Mormon
Atheist finds Garden of Eden
Where is the Garden of Eden? I watched a really interesting documentary, part of the Myth Hunters series found on Netflix, Youtube, and CafeMom. They noted that the garden story is so vague that it could be anywhere. The film notes that a Boston University president felt is was in North Pole, Mormons felt it […]
Parenting Taboos – Part 2
I wrote a TED Talk transcript of Parenting Taboos previously. Parents Rufus Griscom and Alisa Volkman (I guess she didn’t take his last name–maybe that’s another taboo) gave an interesting TED Talk (episode 3 available on Netflix.) In part 1, they gave 2 parenting taboos. Taboo #1: You can’t say you didn’t fall in love […]
Atheist in a Foxhole: The Tillman Story
I watched an interesting documentary last week, The Tillman Story. Pat Tillman played NFL football for the Arizona Cardinals, and unexpectedly quit the NFL and enlisted in the army rangers following the September 11 attacks. I knew he had been killed by friendly fire in Afghanistan in 2004, and there was a coverup, but didn’t really […]
Parenting Taboos – Part 1
With Father’s Day here, maybe it’s a good idea to talk about parenting Taboos. Parents Rufus Griscom and Alisa Volkman (I guess she didn’t take his last name–maybe that’s another taboo) gave an interesting Ted Talk (episode 3 available on Netflix) where they discussed parenting taboos. I created a transcript, and here’s what they had […]
MHA 2015 in Review
The Annual Mormon History Association meetings came to Provo last night. Last year it was in San Antonio, and next year it will be at Snowbird Resort in Utah. Sometimes I like it better when it’s out of town, because I can attend all the sessions. When I’m home, there’s just too much going on, […]
False Prophets
In the Bloggernacle, it seems that the main players are atheists, liberal Mormons, and Orthodox Mormons. It is pretty rare that an evangelical Mormon enters the debate, and I think is even more rare for a Mormon to become an evangelical. (Granted, my view could be biased by my experience. From my experience, most former […]
Memorial Day Traditions
The last Monday in May is known as Memorial Day in the United States. Originally called Decoration Day, it was started in 1868 as a way to remember the Civil War dead among Union soldiers. (The Confederates had their own day as well.) By the 20th century, Union and Confederate holidays were merged into Memorial […]
Football, CTE, and Agency
Athletes, especially football players, have been involved in some high-profile violent incidents. Dec 16, 2009. Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Chris Henry had a domestic dispute with his fiance Loleini Tonga. She tried to get away by getting into a pickup truck. He climbed in the back, and while she was driving, either fell or jumped out […]
Masonic Ceremony
I recently watched an interesting documentary, Secrets of the Freemasons. Many of the early U.S. revolutionaries were freemasons; many masons helped plan the Boston Tea Party, although the Tea Party had non-masonic members as well. (Paul Revere, Ben Franklin, John Hancock, in addition to George Washington were masons.) Masons were influential in the founding of […]
Mormon Heretic 