A note on politics

I don’t know if anyone’s noticed, but I’m going to be gone before the November election, and yet I’m encouraging people to vote on this or that (vote Obama! vote yes on California proposition 8!). Don’t worry. I’m a permanent absentee voter. I will in fact be perfectly capable of voting in this election. All of you staying home, it’s even easier for you. Don’t let your vote go to waste. Research the issues, even a little bit, and make sure you understand what your vote means. And then use it. I don’t care if you disagree with me. Just play your role as an active and invested citizen of the United States of America. Remember Dante: The hottest places in hell are reserved for those who, in a time of moral crisis, remain neutral.

Don’t be a fence-sitter. Vote.

Save the Family

Joy Saunders Lundberg and Janice Kapp Perry have teamed up to write a song called “Save the Family,” and a video has been created with this song in the background and posted on YouTube. Its primary purpose is to spread the word about the importance of the family and to support California Proposition 8 this November. Okay, it’s Mormon pop, and therefore just the teeniest bit cheesy, but its message is good and its moral is strong. If Americans (and, right now, specifically Californians) do not stand up to pressure and protect the family, our nation will crumble. It is as simple as that. If we cannot support and respect a president who has cheated on his wife, how can we let this fly?

Watch the video.

Vote yes on Proposition 8.

Here’s the url. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1GRQGc5GQ0. Pass it along.

T–minus 20 days and counting…

That’s right. In 20 days I will be in the MTC. That’s crazy. I don’t even have luggage yet (yeah, I really need to get cracking on that one).

This week has been a flurry of unproductivity. Well, I went to the temple again on Tuesday and I consider that VERY productive. And I’ll say, I already feel a lot better about it! It wasn’t as scary this time because I actually knew what to expect, and I had some idea what I was doing. And I got to go see the Temple President and ask him all sorts of questions, and that helped too. He was awesome! He told me to come back, because he likes talking about temple stuff. I know that things in the temple are too sacred to mention outside, but inside I love that you can ask questions. It truly is a house of learning, and that furthers my belief that it is a little piece of heaven on earth. I think heaven is the one place where you can ask any question you want and get the full and true answer. It is also a place that never runs out of questions, if that makes sense. Because every answer you get opens up more and more questions (like that saying that it is the truly learned who truly realize how little they know), and you never stop learning! You keep learning and progressing and growing throughout eternity.

I’ve been puttering around and getting all sorts of little things done, but in reality we should be cleaning the house and getting ready for our “not” open house Sunday. I’m speaking on church Sunday (everyone speaks in church just prior to serving a mission and just after returning), and so we’re having food at our house for anyone who wants to stop by and say goodbye to me. We’re not really supposed to have a “farewell” and make a big hullabaloo about me leaving, but it does make sense to have a time when anyone can come to visit and say goodbye, since I’ll be gone for a year and a half. It also seems soon to say goodbye, but next Sunday is the primary program, and the Sunday after that I’ll have already left for Utah, to enter the MTC that Wednesday. It’s funny how things sneak up on you. I think part of it is also because I invited a few nonmembers to come hear me speak, and it seems rude to be like, “well, thanks for coming to see me, you should either go to gospel essentials or go home.” It’s much kinder to say “well, there’s food at my house if you’re interested and you have some time to chat!” Another thing kind of weighing on my mind about the whole matter is I feel like I’m inviting everyone last-minute. But then, I wasn’t given much time between when I got my call and when I’m supposed to report. I remember with my brother it was a few months and he had plenty of time to prepare, and people kind of had advance notice. Oh well. I’m glad I don’t have to wait so long!

I also went and visited some of my old high school teachers this week. They always love to chat, but every year they grow a little more distant, a little less involved in my life (and I in theirs). That’s fine; I mean, that’s the way it’s supposed to be. They nave a new fresh crop of students every year to worry about, and while they’re happy to have made a difference in my life, that time has come and passed and it’s time for new students for them and new teachers for me. It’s not like their entire universe revolves around when one little old student comes back to visit. I guess it’s always just a bit sad to grow up and move on.

