Scripture Sunday Alma 11:43

Atheists will often say "What kind of body will we have in Heaven? Will I be 14? 30? 60? If I'm blind, will I have sight? Will I enjoy having sight?" Like many questions asked to us by non believers, this question is totally valid and raises a good point. We don't know what our heavenly forms will be like, but we can speculate. This passage brings me enormous comfort.

"The spirit and the body shall be reunited again in perfect form." It's concise and gives us a beautiful message. Frankly, I wish more people understood this one passage more than some of the other ones. When I pass a sick child at Disney or when I see loved one whose body has beaten down by age, I take great comfort in the fact that at one point in the future, it won't matter. All of us will be perfect.

Disney bans smoking in the parks

You'll now be forced to smoke outside the Disney parks.  I'm all for individual businesses allowing or not allowing smoking on their property, so I have no problem with this. In fact, I'm actually surprised it didn't happen earlier. I don't believe that second hand smoke is really a problem and no, walking by a smoking section at Epcot won't subject your kids to lung cancer. However Disney has every right to ban whatever they want in their own parks.

What I find most amusing is how people on Facebook are saying "Well, I'll never to Disney again. Universal it is!" Yeah, um, do you think Disney is crying over your temper tantrum? First off, you'll probably go to Disney again. Second, even if you stomped your feet, held your breath until you passed out and really never did go to Disney again, you will only hurt yourself in the long run. Disney doesn't care, no one else cares, and all you'll do is not allow yourself to go to something you once enjoyed.

Album of the Weekend

Eddie and the Hot Rods-Teenage Depression

This is a great album, but the sound is very distinct and it's not going to be for everyone. Upfront-you will probably want to listen to the songs on Youtube before you spend money to download it. I recently found out about them after stumbling on the title track "Teenage Depression" on my beloved XM radio during a road trip. The song is unique-to me it has the snarl of Johnny Cash in "Cocaine Blues" and the lyrics of teenage angst from the Green Day album "Dookie". 

These guys never made it big, especially in the states. It's a shame because they had a lot of potential. 

Spectrum cable

So, I've had some issues with Spectrum cable lately. For some reason yet to be determined, my cable keeps going out sporadically, without warning, and for a long period of time. Oh sure, it's a first world problem and yes, if that's my biggest concern than life is going fairly well for me. I get it. But it's still frustrating, especially for a news junkie like me, and especially for a news junkie who writes a blog. Sure, no one reads it, but I still try to write daily.

We've had a technician come to our house twice and both times the two different guys have said that their is no problem-but there is. Cable keeps going out. The internet keeps going out. They are sending someone else out to fix the problem yet again, but I'm not terribly optimistic.

So if I don't blog for a day or two, I'm still here and going nowhere-blame it all on Spectrum.

Why I'm not a liberal

A liberal doesn't fear change, unless the change is in favor of goals and ideas that they don't agree with. A liberal claims to love and embrace change, but if that change comes in the form of shrinking government or restricting abortion, then change is something to be terrified of. A progressive is all in favor of progress and new ideas, but if these new ideas aren't fundamentally leftist in nature, then the new ideas are terrifying and should be avoided.

Liberals tend to flip their views when it's convenient. Speaking truth to power is a liberal slogan, and one I totally agree with. However if that power is liberal, than speaking truth to it is treason. This is the same with war as well. War is hell, and war is always wrong if a republican is in office. If a democrat is in office than war is an appropriate answer to problems.

In modern times, the liberal view of tolerance is the same as the liberal view of change. "I may not agree with what you say but I'll defend to the death your right to say it" now means "Shut the Hell up if you say anything that isn't politically correct." Liberals claim to love choice when it comes to abortion, because you can't tell a woman what to do with her body after all, but you can tell a woman what to do with her bakery. If she's a Christian, she better bake that goddamn cake or she's a bigot. I'm not sure what a liberal would say to a Muslim baker.

Why I'm not a conservative

I certainly lean more to the right, but I'm not a conservative. This is a generality but generally most conservatives that I've met can sometimes be focused on a time in the past that will never happen again. First off, they over romanticize the past (like everyone does when it comes to nostalgia) and forget about the reasons why it was terrible. Growing up I often saw people on the right talk about the "good old days' of the 1950's, where there was no such thing as abortion, gay marriage, out of wedlock births. Where tv shows were clean and life was 100% perfect and everything was wonderful. It's nonsense of course-the 1950's were hardly a conservative wonderland but even if they were, it's impossible to go back to the past.

