13:{s:2:"id";s:59:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25646979.post-3354020561282348261";s:9:"published";s:29:"2011-04-30T09:45:00.019-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2011-04-30T13:49:10.384-06:00";s:5:"title";s:55:"2011 Utah County Republican Party Convention: LIve Blog";s:12:"atom_content";s:16219:"The two most controversial issues today will likely be whether or not to support a repeal of Utah House Bill 116 (regarding immigrant work permits) and whether Article X of the Utah State Republican Party Constitution ought to be amended to allow a 2/3 vote of the State Central Committee to overturn a 2/3 vote of State Delegates.&nbsp; <br /><br /><strong>Updated 1:38 PM 4/3/2011</strong> - See voting results at bottom.<br /><a name='more'></a><b>"State Central Party Veto" </b>We will elect this morning, from a field of 68 candidates, 20 members of the Utah Republican State Central Committee. Why is this important? Because somehow, probably less than half of the Central Committee members were on hand to vote 50-25 in favor of an inane amendment to the State Party Constitution. Hopefully today Utah County can elect 20 Committee members who oppose such draconian centralization of power and who will attend Central Committee meetings. <br /><br />The <u>text of the proposed change</u> to Amendment X ("State Central Party Veto") of the Utah State Republican Party Constitution&nbsp;is this:<br /><blockquote>The Constitution may be amended by a 2/3 vote of the members at a State Central Committee meeting if subsequently ratified by a majority vote of the Delegates present at the State Convention. The Constitution may also be amended by 2/3 vote of Delegates present at the State Convention,<u> if subsequently ratified by a majority vote of the State Central Committee</u>.</blockquote>As a Republican State Delegate, I will be voting on this at the June convention. But this amendment is so ludicrous that I can't imagine how it ever even came up. The Republican juggernaut, with such a new power, would be even more of a juggernaut farther from the grass roots.<br /><br />How a candidate feels about&nbsp; the State Central Party Veto is my litmus test for who I will support.<br /><br /><b>House Bill 116. <a href="http://le.utah.gov/~2011/htmdoc/hbillhtm/HB0116S03.htm">Utah Accountability and Enforcement Amendments</a> </b><br /><br />I support House Bill 116, because it is a step in the right direction--that of helping those to become Americans <br /><br /><b>Convention Business.</b><br /><br />Of over 1400 Republican County delegates in Utah County, about 860 delegates are in attendance, with is about 56%. That seems lower than at other meetings. <br /><br />Five people were allowed to vote this morning before the convention began, because they were not able to stay. The rules normally do not allow such, so that action had to be approved by a majority of the delegates in attendance--which it was--so those votes will be allowed to be counted.<br /><br />10:17 AM: Let the parade of candidates begin! Three candidates withdrew from the State Central Committee race, so now we are watching the 65 candidates march across the stage as their names are announced, so that we can put their faces with their names.<br /><br />10:27 AM: Each candidate for county party chair now gets 5 minutes to state his case. Kirby Glad got the boilerplate "I love the Constitution, blah blah blah" taken care of off the top. Then he said that we do too much bickering in our county party meetings.&nbsp; Then he asked us to vote not only for him, but the 3 other candidates on his "9 for 5" slate. It's great that there is that option, but I won't be voting for it, because I don't want 4 people who think just like each other. I think Kirby has done a great job when participating in the county party business, and he would be a good chair...<br /><br />...but I think David Acheson would be better. David was nominated by former county party worker Marian Monaghan. David pointed out that our meetings are inefficient and they take too long, because they haven't been managed as well as they could have been. He values a good debate. "We've got to listen better," he said, because, besides being the respectful thing to do, it helps us understand our own positions better. We should be able to "duke it out" and still respect the final decision. "Robust, articulate debate should always be welcomed," Acheson said, and not feared. Based on his presentation and the response, I expect him to win handily.<br /><br />Dave Duncan championed the use of social media and a forum on the county party website as ways to "restore communication within the party." He expressed his faith in the delegates as opposed to letting "the power hungry S[tate] C[entral] C[ommittee] establishment" make our decisions for us. Dave will make his personal opinions known on the issues, but he conduct official business with respect for all opinions if elected. Dave's presentation was not as well put together as the others, but he seemed to get even more applause than even David Acheson.<br /><br /><b>10:45 AM</b> - County Vice Chair candidates were given 5 minutes each to speak. This will be&nbsp; a tough choice for me between Lisa Shepherd and Adrielle Herring. Lisa Shepherd was nominated by Kepi Hemuli, chair of my legislative district #67, and by Morgan Philpot. She expressed being inspired by seeing so many committed, energized Republican delegates. She pledged to be a leader that inspires civility and dignity despite our disagreements. As we do so, we can become the envy of other county Republican parties nationwide.<br /><br />Interestingly, someone who worked on the Morgan Philpot campaign nominated Adrielle Herring for vice chair. Adrielle has served as the party education officer, and I thought she did a great job helping us to understand how county party business should be conducted. She put together, in her opinion, the most comprehensive Get Out the Vote campaign in county party history. She will dedicate the same energy to being the county party vice chair. "The more people who are involved in the political process, the healthier it is," said Herring.<br /><br />Lisa got a lot of applause, but Adrielle got even more.<br /><br /><b>10:55 AM</b> Nominations for county party secretary. Jeremy Roberts' wife and Daniel Thatcher nominated Jeremy for secretary. With Jeremy's help, Thatcher was able to unseat a 30-year Democrat incumbent. Roberts stated, tongue in cheek, that his sole purpose for running for secretary is that "Jim Matheson is my congressman and I can't take it anymore." He has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for Republican candidates.<br /><br />Jared Jardine introduced himself. He is VP of Crusader Health Technologies with a Master's in Computer Science from BYU. He has several years of experience as delegate in the Utah Republican Party. He explained how important it is for the secretary to ensure that voting district maps are correct so that voters are not disenfranchised. The county party website is lacking in keeping updated, as Jared noticed that it still states that Bob Bennett is one of Utah's Senators. He supports an open agenda, so that everyone can have a chance to be influential. He stated that the party should not remain silent on controversial issues, citing school vouchers as an example. We should not attack each other as republicans, he said. Rather, we should be unified in being an example of good governing principles.<br /><br />Kristen Chevrier introduced herself. She prides herself in her ability to educate,such as in her monthly courses on Roberts Rules of Order and Parliamentary Procedure. She has educated people in her precinct on how to get involved in the party, and has hosted several Meet the Candidate nights. She is a member of the Constitution and Bylaws committee. Until Lisa Shepherd became secretary, there was very little history of Utah County Party business. She will continue this tradition.<br /><br />11:08 AM - To distinguish himself from another treasurer candidate, Scott Bell introduced himself as "Short Hot Scott". She is CFO for a company in Utah County. He is on the Alpine School District Board. He will submit quarterly reports of county party finances and make financial information transparent and easy for delegates to understand. He encouraged us all to better understand the state and county party platforms and inspire the next generation to stand up for what they value politically.<br /><br />Steve Reid introduced himself and thanked the delegates for sacrificing their time to be here. He challenged us to vote for the best candidate for each office, and not for a slate of candidates just because they have a catchy slogan. He has a business degree from BYU, and has been involved in businesses that have $15 million budgets.<br /><br />Don Larsen said that he endorsed the Republican party platform as almost perfect, and that a delegate should resign if they do not support it. He paid tribute to a friend who had been killed in a driving accident by an illegal immigrant. He cited Ann Coulter's claim that Democrats are destroying America as a reason to support illegal immigration. He quoted the Apostle Paul who said that we would have perilous times in the last days. He cited LDS Apostle Boyd K Packer who challenged us to awaken to our awful situation at the secret combination that was attempting to overthrow America.<br /><br />Tall Cool Lisa Jensen said that she is not running as a slate, because she doesn't think that slates are approrpriate. Each candidate should stand on their own two feet. She cited years of financial experience in business. She is currently a treasurer for a non-profit organization. She pledged to work effectively with whichever other county party officers are elected. She will not just do her job as treasurer, but help wherever asked and where it makes sense. "We need to be more assertive in our defense of the Constitution."&nbsp; She is in favor of House Bill 116 as a healthy improvement that brings immigrants into citizenship status more easily. She encouraged our national delegation to fix the immigration problem on a national level.<br /><br />11:25 AM - Becky Strain presented the final credentialing report. 906 delegates were credentialed all told, which was 63% of those who could have been here. This includes a handful of late delegates were credentialed as approved by the delegates in attendance.<br /><br />11:28 AM - Voting begins now for county party officers and State Central Committee members.<br /><br />12:09 PM - Platform Amendment Entitlement Reform was overwhelmingly supported without any further discussion. Much discussion was had at our last central committee meeting on this subject.<br /><br />The Platform Amendment citing the United States as a "Compound Constitutional Republic" passed almost as overwhelmingly as the previous amendment.<br /><br />Mark Steele proposed that we adopt a resolution for "respectful and dignified treatment of all people" regardless of how they may be different than us. I support it. Steele's comments cited abusive treatment that a transgendered woman received in Utah as well as several incidents of disrespectful treatment of minorities as reasoning for supporting this resolution. I wish I had been the one to come up with this resolution.&nbsp; Laura Bunker of Lehi precinct 11 opposed the resolution. Although she believes we should be respectful of all people, she decries the assigning of sexual orientation as a protected class. Others rose in support of the resolution, but unfortunately, they didn't receive nearly as much applause. The nays have it overwhelmingly. Bummer.<br /><br />12:22 PM - <b>Discussion on House Bill 116. </b>Several members of the Utah Legislature who reside in Utah County spent several minutes explaining why we should oppose House Bill 116. For one, they think it penalizes those who try to come here legally. Secondly, as it was that a similar number of people came from various countries to America, now Mexicans dominate the numbers of those who migrate to the United States. Where is the inalienable right of others who come from countries other than Mexico? asked Representative Chris Herrod. He cited crime statistics claiming that illegal immigrants commit crimes in disproportion to their numbers.<br /><br />This is definitely an issue that is disagreed on in Republican circles.&nbsp; Several Utah Republican legislators also stood to support HB 116. Speaking for them, Holly Richardson pointed out that there is no question that the immigration laws are broken. But we can't just sit and wait for the federal government to do something. Utah cannot address the issues that make it difficult for people from far away to come to the United States, but it can work to solve problems that affect Utah. We are forced to medicate and incarcerate those who are illegal, without requiring them to have "skin in the game" such as requiring them to make co-payments at the emergency room.<br /><br />HB 116 is intended to get the federal government to do its job. If it fails in this job, we have not only a right but a responsibility to begin to solve the problem. HB 116 is only the beginning. It requires fines, background checks, penalties, etc. It will catch much more identity theft and fraud. It requires health insurance or proof of ability to pay for basic health care. Ironically, said those in favor of HB 116, the status quo is what perpetuates amnesty.&nbsp; Governor Herbert made it clear that HB 116 does not take away power from the Federal Government or to ask them to give us such power. It tells them that they have failed, and that we have to do what is best for our state. It is a 10th Amendment issue, said the governor, including decisions as to the conditions for employment in Utah.&nbsp; Utah will not participate in the ICE charade of ignoring illegal immigration any longer. This will bring immigrants into the community of tax paying Utahns.<br /><br />Based on the number of boo birds (loud but few) and the applause for those in support of HB 116, I think the resolution will pass.