And I can’t make a post today without dwelling on the fact that it’s September 11. Has it really been seven years? This day was made Patriot Day, a holiday to remember what happened. But what are we going to do with that memory? What does it really mean? Other holidays are easier. Independence Day you remember the signing of the Declaration of Independence and remember how thankful you are to be an American Citizen and to have the basic freedoms of life. Thanksgiving you remember all sorts of things you’re thankful for, one of those being, once again, living here in America and having religious freedom that the pilgrims came all the way across the Atlantic Ocean for. Christmas is the birth of Christ, wherein we give gifts to each other and remember the one great gift of His sacrifice and Atonement. And so on and so forth. But Patriot Day? I think that what it means to me (and therefore what it should mean to others, of course :p) is a day to remind us that there is ugliness and hate in the world and to make us ask ourselves what we are doing to combat that ugliness and hate. What are we doing to foster peace and understanding, not just with other countries but among our own fellow citizens? It is a day to remind us that diplomacy and discussion and reason will always be more effective and more noble than acts of violence.

be firm

Elder Ballard has counseled members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to write about their beliefs on the internet, to share these beliefs with others. I think this is a great way to get correct information out there, so that when others look up the Church on a search engine they find more than just anti-Mormon websites. They have a better chance of finding the truth. I already have friends who do so, most admirably. Now it’s my turn.

Today I want to address a very crucial topic that seems to be coming to a head in our society. This is particularly difficult for me because some of my closest friends in high school felt strongly the opposite of what I believe on this issue. They were vocal members of the gay-straight alliance, etc., and some even claim(ed) to be bisexual. I also had friends who were homosexual, though we were not as close. I did my best to make it clear to them that, while I do not and cannot condone homosexuality, that they were still my friends and I cared for them. I believe they saw me as faithful and yet tolerant. But now I have to make a stand that, if they see this blog, could very likely damage our relationships for life. But it’s time to no longer be afraid of criticism.

So as most Californians know, the state supreme court recently declared the law, passed by the voice of the people, that defines marriage as only between a man and a woman, unconstitutional. According to the state constitution. Here’s a quote from an article on CNN.com:

The California Supreme Court struck down the state’s ban on same-sex marriage Thursday, saying sexual orientation, like race or gender, “does not constitute a legitimate basis upon which to deny or withhold legal rights.”

Okay, but this is not about “rights.” It is about “definition.” They call it a right to marry, when in fact they seek to change the definition of marriage.

And pro-gay activists have a load of weapons in their arsenal. They use loaded words to gain sympathy. First, as I said, they call it a “right.” Anyone who disagrees is a “bigot” or “old-fashioned.” And we’re not allowed to say things like “sin” because that’s bringing religion into the picture. They’ve duct-taped our mouths.

Elder Dallin H. Oaks of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles words it much better than I do:

This is much bigger than just a question of whether or not society should be more tolerant of the homosexual lifestyle. Over past years we have seen unrelenting pressure from advocates of that lifestyle to accept as normal what is not normal, and to characterize those who disagree as narrow-minded, bigoted and unreasonable. Such advocates are quick to demand freedom of speech and thought for themselves, but equally quick to criticize those with a different view and, if possible, to silence them by applying labels like “homophobic.” In at least one country where homosexual activists have won major concessions, we have even seen a church pastor threatened with prison for preaching from the pulpit that homosexual behavior is sinful. Given these trends, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints must take a stand on doctrine and principle. This is more than a social issue — ultimately it may be a test of our most basic religious freedoms to teach what we know our Father in Heaven wants us to teach. (see full article)

And so it is time for us to take a stand. And don’t let them derail you with arguments of the “fundamentality” of their feelings or of the specialness of their situation. Elder Wickman says the following in the same article:

Whether it is nature or nurture really begs the important question, and a preoccupation with nature or nurture can, it seems to me, lead someone astray from the principles that Elder Oaks has been describing here. Why somebody has a same-gender attraction… who can say? But what matters is the fact that we know we can control how we behave, and it is behavior which is important.

But maybe I’m derailing myself. My point is, marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God. Any twisting of that is wrong. Also, the family is the basic unit of society. As the First Presidency puts it in “The Family: A Proclamation to the World”:

We, the First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, solemnly proclaim that marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God and that the family is central to the Creator’s plan for the eternal destiny of His children.

…

We call upon responsible citizens and officers of government everywhere to promote those measures designed to maintain and strengthen the family as the fundamental unit of society.