Regardless of you (generic usage of the word) stomping your feet, holding your breath till you pass out, crying and screaming,we will not be going back to the 1950's, 1960's, 1980's, or 2000's, and you probably don't want to. Conservatives place much too high a value on tradition without pausing to think if that tradition is even worth keeping.

FA Hayek, in his brilliant essay "Why I am not a conservative" said that one of the fundamental problems with conservatives is that they fear change. He was exactly right. He also makes the brilliant point that conservatives don't care about government power as long as the government is conservative. He's exactly right about that too. Hence why a conservative supreme court would curtail abortion rights, gay rights, and give more power to Donald Trump and his idiotic plans for a border wall. The border wall is a perfect example of why I'm not a conservative. Big government programs are great as long as they are conservative ones. 

What happened this weekend

So, this weekend I went to Tampa to see Anvil and Archer Nation in concert. While I like going to see the big acts in arenas (the few that are left) I prefer going to festivals like Rockville in Jacksonville and then to clubs and bars. It's a much more intimate feeling when you are in a bar/club with 20-30 people rather than 7000 in an arena.

Archer Nation is pretty new band and when I heard that they were opening for Anvil, I immediately downloaded their album and yes, it'll be my album or the weekend shortly. I'm sure the one other person who cares is waiting in anticipation for that review. They covered the Megadeth song "Tornado of Souls" as their second to last song, and it was spectacular. Their own stuff is also quite good.

Anvil are the daddys of 1980's hair metal and that they are "Still Going Strong" (to quote one of their albums) is a miracle in itself. This band has enough baggage/bad luck to sink seven careers, but I'm so happy they can still draw a bit of a crowd. Their determination and drive is incredibly inspiring.

Scripture Sunday update

I'll be going to an Anvil/Archer Nation tour this Saturday in Tampa and I won't be posting a Scripture Sunday this weekend. Hope your weekend is a good one! 

Album of the weekend

Peter Criss-Peter Criss

Peter Criss, the solo album released in 1978 along with the three other bandmates is widely considered to be the worst one of the four, and that's saying something because none of the solo albums are really spectacular in their own right.

Criss is more of a blues based drummer, and his main influences growing up were the blues. His influences show with this album. It's certainly the most different sounding of the four albums and that's not a good thing-it's one thing for an artist to express themselves, but when you do something totally different from your genre (like Dee Dee Ramone turning to rap) the outcome will probably be bad. In Dee Dees case, it was.

And in the case of Peter Criss, it's bad too. This album isn't just different, it's terirble. I try to give every album the benefit of the doubt and don't let public opinion taint my own (I'm sure we all say that) so I've listened to this with an open mind. Masochist that I am, I even played it several times.

I call this album "dentist music" because most of the songs are those you hear at the dentist. Even calling it bland "Muzak" would be an insult. It's beyond bland. It's forgettable, dull and Peter Criss can't sing-if you can't sing, the don't sing. Simple as that. He sings several of the songs and he just can't do it.

Kiss revisionism asks to give this album another look. A book I was reading recently by Julian Gill makes the case that this album is over bashed. I really liked the book, but I totally disagree with him on that. This album is a D at best. You will be remembering the songs, but not for a good reason.

General Conference changes

General Conference is coming up next month, and like every year people are excited about the changes that might occur. Since I've only been in the church for less than a decade, I can't say I remember watching other General Conferences from the past and seeing what kind of hype and build up they had. I do think that with the new president, Russell Nelson, there has been an interesting jolt of energy and change to the church. That's not an insult to the previous presidents. 

Here's the interesting thing about predictions. If you wake up every day and say "Today is the day I'm going to die." Eventually you'll be right. If at every General Conference you say "Today is the time they will allow females to hold the priesthood." Eventually you'll be right too. 

The last Blockbuster on Earth

The Twitter page is absolutely hilarious and I strongly suggest you follow it. I'm reasonably sure that the Twitter page isn't the page of a real Blockbuster-but there is one left in the world. It's been getting some media attention recently. Like my interest in Sears, I love watching dead stores and more importantly, I love/hate hearing about the nostalgia we have for them. Of course, it's more nostalgia for a "simpler time" (I hate saying that. The past wasn't simple, our human minds just think it was) than actually for Blockbuster.