<br /><br />12:44 pm The convention debate will be limited to a presentation of a resolution by Kerri Witte encouraging repeal of HB 116 and discussion by three people in favor and three people opposed to the&nbsp; resolution.&nbsp; The thing that bothers me most about this discussion is that those in favor think that the rest of us don't appreciate the United States constitution. Interesting. It's a matter of perspective. I think Utah HB 116 IS constitutional. The most poignant point that I have trouble dealing with is that HB 116 will make it easier for people to become US citizens, and for years there have been tens of thousands who have gone through a broken system that has taken much time and been very costly. But I see that as no reason to continue to penalize current and future immigrants.<br /><br /><strong>Voting Results.</strong> The vote for&nbsp;the&nbsp;Resolution asking&nbsp;the State Legislature for a&nbsp;repeal of House Bill 116 was very close, but ultimately, it passed 443-365. Bummer. Just when I thought things were starting to improve in the immigration arena.<br /><br />For County Party Chair, David Acheson received 325 votes, and Dave Duncan got 284. They&nbsp;have advanced to the&nbsp;second round of voting&nbsp;over Kirby Glad, who came up just 6 votes short of Duncan's total, at 278. That surprised me.<br /><br />Adrielle Herring is the new Vice Chair, having received 470 votes to Lisa Shepherd's 413.<br /><br />Kristen Chevrier (299 votes) and Jeremy Roberts (296) have advanced to the second round of voting over Jared Jardine (287 votes).<br /><br />For treasurer, Scott Bell 451 votes and 51.18%) was the outright winner over Lisa Jensen (246),&nbsp;Steven Reid (168 votes) and Don Larsen (18 votes)<br /><br /><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s1600-h/SUMPIcon.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5150213613403742466" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s320/SUMPIcon.JPG" style="cursor: pointer;" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25646979-3354020561282348261?l=economicspolitics.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>";s:12:"link_replies";s:182:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/feeds/3354020561282348261/comments/defaulthttp://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/04/2011-utah-county-republican-convention.html#comment-form";s:9:"link_edit";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/3354020561282348261";s:9:"link_self";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/3354020561282348261";s:4:"link";s:89:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/04/2011-utah-county-republican-convention.html";s:11:"author_name";s:13:"Frank Staheli";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01822334061980912687";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";s:3:"thr";a:1:{s:5:"total";s:1:"2";}}i:12;a:13:{s:2:"id";s:59:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25646979.post-2083685395123397733";s:9:"published";s:29:"2011-04-08T14:11:00.000-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2011-04-08T14:11:03.236-06:00";s:5:"title";s:56:"The Real Problem with Government Welfare: It's Not Fraud";s:12:"atom_content";s:6425:"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3o3M-zE8Jqc/TZ9pyCq8CSI/AAAAAAAABTY/mz4dRBfFDAc/s1600/WelfareAsTheft.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="100" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3o3M-zE8Jqc/TZ9pyCq8CSI/AAAAAAAABTY/mz4dRBfFDAc/s200/WelfareAsTheft.jpg" width="120" /></a></div>I used to think that the problem of welfare the fraud it engendered, as well as it being a magnet for illegal immigration. In his book, <i>The End of Welfare: Fighting Poverty in the Civil Society</i>, author Michael Tanner points out that neither of these perceptions is true. The problem with welfare, rather, says Tanner, is the kind of unproductive lethargy that it breeds all across society.<br /><a name='more'></a><br />What are the common (usually conservative) misconceptions about welfare?<br /><br /><b>That illegal immigrants are a net drain on the US welfare system.</b>&nbsp; This is not true. Some sort of employment IS nearly always available to those who sincerely seek it. This is illustrated by the many immigrants who come to America and are willing to find work. Of course, unemployment benefits provide a "floor" for the unemployed American citizen, who generally refuses to accept employment that pays a wage similar to the amount of an unemployment check.<br /><br /><b>That a great deal of fraud exists in the welfare system.&nbsp;</b> Not so. As a general rule, Tanner noted, fraud accounts for about 4% of all welfare cases, a much lower incidence than in other government programs.<br /><blockquote>The danger of focusing on welfare fraud is that it's not the biggest problem.&nbsp; Tanner says<br />In many ways, focusing on fraud...is a distraction from the real evils of the welfare system.</blockquote><blockquote><i>The End of Welfare</i>, p. 126</blockquote>What are the real evils of the welfare system?<br /><br /><b>Disincentives to Find Employment.</b> In many cases, people need to relocate to find employment. Welfare assistance short circuits this process.&nbsp; The <a href="http://www.cato.org/pubs/policy_report/cpr-18n6-1.html">Cato Institute explains</a> it<br /><blockquote>In some ways, the availability of welfare disrupts normal labor migration patterns by allowing people to remain in areas with low employment. If welfare had been in place at the beginning of the century, the great migration of black sharecroppers and farm workers from southern farms to northern factories would never have taken place. </blockquote>Even Gary Burtless of the Brookings Institution <a href="http://www.cato.org/pubs/policy_report/cpr-18n6-1.html">opined </a>that<br /><blockquote>"if welfare recipients realize their benefits are going to stop . . . it will cause them to search much, much harder for alternatives."</blockquote><b>Loss of Dignity. </b>In her book, <i>Tyranny of Kindness</i>, Theresa Funiciello, who was once a welfare mother described the regular "dehumanizing world of the government welfare system--a system in which regulations and bureaucracy rule all else."<br /><br />Based on her experience with the government, most people's feigned concern for the poor, says Funiciello,<br /><blockquote>came neither out of real sympathy for the plight of those less fortunate nor out of a simple respect for human life. Their motivating force would more accurately be characterized as disdain.<br /><br /><i>Tyranny of Kindness</i>, p. 233</blockquote>Such dehumanization can occur in instances of private charity, but it is not institutionalized as it must be in government welfare systems. Take, for example, the case of an individual who needs a new battery to be able to drive downtown to their new job. Private charity drives the individual to the job and/or purchases the battery for them. Government is compelled to tell the individual to wait two weeks until their next welfare check comes.<br /><br /><b>Absence of Values.</b> Because government must treat all cases the same, and because of the separation of church and state, government welfare programs cannot support religious programs as a way to help people out of poverty. This is despite the reality that religious organizations have helped legions of individuals out of poverty.<br /><br /><b>Loss of Initiative. </b>What happens when welfare recipients are suddenly taken off welfare? They find gainful employment in much higher numbers. A study at Ohio University found that<br /><blockquote>18.3 percent of poor people receiving welfare moved out of poverty within one year. However, 45 percent of poor people who did not receive welfare were able to escape poverty. <br /><br /><i>The End of Welfare</i>, p. 133</blockquote>Other studies have shown that, shortly after getting off welfare, nearly half of all former recipients have employment that earns them as much or more than what they were making while on unemployment compensation.<br /><br /><b>The Solution? </b>To a large degree, "government welfare" is an oxymoron. What government dispenses is often to the detriment of those it is trying to help.&nbsp; To be sure, there is not a great deal of fraud in the US welfare system. But that is not the problem. The real problem leads to a loss of productivity and money in far worse fashion than fraud ever could. The problem is lethargy. The problem is a lack of real caring.<br /><br />The solution is private welfare--private charity. Says Tanner:<br /><blockquote>Private efforts have been much more successful than the federal government's failed attempt at charity. America is the most generous nation on earth.</blockquote>That's almost ironic: we are STILL the most generous nation on earth DESPITE the fact that the government already takes so much of our money and flushes it down a rathole. <br /><br /><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s1600-h/SUMPIcon.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5150213613403742466" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s320/SUMPIcon.JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer;" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25646979-2083685395123397733?l=economicspolitics.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>";s:12:"link_replies";s:180:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/feeds/2083685395123397733/comments/defaulthttp://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/04/real-problem-with-government-welfare.html#comment-form";s:9:"link_edit";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/2083685395123397733";s:9:"link_self";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/2083685395123397733";s:4:"link";s:87:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/04/real-problem-with-government-welfare.html";s:11:"author_name";s:13:"Frank Staheli";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01822334061980912687";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";s:3:"thr";a:1:{s:5:"total";s:1:"2";}}i:13;a:13:{s:2:"id";s:59:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25646979.post-8874576916233963596";s:9:"published";s:29:"2011-03-28T20:20:00.000-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2011-03-28T20:20:09.956-06:00";s:5:"title";s:15:"An End to Guilt";s:12:"atom_content";s:4992:"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rTAt-7V_9ro/TZFBY2cEizI/AAAAAAAABTU/To6s39PDdtM/s1600/GuiltFree.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="120" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rTAt-7V_9ro/TZFBY2cEizI/AAAAAAAABTU/To6s39PDdtM/s200/GuiltFree.jpg" width="100" /></a></div>One of the most damaging aspects of most religions is that the members of those religions heap upon themselves unnecessary burdens of guilt. In this article, I'll explain why, specifically from a Mormon perspective, this is most unfortunate.<br /><a name='more'></a>Mormons, let me ask you a few questions: (1) When is the last time that you said your personal prayers? (2) When is the last time that you sat down with your family to have scripture study? (3) How many weeks has it been since you have held Family Home Evening? (4) Did you do your home or visiting teaching last month?<br /><br />And now a final question: how many pangs of guilt did you feel when you read those four questions? If you're like most Mormons, the answer is probably 4. ;-)<br /><br />The reason that I asked those questions was <i>actually not</i> to make you feel guilty. Rather, it was to lay the groundwork for pointing out that we do not need to feel guilty for failure to do these things. A much better attitude is to feel the catharsis of knowing that we have some things that we can improve on.<br /><br />One of my favorite Hugh Nibley quotes is this: "Righteousness is a matter of direction."&nbsp; Now, look at the four questions above one more time. How might you have better responded to them? I suggest something like this: there is no better time than now to repent. It's that simple. No more of this feeling less than the dust of the earth because we're not perfect. We should rather, chuckle at the fact that we're not perfect--for two reasons: (1) because there's only one person who has ever <i>been </i>perfect on the earth--Jesus Christ, and (2) because item number 1 should bring many Mormons an <i>immense</i> sense of relief.<br /><br />In the temple we learn that as we make covenants we will hopefully one day be able to stand before our God having been completely faithful to those covenants. It took me until just about a month ago, however, to figure out that we&nbsp; <i>would not possibly ever</i>&nbsp; be able to say that we had been completely faithful, had it not been for the Atonement of Jesus Christ, which thankfully allows us a plethora of do-overs.<br /><br />The Atonement is everywhere in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Atonement is everywhere in the ordinances of the temple as well. But we have a hard time seeing that because we are so busy thinking what great failures we are for not having yet reached perfection all by ourselves. Happily, it was actually never intended to be that way. Our Heavenly Parents want us to, at some future point in eternity, have and enjoy everything that they enjoy. The <i>only</i> catch is that we have to let them help us do this, through the sacrifice of their Son--our Elder Brother--Jesus Christ. The only thing we can offer is to <i>want that help</i>. Sure, there are sins we commit for which we must feel guilt and remorse, but in most cases, guilt for weaknesses only gets in the way and causes us to stop wanting the help that is the only way we can make it back to Them.<br /><br />So the next time you realize that you haven't served in the temple for a while...don't feel stupid about it; rather, make a plan to go to the temple.<br /><br />When you notice that you've been so pre-occupied that you haven't read your scriptures for a while...don't feel guilty; just pick up your scriptures and read them the next chance you get.