Rednecks and Stuff

Hmmm, I wonder what she's looking at...

Now, I don't want to know!

Can you guess the 2 players that rode the pine?

Primary activity

Teaching the primary kids what to do in case there is a raid and subsueqent shootout with Texas law enforcement. We heard that once they are done with the polygamists, they are coming after "the regular" Mormons.

Rowan at a bounce toy park - DEC 2007

Reese eating rice in her high chair - DEC 2007

Jared and Elle - DEC 2007

Our little rednecks - DEC 2007

Do You Think This Is True?

Rapper Snoop Dogg Converts to Mormonism

By Aaron NicholsCNN

DIAMOND BAR, California (AP) -- In what some may consider an unexpected move, rap artist "Snoop Dogg" has reportedly converted to Mormonism after nearly a year of study with the fast-growing, Utah-based faith.

Snoop Dogg says he "can't get enough of the Book of Mormon."

In a statement, a spokeswoman for Snoop Dogg -- whose real name is Calvin Broadus -- said he considers himself extremely fortunate to have discovered such a deep sense of spiritual fulfillment at this stage in his life.

“Mr. Broadus is also very pleased to find that his family is as enthusiastic about attending church services as he is,” the spokeswoman said.

However, Snoop Dogg has not been enthusiastic about publicly sharing his experience and declined to be interviewed by CNN for this article. In fact, he reportedly informed producers of his E! reality show "Snoop Dogg's Father Hood" that this particular aspect of his family's life was off-limits to the cameras. Still, he left open the possibility of addressing the subject in future episodes.

According to the Associated Press, Snoop Dogg was first introduced to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, as the Mormon Church is officially known, after attending a Gladys Knight concert in an LDS meeting house in Los Angeles.

Knight, who very publicly discusses her conversion to Mormonism several years ago, invited Snoop Dogg to what is known to the Mormon faithful as “Family Home Evening,” a church program that encourages families to set aside Monday evenings for gospel-centered lessons and family togetherness.

Though Snoop Dogg has been hesitant to publicly discuss his recent spiritual journey, he commented on the experience of attending his first “Family Home Evening” in a recent interview with People Magazine.

“I was hooked from the start,” Snoop Dogg said. “We talked about the purpose of life, played Mousetrap, and ate brownies. The kids thought it was off the hook, for real.”

In what Snoop Dogg now thinks was anything but a coincidence, Mormon missionaries had knocked on his door just one week before the Knight concert. He said he had initially turned them away because of what he knew about the strict Mormon health code, which prohibits members from smoking, drinking alcohol, and using drugs.

“Y’all know me,” he said grinning broadly. “There were just certain things the old me -- the "natural man" -- needed to do. And these young guys are telling me that God’s not down with disrespecting ourselves. But it’s cool now.”

Snoop Dogg said his conversion marks the end of his old life, one that included frequent run-ins with the law. Snoop Dogg was convicted in 1990 of cocaine possession and charged with gun possession after a 1993 traffic stop. In 1997, he pleaded guilty in exchange for a lighter sentence.
In 1996, Snoop Dogg was acquitted of murder after a purported gangbanger was killed by gunfire from the vehicle in which Snoop Dogg was traveling.

Snoop Dogg dismisses critics who claim his conversion is intended to placate a Salt Lake County judge, before whom he is appealing an alleged probation violation.

“Listen, the haters will say what they will,” Snoop Dogg said. “I can only do what I feel is right.”

Aaron Nichols is a CNN producer in Washington. Other contributors include Robert Spencer and Richard Scott Stephens.

Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

A Tribute

Washington Post Article

This article hits it on the head. Many Mormons have thought to themselves:

"Why can't the country understand that Mitt's life IS as it seems. He's not too good to be true. There are millions of others just like him."

But, the great thing is, we will continue to be that type of community - they type of community that others will look to and think, "Wow, that is too good to be true."