Blockbuster sucked. It's selection was horrible, they had virtually nothing but popular movies you could see in the theaters. It was like listening to mainstream rock radio that only played Aerosmith or Led Zeppelin or post Black Album Metallica. The late fees were outrageous, you had to return the movies in a few days and if you forgot or had transportation problems-it didn't matter. I don't watch movies that much (maybe two-three a year and I don't have a Netflix) but thank God that Blockbuster will soon be no more.

Ambassador for the Archbishop of Canterbury issues

I'm not surprised by this, but apparently an ambassador for the Archbishop of Canterbury doesn't believe that Christ actually rose from the dead. Yes, the guy apparently is an ordained minister in their "church".  Like I said I'm not surprised. The Church of England has all sorts of ordained ministers. I can accept gay priests, girl priests, you name it. What I can't accept are priests that don't believe in the resurrection of our Lord.

If you don't like the sight of blood, don't become an ER nurse. If you don't want to work on Black Friday, don't get a job in retail. If you don't like long, boring days spent in a courthouse, don't become a lawyer. And if you don't believe that Christ is the savior of mankind and resurrected from the dead, don't become a cleric in any Christian denomination.

The Church of England is one of those hip, tolerant churches that allows anything. I'm 99% sure this guy won't be reprimanded or removed from his priesthood. If you really want to know why the church of England is in total collapse, look no further.

Lori Loughlin college scandal

I haven't talked about this scandal because frankly, I don't really care. If you were surprised that there was widespread corruption in the college admission world then frankly, you need to grow up a bit and stop being so naive. There, I said it. Wherever there is money, and yes, this goes for religion too, there will probably be some level of corruption. No, we shouldn't tolerate it, and yes, when it comes out those who perpetrated it should be punished.

But I am blown away by the hate this lady is receiving. I never watched her show with the exception of maybe one or two episodes growing up. I've never seen her in any movies either, so I have no particular love for her. In fact, I barely recognize her. But the outcry over this floors me. Tiger Woods didn't get this much hate after his scandal, and even he had his defenders. No one is backing Lori Laughlin up.

I'm going to ask you a blunt question. If you had the chance to do what she did for your children, would you? Oh sure, it's easy to say you wouldn't and pat yourself on the back. But in reality, when given the chance to let your kid get a great education and at the time, it looks like you won't get caught-it would be very hard to say no. I'm not saying what she did was right, but I am saying people need to relax and drop the pitchforks.

Scripture Sunday Mormon 9:8

The Book of Mormon is many things, but one thing I think people can agree on is that it's a little complicated. You don't have to be a believing member to see the relative complexity in the Book of Mormon, and just saying that it's complex doesn't mean you believe in it's truth claims. Yes, I know intelligent people have dismissed the book as "chloroform in print" and some people have said much worse. This passage claims that anyone who "deny these things knoweth not the gospel of Christ, and if he has read the scriptures, he has not understood them."

I'm not naive-I think you can read the scriptures, come to a different conclusion than I have, and still know the gospel of Christ to some degree. I think all Christian churches have some degree of truth to them (being a Christian this shouldn't surprise you). I tend to agree with CS Lewis that Christianity is a mansion, and each one of the denominations have a different room in said mansion.

Payday loans

Like I've mentioned before several times, I lean heavily towards the libertarian side. In a free country (and we are still a relatively free country) you should be allowed to do pretty much anything you want, as long as you accept the consequences. I get how some people have a hard time managing money, and you need to do whatever you can to stretch your paycheck. However getting a payday loan is a terrible idea. In fact in some cases, going to a loan shark might be a better idea.

The APR for these things is extremely high, and yes, you need to be able to understand what you are getting into before you take one out. You'll be paying a huge amount of money to be able to loan the money, and eventually you'll just be digging your debt hole deeper. Often times I imagine you'll be paying double what you borrowed, and since most of them take the money right out of your bank account, you have no choice in the matter.

Should these places be legal? Probably. But I wish people knew what they were getting into before they took them out.

