Stop the Persecution

I want you to read THIS and think of what it would be like if this was passed. No more would you see anti-Mormon this or anti-Mormon that. No more commercials talking about the Mormons trying to take away your rights. No more protesters standing outside our temples. It would all end if we had this anti-blasphemy law.

Now that you are excited and think you have found a way to get the world off our backs I want you to re-read the article and think about the implications of it. What is it we believe? We believe that we are the one true church, the only church that holds the priesthood. Under such laws like this anti-blasphemy law we would not be able to proclaim this because it denounces all other religions as false. There are already law suits against pastors in other churches that declare homosexuality as wrong because it is discrimination.

Let us not fall under the craftiness of the evil one and think that laws restricting our freedoms as a way to force people to do what is right. That was the plan of Lucifer, to not give people the choice to do bad, or good. Let us be like Alma and Amulek in Alma 14:11. We must let the wicked choice to be wicked or else they could not be justly punished. It is ours to stay the course and though it may be hard to endure we must not fight against agency. Remember the words of Alma “…for behold the Lord receiveth them up unto himself, in glory...”

Boys will be Boys... or will they?

The meaning of this phrase has changed drastically over the years. If any of you have boys or are boys then you know how important it is to avoid stuff like what was found in THIS public school. Yes I know that your child might happen to run across something like this other places but the peer influence saying that this is acceptable is what you should truly be worried about. You can’t always shield your kids from evil but to put them in a place where evil is said to be good and at a time in their lives in which they are trying to figure out who they are is a mistake. Maybe it’s not necessarily the evil in public schools that you should be worried about but the acceptance and promotion of it.

There is no doubt that your kids will be faced with the choice between good and evil but why make them chose in an environment that is pushing them to the evil? How many of the kids who snickered in this article wouldn’t have if everyone else wasn’t doing it? That I can’t tell you but I can tell you that kids are not inherently bad and so if you don’t let them be influenced by unnecessary evil they are much more likely to make the right choices.

Don’t forget why we are here. We are here to prove ourselves that we will do what God has commanded us. We are not here to be the most popular in school or to let the world teach our kids in the ways of the world. Step up to what you have been given steward over and do not fail inside the walls of your own home. Don’t out source your responsibilities because when the day comes it is still your salvation on the line for the raising of your children, not the public schools.

Who is going to public school?

Read THIS and tell me if our democratic president elect, who is against vouchers, doesn’t even trust public schools why do you?

”…the Obamas felt that a private school was in the best interest of their children. The two girls currently attend the private University of Chicago Laboratory Schools, where Michelle Obama is on the board.”

Video gamers’ wives beware!!!

Does your husband play video games? Have you ever thought about deleting it to get him off? Well before go any further you better read THIS.

Who would have thought that the “Delete” key could have you looking a murder charges?

Do you know who is responsible for the climate change

The Earth is responsible for the climate change.

“…soils are by far the world's largest source of carbon dioxide, producing 10 times more carbon dioxide each year than all the carbon dioxide emissions from human activities combined. Small changes in how carbon emissions from soils are estimated, therefore, can have a large impact.”

Who needs to know how to spell?

O lny srmat poelpe can raed tihs. I cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod

aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor

of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde

Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod

are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in

the rgh it pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll

raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid

deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.

Amzanig huh? yaeh and I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt!

if you can raed tihs psas it on !!

Psas Ti ON !

Lucky Me

Ok so I don’t know how many of you have Gmail accounts but I love mine. Yesterday I saw this little banner that said Gmail now had themes. I thought to myself “sweet!” so I now have the option of picking a theme for my Gmail account. When I got home I was going to change Jessica’s theme and surprise her. Well come to find out only some people got the themes and she was not one of them. I had such a good time showing my theme off to her that I thought I would rub it in a little more to those of you that didn’t get it either. The theme I picked is the weather. It changes with the current weather for my area. Way cool! I’ll post some screen shots to show you, just don’t drool on your keyboard.

An Ice Age is upon us!!

It puts a smile on my face when I read articles like THIS about global warming. I have always been one to not automatically believe what someone tells me but to question it and try and find out for myself often coming to my own conclusions. Global warming is no different. If any of you have bought into this main stream lemming idea, I’m sorry. Before I go any further I want to make clear that I am not against recycling or waste reduction or renewable energy or think that pollution isn’t a problem. I am against the idea that we, as human beings, think we are so powerful that we can control the weather of a planet.