• We stay married
• Our mothers stay home to raise strong children
• We live a healthy lifestyle
• We look happy
• We feel happy
• We are disciplined
• Etc., etc., etc.,

I also feel that many people are looking at the LDS church and thinking, "Wow, that is too good to be true. How can I be like that?" Slowly but surely, more and more people will find themselves wanting shelter from our increasingly evil society and they will look to the Church of Jesus Christ for sanctuary. So, make sure you are ready to do your part by sharing why your life, in comparison to the world, is "too good to be true."

Did Mormons Get A Bounce From Mitt?
By Libby Copeland
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, February 8, 2008; C01

After Mitt Romney suspended his presidential campaign yesterday, in a speech praising conservative values and criticizing such scourges as liberal judges and France, the question became:

So, was it good for the Mormons?

The Jews like asking that question about themselves. They asked it a lot after Joe Lieberman ran for vice president in 2000, and it was never quite resolved to everyone's satisfaction. (Others are easier. Monica Lewinsky: Bad for the Jews.) Can you blame any minority for asking such a question about themselves? Who doesn't want to be loved?

"Mormons were chased out of the Midwest in the 1840s, and ever since then they've been looking to America for approval," says Bengt Washburn, a Mormon who is also a full-time comedian. (There aren't a lot of those, by the way. In case you were wondering.) Washburn says Mormons he knows will constantly list examples of mainstream Mormons to outsiders. Gladys Knight is a Mormon! Steve Young is a Mormon! Donny! Marie!

It's as if to say, "'See? Mormons aren't weird,'" Washburn says. "Well, yeah, we're weird." But here's the thing, the comedian adds: "All theology standing next to logic is weird."

Maybe that was Romney's mistake, that he tried to make his religion sound palatable to evangelical ears, that he didn't just say that sure, some of my beliefs may sound incredible to outsiders, but then again, a lot of the doings in Bible stories sound incredible to outsiders. (And, as historian Jan Shipps points out, Mormonism is a young faith. The earliest Christians were reviled, too.) But politics doesn't permit that sort of honesty any more than it allows a candidate to say, "My faith is private, okay?"

The truth is, Mormonism is in many ways the epitome of what was considered normalcy, back before the '60s upended everybody's definition. With his handsome tanned face and white teeth, his five square-jawed sons, his gorgeous blond wife and daughters-in-law, his teetotaling ways, his corporate demeanor, Romney broadcast health, uprightness, a life spent on the straight-'n'-narrow.

His campaign put out an ad at one point of Romney jogging, all that fabulous hair slighty mussed. The message seemed clear: Now here is a man vigorous and disciplined. (Take that, John McCain!) Every morning on the campaign trail, he ate the granola his wife made for him herself. How consistent! How homey!

Was he too normal?

We'll come back to that.

Two big things happened to elevate the face of Mormonism in the last decade. One, of course, was Romney running for president. The other was the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City in 2002, which Romney took credit for turning around. During the Olympics, the Mormons were "wonderfully gracious" to visitors, as Shipps says, and everyone thought, wow, these Mormons aren't so weird after all.

"The result of this was that a lot of the stereotypes about Mormonism, the negative stereotypes -- that they were clannish, that they were secretive -- that sort of disappeared," says Shipps, who is one of the foremost non-Mormon scholars of the denomination.

But with Romney's candidacy, the scrutiny was different.

"I know Mormons and members of the church that felt like it was a terrible thing that Romney was running because we opened ourselves up to criticism," says Joel Campbell, a Mormon who teaches journalism at Brigham Young University.

"It certainly opens the conversation, but whether the conversation will be a friendly one or a contentious one, I'm not sure," says Shipps. "I do think it alerted a lot of upper-middle-class, exceedingly successful Mormon lawyers and doctors . . . to the reality that not everybody thinks being Mormon is great. If you grow up in the mountain West and you grow up in a Mormon community and you send your kids to church and all the kids are going to school where there's mostly Mormons and there's not a lot of drugs and there's not a lot of crime, everybody thinks, 'Oh, being Mormon is just so wonderful.' And to realize that this is a perception that is very provincial."