<br /><br />If it's been several weeks since your family has had Family Home Evening, that's okay. Just try to see if you can gradually get back in the habit of having Family Home Evening.<br /><br />If it suddenly dawns on you that you haven't said your personal prayers for a while...you just might be in a place where you can mentally do a quick check-in with your Heavenly Father right now.<br /><br />That's all it takes.&nbsp; Our Heavenly Father doesn't want us to look downward in faux guilt.&nbsp; He wants us to look upward in authentic optimism. Enough with all the unnecessary guilt already!<br /><br /><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s1600-h/SUMPIcon.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5150213613403742466" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s320/SUMPIcon.JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer;" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25646979-8874576916233963596?l=economicspolitics.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>";s:12:"link_replies";s:156:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/feeds/8874576916233963596/comments/defaulthttp://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/03/end-to-guilt.html#comment-form";s:9:"link_edit";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/8874576916233963596";s:9:"link_self";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/8874576916233963596";s:4:"link";s:63:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/03/end-to-guilt.html";s:11:"author_name";s:13:"Frank Staheli";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01822334061980912687";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";s:3:"thr";a:1:{s:5:"total";s:1:"2";}}i:14;a:13:{s:2:"id";s:59:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25646979.post-7123047966569105975";s:9:"published";s:29:"2011-03-26T11:11:00.002-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2011-03-26T11:17:59.471-06:00";s:5:"title";s:53:"RIP-Utah HB477 Repealed: Why it was Necessary (Draft)";s:12:"atom_content";s:5879:"We do need a revamped Government Records Access Management Act (GRAMA), but not like this. House Bill 477 codified legislative secrecy into law--that's what was wrong with it. I agree with Senator Steve Urquhart, Republican of St. George, Utah, who said that ""It is my opinion that we simply messed up. It was no one's fault but ours." I'm glad it was repealed. Now, let's do it right.<br /><a name='more'></a>I received an email from my State Senator, Mark Madsen, Republican of Eagle Mountain, a couple of nights ago, which was very heated and arrogant. The email excoriated the media for its efforts in derailing House Bill 477. Who does he think we commoners are, mincemeat?<br /><br />Here is my email reply to him:<br /><blockquote>Senator <span class="il">Madsen</span>:<br /><br />You wrote: "I have to wonder why the media would not want this public discussion and debate to take place.&nbsp; "<br /><br />The  media AND the people WANT the debate to take place, which, it seemed to  us, actually, that the legislature didn't. We do not want an apparently  carte blanche law that seems to allow the state legislature to keep  what should be supposedly public deliberations in the dark.&nbsp; There was  very little trust among the people, including most Republicans, that  anything would happen to fix the bill before July 1st, considering that  it was rushed through in the last few days of the legislative session.<br /><br />It appears to me that the new law says that the GRAMA act, with the  exception of documents that have become officially certified state  documents, does not apply to the legislature.&nbsp; If so, that is not right.  It is much more nuanced than that. I hold open the possibility that I  am wrong, and would welcome your reply to explain the details of why I  might be incorrect.<br /><br />Clearly something needs to be done to bring the Govt Records Access  Mgmt Act up to date, but NOT the way it was done.&nbsp; Contrary to what  Speaker Lockhart said, it WAS a huge mistake to have it hidden and then  quickly passed into law the way it was. The best and cleanest way to  take care of this, and to get back the confidence of the people, is to  repeal the law on Friday March 25th and take time to do it right.</blockquote>HB 477 was thankfully repealed, but not with the help of Senator Madsen. Madsen was one of 5 Senators--all Republicans--and 3 Representatives--too, all Republicans--who think the legislature should have the privilege of secrecy and who think the people of Utah don't matter.<br /><br />Here is the <a href="http://le.utah.gov/%7E2011/bills/hbillenr/hb0477.pdf">"enrolled" copy of House Bill 477</a>--i.e. the version that passed the Utah Legislature a couple of weeks ago.<br /><br />Granted there are some really good things in it, such as in 63G-2-203 on page 23 of the bill, which states, among other things that<br /><blockquote>A governmental entity may charge a reasonable fee for processing requests for a record under this chapter in an amount sufficient to cover the governmental entity's actual cost&nbsp;of providing a record, including costs of overhead and administration.<br /><br /><br />A governmental entity may choose to fulfill a record request without fee or cost assessment, or for a reduced fee or cost assessment if it determines...that waiving or reducing the fee or cost assessment is an appropriate use of taxpayer funds and resources;</blockquote><br />But there are some pretty surprisingly bad things in it as well.<br /><br />Page 14 of House Bill 477 says, for example, says that most of Title 63A Chapter 12--a portion of the Government Records Access Management Act--does not apply to the State Legislature. Part of what <a href="http://le.utah.gov/%7Ecode/TITLE63A/htm/63A12_010300.htm">no longer applied to the legislature until HB 477's repeal</a> was the requirement to work with the state archivist to ensure that the legislature's records of business are correctly and officially archived. <br /><br />To say that that's a bad thing is an understatement.&nbsp; But it gets worse.<br /><br />Look at page 20 of HB 477 (<a href="http://le.utah.gov/%7E2011/bills/hbillenr/hb0477.pdf">here's the link to the PDF document again</a>). It does, by way of implication, say that emails are public records (although not legislators' private email addresses, which I agree with), but from there it says that<br /><br /><ul><li>voice mails are <i>never</i> to be considered public records, regardless of whether those voice mails pertain to public legislative business.</li><li>text messages are <i>never</i> to be considered public records, regardless of whether those text messages pertain to legislative business.  </li><li>"a note prepared by an employee or officer of a governmental entity for the employee's or officer's own use or reference" is<i> never</i> considered a public record.</li><li>Any kind of chat message (text, video, etc.) is <i>never</i> considered a public record, regardless of whether those chat messages pertain to legislative business.&nbsp;</li></ul>The business of a legislator is by definition public. I have a hard time (although I've never been a state legislator, I have been a member of city council) understanding why a legislator would be afraid of having that information public.<br /><br />I you say something that you later disagree with, you can admit it without shame. If you say something stupid, you can apologize; I do that all the time <a href="http://www.facebook.com/frank.staheli">on my Facebook page</a>. But whether or not you as a legislator say something sinister, we have a right to know about it.<br /><br />...Developing....check back later...<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25646979-7123047966569105975?l=economicspolitics.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>";s:12:"link_replies";s:178:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/feeds/7123047966569105975/comments/defaulthttp://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/03/rip-utah-hb477-repealed-why-it-was.html#comment-form";s:9:"link_edit";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/7123047966569105975";s:9:"link_self";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/7123047966569105975";s:4:"link";s:85:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/03/rip-utah-hb477-repealed-why-it-was.html";s:11:"author_name";s:13:"Frank Staheli";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01822334061980912687";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";s:3:"thr";a:1:{s:5:"total";s:1:"1";}}i:15;a:13:{s:2:"id";s:59:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25646979.post-2403971944285811354";s:9:"published";s:29:"2011-03-25T16:36:00.003-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2011-03-25T16:59:06.623-06:00";s:5:"title";s:47:"Why I Love Facebook: Mark Zuckerberg Visits BYU";s:12:"atom_content";s:7262:"<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://images.forbes.com/media/lists/10/2008/I9UB.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="100" src="http://images.forbes.com/media/lists/10/2008/I9UB.jpg" width="120" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Credit: Forbes Magazine</td></tr></tbody></table>I'm glad I attended the BYU Technology Forum today, which featured Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg. I once thought Facebook was another time-wasting gizmo like MySpace. Boy, was I wrong. Reflecting the insights of its founder, Facebook allows the passionate to share their passion in productive ways to bring people together in common causes in order to make a better world.<br /><a name='more'></a><br />I suspect that about 90% of people who use Facebook are not passionate about it, and many of those probably use it for varying degrees of mindless pursuits, such as everything from Mafia Wars to FarmVille. &nbsp;That's fine for them, I guess, but after getting to know Mark Zuckerberg a little better today, I don't think that's what he envisions as the primary use for his revolutionary tool.&nbsp; Facebook is about sharing.&nbsp; Facebook is about collaborating.&nbsp; It is about innovating.&nbsp; It is about forging a better world.&nbsp; Facebook is the perfect tool for the furthering my passion, which is getting people together to discuss and learn from each other about a variety of important political and social issues. (<a href="http://www.facebook.com/frank.staheli">Join the discussion by clicking here</a>.)<br /><br />Mr. Zuckerberg came to the BYU Marriott Center today for a one-hour technology forum. He was interviewed by Utah Senator Orrin Hatch, who asked questions mostly from the batch of queries that had been posted on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/BYU/104937157417">BYU's Facebook page</a>. It was one of the most insightful and inspirational forums that I have ever attended at the Marriott Center.<br /><br /><b>A Mix of Psych with Tech. </b>Mark, as he prefers to be called, is a very eloquent speaker--much more so than 5 or 6 years ago.&nbsp; He is successful because he is passionate about what he does. More to the point, he is successful, because he is interested not only in computer technology, but also in human psychology, having pursued a double major at Harvard in those two fields before leaving as Facebook started to achieve great success. "All problems are human problems," Mark told Senator Hatch, and if we pursue them that way, we are bound to bring people together in common cause to learn and achieve great things. That's what makes Facebook such an invaluable tool across the world, because it is not just about technology--it is also about psychology.<br /><br />The <a href="http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700121651/Mark-Zuckerberg-speaks-at-BYU-calls-Facebook-as-much-psychology-and-sociology-as-it-is-technology.html">Deseret News quoted Zuckerberg</a> this way:<br /><blockquote>[People are] really interested in is what's going on with the people they care  about. It's all about giving people the tools and controls that they  need to be comfortable sharing the information that they want. </blockquote><br /><b>Follow Your Passion. </b>Never in his wildest dreams did he imagine that he would be the founder of a company, but Mark Zuckerberg simply followed his passion and let it take him where he is today. He recently took a month off to tour the world, to separate himself from his work for a while, and to ponder his vision for his life and for Facebook. Asked what makes for a good Facebook employee, Zuckerberg said that his company is very lean (2,000 employees to service over 500 million Facebook users across the world), so they look for people that are very passionate--those who don't just get by with the bare minimum, but those who spend their spare time discovering, experimenting, innovating, and inventing.<br /><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-rzT0CVTZaWA/TY0TL1pUswI/AAAAAAAABTQ/ugHaAMhxwWM/s1600/Peace.Facebook.com.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="262" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-rzT0CVTZaWA/TY0TL1pUswI/AAAAAAAABTQ/ugHaAMhxwWM/s320/Peace.Facebook.com.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Number of friendships forged between Palestinians and Israelis in the last 24 hours</td></tr></tbody></table><b>Peace on Earth. </b>Facebook can--and is--being used to teach empathy and promote peace across the world.&nbsp; Zuckerberg pointed to <a href="http://peace.facebook.com/">peace.facebook.com</a>, which identifies the number of Facebook friendships that are being forged between people whose respective countries are enemies of each other.<br /><br />Facebook is a catalyst for reform around the world, Zuckerberg said. He  did not get into details, but it is clear to see that Facebook and other  social media (primarily Twitter) have made greater and greater  collaboration in the name of freedom possible across the globe.<br /><br /><b>Democratization of Creativity. </b>Facebook does not seek to be an application monopoly, but rather to make it easier for others to share their creativity.