I am not a scientist but I could smell the rat in this long before I read the above linked article. I do work with numbers and trends and there is no way we have enough data about the natural deviation of the Earths temperature to come to any conclusion about a warming or cooling.

The sad thing is the people that were so quick to jump onboard with this that they are going to have a hard time admitting they were wrong and naive about this and will be slow to let go of it. Just take a step back and think about how far away we are from the Sun and how the Earths orbit is the perfect distance to produce a climate in which we can survive. There is no doubt of a creator and to think that we could some how alter His creation in a way that His plan would be stopped is absolutely preposterous. Think of how big the Earth is and how small we are. We are not as powerful as we really think we are. We are at the mercy of “mother nature.” Don’t underestimate the foresight God had in His design.

As my wife would say, "WTF?"

I read THIS and honestly... I don't know what to say.

Who comes in when God is kicked out?

I have a few posts talking about home school is better than public school. So far I have not heard a good reason why public school is better. THIS is only the latest article of many in the news I have read. I pondered a long time on why public schools are in the poor state that they are in. The best explanation I have come up with is that God has been kicked out of schools and so that has left the door wide open for Satan to come in. Satan and his influences make havoc, unchecked by righteous influence because for the most part is has been banned.

Now that Satan has been successful in getting God out of our schools he is working on getting it snuffed out of our country. If public schools are any indication of what happens when God is exiled. Just think what is going to happen to our once great nation, under God.

We have generations of children now reaching adulthood that were raised in a home with one parent, a school without morals, and a society without God. It is these people that will hold school board chairs, political office, and judicial benches.

Pray that you and your family have adequately armored yourselves. Continue to try and teach, protect, and provide for your family. Do what ever it takes, make what ever sacrifice is needed to help your children make it down the straight and narrow path.

Your failure in this will be unmatched by any other shortcoming in your life and your success in this will bring joy and blessings that last an eternity. Make sure you are focusing on that which is MOST important.

In the Face of Hatred (Prop 8 protests at LA Temple)

This is an e-mail that was sent to me. Also please give creadit to Meridian Magazine.

About the Author:
A thirty-one year veteran of the Los Angeles Police Department, Paul Bishop currently directs a Sexual Assault Detail with responsibility for investigations in more than twenty-five percent of the city. His career has included a tour with the department's Anti-Terrorist Division and more than twenty years' experience investigating sex crimes. Twice honored as Detective of the Year, he has also received the Quality and Productivity Commission Award from the City of Los Angeles.

IN THE FACE OF HATRED

It has been an interesting week.
The Chinese homily, "May you live in interesting times," has its roots in a curse, not a blessing.

As I said, it has been an interesting week.

The controversy in California regarding Proposition 8 (the proposed amendment to the California constitution defining marriage to be strictly between a man and a woman) built to a frenzy in the days leading up to Tuesday's election and then exploded into anger and violence in the aftermath of Prop 8's slim passage into law.

I am a Los Angeles Police Department detective supervisor running a sex crimes unit covering the western quarter of the city, which also includes the area where the Los Angeles temple is located. I have a fantastic crew of 20 detectives who are an amazing mixture of races and sexes. I have several detectives who are openly gay or lesbian. This orientation has nothing to do with their efficiency as investigators. I deeply respect and like these individuals. I enjoy working with them. My life is often in their hands when we serve high risk search or arrest warrants. I trust them implicitly.

Obviously, the types of crimes we investigate bring us into regular contact with victims who are of an alternative lifestyle orientation. It is incumbent upon us that our compassion for these victims be no less than for victims who are heterosexual.

Hard Choices

Working in such an environment, I found taking a position on Proposition 8 to be difficult. Even though I chose to follow the direction of our Church leaders in my voting decision, it was extremely hard for me to place myself on the line when it came to actively working to ensure the passage of Proposition 8.
Still, I watched in amazement as my fellow ward and stake members worked tirelessly, committing themselves full-heartedly to the cause – not out of homophobic hatred, but out of a love of Christ and a belief in the sanctity of traditional marriage. Their faith strengthened mine, and I committed to participate in a sign waving public rally sponsored by our stake to be held at a local intersection.