Album of the Weekend

The Raven Age-Conspiracy

This album has a bipolar feel to it. Many songs start off slow and get faster, many songs have a mix of alternative sounding nu metal with a mix of more traditional elements of heavy metal. It has songs that I found myself playing over and over  again and it has songs that I didn't like at all. It's obviously hit or miss to me.

It's probably safer to listen to all the songs on Youtube before you download this one. 

NH town elects Holocaust denier as a selectmen

In a stunning display of horrible judgement, a NH town elected a holocaust denier as one of their selectmen. First and before I go any further no, this is not a slam against Catholics. Richmond NH has a small, radical sect of Catholics there that call themselves "Slaves to the Immaculate Heart of Mary".

 In fact, the Catholic church has banned this community from calling themselves Catholic because of their asinine views. So if you think this is "anti-Catholic" you are wrong.

Holocaust denial is abhorrent, and if I tell you why, I don't want to tell you why.

Every town can make a mistake and I'm disgusted and appalled that the mistake was this serious. If the town has any sense, which clearly they don't, they wouldn't let this maniac sit as selectmen. I'm basically all for the voters doing what they want to do, and if they elect a dumbass, then they should be stuck with a dumbass. But I draw the line at holocaust deniers. Those people are delusional at best, monsters at worst.

Well played Richmond NH. Well played.

Ben and Jerrys

I'm all for sticking it the man. It makes us feel cool and impresses our friends. Sadly though, really "speaking truth to authority" sometimes means "meekly obeying authority when people we like are in command." Ben and Jerrys is foolish for many reasons, but my personal favorite is how they think they are counter culture and hip while in reality, they are merely rich guys who found a way to exploit idiots who think by buying their overpriced ice cream they are being rebellious.

Damn, at least the Dead Kennedys had the amazing ability to poke fun at their own beliefs. Look at "California Uber Alles" and "Holiday in Cambodia" for examples of that. I'll believe that Ben and Jerrys are doing the same when they have an ice cream flavor called "Elitist Egg Nog" for the Winter Solstice season. Or "I'm anti-Captilaist but made millions of dollars selling ice cream Cotton Candy". How about "We love cop killers but live in areas where crime is virtually non existent so it doesn't effect us blueberry"? I could go on for days with this. Better stop myself before I get out of control.

Utah teacher Ash Wednesday controversy

I've waited to talk about this issue because I wanted it to cool down a bit. A teacher in Utah apparently forced a Catholic child to remove the ashes on his forehead during Ash Wednesday. I get no pleasure saying this, but no one can play the victim card better than a religious person who thinks they've been persecuted for something. Yes, the teacher was wrong, but no, it wasn't anti-Catholic. It was simply her being ignorant of another persons religious belief. Hate to break it to you, but you are also probably ignorant of the practices of other religions too.

If the teacher was a Catholic and said the same kind of thing to an LDS girl reading the Book of Mormon during a study hall and LDS flipped out over it, I'd feel the sam way. I'd tell the people overreacting to chill. Sadly, some religious people love playing the victim. They love pretending that the media/the population/everyone picks on them and persecutes them. It's obnoxious and a hypocritical-because often times they'll be quick to dismiss the victimhood claims of everyone else. This is, tragically, one of those times.

Children getting vaccines against their parents wishes

Rage against the machine kids. Last year a kid went viral when he asked an online forum if he could get a vaccine against the wishes of his "stupid parents". His words, not mine. For the record I strongly support children getting vaccines against their parents wishes,  even minors. After all if a minor can get an abortion without parental approval, then they should be allowed to protect themselves against deadly diseases. I don't go so far as to say that anti vaxxers are "stupid".

Vaccines are a major issue for me. I can't imagine not getting my child vaccinated. The "arguments" of the anti-vaccine crowd are not real arguments-they are based in lies and misinformation. The medical community overwhelmingly supports vaccines, and you should too. Regardless of what your Yoga teacher or fifteen minutes of Google "research" tells you.

Scripture Sunday Moroni 9:6

This passage brings me hope. As anyone who has been on a mission will tell you (and I never served a mission) you get rejected far more often than you have success. Even if you are not a formal missionary but you post words of the prophets and words from the Book of Mormon-99% of the time the people "liking" the posts are already LDS. While it's not fair to think that everyone who is not a member has a hard heart, this passage reminds us to keep laboring diligently in the face of difficult odds.