&nbsp; Facebook has democratized gaming and other applications, Zuckerberg said, making it easier for more and smaller creators to create new applications and make them available, and for more people to use them.<br /><br /><b>Transforming Education. </b>Zuckerberg described how Facebook is beginning to transform the way people--especially children--are educated. New applications are being created that not only teach new skills in interesting ways, but are also finding innovative ways to measure how much people are learning. The biggest problem in that regard right now, Zuckerberg told Senator Hatch and the audience, was that current law prohibits children younger than 13 years of age from setting up such accounts.<br /><br />Why do I love Facebook? Because it makes it easy for me to do something meaningful. The more I learn about how I can use Facebook to follow my passion, the more I wonder, "Why didn't I think of that?"&nbsp; I guess that's because profound ideas seem so simple once you see them.<br /><br /><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s1600-h/SUMPIcon.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5150213613403742466" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s320/SUMPIcon.JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer;" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25646979-2403971944285811354?l=economicspolitics.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>";s:12:"link_replies";s:179:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/feeds/2403971944285811354/comments/defaulthttp://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/03/why-i-love-facebook-mark-zuckerberg.html#comment-form";s:9:"link_edit";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/2403971944285811354";s:9:"link_self";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/2403971944285811354";s:4:"link";s:86:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/03/why-i-love-facebook-mark-zuckerberg.html";s:11:"author_name";s:13:"Frank Staheli";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01822334061980912687";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";s:3:"thr";a:1:{s:5:"total";s:1:"6";}}i:16;a:13:{s:2:"id";s:58:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25646979.post-320582246172258371";s:9:"published";s:29:"2011-03-19T14:53:00.002-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2011-03-19T14:58:18.895-06:00";s:5:"title";s:84:"Look What Happened at Today's Utah County Republican Party Central Committee Meeting";s:12:"atom_content";s:13045:"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-2NKqMq7D3wk/TYUXnCmGXGI/AAAAAAAABTM/ilgHZ4Zvcw8/s1600/UtahCountyRepublicanPartyLogo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="100" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-2NKqMq7D3wk/TYUXnCmGXGI/AAAAAAAABTM/ilgHZ4Zvcw8/s200/UtahCountyRepublicanPartyLogo.jpg" width="100" /></a></div>Political meetings are usually nothing to shout about, but the Utah County Republican Party Central Committee meeting that I just attended was great by my standards.&nbsp; It was educational, it was courteous, and it ended on time.<br /><a name='more'></a><br />As the chairperson of my Republican precinct, I am required to go to Central Committee meetings on a quarterly basis. (I'm also obligated, as both a state and county delegate, to attend the Republican state and county conventions. Precinct Vice Chairs and Legislative District Chairs and Vice Chairs also should attend.)&nbsp; Today I didn't want to go, because I had to miss the last half of my son's basketball game in order to be on time, but I'm actually glad I went.<br /><br /><b>An Increase in Decorum</b>.&nbsp; Last central committee meeting in November 2010 the state party chair conducted the business in the absence of the county party chair and vice chair, and the state chair didn't seem to maintain the decorum of the Central Committee very well.&nbsp; In that meeting there was a lot of rancor and wasted time. This time things went much better, proving that Utah republicans can get things done without bickering and accusing each other of evil intent. After last meeting, I was about fed up with it all, but after today, I have restored faith in the political process. But this meeting wasn't without its own warts and wrinkles; after all we are a "committee".<br /><br /><b>The Comparative Beauty of Sausage Making</b>.&nbsp; Before the first item of business occurred, several motions were made to amend the agenda. One such motion was to change the order of agenda items. Ironically, discussion on this motion ended up taking twice (or more) as long as the actual agenda item which had been proposed to be superseded. In another motion, it was proposed that the Central Committee consider expressing disapproval towards the State Legislature for having recently passed the immigration reform bill known as <a href="http://le.utah.gov/%7E2011/bills/hbillenr/hb0116.pdf">House Bill 116</a>; the motion contained the directive that such discussion be limited to 10 minutes.&nbsp; In another predictable twist of political irony, it took far longer than ten minutes for the discussion to arrive at a vote on the original motion which determined that discussion of&nbsp; HB 116 would be postponted to a later date.<br /><br />The first item of business is something that has lingered for far too  long (nearly one year and 2 or 3 central committee meetings have since transpired).&nbsp; A certain individual had, because there were no other district  officers, been appointed as a Legislative District vice chair by the  County Party Chair. Having been a conspiracy nut in my earlier life, I  can see how people  think there are conspiracies everywhere, but in this case, there was  not. The only intention on the part of the County Chair was to ensure  that legislative district activities continue. The thing that usually  happens when conspiracists start seeing malevolence under ever bed is  that rules of decorum fly out the window as accusations fly in to take  their place. Today, however, the business was handled very well by the  Chair, and the vote on whether to seat the appointed Leg (prounced  "ledge") Vice Chair happened very quickly (his appointment was approved by a large majority of the Central Committee).<br /><br /><br />38 minutes into our 3-hour meeting we <i>finally</i> adopted our agenda. I have been to meetings where this has taken <i>much </i>longer, however.&nbsp; At any rate, watching sausage being made is probably more enjoyable.<br /><br /><br /><b>Report from Utah County Republican State Legislators. </b>A highlight of a each central committee meeting just after the State legislative session is to hear from Utah County's state Republican legislators. State House Speaker Becky Lockhart was one of those. She spoke about legislative success in keeping the state budget in balance while still having enough revenues to increase education funding more than the governor had requested. She mentioned that in drawing up four new federal congressional district boundaries (because of the 2010 census), the public will be able to use a web site to suggest how and why they think the district boundaries will be drawn.<br /><br />Lockhart turned several minutes over to Representative John Dougall, who explained the rationale for <a href="http://le.utah.gov/%7E2011/bills/hbillenr/hb0477.pdf">House Bill 477</a>, which changed the requirements regarding the state's Government Records Access Management Act.<br /><br /><br />Here are some of my notes on what Rep Dougall said. House Bill 477 was never intended to be the final decision on public access to government records. It was intended to ignite a serious debate about what is and is not on the public record. (It certainly did that!) The new law requires the person making the request to pay for the time taken to that the associated information, unless the information is deemed to be of a general public benefit. Dougall mentioned that as politics gets meaner, the definition of "public interest" seems to have transmogrified itself into "what is interesting to the public". Requests that have been made in the past have included private phone conversations and personal bank account information.<br /><br />What was frustrating to me, however, was the seeming lack of desire to own up to the "elephant in the room"--the fact that HB 477 says this:<br /><blockquote>&nbsp;Section 5. Section 63A-12-109 is enacted to read:<br /><br />&nbsp;63A-12-109. Applicability of chapter.<br /><br />This chapter, with the exception of Sections 63A-12-102 and 63A-12-106, does not apply to the legislative branch of state government.</blockquote>In other words, the Government Records Access Management Act (<a href="http://le.utah.gov/%7Ecode/TITLE63A/63A12.htm">GRAMA--Title 63A Chapter 12</a>) is not applicable to the state legislature with the exception of their documents that have already become official state documents. That smells to me like a rat, but admittedly, I need to do some more research.<br /><br />I enjoyed most the presentation of Senator Margaret Dayton, who pointed out several interesting things.<br /><br />(1) The most controversial bill among Utah Republican legislators was the immigration bill that ultimately became HB 116; she voted against it.<br /><br />(2) The reaction to House bill 477 made it clear how important it is to the public to be involved in the political process.&nbsp;<br /><br />(3) Both houses of the Utah legislature begin each day of the session with a prayer and the pledge of allegiance; she wishes (and I agree) that this was happening at more public events.<br /><br />(4) In 45 days of the Utah legislative session, 1,202 bills were filed. Some of them were withdrawn in order to do more research or because various committees deemed them not ready for consideration. Of the original total, just over 800 ended up being considered.<br /><br />Two of Dayton's favorite bills to be passed (and mine, too) were not given much attention in the local media:&nbsp;<br /><br />(1) Many people were frustrated when state agencies went to 4-day workweeks. It didn't seem to save the state much money, but it did seem to <i>cost</i> taxpayers a lot in having to wait for permits over extra long weekends. Agencies are now back to working 5-day weeks.&nbsp; Hoo-rah!!!<br /><br />(2) It used to be legal for a school district to pay the full-time salary of a teacher that had been loaned out for the year (or longer) to the Utah Education Association.&nbsp; What the...???&nbsp; At any rate, thankfully, that's no longer legal.<br /><br />Several changes to the party platform, bylaws, and constitution were to be considered, but because of time constraints only a few of them were actually heard. Two of the most important we regarding changes to the party platform.<br /><br /><b>Regarding Entitlement Programs</b>.&nbsp; The proposed platform change read thusly:<br /><blockquote>Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid have become entitlements far beyond the minimal safety net they were intended to be. We call for urgent and significant entitlement reform which 1) gradually reduces future entitlements, such as by increasing retirement age , 2) provides life-sustaining assistance for the few who, due to age or infirmity, are unable to provide for themselves. 3) returns to the principles of free-market choice and financial self-reliance,</blockquote><br />After 15 or 20 minutes of discussion, a large majority approved the following wording:<br /><blockquote>Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid have become entitlements far beyond the minimal safety net they were intended to be. We call for urgent and significant entitlement reform which returns to the principles of free-market choice and financial self-reliance.</blockquote>I think this to be a great platform position. The first statement I think is self-evidently true. Chiefly because of these entitlement programs, our country is sinking in a cesspool of debt. With a full measure of compassion on those who truly need the help, we <i>must</i> reform our federal entitlement programs.<br /><br /><b>Regarding the Proper Role of Government</b>.&nbsp; I came fully prepared to vote against this one, thinking it monumentally superfluous. I ended up changing my mind.&nbsp; Here's why.&nbsp; The original amendment said:<br /><blockquote>The United States of America is a Constitutional Republic based on the rule of law, representatives elected by sovereign citizens to exercise authority on their behalf, and a system of internal and external checks and balances.</blockquote>Someone during the discussion suggested adding the word "compound" so that the amendment would refer to a "compound constitutional republic" to match legislation recently passed in the Utah legislature. Someone else explained that while such general verbiage is included in the United States Constitution, very few people remember anymore that our federal government is a republic, and our state governments are <i>also required</i> to be republics, each with its own set of duties. The duties of the state republics are far more than those of the federal government. Another person opined from experience in the teaching profession that educators often use the term "democracy" in order to water down their students' understanding of what the government is allowed to do (i.e. as advocacy for greater federal government programs).<br /><br />With that one word and subsequent explanation, the amendment made complete sense to me.&nbsp; I, along with nearly every other of the 306 delegates in the room, voted in favor of it.<br /><br /><b>Spinning Our Wheels in Robert's Rules of Order<i>. </i></b>As the bewitching hour of noon quickly approached, one committee member made a motion to extend the meeting to 1 PM in order to consider 4 or 5 things that we hadn't time to get to yet. The next 13 minutes were filled with (a) discussion on that motion, (b) voting on that motion, (c) calling for division on that motion (division requires those alternatively for and against the motion to stand and be individually counted, (e) a determination by the Chair that the motion to extend the meeting by one hour failed, (e) calling for a motion to adjourn (f) discussion on the motion to adjourn, (g) voting on the motion to adjourn, (h) calling for division on the motion to adjourn, and (i) a determination by the Chair that the motion to adjourn had passed.