And a few weeks ago a letter from the First Presidency was read aloud in every LDS meetinghouse in California, urging us to give time and means to support the upcoming proposed amendment to the California constitution this fall that would define marriage as between a man and a woman. According to the CNN article, Governor Schwarzenegger said he would not support such an amendment, which means we have to make an especial effort. So this is my call to all out there (especially in California) who believe that marriage should only be between a man and a woman. Even if you are not Mormon. The Supreme Court overruled a vote by the majority of the people, so now we have to go over the Supreme Court.

Vote yes on Proposition 8, the California Marriage Protection Act. More than that, become a part of the campaign effort. Even if it is as little as talking to your friends and sharing how you feel about the issue. Don’t be obnoxious or belligerent. But be firm.

And whatever you do, don’t give up. There is enough voting power out there to do the right thing. We just need to make an effort.

Ecstatic in the Poison

…The white clouds tumbled down our streets
pursued by spellbound children
who chased the most distorting clouds,
ecstatic in the poison.

Andrew Hudgins, “In,” Ecstatic in the Poison

I promise you, four posts in a day is highly unusual for me and probably won’t be repeated any time soon. But I have one more thing on my mind. A few days ago my family received a green flier on our door informing us that mosquitoes in our neighborhood have tested positive for West Nile Virus and that they’ll (I’m assuming “they” is the Santa Clara County board of health or something like that) be dusting tomorrow night to thin the mosquito population. Apparently they’ve already treated large bodies of standing water to get rid of mosquito larvae. Well we didn’t realize until tonight that the house next door to us is ground zero for the dusting. We came home from walking the dog to find a van parked in front of our next-door neighbors with a telescopic tower with some kind of transmitter thing on the top, the purpose of which is to guide the dusting plane right to us. Last year they dusted in our general neighborhood for the same reason, and that time the fliers warned us to keep the windows shut, etc., during dusting time. This time the fliers said nothing except that they were dusting and there was supposed to be an informational meeting at city hall tonight. Which of course we missed because we hadn’t cared too much until we saw the AIRPLANE TOWER.

My mom talked to one of the workers setting up this tower thing, and he said they are not telling the public everything they should about this dusting business. He said it’s poison and that it made him really sick once, so sick that he couldn’t return to work for days. He told us to keep our windows shut and to rinse all our flowers and plants and garden vegetables off really well the next day before touching anything. And he said that he’d be angry and upset if he were us. What I want to know is, why didn’t they put this information in the flier? An informational meeting is not good enough, because not everyone has the time or the presence of mind or the motivation to go to one. They are dropping poison on us and the best thing they can do is hold a meeting? And I keep thinking of my next-door neighbors on the other side, with a newborn baby that’s a week old at the most. What are they supposed to do? And what about pets that are usually outside at that hour? What about raccoons and opossums and the toads in the creek?

But I guess if the poison doesn’t kill us, the West Nile Virus will.

the hottest places in hell…

“The hottest places in hell are reserved for those who, in a time of moral crisis, remain neutral.” –Dante

In political debates, I have often remained silent–or, at best, wishy-washy–when the majority of people around me disagree with my own beliefs. And then there are debates in which I don’t really know how I feel, because both sides have very convincing arguments. And I don’t want to cause a stir because I know I’ll lose any argument. When people ask what I think, I often answer that I’m not informed enough to have an opinion. One guy (we were talking about presidential candidates) responded “Everyone has an opinion.” I told him everyone has stupid opinions, and that I’m full of stupid opinions, but I wasn’t about to debate those with him.

But I would like to decide what I do believe. Whether I have a good argument for it or not. And besides, even if I do have a good argument, in this politically heated world people can do anything to discount what I say. For example, if I don’t condone gay marriage, then I’m a bigot. Loaded words like that shouldn’t change how I feel, as long as my feelings are right and moral and rational. So here are a few of my opinions, for the world to see:

I don’t believe in gay marriage. It is an attack on the family, which is the fundamental unit of society. If the family crumbles, society crumbles. And I don’t condone homosexuality, just the same as I don’t condone sex before marriage.

I am pro-life except for cases of rape, incest, and where it’s a danger to the mother.

I think global warming is real and I think the burning of fossil fuels is making it worse.

I like Barack Obama and I don’t like John McCain.

I have never liked George W. Bush.

I like socialized medicine.

I think pornography is evil and that it is as addictive and self-destructive as heroin.

I think McDonalds, Wal-Mart, high fructose corn syrup, partially hydrogenated oils (trans-fatty acids), and MSG are the spawn of Satan. If gay marriage and pornography don’t cause the downfall of society, these will.