This is the nub of it, really. Romney seemed so Mormon, so squeaky clean, so Pollyanna-ish, even. (Remember when he went to Michigan and said he could bring those lost jobs back?) Romney's seeming normalcy isn't the norm anymore. Maybe we understand better those who've strayed or failed and recovered -- or, for that matter, those who aren't fabulously successful and can't put tens of millions into their own campaigns. Maybe we relate to the family lives of other candidates, candidates who have been divorced, who have blended families, whose children don't all campaign with them (and may not even like them). Sure, they're messier, but messy is authentic.

There was more to it than that, of course. Some evangelical voters -- who don't want messy -- see Mormonism as something other than Christianity. Mike Huckabee, an evangelical and former pastor, was speaking to them when he said, "Don't Mormons believe that Jesus and the Devil are brothers?"

All of this gives Mormons something to chew on for years to come.

Maybe it was all for the good, no matter what, says Campbell. He quotes the prophet Brigham Young on the issue of persecution:

"Every time you kick Mormonism you kick it upstairs."

"That's kind of the optimism of Mormons," Campbell says, adding: "I guess that may sound like Pollyanna or something."

It WOULD Take Magic!

In the latest issue of LDS Living magazine, there is an article entitled, "Keeping the Magic Alive in Marriage." The author recommends a weekly date night. She also realizes that many may not be able to afford a NORMAL date that costs money, so she lists 10 date night ideas that will not cost any money (with the exception of babysitter costs):

1. Go on a walk in the park or on the beach and hold hands and talk.

2. Take a blanket to the mountains or wherever and look up at the stars.

3. Go to Costco (there is a membership cost involved) and eat the free samples and then watch a DVD on your laptop in your car facing the sunset.

4. Go on a bike ride.

5. Take a free class offered in the community.

6. Go to the bookstore and read to each other.

7. Take your iPod or boom box or whatever to a remote parking lot and dance together in the beams of your car's headlights.

8. Walk through a crowded area and make up stories about other people's lives. Be creative! Be funny!

9. Go skating, surfing, boogie-boarding, swimming, hiking, backpacking, or whatever sport you like.

10. Go to the cemetary and look at the cool headstones or go to the airport and watch planes land or to the port and watch boats dock.

What do you think of these ideas?

Photos

Since many of you may be getting tired of the political postings, click here for more photos:

http://jensencirclesjensenpix.blogspot.com/

John McCain: A True Politician

Time to sling a little mud!!

1. He is an ardent supporter of campaign finance reform, which is bad enough in and of itself. But, it gets worse. McCain was the only Republican that was investigated in the 1991 Keating Five scandal. In short, there was an investigation into 5 senators and their connection to the founder of Lincoln Savings and Loan Association. McCain accepted favors (over $100,ooo cash, private jet rides, vacation to the Bahamas, etc.) from Charles Keating. Read this article for more detail - http://www.nationalreview.com/contributors/levin040501.shtml

2. McCain suggests that Romney doesn't have the leadership skills to handle the Presidency. That is laughable and displays one of two things: 1) McCain's self-dishonesty, as surely anyone can see that Romney's accomplishments require the highest degree of leadership. 2) McCain is completely clueless as to how the real world works, especially the business world. He doesn't have any concept of leadership, period. His idea of leadership is to tuck away with an uber-liberal senator behind closed doors only to emerge with bills like McCain-Kennedy, etc. Yeah, McCain, way to show real leadership!

3. He calls himself a Republican, but barely. After he lost the 2000 Presidential bid, the Alamanac of American Politics 2006 (p.95) states, "he became more legislatively active than ever - and increasingly to ally himself with Democrats and oppose most Republicans. His first priority was the campaign finance bill...In 2001, he threatened to tie up the Senate unless Majority Leader Trent Lott set aside 2 weeks of debate on the issue." Many speculated that McCain was going to leave the Republican party after the Jim Jefford's betrayal. The Alamanac of American Politics 2006 (p.96) once again supports this with, "After Jim Jeffords switched parties, he [McCain] invited Tom Daschle to a friendly visit to his vacation home near Sedona.; speculation abounded that McCain would switch parties too, and liberals writing in the Washington Monthly and the New Republic argued that he would be the strongest Democratic nominee for President." And, don't forget about the 2004 speculation of a Kerry/McCain Presidential ticket.