Eventually, we will "conquer the enemy of all righteousness", and no, that enemy is not an individual person, no matter how hard their heart is. One day all of difficult labor here will seem like "one night in an inconvenient motel" (to quote a famous Catholic saint, not my words).

Pet peeve sins

I've noticed that all of us have sins that we consider more serious than others. Let's say I get caught lying about my veteran status. I said I was an Iraq War veteran but it turns out I never was. For the record, no, I was never in the service, I'm strictly using this as an example. Some people want to forgive me-after all, judge not lest ye be judged. Now, let's say I get caught cheating on my wife. Some people who were saying "judge not" would not be saying "Get away from you piece of garbage. Throw the book at him."

It's fascinating to me that people think certain sins are "unforgivable" while others aren't that big a deal, and you shouldn't be judging people. Let's get back to the cheating thing-I've never heard someone say "We should forgive Cindy for cheating on her husband. After all, judge not lest ye be judged." But if Cindy steals a car or from Wal Mart-well, judge not will certainly be used in that case.

And yes, the "judge not lest ye be judged" is the most misunderstood bible passage out there. You can't even mention it without someone saying how misunderstood it is.

Album of the weekend

Striker-Play to Win

Last week, I reviewed a great album that I think everyone should download. It was crisp, cutting edge but still traditional, and the lyrics were based in fantasy but avoided being cheesy. This weeks album is not like that. Striker has been around for awhile, and I do respect that-after all I respect virtually any artist who can get someone to pay their money to purchase their art-but this album is mediocre at best.

First off, it sounds over produced. There are times that the music seems to overpower the lead singer, and that is something that I feel should have been addressed during production of the album. The music also has a very 1980's feeling that doesn't provide anything new to the genre-I've heard this album before many times even though this was my first time listening to it.

There are only a few songs on the album that I recommend downloading-The Front (which I actually do like, it's saving the album from getting a D) and...well, that's actually it. I strongly, strongly recommend playing these songs on Youtube  before you download the album.

Pharmacy company preparing for bankruptcy

The pharmaceutical company that makes Oxycontin might be filing for bankruptcy due to legal fees and lawsuits. At first, you might think this is a good idea because after all, Oxycontin kills innocent people. But it isn't. At all.

If you are in chronic pain and need the drug legitimately, then now you'll have to switch to another drug that might not work as well. I'm not sure that the average person knows what it's like to be in chronic pain and no, you have no right to tell someone that they should have to stop taking a painkiller that works for them.

Tragically, some people become addicted to painkillers and yes, some people die from their addiction. As horrible as that is, that doesn't change the fact that some people, especially those dying of horrific diseases, are in great pain and have every right to alleviate that pain. Even with Oxycontin.

Transgender athletes

It's become obnoxious to hear this, but I've long since been an "ally" of the LGBT community. I was pro gay marriage in high school (and back in the late 90's, that was cutting edge, especially in a Catholic school. I was called the "f word" frequently), I was pro gay adoption back then as well. So yes, I'm a hero to the cause. I'm sure the LGBT community appreciates my support. 

Heterosexuals like me bragging about how they support the LGBT community has become self serving and unpleasant-the LGBT community has become more and more mainstream and most heterosexuals who claim to be supportive of the LGBT community are doing so they can show off how compassionate and wonderful they think they are.

I get the feeling that this will be "controversial" but eh, it's out there. I'm somewhat ambivalent about transgender men (men who become women) participating in sports strictly for biological females. Look, if everyone else has no problem with it, fine. But it does seem slightly odd. If a biologically born male transitioning to female becomes an MMA fighter, boxer or weightlifter and absolutely dominates the sport how does that make women participating in the sport feel? If they have no problem with it, fine. Than I'm fine with it too. But their opinion does matter, and if they speak out against it they'll be quickly thought of as "intolerant" and not being "inclusive".

That's the big issue too. Unless you agree with the politically correct cause on 100% of the issues, other people just shriek at you. That's incredibly disturbing to me, and it should be incredibly disturbing to everyone.

British school stops LGBT classes due to parental interference

A group of religious parents withdrew their children from school for the day because the class would be teaching a pro-LGBT lesson. Curse those nasty, horrible Christians. How dare they. Just one problem.