<br /><br />It was like a sudden shock, but the meeting--just like that--ended at 11:58 AM.&nbsp; And you know what? That's the <i>first </i>central committee meeting I've ever attended that ended on time! So I guess that's good...???<br /><br />I guess we'll decide whether to consider the remaining items at our Central Committee meeting in April prior to our County Convention... <br /><br /><br /><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s1600-h/SUMPIcon.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5150213613403742466" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s320/SUMPIcon.JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer;" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25646979-320582246172258371?l=economicspolitics.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>";s:12:"link_replies";s:176:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/feeds/320582246172258371/comments/defaulthttp://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/03/look-what-happened-at-todays-utah.html#comment-form";s:9:"link_edit";s:70:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/320582246172258371";s:9:"link_self";s:70:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/320582246172258371";s:4:"link";s:84:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/03/look-what-happened-at-todays-utah.html";s:11:"author_name";s:13:"Frank Staheli";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01822334061980912687";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";s:3:"thr";a:1:{s:5:"total";s:1:"1";}}i:17;a:13:{s:2:"id";s:59:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25646979.post-3386158002222085773";s:9:"published";s:29:"2011-03-16T09:30:00.000-06:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2011-03-16T09:30:15.861-06:00";s:5:"title";s:47:"Can There Be Both a Creator and Evolution? Yes.";s:12:"atom_content";s:4907:"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-2W-WoG6kOKE/TYDTjJ9NNxI/AAAAAAAABTI/rZ-lMvVncwg/s1600/EarthInShadow.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="100" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-2W-WoG6kOKE/TYDTjJ9NNxI/AAAAAAAABTI/rZ-lMvVncwg/s200/EarthInShadow.jpg" width="100" /></a></div>Can life on earth have been created by some being higher than ourselves, yet continue on as a process of evolution? Sure. I think so. I don't think that God is some debauched Zeus atop a mythical Olympus. Nor do I imagine God as some mystical ethereal unquantifiable essence, as many religionists do. The God I imagine is a perfected human being who, because he is perfect, lives by natural law. <br /><a name='more'></a><br />Many scientists are dismayed that evolution is still considered even  controversial. I agree.&nbsp; We don't know everything about the mechanics of  evolution, but it is clear that it occurs. Most importantly, I don't  think this presents a problem at all for there having been a creator.&nbsp; The creator god that I imagine is not some Zeus who is ready at any moment to unleash chaos upon the world. My creator is someone who has, as a prerequisite to achieving perfection, not only completely come to understand natural law, but has agreed to be bound by it.<br /><br />The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints teaches that each person who is born on earth lived as a spirit with a unique individuality in a <a href="http://lds.org/plan/we-lived-with-god?lang=eng">premortal existence with our heavenly parents</a>. What did we do there? We don't remember, nor has much been revealed. But allow me to reasonably speculate.<br /><br />As we prepared to come to this earth, we learned not only something of what it would be like to live here, but also how the earth would be created and how our mortal bodies would be created, eventually to house our spirits. Those of us who were interested went to "school" to learn the science of it all.&nbsp; I imagined that we learned geology, astronomy, biology, and botany. And I imagine that we learned how physical beings evolve from one state to another. I imagine that we learned that, with God's help, and with the help of the Atonement of his son, Jesus Christ, the process of our evolution could be sped up dramatically.<br /><br />Why does religion have to remain in the realm of the mystical and miraculous? It doesn't. As more and more truth comes to be known, religion <i>should</i> become <i>less</i> mystical and miraculous, until, some day, we know all things, and to us it will be completely <i>un-</i>mystical and <i>un-</i>miraculous.<br /><br />As Kenneth Miller puts it in <i>Finding Darwin's God</i>:<br /><blockquote>We have been freed to understand the change of seasons not as divine whim, but as a consequence of the tilt of the earth's axis in relation to its orbit around the sun. We watch the movement of the tides under the calculable power of gravity, produce new substances by rearranging the atoms of raw materials, and exploit the energy of elementary particles to power our homes and send messages through space. We have learned enough of the natural world to understand that it operates according to the physical principles [of] science. </blockquote><br /><blockquote><i>Finding Darwin's God,</i> page&nbsp; 168</blockquote><br />What's so hard, then, about believing that life itself "operates according to" the same principles? It involves, I think, the fear that, if we let go and recognize science for what it is, that it will somehow demolish God or take away our need for belief in him.<br /><br />I think that is preposterous.&nbsp; Such short-sighted beliefs give religion a bad name.<br /><br />As Miller writes:<br /><blockquote>I find it puzzling and disappointing that so many would have pinned their religions hopes on the <i>inability</i> of science to explain the natural world. In fact...an accurate and complete understanding of the world, even in purely material terms, should deepen and strengthen the faith of any religious person. <i></i></blockquote><br /><blockquote><i>Finding Darwin's God,</i> page&nbsp; 169 </blockquote><br /><br />&nbsp;Hear, hear!<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s1600-h/SUMPIcon.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5150213613403742466" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s320/SUMPIcon.JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer;" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25646979-3386158002222085773?l=economicspolitics.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>";s:12:"link_replies";s:183:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/feeds/3386158002222085773/comments/defaulthttp://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/03/can-there-be-both-creator-and-evolution.html#comment-form";s:9:"link_edit";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/3386158002222085773";s:9:"link_self";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/3386158002222085773";s:4:"link";s:90:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/03/can-there-be-both-creator-and-evolution.html";s:11:"author_name";s:13:"Frank Staheli";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01822334061980912687";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";s:3:"thr";a:1:{s:5:"total";s:1:"3";}}i:18;a:13:{s:2:"id";s:59:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25646979.post-2119077457954411741";s:9:"published";s:29:"2011-03-12T12:02:00.002-07:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2011-03-12T12:56:37.002-07:00";s:5:"title";s:41:"Are God and Evolution Mutually Exclusive?";s:12:"atom_content";s:5166:"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.findingdarwinsgod.com/covers-graphic.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="110" src="http://www.findingdarwinsgod.com/covers-graphic.png" width="100" /></a></div>At the behest of a facebook friend, I am currently reading the book <i>Finding Darwin's God</i>. Besides being a delightfully written book, I enjoy the fact that the author, Kenneth R. Miller, as someone who believes in God, is not threatened by evolution. It's a stance that far too few of us take.<br /><a name='more'></a><br />Years ago, Joseph Fielding Smith, an apostle of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, wrote a book entitled <i>Man: His Origin and Destiny</i> that to some extent lampooned the theory of&nbsp;evolution. Then LDS Church President David O. McKay was none too impressed with Smith's writings, as well as his premature conclusions. At that time, McKay stated<br /><blockquote>The thing you need to remember about evolution is that the Lord has never revealed anything about the matter. People have their opinions but the Lord has not revealed the details of how he created the earth.<br /><i><br />David O McKay and the Rise of Modern Mormonism</i>, Gregory A. Prince and Wm. Robert Wright, page 46 </blockquote><br />Privately, McKay was of the opinion that evolution made eminent sense.&nbsp; I think he would have enjoyed Kenneth Miller's <i>Finding Darwin's God</i> as much as I have so far.<br /><br />There is no disputing that evolution has and does occur all the time. By definition, "evolution" is historical, says Miller.<br /><blockquote>It means that the past was characterized by a process in which present-day species can be traced back to similar, but distinctly different ancestors. </blockquote><blockquote><i>Finding Darwin's God</i>, page 53 </blockquote><br />In the second case, "evolution" refers to a theory--not <i>that</i> this modification happened, but <i>how</i> it happened.<br /><br />It is also beyond dispute that the earth has existed for billions of years. It does religionists a great deal of harm to dispute this fact, which they generally do by claiming that God created the earth in six 24-hour days and then rested on the seventh 24-hour day.<br /><br />Is it possible that this earth evolved into existence? Absolutely--as, since the universe has existed for who knows how long, I wouldn't be surprised that many other earths have done. But it is my belief that <i>this particular earth</i> was created by God.<br /><br />Is it possible that hominids evolved into existence? Not only is it possible, but it is highly probable based on the evidence that has been uncovered from the earth. But it is my belief that in the case of <i>this particular earth</i>, what we refer to as homo sapiens were placed here by God in the form of Adam and Eve. I wouldn't be surprised if other forms of hominid life were not only on the earth at the time Adam and Eve lived here, but it stands to reason that they may have interacted with them as well.&nbsp; I am not surprised that God would have created the first man and woman, but yet that they have a very similar genetic signature to other hominids and other forms of animal life. After all, it makes sense to me that God works according to natural law. <br /><br />David O. McKay's opinion that evolution makes perfect sense is based on the idea that the pinnacle of evolution is perfection--i.e. God. I haven't gotten to the end of Miller's book yet, but I think he would essentially agree with that opinion. After all, Miller writes:<br /><blockquote>&nbsp;Does evolution really nullify all word views that depend on the spiritual? ...does it regorously exclude belief in God? My answer, in each and every case, is a resounding no. I do not say this..because evolution is wrong. Far from it. The reason...is because evolution is right. </blockquote><blockquote><i>Finding Darwin's God</i>, page 17 </blockquote>What I like about Mormonism is its search for all truth. Whether that truth comes from the realm of science or the spiritual, it doesn't matter. Have we been wrong before? Sure, which I suspect God smiles about. But we keep searching, and very occasionally, bits and pieces of that truth are solidified by direct revelation from God.<br /><br />Are God and evolution mutually exclusive? No. Any scientist or religionist who claims so is selling himself extremely short.<br /><br />Evolution is real. So, I'm quite confident, is God.<br /><br /><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s1600-h/SUMPIcon.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5150213613403742466" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s320/SUMPIcon.JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer;" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25646979-2119077457954411741?l=economicspolitics.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>";s:12:"link_replies";s:174:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/feeds/2119077457954411741/comments/defaulthttp://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/03/are-god-and-evolution-mutually.html#comment-form";s:9:"link_edit";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/2119077457954411741";s:9:"link_self";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/2119077457954411741";s:4:"link";s:81:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/03/are-god-and-evolution-mutually.html";s:11:"author_name";s:13:"Frank Staheli";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01822334061980912687";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";s:3:"thr";a:1:{s:5:"total";s:1:"1";}}i:19;a:13:{s:2:"id";s:59:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25646979.post-4232681861104462982";s:9:"published";s:29:"2011-03-06T09:43:00.001-07:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2011-03-06T09:45:38.743-07:00";s:5:"title";s:42:"Health Care: A Commodity or a Moral Issue?";s:12:"atom_content";s:4157:"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.opensecrets.org/news/health%20care.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="120" src="http://www.opensecrets.org/news/health%20care.jpg" width="100" /></a></div>Conservatives are often portrayed as thinking that health care is just like any other commodity that can be regulated by the free market.