Comments on: Defending the Faith

By: Ammon Rye

Ammon Rye — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 14:48:54 +0000

The wealthy aren’t the only ones who follow stock prices. Those of us who are struggling to make ends meet while trying to improve our financial situation follow stock prices just a closely, if not more so.

I for one seek to be one of “the wealthy” in this country.

I wish people who have something of substance to say would just say it and leave all class warfare references to the misguided Democrats and Liberals.

By: Stephen Marsh

Stephen Marsh — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 14:09:16 +0000

“but I’ve become that way mostly because of the proxy religious war”

I’ve been amazed at the number of people I’ve met that say that. My wife just donated a hundred dollars to the campaign and last I heard had no intention of voting for him, just was irritated by what has happened.

By: Peter Brown

Peter Brown — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 05:06:24 +0000

I’m a Romney supporter, but I’ve become that way mostly because of the proxy religious war started by Huckabee and the evengelicals. I have to seriously swallow the red pill to believe anything Romney says he will do. He is trying to fit himself into the Reagan vacuum and in many ways is coming off as a complete panderer. My only reconciliation is that I think Romney really isn’t that interested in politics. He is orthopraxic about fixing problems in government, and doesn’t concern himself with principles. As a principlist, this is hard to swallow, but maybe it will work. I do believe that if there is a Social Security or Medicare or deficit problem, Romney is the guy to fix it.

But my heart and soul of this support is to fight the evengelical whisper campaign. I want it to fail. I think Romney’s campaign and nomination would eventually destroy the “Mormons are cultists” sunday school dogma coming from Baptists and similar evangelicals. It would show sensible people how callow and self-serving the evangelicals have been–because we all know that Christian anti-Mormonism is negative campaigning against a religious momentum frontrunner–Mormonism.

By: Lisa Ray Turner

Lisa Ray Turner — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 03:47:33 +0000

I’d written a previous book for the publisher and he asked me to write the Romney book. My next project is a book called Sleeping Together: A Couple’s Guide to Sharing a Bed. It’s a book about the issues couples face when they share a bed — the common ones like cold feet, blanket wars, etc., and the less common, like sleep disorders, conflicting circadian rhythms, etc. I am co-writing it with my husband, who works in the field of sleep. We’ve also been researching the issue for almost 30 years.

By: John Hamer

John Hamer — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 22:54:43 +0000

Lisa: How did you get recruited to write that book and what’s your next book project?

By: John Nilsson

John Nilsson — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 21:44:52 +0000

I attended a lecture today by Cornel West, the philosopher of social justice, for a Martin Luther King celebration at the University of Utah. A student asked him about Obama and Romney (apparently some people’s dream match-up for November) and mentioned that Mormons have experienced a “small” amount of persecution from other Americans in comparison to blacks. To his credit, Cornel West responded by saying, “I wouldn’t call it small. I would call it mean and vicious.”

Cornel also made me feel at home as a Mormon by referring to everyone as brother and sister. “If Brother Obama and Brother Romney are the candidates, I will vote for Brother Obama” and then gave reasons why he endorsed this particular candidate but not Sister Hillary or Brother Bill.

There were quite a few interesting reactions to parts of his speech and LDS students who identified themselves as such asked some interesting political questions with religious overtones. I wished sacrament meeting speakers, even once a month at least, could be half as inspiring and motivating as Brother West. I bet Lisa, that there is less specifically anti-Mormon bigotry outside the camp of the Republican faithful than inside it…Write a book on Harry Reid next time and your hate mail will be coming from a slightly different crowd.;)

By: NM Tony

NM Tony — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 21:36:27 +0000

First off, congratulations on the book, Lucy Ray. I think it great that you were able to collaborate with someone of another faith and succeed in getting the book published.

Secondly, bigotry is leveled at many minority groups due to the basic ignorance of the group mind. Yet, this bigotry tends to be religiously driven in many cases, as in your episode. Take the homosexual factor, for instance. Most of the legislation and rhethoric directed at homosexuals and their rights as human beings is often due to the faith of the politician. We as Mormons likewise have our moments of prejudice, except sometimes it is leveled with a smile and an “I know…” comment.

As far as there being an uneasy alliance between faith and politics, I don’t think there should be an alliance at all. They should(ideally so), by Constitutional reasoning, be mutually exclusive and privately held. The fact that Romney is a Mormon, or Huckabee a baptist, or Obama has a Muslim father should have nothing to do with the policies of running this country. The founding fathers specifically left out any mention of God/Providence/Almighty in the Constitution because this should be a country directed by a democracy and the people, not a theocracy and whoever’s governing idea of God.

Ideally (I am a pragmatist, after all), much of this comes down to education, critically thinking, and basic empathy–a Golden rule mentality, if you will (or at least a Silver rule: don’t do unto others as you don’t want done unto you.). Reality, however, suggests that people just want to feel that they are right, regardless of how or who it hurts.

By: jayspec

jayspec — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 18:18:49 +0000

I have always found that people who are unfamiliar with something or someone are more apt to display bigotry. Those who are familiar, but have negative feelings usually take on a different flavor.

A little or no knowledge is still a dangerous thing

By: Bruce Nielson

Bruce Nielson — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 16:58:14 +0000

>>> She says she’s been horrified by the anti-Mormon bigotry that still exists.

This says it all.