Over 500 of the students removed were Muslim. So politically correct leftists aren't sure what to do. One on hand, they want to align with the LGBT community. On the other, they want to support Islam. It's adorable to see their heads spinning deciding what to do in this case. My favorite people are those blaming the Christians for being anti-LGBT than suddenly keeping their mouths shut when they find out the religion we are talking about is Islam. Whoops.

It's okay to dislike/despise Christians, it's not okay to dislike/hate Islam. Take notes.

Misconcpetions about Florida

I was talking to a friend of mine who was planning to relocate from New England to Florida. Like everyone else who has visited my state but never lived here, she had several misconceptions about my state. Yes, I'm not a native, I've only lived here for three years full time, but I've noticed that many people share her thoughts-here they are.

1-Floridians and alligators interact on a regular basis. People who don't live in Florida often think that we see alligators on a daily basis. No. Most of the time people who see alligators seek them out, and even then they can be hard to find. Sure, you'll hear on the news that a giant alligator was seen on a golf course-but it's only news because it doesn't happen all the time. Alligators generally stay very far away from humans and avoid them. Most people living in Florida don't even think about alligators unless we see a news story about them.

2-We all live on the beach.  Another misconception. Living on the beach is either incredibly expensive or incredibly crowded. Sure, we love the water and many of us enjoy spending time at the beach. However whenever I go to the beach (and I only go during the Fall/Winter time) I usually see mostly tourists. If you move down here and plan to go to the beach every day you'll be disappointed very quickly.

3-Florida is one giant megalopolis. This one is sort of true. Orlando-Tampa IS one giant city, complete with all the crime and congestion and sprawl that come with it. There are other parts of the state that are like that as well. Sadly, it seems like in a few decades the entire state might be like that. As of right now though, Florida is still surprisingly rural, especially north Florida. I live in the country and I love it, but the one drawback is that I have to drive everywhere, so I've racked up a ton of miles on my car. I'm about an hour and half from Tampa and Orlando, but I'm only 45 minutes away from Gainesville.

Scripture Sunday Moroni 10:20-21

This passage tells us what we must have, and builds on each characteristic. First off, and perhaps most importantly, there must be faith. Obviously, belief in God requires faith, and without that, there is nothing else. After faith, there must also be hope-we can hope for faith, we can hope for good things to happen to us, we can even hope that God exists even if we have no faith that He actually does.  Finally, this passage also requires that we have charity. It talks about charity, hope and faith even before it talks about morality or behavior. It's an interesting subject that doesn't get brought up much.

All three of these things, charity, hope and faith are required in the kingdom of God. If you don't have any of those traits, it seems like you will have a hard time achieving salvation.

Carey Hart (Husband of the singer Pink) and his daughter

I've never heard of this guy, but apparently he's the husband of the singer Pink. He's getting some controversy because he's :: gasp :: teaching his daughter how to shoot a gun.  He is doing the right thing, and I wish more parents did what he is doing-teaching your son to shoot is a good thing, teaching your daughter to shoot might save her life.

I'm getting more and more conservative as I get older and one thing I'm certain of is that a some people are just physically stronger than others. No, I'm not making the blanket claim that all men are stronger then women-that's garbage. However, a 6'4" 240 football player on PCP is stronger than many other people, male or female. If that football player wants to, he could cause some serious damage to another person. A .38 is the great equalizer-and teaching your daughter how to use one correctly may not prevent said football player from attacking her-but at least it gives her a better chance.

Album of the weekend

Visigoth-Conqueror's Oath

Do you remember the song, "Battle of Evermore" by Led Zeppelin? It's one of the few songs by them I like-no apologies. This entire album reminds of a metal version of that song. The songs are rooted deeply in fantasy and warfare, and listening to it takes you to another world. If that's not your thing, you should avoid this album at all costs.

However, if you can get beyond the fantasy/mythological lyrics, you'll find a fantastic album. It's crisp, fresh, perfectly produced and it's sounds spectacular. There is not a single bad song on the album, each one is worth downloading. Visigoth does what few bands out there can do-they walk the line between nerd like obsession with Dungeons and Dragons and heavy metal songs that appeal to anyone who likes heavy metal. This is without question one of the best albums I've downloaded in a long time.