By following through on this commitment, I found I had a greater stake in the battle than I had ever thought. I learned a number of hard and harsh lessons. And in the events following the election and passage of Proposition 8, I felt great anguish forcing me to drop to my knees in prayer – eventually coming to a more personal understanding of the Love of Christ and what he expects from me.

During the Proposition 8 rally, as I stood with my wife and friends waving Yes On 8 signs and waving to the passing rush hour traffic, I learned several things. I learned supporters of both Yes On 8 and No On 8 liked to honk their horns. I learned the way to tell the difference is the No On 8 supporters usually accompanied their horn honking with an obscene gesture or a string of obscenities. They also liked to swerve their cars toward the children on the curb.
I learned when we didn't engage in argument with the No On 8 supporters who intermingled with us in the intersection, they became enraged, red faced, and fit to burst.
I have no doubt Yes On 8 supporters both from our church and other churches engaged at some point in the shouting matches during the numerous rallies and demonstrations across the state. However, on the evening of my participation, I was amazed by the cool and non-confrontational way the Yes On 8 supporters conducted themselves.

I learned at the rally several of our ward members had received hate mail after their names, religious affiliation, contribution mounts, and addresses were published on a website inciting No On 8 supporters to target the listed individuals. Their houses and cars had been vandalized, their campaign support signs stolen, and opposition signs planted in their place.
When I returned home after the rally, I had a huge headache and my stomach was in knots. I am not a fan of confrontation, and the noise of the horn honking, both pro and con, and the divisive atmosphere inherent in the volatile situation had taken its toll. Still, after praying with my wife, I felt calmer and was pleased we had chosen to participate. While our efforts were miniscule compared to the hours of service to the cause provided by others, we had at least jumped down from the fence and done something.

Then I saw the latest No On 8 television commercial.
Tolerance?

Supposedly produced by an independent group not affiliated with the official No On 8 campaign, the thirty second commercial spot shows two scruffy male white actors portraying Mormon missionaries who force their way into the well-kept home of a married lesbian couple.

"Hi, we're from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints," one says.

"We're here to take away your rights," says his companion.

The missionaries then rip the wedding rings from the women's fingers and ransack the house until they find the women's marriage license, which they destroy.

"Hey, we have rights," one of the women says.

"Not if we can help it," answers a missionary.

Moving outside the residence, one of the missionaries smugly says, "That was easy."

Flexing his muscles, his companion asks, "What do we want to ban next?"

While I was appalled by the commercial, I was even more appalled both MSNBC and The Comedy Channel happily took money to broadcast this overtly hate filled vignette. I cannot imagine a similar commercial, targeted at any other religious or racial group, not being considered a hate crime with a civic outcry for prosecution.

My hackles were beginning to rise in a distinctly unchristian way. However, the fun was just beginning.

Election Day And Aftermath

Election day in California saw numerous No On 8 activists distributing literature and vocalizing at polling sites in clear violation of election laws. Police were called, 100 yard distances from the polling places were paced off, yet the agitation continued.
Despite these efforts, Proposition 8 obtained a slim majority (52.5% to 47.5%). Exit polls showed the proposition was supported by 7 of 10 Black voters, a majority of Latino voters, and by people with children under the age of 18 still at home. Clearly, it was supported by all people who believed marriage is a special and protected institution.

The day after the election, spontaneous protests sprung up in West Hollywood – a small residential community, with a large gay and lesbian population, located within Los Angeles County , but just outside Los Angeles city borders. The protests did not have a particular focus or target other than outrage as they strayed outside the confines of West Hollywood and into Beverly Hills , Hollywood , and West Los Angeles . Several arrests were made, but the seething anger at the passage of Proposition 8 was not dampened.

On Thursday, however, two days after the election, rumors began to be picked up by LAPD of a large protest organized by gay and lesbian activists and their supporters to be staged outside the Los Angeles LDS temple on Santa Monica Boulevard in West Los Angeles.
LAPD has 22 geographic Areas divided between 4 administrative Bureaus . My investigative unit is attached to Operations-West Bureau – which has responsibility for the area where the Los Angeles temple grounds are located. We operate out of a squadroom across from the Bureau's administrative offices. In such proximity, I was in a position to observe the command post set up in the Bureau offices to monitor the actions of the field command post charged with keeping the already illegal (no permits) protest peaceful.