4. He criticizes Romney for his self-generated wealth while he lives on the high-horse as a result of his trophy wife's inherited bank account. In 2001 he was the 20th wealthiest member of congress ($15 million in assets) without lifting an honest finger to earn it. In 2005, he was the 10th wealthiest member of congress ($29 million is assets), again, without earning a dime of it.

5. During last night's debate, while explaining his McCain-Leiberman rationale, he used this logic: [Paraphrased] "Uhhhh, if I am wrong, uhhh, then at least our kids will have a cleaner planet. But, if I am right, then I have saved the universe from the evil greenhouse gases. Basically, we have nothing to lose, my friends." Hey, Johnny boy, try telling that to the corporations and tax payers that will pay the price for your socialist views on the economy and the environment! And, all because you happen to believe in controversial and flawed science.

6. He called the amendment that would ban same-sex marriage as unecessary and un-Republican (CNN.com, 7/14/2004). In 2004, he was one of only 6 Republican senators to vote against the amendment.

7. Gang of 14

8. He has consistently denegrated pro-lifers. I have no idea why more people don't question his commitment to the abortion issue. The National Right to Life Committee said that McCain did not warrant their support. He told reporters that if his 15 year-old daughter were to ask for an abortion, he would support her. An hour later, he said he misspoke. He has repeatedly said that he will not favor the overturning of Roe v. Wade, then changed his mind on the campaign trail.

9. He voted against ANWAR drilling. How does that line up with fighting terrorism?

10. He wants to close GITMO and he wants to tie the hands of CIA operators by limiting their power to interrogate. Once again, how does that line up with fighting terrorism? Just because he was tortured does not mean he gets the high-ground on the issue. He is simply wrong!

And the list goes on....

Finally - here are 2 MUST READ articles that were written today. Take the time to read them, they are both short but informed:

Michael Reagan - Ronald's son, a TRUE member of the Reagan Revolution:

"John McCain Hates Me"
http://www.reagan.com/column.cfm?id=52

Mark Levin - another member of the Reagan Revolution:

"Rally for Romney: Conservatives need to act now before its too late"
http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=NDEzMDYzZjBkMDNhYjk0ZjdhZmJlZWNkMWQ1NjI4MGI=

By the way, today Sean Hannity announced that he will be voting for Mitt Romney.

1 FEB 2008: UPDATE

As a follow up to #3, here is an article that appeared this morning on www.thehill.com. I can't believe this hasn't received more play (well, yes I can - typical MSM antics):

http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/democrats-say-mccain-nearly-abandoned-gop-2007-03-28.html

Root Canals: Literal and Political

Today, at 8:00 AM, I had a root canal - and I deserved it. According to my dentist, while flossing, I "continuously neglected a pocket in between my last 2 molars in my upper left quadrant." He said my gums were in great shape everywhere else, but because I neglected that one tough-to-reach area, the decay took the tooth by storm. It snuck through the back door by starting above the gums. Then, it grew larger and larger until it finally hit the nerve. But, by then it was too late. The tooth had to be grinded to less than half its size and the nerve had to be permanently removed. They now need to build an entirely new tooth.

What was the cost of all of this? A lot of money that could be better served elsewhere in my family and a little physical discomfort.

At 8:00 PM I came to the realization of the possible need for another root canal in the near future.

This one will be much more difficult to endure, and the cost will be SKY - HIGH.

Tonight, Republicans (and some sneaky Independents) voted for the following (see article below):

• OPEN BORDERS, WHICH EQUATES TO A HUGE SECURITY RISK
• PRO-ACLU INITIATIVES
• AMNESTY FOR ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS
• GOVERNMENT INTERFERENCE IN US FREE MARKET COMMERCE
• FRIVOLOUS LAWSUITS BY LIBERAL TRIAL LAWYERS
• HIGHER TAXES
• ASSAULT ON FREEDOM OF SPEECH
• OUTRIGHT DISHONESTY AND UNETHICAL BEHAVIOR THAT IS TYPICAL OF CAREER POLITICIANS
• MOST DISTURBING OF ALL - SUPREME COURT JUDGES WHO DO NOT WEAR THEIR CONSERVATISM ON THEIR SLEEVES

John McCain has been the leading form of American decay personified. He has perfected the back door approach to American politics. He hides under the umbrella of conservatism while playing a key role in the rotting away of the strength of America's conservative enamel.

