Father in law comes home from Iraq next week!

[Tonchi]

Every bit of this "progress" and integration of the gentiles into SLC residence has taken place since the 1960's, when their Prophet received a revelation straight from God that Black people were really human after all and therefore were fit to give their money to the Mormon Church and "aspire" to the priesthood (not necessarily REACH it, but may "aspire"). Revelations like this always follow the Church leaders' being informed that the Feds will withhold money and contracts if they do not get themselves in line with the rest of the country and stop all the weird enforcement of laws to suit themselves (the last big Revelation was "get rid of those extra wives because they won't let us have statehood unless we do"). The state of Utah wanted all the bases and government facilities to stay and needed the federal funding for schools and highways and such, so God stepped in an saved the day. When they realized that they would actually be allowed to get jobs in SLC now, whereas previously positions were all reserved for Mormons, outsiders began to move there and large companies felt free to start branches there. The more visible barriers fell (or rather were moved out of sight) and the Mormon Church eventually made a huge leap into Asia, Africa, and other locations where the (previously) anathema races lived, to spread the truth of the one true AMERICAN religion, an ironic concept since after about 4 years ago the Mormon church now has more members enrolled OUTSIDE this country than homegrown ones. The Feds and the Mormons have several very interesting relationships now (I will not discuss Brigham Young's prophesy that the Mormons would take over the government of the US after a genocidal war which was to come, and usher in the kingdom of God and Joseph Smith on this continent, which when it didn't come true in 1898, led to the Revelation about plural marriage instead) because Mormons are heavily represented in the FBI and the Presidential bodyguards. They also took over the Boy Scouts of America by requiring all of their boys to join, then ran into a brick wall with the Feds again when they tried to ban gays.

There are very few Mormons who know any factual version of their own history; actually, the Church busily rewrites it when inconvenient facts crop up. This does not bother the majority of the Utah faithful, anyway, who treasure the closeness of belonging much more than they bother with pesky facts. High youth suicide rates and divorce figures are also dirty little secrets that are swept under the rug. Actually, many people DO leave the church nowdays, but there are too many more, like my uncle, who get sucked in to replace them. You were very lucky that your parent's slack ties with the church insulated you from being shunned by your extended family in Utah, but many others are devestated by the way they are erased from the lives of everybody they knew since birth.

Discussing religion is more of a dead-end topic than even politics, but when I realize I dislike something strongly I make it my duty to find out as much as possible so that I am not just led by emotion. After considerable experience and investigation, I consider this "religion" to be a cult instead, and an evil one at that. Not as dangerous as Scientology at least, but a plague anyway.

I don't have any family in the Mormon Church (thank God!), but I get around - especially since Utah is right next door and I have lived in places a mere 50 or 60 miles from that dreaded state line. The Utah of Salt Lake versus the Utah of, say, Blanding is a whole different world. It is my understanding that a non-Mormon can limp by in Salt Lake without too much difficulty. Small towns in rural Utah are an entirely different tale, and not a pretty one at that.

The oppression that women in these little Mormon communities endure is outrageous. I could tell story after story. The state liquor laws are insane, and try, oh just try, being a non Mormon tourist looking for anything, even WATER! I was on one of my camping adventures in eastern Utah when I realized my sturdy 10 gallon water container was almost empty and I was in desert country and it was pretty darn hot and dry. It was around 8:00pm on a warm summer evening and everything in Blanding, Utah (where I realized I was low on water) was closed. I cruised the main street looking thirstily around for so much as a single water tap, ANYWHERE. Nothing. Every public place was dark and shut down.

Then I saw that there was a light on in the local LDS Church as I drove by. I whipped a U-Turn, drove back to the church and stopped and knocked at the door round back. A thin woman with a sour expression peered out. "May I fill up my water container from your outdoor tap?" I asked politely.

Ms. Lemon Lips regarded me as if I was a space alien who had just demanded her first born child.

"They have water at Natural Bridges National Monument. Its about 80 miles down the road." Then she shut the door.

As I drove away, someone turned the lawn sprinklers on and showers of water began to dance on the church lawn. I drove the 80 miles to Bridges and have felt a strong dislike for Mormons every since.

[wolf]

Originally Posted by Tonchi

Every bit of this "progress" and integration of the gentiles into SLC residence has taken place since the 1960's, when their Prophet received a revelation straight from God that Black people were really human after all and therefore were fit to give their money to the Mormon Church and "aspire" to the priesthood (not necessarily REACH it, but may "aspire").

I figured that sending the planeloads of NO evacuees to Utah was intentional, with the expectation that a goodly number of them would choose to remain and change the demographics in the state.

[Tonchi]

The news I picked up about that from AP articles said people were demanding to be let off when they discovered they were scheduled for Utah. I don't suppose it was unknown to Blacks in NO that Utah was not exactly a place where they would fit in without friction.