What I learned by watching and listening shouldn't have surprised me, but it did. During my 30+ year tenure, the LAPD as an organization has made great professional strides in the internal battle against sexual harassment, sexual orientation harassment, and racism. While there are still those in civil liberty organizations who contest we are still guilty of racially profiling on the streets (difficult to imagine when our department is so thoroughly integrated at this point in time), organizationally there is little or no tension remaining in these areas.

In the Bureau command post there was a large screen television displaying scenes from the protest outside the Los Angeles temple. Imagine my surprise, when angry protestors began rushing the closed temple gates, and I heard an officer in the command post say, "I hope they burn that place to the ground."
Imagine my even stronger surprise when another officer replied, "They better hope they don't get through the gates, because the Mormons have an army in a bunker under the temple that will come out and kill them all."

Really? My temple recommend must not be of a high enough clearance to get me into that part of the temple.
I'm now doing a slow burn. Not only am I watching a sacred building under siege from 2,500 angry people shouting, " SEPERATION OF CHURCH AND HATE," and carrying signs proclaiming MORMON HATERS and LOVE NOT HATE, I'm listening to other police officers who agree with the protestors or have the most imaginative fantasies about blood atonement armies hidden under the temple (exactly how do we feed them, drill them, get them in and out without anybody seeing, or are they all in a state of suspended animation until needed?).

I want to emphasize these were not officers or detectives from my own unit – who are all aware of my Mormon faith. Those in my unit who disagree with me over this issue are respectfully tolerant, as I am respectfully tolerant of their opposite beliefs. Tolerance, as Orson Scott Card recently pointed out, is indicative of disagreement. It is not a battle we choose to fight amongst ourselves. Most of us have known each other for a long time and are either embracing of, or oblivious to, our differences – divisiveness has no place in the types of investigations we conduct.
The Mob

The worst, however, was yet to come. The temple presidency made a decision to close the temple for the evening. The right decision, but since when do we as Americans stand by – no matter what our religion – while access to a place of worship is forced to close down because of aggressive outside influences?
The late local news showed scenes of several Hispanic females in tears outside the temple trying to remove the signs desecrating the walls and fences surrounding the temple. As these individuals – who according to a temple spokesperson were not church members – removed the hate-filled signs, the mob exploded and began beating the individuals to the ground. Police intervened and arrests were made, but the fact this was allowed to happen at all was appalling.

Other supporters of Yes On 8 drove slowly by the protestors with Yes On 8 signs attached to their cars and pickups sparking other violent confrontations.
A friend of mine, watching the same scenes play out on the television, called and said he felt like he wanted to go down to the temple with a baseball bat and begin swinging at the demonstrators. I must admit, the natural man in me agreed.

In actuality, the scenes on the television, literally drove me to my knees in prayer for the safety of the temple, the members, and our church. A lesson I have learned several times before, caused me to expand my prayers to include those who were opposing us for they are not our enemies – they are our brothers and sisters in Christ.
The Appropriate Response

In the face of hatred, how are we to feel about this focused attack upon our church? An attack launched not because we are the only supporters of Proposition 8, but because we have been the most visible and financially supportive entity in the battle. We are an easy target.

In a recent article on Christian Courage , Elder Robert D. Hales of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles wrote, "I would say that one of mortality's great tests comes when our beliefs are questioned or criticized. In such moments, we may want to respond aggressively – to put up our dukes . But these are important opportunities to step back, pray, and follow the Savior's example. Remember, Jesus Himself was despised and rejected by the world. And in Lehi's dream, those coming to the Savior also endured 'mocking and pointing … fingers' (1 Nephi 8:27). 'The world hath hated [my disciples],' Jesus said, 'because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world' (John 17:14). But when we respond to our accusers as the Savior did, we not only become more Christlike, we invite others to feel His love and follow Him as well.
"To respond in a Christlike way cannot be scripted or based on a formula. The Savior responded differently in every situation. When He was confronted by wicked King Herod, He remained silent. When He stood before Pilate, He bore a simple and powerful testimony of His divinity and purpose. Facing the moneychangers who were defiling the temple, He exercised His divine responsibility to preserve and protect that which was sacred. Lifted up upon a cross, He uttered the incomparable Christian response: 'Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do' (Luke 23:34)."