How has this happened? It is simple - TOO MANY CONSERVATIVE AMERICANS HAVE NEGLECTED THE POCKET OF DECAY IN WHICH MCCAIN AND OTHERS LIKE HIM HIDE. Conservative Americans have spent their time working for their families, raising values driven children, pushing this economy in spite of challenges from liberal policy-makers, charitably serving their communities, and attending church services and activities. That is the short-list, yet it amounts to A LOT of time consuming activity.

Thank goodness for these people. Because of them, we have a future generation grounded in true and lasting principles and values that support the structure of a healthy society. However, because conservatives have neglected this one little pocket of decay, it has been allowed to grow unnoticed, leading to a strong, thriving rot. And, the disturbing aspect of this rot is the fact that it fundamentally undermines all the hard work conservative Americans are doing each day.

John McCain's policies, beliefs, and strategies have putrefied conservative values right to the edge of America's core - our proverbial nerve. And, it is almost too late.

If John McCain is the Republican candidate, it is my feeling that the Republican Party will need a root canal - and the party will deserve the accompanying discomfort and cost.

In short, the party will need to suffer the discomfort of a grinding process aimed at eliminating all elements of decay (see list above and article below). Then, the root will need to be removed - the root I speak of is embodied in those policy-makers that hide behind the word "conservative" in order to get elected only to betray everything that word stands for. The funny thing is, while receiving my morning root canal, I didn't feel a thing while my dentist removed the nerve! Finally, Republicans will need to rebuild the party to reflect the strength that comes with conservative thought. Conservative thought is the backbone of a thriving, happy society.

I assert, rather boldly, that if REPUBLICANS aren't willing to do this, then CONSERVATIVES must find a way to make it happen - without the moldering Republicans.

In the meantime, if Obama wins the Democratic primary, liberal Americans will have voted for (see if you notice the difference with McCain's list):

• OPEN BORDERS, WHICH EQUATES TO A HUGE SECURITY RISK
• PRO-ACLU INITIATIVES
• AMNESTY FOR ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS
• GOVERNMENT INTERFERENCE IN US FREE MARKET COMMERCE
• FRIVOLOUS LAWSUITS BY LIBERAL TRIAL LAWYERS
• HIGHER TAXES
• ASSAULT ON FREEDOM OF SPEECH
• MOST DISTURBING OF ALL - SUPREME COURT JUDGES WHO DO NOT WEAR THEIR
• CONSERVATISM ON THEIR SLEEVES

Finally, if Clinton wins the Democratic primary, liberal Americans will have voted for:

• OPEN BORDERS, WHICH EQUATES TO A HUGE SECURITY RISK
• PRO-ACLU INITIATIVES
• AMNESTY FOR ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS
• GOVERNMENT INTERFERENCE IN US FREE MARKET COMMERCE
• FRIVOLOUS LAWSUITS BY LIBERAL TRIAL LAWYERS
• HIGHER TAXES
• ASSAULT ON FREEDOM OF SPEECH
• OUTRIGHT DISHONESTY AND UNETHICAL BEHAVIOR THAT IS TYPICAL OF CAREER
• POLITICIANS
• MOST DISTURBING OF ALL - SUPREME COURT JUDGES WHO DO NOT WEAR THEIR CONSERVATISM ON THEIR SLEEVES

Can we avoid the need for this political root canal?

The good news is, "YES," but there is only one remedy. I will let you figure out what it is.

Let's Have Some Straight Talk, My Friends

Everytime John McCain says, "Let's have some straight talk, my friends," you can know that he is about to tell a lie. Anytime someone tries to convince you that they are a truth-teller, they are usually a person that has a hard time telling the truth.