&nbsp; On the other hand, liberals are described as seeing health care as a form of protection that is a moral obligation for government to provide. This characterization of conservatives is misleading.<br /><a name='more'></a><br />Listen to the following conversation that took place between former President Richard Nixon and John Erlichmann:<br /><blockquote><b>Erlichman:</b> Edgar Kaiser is running his Permanenente deal for profit. And the reason he can...all the incentives are toward less medical care, because...the less care they give them, the more money they make.<br /><br /><b>Nixon:</b> Fine<br /><br /><b>Erlichman:</b> and the incentives run the right way.<br /><br /><b>Nixon:</b> Not bad!</blockquote>In his book, <i>The Political Mind</i>, George Lakoff claims that conservatives generally identify positively with the above scenario--that it is okay for health insurance companies to deny coverage to claimants in order to maximize profits.&nbsp; I hope that's not true.&nbsp; If it's true, then I think we've had "death panels" much longer than just since Obamacare took effect. <br /><br />But I don't think it's true, in two ways. First of all, I don't think conservatives view health care as a commodity that should be used by its purveyors as a way to maximize profits at the expense of the insured patient.&nbsp; Secondly, I think Kaiser Permanente and Erlichman are wrong that "the less care they give them the more money they make." That attitude is a fundamental misunderstanding of the free market; for it to be and remain truly free, the market must first be moral.<br /><br />Rudy Giuliani, while running for President, claimed that health care is a commodity, and that the market can regulate health care. Lakoff disagrees:<br /><blockquote>But health care is a matter of protection, not a commodity. It is a matter of pain and suffering, of life and death. Many people die, or suffer terrible pain, for lack of adequate health care. No one dies for lack of a flat-screen TV. Protection is a moral mission, for the government, but not for business.</blockquote><br />The point, I think, at which conservatives and progressives disagree, is not whether provision of health care is a moral issue. It is whether moral issues should&nbsp; be exclusively within the purview of government. I think health care is both a commodity and a moral issue, and I think most Conservatives agree with me. It is government regulation (and in some cases lack thereof) that have made it so that the large percentage of the 40 million people who want but don't have health care don't have health care.<br /><br /><br />Conservatives and progressives are more on the same sheet of music than we think. Both sides, I think, actually agree that ensuring that people have health care is a moral issue. It's just a matter of how best to solve that moral problem. I agree with most conservatives in that I don't think government can do it as well as the private sector, because, after all, our government is us. If we're not moral in private, how can we expect our government to be moral in public for us?<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s1600-h/SUMPIcon.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5150213613403742466" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s320/SUMPIcon.JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer;" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25646979-4232681861104462982?l=economicspolitics.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>";s:12:"link_replies";s:180:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/feeds/4232681861104462982/comments/defaulthttp://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/03/health-care-commodity-or-moral-issue.html#comment-form";s:9:"link_edit";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/4232681861104462982";s:9:"link_self";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/4232681861104462982";s:4:"link";s:87:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/03/health-care-commodity-or-moral-issue.html";s:11:"author_name";s:13:"Frank Staheli";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01822334061980912687";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";s:3:"thr";a:1:{s:5:"total";s:1:"6";}}i:20;a:13:{s:2:"id";s:59:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25646979.post-4815439735046415774";s:9:"published";s:29:"2011-02-25T20:03:00.001-07:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2011-02-25T20:05:26.913-07:00";s:5:"title";s:71:"Top 10 Reasons Egyptian Revolution Has Been More Successful Than Iran's";s:12:"atom_content";s:3966:"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-6xU-fq_b9E0/TWhs60613lI/AAAAAAAABTE/LPmzrPcmeio/s1600/IranEgyptRevolt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="90" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-6xU-fq_b9E0/TWhs60613lI/AAAAAAAABTE/LPmzrPcmeio/s200/IranEgyptRevolt.jpg" width="120" /></a></div>Will Iran embark on the road to liberty soon now that Egypt has seemingly done so? I think--or at least I hope--that it is only a matter of time. But I also think if&nbsp; Iran had led the way, we'd still be waiting--for a long time.  Here are ten reasons why Egypt was a better trailblazer than Iran would have been for freedom and political reform in the Middle East.<br /><a name='more'></a><br /><i>The following list is compiled based on an interview given to the Council on Foreign Relations by Vali Nasr of Tufts University</i> (see interview below).<br /><br />1. The Iranian revolution in the late 1970's took 18 months, while Egypt's took only 18 days. Had the Shah left as quickly as Mubarak, Iran might today look a lot more like Egypt.<br /><br />2. During the late '70s, Iran's military dissolved, whereas Egypt's military filled the governance void, helping to maintain stability.<br /><br />3. Iran coalesced around a very popular religious leader, Khomeini, who had been a popular dissident for quite some time, where Egypt has no comparable figure.<br /><br />4. Iran has Marxist/Leninists, which split the fervor of the protests, whereas the Egyptian body politic has a much more common goal.<br /><br />5. Egypt had sudden burst of protests with large numbers of people, catching the regime off guard. Iran's protests took longer to gather steam and were never as emphatic.<br /><br /><object height="390" width="640"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/AxNgbtg2LWw&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&version=3"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/AxNgbtg2LWw&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&version=3" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" width="400" height="250"></embed></object><br /><br />6. 97% of Egyptians live on 3% of land--a far higher population density than in Iran--giving the Egyptian military far less ability to infiltrate and disburse large crowds. <br /><br />7. The Iranian regime was able to mobilize its supporters much more effectively than the Egyptian government.<br /><br />8. While Egypt was surprised by such a large spontaneous demonstration, Iran has experience with such things. The Iranian government has developed strong counter tactics based on lessons learned from mistakes of losing control during student protests of 1999 and during celebrations after the Iranian soccer team qualified for World Cup.<br /><br />9. The Iranian government was much more successful at appealing to segments of the protesters in order to divide the opposition, whereas Egyptian protesters maintained a high degree of solidarity.<br /><br />10. In Iran, those seen as leaders of the protest movement were not interested in regime change, as has clearly been the case in Egypt; instead Iran's protest leaders only wanted regime reform.<br /><br /><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s1600-h/SUMPIcon.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5150213613403742466" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s320/SUMPIcon.JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer;" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25646979-4815439735046415774?l=economicspolitics.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>";s:12:"link_replies";s:182:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/feeds/4815439735046415774/comments/defaulthttp://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/02/top-10-reasons-egyptian-revolution-has.html#comment-form";s:9:"link_edit";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/4815439735046415774";s:9:"link_self";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/4815439735046415774";s:4:"link";s:89:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/02/top-10-reasons-egyptian-revolution-has.html";s:11:"author_name";s:13:"Frank Staheli";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01822334061980912687";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";s:3:"thr";a:1:{s:5:"total";s:1:"1";}}i:21;a:13:{s:2:"id";s:59:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25646979.post-6172926242752603114";s:9:"published";s:29:"2011-02-17T07:44:00.000-07:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2011-02-17T07:44:37.055-07:00";s:5:"title";s:51:"Is The Muslim Brotherhood a Terrorist Organization?";s:12:"atom_content";s:7192:"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.foreignpolicy.com/files/mb1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="100" src="http://www.foreignpolicy.com/files/mb1.jpg" width="120" /></a></div>The Muslim Brotherhood has had some violent episodes in its past. It has had adherents that now <i>are </i>terrorists. But it is not a terrorist organization. It advocates the use of peaceful means to achieve good governance. It is worse than disingenuous to say that the Brotherhood is a terrorist organization or that it is a danger to the West.<br /><a name='more'></a><br />How many countries have placed the Muslim Brotherhood on their terror watch lists? Not many, if any at all. The United States certainly doesn't claim that the Brotherhood (Arabic="Ikhwan") is a terrorist organization.<br /><br />Samah Sadek Mostafa, a female journalist from Egypt, would be one to suffer if a radical Islamist group (akin to what some think the MB is) were to gain the upper hand in Eygpt. Mostafa sets the record straight, though, on how she feels about the Muslim Brotherhood--<a href="http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2014112264_guest03egypt.html?prmid=op_ed">she likes it</a>:<br /><blockquote>&nbsp;The real danger for the United States is not the Society of the Muslim  Brothers; in fact, your reporters in Cairo streets can tell you about  how important they are in the Egyptian community.<br /><br />When people pray in the streets it doesn't mean that they are  extremists, it means they are expressing their faith in God's ability to  help them. Women in veils don't mean they are extremists, either, even  if they are members of the Muslim Brothers.&nbsp;</blockquote>Perhaps most importantly, Mostafa points out that<br /><blockquote><br />The Muslim Brotherhood is  not on the U.S. list of foreign terrorist organizations.&nbsp;</blockquote>The Ikhwan has had its periods of violence. Says Robin Wright in her book <i>Dreams and Shadows: The Future of the Middle East</i>:<br /><blockquote>...in the 1940s and 1950s, the Brotherhood entered a militant second phase. Angered by the monarchy [and] heavy British influence in Egypt...the movement bred an extremist wing known as "the specialists"...which launched sporadic waves of attacks on both domestic and foreign targets.</blockquote>More recently, however, the MB has been much less violent. Mohammad Habib from the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, tells Robin Wright<br /><blockquote><br />"We are against revolutions in general and definitely against chaos. We are also against using armed struggle for change and military coups. No. No, we prefer peaceful change through constitutional and legal channels. There is no violence in our ideology."</blockquote>&nbsp;Admittedly, some currently well-known terrorists, such as Ayman al Zawahiri and Osama bin Laden, have been associated with the Brotherhood. This cannot be blamed on the Brotherhood itself. That would be somewhat akin to blaming the Mormon Church for the actions of <a href="http://www.deseretnews.com/article/595079489/1984-Lafferty-case-still-haunts.html">Ron and Dan Lafferty</a>. The Muslim Brotherhood has long abhorred the actions of <a href="http://www.ikhwanweb.com/article.php?id=27986">such groups as al Qaeda</a>:<br /><blockquote>Khaled Hamza, Ikhwanweb's chief editor, strongly condemned statements by jihadist groups affiliated with  Al-Qaeda  concerning the ongoing protests in Egypt, calling for Egyptians to wage violent "Jihad" to topple the regime in Egypt.<br /><br />Hamza confirmed the Muslim Brotherhood's firm stance against use of  violence  to achieve legitimate popular demands, rejecting any interference in Egypt’s domestic affairs. He stressed that Egyptians are capable of solving their problem without intrusion, meddling and prying from foreign groups such as Alqaeda and similar groups advocating the use of violence.</blockquote>The Brotherhood advocates the <a href="http://www.ikhwanweb.com/article.php?id=25890">integration and cooperation of multi-faceted groups</a>. <br /><blockquote>It is clear that this country is never going to be (and never was) a uni-racial, uni-cultural place. Multicultural, multiracial, multireligious societies are more and more going to be the norm. We have to learn to live together. </blockquote><br />Should we fear the Muslim Brotherhood?  Mohammed El Baradei had <a href="http://articles.cnn.com/2011-01-31/world/egypt.muslim.brotherhood_1_egypt-s-muslim-brotherhood-ayman-nour-protests/2?_s=PM:WORLD">this to say</a> about it:<br /><blockquote>"The Muslim Brotherhood has nothing to do with the Iranian model, has nothing to do with extremism as we have seen it in Afghanistan and other places. The Muslim Brotherhood is a religiously conservative group. They are a minority in Egypt," he told CNN.