We have often been instructed to love our enemies, and despite the current horror of our trials, this is no time to do differently.
As I write this (Friday, November 7, 2008), plans are being made by the LAPD to respond to another larger protest/demonstration being planned by No On 8 supporters to be staged in front of the Los Angeles temple on Saturday.

This is interesting since Saturday is my stake's day in the temple. For some weeks now, we have been encouraging families to come together to the temple on Saturday to participate in ordinances.
How do we respond to hatred disguised by the adversary as tolerance? Our stake president has talked to the temple presidency who has assured him the temple will be open for business as usual. There are eight weddings scheduled on the grounds. Will we be able to get to the temple without being molested or our vehicles vandalized? We must place our faith in the Lord and proceed.
Challenges to our faith are not new. Nor are they likely to go away anytime soon. But, as Elder Hales reminds us, "True disciples of Christ see opportunity in the midst of opposition. We can take advantage of such opportunities in many ways: a kind letter to the editor, a conversation with a friend, a comment on a blog, or a reassuring word to one who has made a disparaging comment. We can answer with love those who have been influenced by misinformation and prejudice – who are 'kept from the truth because they know not where to find it' (D&C 123:12). I assure you that to answer our accusers in this way is never weakness. It is Christian courage in action."
Lessons Learned

Clearly there are lessons to be learned from the current unrest:

Tolerance is not agreement and should not be a one way street. However, we must still remain tolerant of those who are intolerant of us.

Recognize the adversary at work here – making good seem bad and evil seem good.

We can only be disciples of Christ when we respond to adversity in a Christlike manner. To do less opens our actions to the influence of the adversary and hurts us even more.

We should never take for granted the opportunities we have to gather together in worship. We should never put off the opportunity to attend the temple. For these valuable things can be disrupted and possibly even closed to us – if not permanently, then at least on a temporary basis.

Pray. Often. Don't forget to include those who are set against you.

And finally, have no doubt President Monson knows where all of this is leading. He will surely reveal the knowledge to us on the Lord's timetable. Meanwhile, we must support and trust him, his inspired councilors, and our inspired local leaders in our actions. Their actions of Christian courage will be our examples.

Smittens

Am I a girl because I think these are awesome?

Some times you have to endure a lot for your love but now cold hands won't be one of them.

Greetings

Have you ever noticed that what ever greeting you use that person will most likely repeat it? I pass at least 30 people a day at work and I greet them all as I pass by. About 90% of the time if I speak first that person will repeat what ever greeting I use. If I say Hi they say Hi, if I say Hey, they say Hey. It even works if I say Howdy, people that have never said howdy to before will say it. Try it or think about it next time someone says hey to you if you say hey back or if you use some other greeting. Maybe you have realized this and consciously make sure you use a different greeting then the one someone greeted you with.

What about those people that you are passing in the hall and they say “how are you doing?” You both walking opposite directions, they don’t really want to know how you are doing any more then you could tell them in the brief moment as you pass by.

Last thought: we have some long hall ways here and you can see that you are going to walk by someone long before you get close enough for them to hear your greeting. When do you make eye contact and when do you greet them? You can give the “hello smile/nod” from a long way away but then do you stair at the person for the next 20 steps it takes to pass them? Do you look around at nothing avoiding the first eye contact until you are at a close enough distance to do your normal hello and repeated hello back?

Welcome to the wonderings of my brain.

Are there any smart people out there?

After reading THIS you’ll be asking yourself the same question.

Gay Marriage and Public Schools

I couldn’t have asked for a better ARTICLE. Not only does it show that is going to happen if same sex marriage is made a “right” but it also points out how public schools are one of the worst places for your children if trying to live the gospel.

I hope everyone knows about PROPOSITION 8 and will vote for it when given the chance. We must do everything we can to protect our family, our children.

Do you have a gun?

If you do not have a gun read THIS!

I am so glad that I own multiple guns and that both my wife and I both know how to use them. You can bet your life that my kids will know how and when to use them. I’d much rather live with having killed someone in the defense of my family then with having my family hurt.

My love for public schools

This ARTICLE reassures my love for public schools.

Just think if you get a call from your kid’s school saying he or she is not allowed back until he or she has passed psychological testing at a mental health center. I’m sure that will make for some great memories for your child.