However, after learning about McCain's record, we can all understand why he lies so much. The following article is one of the best summaries of McCain's flawed political decisions. Take 5 minutes to read this article so you can know why Mitt Romney is by far the better choice - NOT EVEN A CLOSE CALL.

The Real McCain Record
Obstacles in the way of conservative support.
By Mark R. Levin

There’s a reason some of John McCain's conservative supporters avoid discussing his record. They want to talk about his personal story, his position on the surge, his supposed electability. But whenever the rest of his career comes up, the knee-jerk reply is to characterize the inquiries as attacks.The McCain domestic record is a disaster. To say he fought spending, most particularly earmarks, is to nibble around the edges and miss the heart of the matter. For starters, consider:


McCain-Feingold — the most brazen frontal assault on political speech since Buckley v. Valeo.

McCain-Kennedy — the most far-reaching amnesty program in American history.

McCain-Lieberman — the most onerous and intrusive attack on American industry — through reporting, regulating, and taxing authority of greenhouse gases — in American history.

McCain-Kennedy-Edwards — the biggest boon to the trial bar since the tobacco settlement, under the rubric of a patients’ bill of rights.

McCain-Reimportation of Drugs — a significant blow to pharmaceutical research and development, not to mention consumer safety (hey Rudy, pay attention, see link).

And McCain’s stated opposition to the Bush 2001 and 2003 tax cuts was largely based on socialist, class-warfare rhetoric — tax cuts for the rich, not for the middle class. The public record is full of these statements. Today, he recalls only his insistence on accompanying spending cuts.

As chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, McCain was consistently hostile to American enterprise, from media and pharmaceutical companies to technology and energy companies.

McCain also led the Gang of 14, which prevented the Republican leadership in the Senate from mounting a rule change that would have ended the systematic use (actual and threatened) of the filibuster to prevent majority approval of judicial nominees.

And then there’s the McCain defense record.

His supporters point to essentially one policy strength, McCain’s early support for a surge and counterinsurgency. It has now evolved into McCain taking credit for forcing the president to adopt General David Petreaus’s strategy. Where’s the evidence to support such a claim?

Moreover, Iraq is an important battle in our war against the Islamo-fascist threat. But the war is a global war, and it most certainly includes the continental United States, which, after all, was struck on 9/11. How does McCain fare in that regard?

McCain-ACLU — the unprecedented granting of due-process rights to unlawful enemy combatants (terrorists).

McCain has repeatedly called for the immediate closing of Guantanamo Bay and the introduction of al-Qaeda terrorists into our own prisons — despite the legal rights they would immediately gain and the burdens of managing such a dangerous population.

While McCain proudly and repeatedly points to his battles with Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, who had to rebuild the U.S. military and fight a complex war, where was McCain in the lead-up to the war — when the military was being dangerously downsized by the Clinton administration and McCain’s friend, former Secretary of Defense Bill Cohen? Where was McCain when the CIA was in desperate need of attention? Also, McCain was apparently in the dark about al-Qaeda like most of Washington, despite a decade of warnings.

My fingers are crossed that at the next debate, either Fred Thompson or Mitt Romney will find a way to address McCain’s record. (Mike Huckabee won’t, as he is apparently in the tank for him.)—

Mark R. Levin served as chief of staff to Attorney General Edwin Meese in the Reagan administration.

A Talk For Our Time

Last week, while listening to this talk, I wasn't sure of the year in which Elder Maxwell delivered it. Then, because of curiosity, I checked. I couldn't believe it was given just 2 years after I was born - 1978!

I could not believe how prophetic this talk is. Everyone should listen to it and study it. It will enlighten you, motivate you, and inspire to you to be better. It will strengthen your feelings of the importance of the Lord's chosen servants. It will remind you of the relevance of the times in which we live.

Here is the link to the audio. Just click on the link, then click on the banner.

Meeting the Challenges of Today, by Neal A. Maxwell

Click here for the text of this talk.

After you listen to this talk, let me know what you think.