<br /><br />"I have been reaching out to them. We need to include them. They are part of the Egyptian society...</blockquote>Where do such ideas come from that the MB is a militant organization bent on taking over first Egypt and then the world? From <a href="http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2011/02/10/don_t_fear_the_brotherhood">the former Egyptian dictatorship</a>, for one:<br /><blockquote>Egypt's rulers have long understood that they can't persuade the West that secular reformers pose a danger to Egypt or the world. The Islamists, however, are another story. So the regime and its defenders harp relentlessly on the Brotherhood's [supposed] "real" intentions. When I was in Cairo in early 2007, Hossam Badrawi, the man who was just named Secretary-General of the ruling National Democratic Party (NDP), told me that allowing the Brotherhood to freely run for office would be like legalizing the Nazi party in Germany. Another cautioned that, while the Brothers were not "necessarily" terrorists, they certainly hoped to impose Saudi-style sharia on Egypt.<br /><br />And it worked. </blockquote><br />Unfortunately, it seems to have worked in the minds of a lot of Americans. One of the favorite bogeymen of American analysts is that the Brotherhood would bathe Egypt in the violence and repression of Sharia law.&nbsp; Robin Wright tells us that "[l]ike many Muslim countries, Egypt <i>already </i>requires laws to be compatible with Sharia." <br /><br />Is the Muslim Brotherhood to be feared? Not nearly so much as the former Egyptian regime. And not nearly so much as the incessant talking heads in America who tell us that there are Muslim Brothers under all of our beds. ;-)<br /><br /><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s1600-h/SUMPIcon.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5150213613403742466" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s320/SUMPIcon.JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer;" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25646979-6172926242752603114?l=economicspolitics.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>";s:12:"link_replies";s:175:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/feeds/6172926242752603114/comments/defaulthttp://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/02/is-muslim-brotherhood-terrorist.html#comment-form";s:9:"link_edit";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/6172926242752603114";s:9:"link_self";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/6172926242752603114";s:4:"link";s:82:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/02/is-muslim-brotherhood-terrorist.html";s:11:"author_name";s:13:"Frank Staheli";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01822334061980912687";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";s:3:"thr";a:1:{s:5:"total";s:1:"1";}}i:22;a:13:{s:2:"id";s:59:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25646979.post-7197017000083121368";s:9:"published";s:29:"2011-02-13T10:00:00.001-07:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2011-02-13T10:01:58.659-07:00";s:5:"title";s:51:"The Middle East: Democracy is Breaking Out All Over";s:12:"atom_content";s:7907:"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7BiAoxFi-GU/TVgNuNU8RRI/AAAAAAAABTA/B6vsZgJt_NM/s1600/MiddleEastMap.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="100" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7BiAoxFi-GU/TVgNuNU8RRI/AAAAAAAABTA/B6vsZgJt_NM/s320/MiddleEastMap.jpg" width="120" /></a></div>What started as a yearning for democracy in Tunisia has now spread to many other countries in the Middle East.&nbsp; Egypt, seemingly the most successful so far at throwing off the yoke of dictatorial bondage, has become both the epicenter and the example for other countries in the Middle East. Here's how it began and how it's all unfolding.<br /><a name='more'></a><br />Nicholas Kristof of the New York Times says that a <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/13/opinion/13kristof.html?src=twrhp">new day has dawned in the Middle East</a><br /><blockquote>It’s a new day in the Arab world  — and, let’s hope, in American relations to the Arab world.<br /><br />The truth is that the United States has been behind the curve not only  in Tunisia and Egypt for the last few weeks, but in the entire Middle  East for decades. We supported corrupt autocrats as long as they kept  oil flowing and weren’t too aggressive toward Israel.</blockquote>That era of debauched America foreign policy vis-a-vis the Middle East <i>needs to be over</i>. <br /><br />The flowering of Middle Eastern liberty started a couple of weeks ago with a Tunisian man, trying to eke out a meager living, who was<a href="http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/society-and-culture/burning-anger-a-weapon-of-conflict-20110211-1aqih.html"> fed up with how poorly his government treated him</a>:<br /><blockquote>The latest convulsions engulfing the Arab world, from Tunisia to  Egypt to Algeria, began with a Tunisian man setting himself on fire,  known as self-immolation.<br /><br />Mohammed Al Bouazizi doused himself in petrol and lit a  match in front of a government building after a policeman shut down his  innovative but illegal attempts to sell fruit on the street. He was a  26-year-old man unable to find a job after graduating from university,  epitomising the failed aspirations of so many within the Arab world,  where almost half the population are under 30.<br /><br /><noscript>&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;iframe id="dcAd-1-4" src="http://ad-apac.doubleclick.net/adi/onl.age.news/opinion/societyandculture;cat=opinion;cat1=societyandculture;ctype=article;pos=3;sz=300x250;tile=4;ord=6175718.0?"                         width='300'                         height='250'                         scrolling="no"                         marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;                 &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/iframe&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;             </noscript>              Within weeks several other similar cases occurred in  Tunisia, helping to drive the popular coup ousting the country's  president.</blockquote><br />From there it <a href="http://www.aljazeerah.info/News/2011/January/25%20n/Thousands%20Call%20for%20Mubarak%20to%20Resign%20in%20Coordinated%20Protests%20Across%20Egypt.htm">spread to Egypt</a>, where, last Friday, former dictator <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FnVu4s2YjOE">Hosni Mubarak</a> <a href="http://www.gettingthedealnews.com/503/mubarak-steps-down-egyptians-celebrate/">stepped down</a>. <br /><br />In the last few hours, the oligarchy of Saudi Arabia is, perhaps surprisingly, <a href="http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/saudi-arabia-welcomes-peaceful-transition-of-power-in-egypt-saud">encouraging a peaceful transition of power in Egypt</a>. <br /><br />The Egyptian military and police force currently seem bent on something other than peace, however, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whJEz9-kyew">having just gone into Tahrir Square</a> in Cairo, inflaming the anger and frustration of hundreds of thousands of protesters by hurriedly <a href="http://www.marketwatch.com/story/army-dismantling-tents-in-cairos-tahrir-square-2011-02-13">dismantling the tent cities</a> that had been <a href="http://www.bangaloremirror.com/article/12/2011021020110210232410894fb8de225/Egypt-threatens-army-crackdown.html">erected there in recent days</a> in support of the protests.<br /><br />There is also now talk in <a href="http://www.afrik-news.com/article18939.html">places like Algeria, Yemen, and Libya</a> of throwing off the oppressor's yoke:<br /><blockquote><br /><div class="spip">According to Anthony Skinner of political risk  consultancy Maplecroft: "[The successful revolution inEgypt] has broken a  psychological barrier not just for North Africa but across the Middle  East. I think you could see some contamination in terms of protests;  Morocco, perhaps Jordan, Yemen."</div><div class="spip"><br /></div><div class="spip">In Yemen, already, thousands of people have taken to the  streets. Some chanted: "Yesterday Tunisia, today Egypt, and tomorrow  Yemenis will break their chains." These chants presage the potentials of  oppressed populations in north Africa and the Middle East to rise up  for change.</div></blockquote><div class="spip">In the Persian portion of the (so called "Arab") Middle East, Iranians are <a href="http://my.auburnjournal.com/detail/171421.html">planning protests for Monday</a>. This will probably draw the ire of the die-hard American conservative right, however, because the spearhead of the protests is the "Green Wave" one of Iran's leading environmental groups:</div><div class="spip"></div><blockquote>Protesters are organizing marches across Iran under the aegis of  Iran's Green Movement, inspired by the recent successful uprisings in  Egypt and Tunisia.<br /><br />The Green Movement, also known as Green Wave, made international  headlines after the rigged 2009 Iranian presidential elections in which  Ahmadinejad was installed for a second term in office.<br /><br />Monday's protests in Iran have been called by Mir Hossein Mousavi  and Mehdi Karroubi, whom the Green Movement backed as opposition  candidates two years ago. </blockquote><div class="spip"></div><div class="spip">It is a mistake for Americans to hold a grudge against democracy in the Middle East simply because exercises in democracy may not yield in various countries the leadership that is amicable to United States interest. Persians and Arabs are morally justified in expecting the US to stay out of its business, considering that American interests have consistently been inimical to democracy and liberty in those countries.</div><div class="spip"><br /></div><div class="spip">The best thing Americans can do now is pray for the Egyptians. Pray for the Iranians. Pray for the Tunisians, Libyans, and Algerians. Pray for the people of Jordan, Syria, and Yemen. </div><br />We <i>claim </i>to want to spread democracy to the world, but our foreign policy of support for Middle Eastern dictators has <i>shown </i>consistently otherwise. It's time, America, to take off the "Uncle Sam" mask and allow the nations of the earth to choose for themselves what they want to be, rather than cramming a false brand of "so-called" democracy down their throat.<br /><br /><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s1600-h/SUMPIcon.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5150213613403742466" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s320/SUMPIcon.JPG" style="cursor: pointer;" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25646979-7197017000083121368?l=economicspolitics.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>";s:12:"link_replies";s:181:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/feeds/7197017000083121368/comments/defaulthttp://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/02/middle-east-democracy-is-breaking-out.html#comment-form";s:9:"link_edit";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/7197017000083121368";s:9:"link_self";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/7197017000083121368";s:4:"link";s:88:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/02/middle-east-democracy-is-breaking-out.html";s:11:"author_name";s:13:"Frank Staheli";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01822334061980912687";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";s:3:"thr";a:1:{s:5:"total";s:1:"1";}}i:23;a:13:{s:2:"id";s:59:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25646979.post-5778319815010703842";s:9:"published";s:29:"2011-02-06T17:31:00.004-07:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2011-02-06T17:47:02.333-07:00";s:5:"title";s:52:"Recognizing Jesus as the Christ: Easier Now or Then?";s:12:"atom_content";s:7673:"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.leadership-with-you.com/images/jesuschrist.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><br /></a></div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/TU9ArYNTy-I/AAAAAAAABS8/C5b6F8cImb4/s1600/JesusChrist.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="120" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/TU9ArYNTy-I/AAAAAAAABS8/C5b6F8cImb4/s200/JesusChrist.jpg" width="100" /></a>Many people revere Jesus Christ as the Savior of mankind, as well as the Son of God. Do you think it's easier for us today, than for those that lived during the time of Christ's mortal ministry, to recognize him as the Savior of the world?<br /><a name='more'></a><br />On the first Sabbath day following Christ's arrival at the age of 30, he stood in the synagogue <a href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/luke/4?lang=eng">to read</a> a particular prophecy of Isaiah:<br /><blockquote><div class="">The <sup class="studyNoteMarker">a</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/luke/4?lang=eng#" id="footnote14" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=nt&amp;bookUri=luke&amp;chapterUri=4&amp;noteID=18a&amp;lang=eng">Spirit</a> of the Lord <span class="clarityWord">is</span> upon me, because he hath <sup class="studyNoteMarker">b</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/luke/4?lang=eng#" id="footnote15" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=nt&amp;bookUri=luke&amp;chapterUri=4&amp;noteID=18b&amp;lang=eng">anointed</a> me to <sup class="studyNoteMarker">c</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/luke/4?lang=eng#" id="footnote16" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=nt&amp;bookUri=luke&amp;chapterUri=4&amp;noteID=18c&amp;lang=eng">preach</a> the <sup class="studyNoteMarker">d</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/luke/4?lang=eng#" id="footnote17" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=nt&amp;bookUri=luke&amp;chapterUri=4&amp;noteID=18d&amp;lang=eng">gospel</a> to the <sup class="studyNoteMarker">e</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/luke/4?lang=eng#" id="footnote18" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=nt&amp;bookUri=luke&amp;chapterUri=4&amp;noteID=18e&amp;lang=eng">poor</a>; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to <sup class="studyNoteMarker">f</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/luke/4?lang=eng#" id="footnote19" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=nt&amp;bookUri=luke&amp;chapterUri=4&amp;noteID=18f&amp;lang=eng">preach</a> <sup class="studyNoteMarker">g</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/luke/4?lang=eng#" id="footnote20" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=nt&amp;bookUri=luke&amp;chapterUri=4&amp;noteID=18g&amp;lang=eng">deliverance</a> to the <sup class="studyNoteMarker">h</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/luke/4?lang=eng#" id="footnote21" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=nt&amp;bookUri=luke&amp;chapterUri=4&amp;noteID=18h&amp;lang=eng">captives</a>, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at <sup class="studyNoteMarker">i</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/luke/4?lang=eng#" id="footnote22" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=nt&amp;bookUri=luke&amp;chapterUri=4&amp;noteID=18i&amp;lang=eng">liberty</a> them that are bruised,&nbsp;</div><div class=""><br /></div><div class=""><a class="bookmark dontHighlight" href="http://draft.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=25646979" name="19"></a><span class="verse"></span><sup class="studyNoteMarker">a</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/luke/4?lang=eng#" id="footnote23" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=nt&amp;bookUri=luke&amp;chapterUri=4&amp;noteID=19a&amp;lang=eng">To</a> preach the acceptable year of the Lord.</div><div class=""><br /></div><div class="">New Testament, Luke 4:18-19 </div></blockquote><div class="">Using that opportunity, Jesus identified himself as the subject of that prophecy. "This day is this scripture <sup class="studyNoteMarker">a</sup><a class="footnote" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/luke/4?lang=eng#" id="footnote24" rel="/scriptures/chapter/footnote/default.xqy?volumeUri=nt&amp;bookUri=luke&amp;chapterUri=4&amp;noteID=21a&amp;lang=eng">fulfilled</a> in your ears," he announced.<br /><br /><div class=""></div>As I read this passage  today, it occurred to me that people may actually not have been too surprised to  hear Jesus declare himself as the Messiah. <br /><br />Previously in the same chapter of Luke, we are told that it was customary for Jesus to attend the synagogue each sabbath and to "st[an]d up for to read"--to teach from the scriptures. </div><br />&nbsp;His contemporaries must surely have noticed something unique about the personality of a man who had never committed sin.&nbsp; We don't know much about the first 30 years of Christ's life, but, besides knowing that he was a well-known speaker in the synagogue, we do know a few other interesting insights into his life that would have made it reasonably easy--for those who were looking--to identify their Redeemer.<br /><div class=""><br /></div><div class="">When he was 12 years old, Christ was found in the temple <a href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/luke/2.46?lang=eng#45">astonishing the learned elders with his understanding of eternal truths</a>.</div><div class=""><br /></div><div class="">He was one of <a href="http://bible.cc/matthew/2-16.htm">perhaps only two young boys</a> aged two and under who survived the murderous decree of King Herod.</div><div class=""><br /></div><div class="">It had been <a href="http://lds.org/scriptures/ot/isa/7.14?lang=eng#13">prophesied by Isaiah</a> that a virgin would conceive and bear the Son of God.&nbsp; It must have been somewhat known that <a href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/luke/1.26-31?lang=eng#25">Mary claimed to have been that virgin</a> when she conceived and bore Jesus.</div><div class=""><br /></div><div class="">Zacharias, the father of John the Baptist, was not able to speak until after he named his newborn son.&nbsp; When his mouth was once again opened, Zacharias <a href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/luke/1.62-65?lang=eng#61">prophesied of the Christ and that his son was to be the forerunner</a> of Christ.&nbsp; </div><div class=""><br /></div><div class="">On at least one occasion when Christ fed thousands from seemingly nothing, <a href="http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/john/6.10-14?lang=eng#9">many of them recognized Jesus</a> as the promised Messiah.</div><div class=""></div>Would we have been overly surprised at Christ's announcement in the synagogue that day of his personal mission to save the world? Probably not. If we believe now, I think it would have been even easier to believe then.<br /><div class=""></div><br /><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s1600-h/SUMPIcon.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5150213613403742466" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s320/SUMPIcon.JPG" style="cursor: pointer;" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25646979-5778319815010703842?l=economicspolitics.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>";s:12:"link_replies";s:182:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/feeds/5778319815010703842/comments/defaulthttp://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/02/recognizing-jesus-as-christ-easier-now.html#comment-form";s:9:"link_edit";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/5778319815010703842";s:9:"link_self";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/5778319815010703842";s:4:"link";s:89:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/02/recognizing-jesus-as-christ-easier-now.html";s:11:"author_name";s:13:"Frank Staheli";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01822334061980912687";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";s:3:"thr";a:1:{s:5:"total";s:1:"3";}}i:24;a:13:{s:2:"id";s:59:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25646979.post-7286248706962392640";s:9:"published";s:29:"2011-01-29T09:51:00.001-07:00";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2011-01-29T09:58:46.366-07:00";s:5:"title";s:89:"Flood Relief: Is Mike Lee Talking Out of Both Sides of His Mouth? No, His Detractors Are.";s:12:"atom_content";s:5507:"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/TURCxzEqZvI/AAAAAAAABSs/Dg0IQ-44U40/s1600/MikeLee.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="120" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/TURCxzEqZvI/AAAAAAAABSs/Dg0IQ-44U40/s200/MikeLee.jpg" width="100" /></a></div>Recently Utah Senator Mike Lee stated that the federal government should not issue flood relief funding, because it is not a Constitutional responsibility of the federal government. Yet he also asked that constituents in his state receive federal flood relief. This was met by howls of laughter from Mike Lee detractors. It was the kind of laughter that is not mixed with much thought. Mike Lee's two statements can easily be reconciled.<br /><a name='more'></a><br />Tea Party haters claim that the Tea Party has  introduced great incivility into the political debate. Ironically, the exact opposite is true.&nbsp; The most common and most damaging incivility imputes to  someone something they did not say and do not believe.&nbsp; The anti-Tea Party crowd excels above all other groups in its practice of such incivility.&nbsp; A favorite target of this hatred recently has been freshman Utah Senator Mike Lee. As usual, truth has once again been the innocent victim.<br /><br />In response to a caller's question about federal flood relief in a recent interview, Mike<a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/41277191/ns/msnbc_tv-rachel_maddow_show/"> Lee said this</a>:<br /><blockquote>The listener identifies an issue with flood and disaster relief, should  that be a federal prerogative or a state power?&nbsp; I think a compelling  point can be made that that‘s one thing states historically focused on  and an area where we ought to focus, one of many areas where we ought to  focus on getting that power back to the states, keeping that money back  to the states in the states to begin with.&nbsp;&nbsp;</blockquote>Yet during the same time period, in regard to receiving federal flood assistance for recent flooding in Southern Utah <a href="http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700102962/Sen-Mike-Lee-Utah-should-take-federal-disaster-aid.html">Senator Lee said this</a>:<br /><blockquote>"That money is there. It's been appropriated for disaster  relief, and I see no reason why Utah ought not be entitled to receive  such federal funds." </blockquote>Only the willfully inane cannot reconcile those two concepts.&nbsp; The Deseret News didn't have a hard time doing it.&nbsp; DesNews reported <i>in the very first paragraphs of a story that Utahns could have easily read if they wanted to understand the truth</i>, that<br /><blockquote><br />Utah's newest U.S. senator<i> has long championed state's rights</i> and  continues to campaign for shrinking the federal government's size and  role in state affairs — including natural disasters.<br /><br />But until those changes happen, Republican Sen. Mike  Lee backs the state's request for millions in federal disaster relief  funds to help Utah's Dixie rebuild from major flooding. (Emphasis added.)</blockquote>First there's the principle: flood relief is an unconstitutional usurpation of power from the States by the federal government. Then there's the reality: because of this unconstitutional usurpation of power, Americans have been taxed for and become accustomed to receiving flood assistance from the federal government.&nbsp; Which brings up another principle: it takes time and careful effort to be fair to the American people while extricating the federal government from powers that it has unconstitutionally usurped from the States.<br /><br />Who are the greatest fear mongers in America today?&nbsp; Those who hate the Tea Party--and they do it with a purely visceral reaction. This small but vocal group of people appear to have a hard time formulating a mental idea of why they disagree with federal elected officials who identify with the Tea Party. Filtered through the lens of their irrational fear and hate, they will tell you such things as:<br /><ul><li>Mike Lee supposedly wants to abolish child labor laws.&nbsp;</li><li>Mike Lee supposedly wants to end the Social Security program posthaste.</li><li>Mike Lee supposedly supports gun violence, and</li><li>Mike Lee supposedly wants to abolish flood relief</li></ul>None of these things are true. What is true is that Mike Lee understands and appreciates the United States Constitution and would like to do his small part to help get America back on the track of appreciating it as a nation.<br /><br />It's time to take the debate to a higher level--one where both sides represent accurately the position of their opponents, even when it hurts. I suggest that raising the level of debate could begin with several apologies to Utah Senator Mike Lee for completely misrepresenting what he stands for.<br /><br /><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s1600-h/SUMPIcon.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5150213613403742466" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_Ban8okDZpTk/R3k7_pBPoQI/AAAAAAAAAkw/2lu4ChJmbIk/s320/SUMPIcon.JPG" style="cursor: pointer;" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25646979-7286248706962392640?l=economicspolitics.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>";s:12:"link_replies";s:183:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/feeds/7286248706962392640/comments/defaulthttp://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/01/flood-relief-is-mike-lee-talking-out-of.html#comment-form";s:9:"link_edit";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/7286248706962392640";s:9:"link_self";s:71:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default/7286248706962392640";s:4:"link";s:90:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/2011/01/flood-relief-is-mike-lee-talking-out-of.html";s:11:"author_name";s:13:"Frank Staheli";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01822334061980912687";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";s:3:"thr";a:1:{s:5:"total";s:1:"1";}}}s:7:"channel";a:14:{s:2:"id";s:34:"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25646979";s:7:"updated";s:29:"2011-08-22T06:29:06.994-06:00";s:5:"title";s:27:"Simple Utah Mormon Politics";s:8:"subtitle";s:52:"Politics is seldom simple. But the truth usually is.";s:42:"link_http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#feed";s:57:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default";s:9:"link_self";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default";s:4:"link";s:38:"http://economicspolitics.blogspot.com/";s:8:"link_hub";s:32:"http://pubsubhubbub.appspot.com/";s:9:"link_next";s:81:"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25646979/posts/default?start-index=26&max-results=25";s:11:"author_name";s:13:"Frank Staheli";s:10:"author_uri";s:51:"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01822334061980912687";s:12:"author_email";s:19:"noreply@blogger.com";s:9:"generator";s:7:"Blogger";s:10:"opensearch";a:3:{s:12:"totalresults";s:3:"719";s:10:"startindex";s:1:"1";s:12:"itemsperpage";s:2:"25";}}s:9:"textinput";a:0:{}s:5:"image";a:0:{}s:9:"feed_type";s:4:"Atom";s:12:"feed_version";N;s:8:"encoding";s:5:"UTF-8";s:16:"_source_encoding";s:0:"";s:5:"ERROR";s:0:"";s:7:"WARNING";s:0:"";s:19:"_CONTENT_CONSTRUCTS";a:6:{i:0;s:7:"content";i:1;s:7:"summary";i:2;s:4:"info";i:3;s:5:"title";i:4;s:7:"tagline";i:5;s:9:"copyright";}s:16:"_KNOWN_ENCODINGS";a:3:{i:0;s:5:"UTF-8";i:1;s:8:"US-ASCII";i:2;s:10:"ISO-8859-1";}s:5:"stack";a:0:{}s:9:"inchannel";b:0;s:6:"initem";b:0;s:9:"incontent";b:0;s:11:"intextinput";b:0;s:7:"inimage";b:0;s:17:"current_namespace";b:0;s:15:"source_encoding";s:5:"UTF-8";s:13:"last_modified";s:31:"Mon, 22 Aug 2011 12:29:06 GMT
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