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Most of the questions were fine, but I did feel the rest of them were "are you sure you don't have serious issues with the gender statuses? Are you sure? Wanna think about it some more?"

I'm wondering if this might also fit with LDS bishops in some ways. Here are twenty things I believe are true about most pastors I know. I hope you will work together with your pastor for the good of the gospel! 1. He loves God and you a lot. (Be mindful.) 2. He is a painfully limited human being. (Be realistic.) 3. He probably has a pretty low view of his “performance”. (Be kind.) 4. He wishes he were a better preacher. (Be awake.) 5. He really does want God’s best for you and your family. (Be open-hearted.) 6. His work knows no time or locational boundaries. (Be patient.) 7. He hears much more negative information than positive. (Be encouraging.) 8. He has chosen a vocation in which few remain. (Be praying.) 9. He has chosen a highly leadership-intensive call. (Be lead-able.) 10. He needs help. (Be available.) 11. His God-given vision is bigger than himself and the church. (Be faith-filled.) 12. He wants to personally meet all the needs, but knows he can’t. (Be understanding.) 13. He’s going to say some dumb things every now and then. (Be forgiving.) 14. His family is patient with you, so be patient with them. (Be conscientious.) 15. He is greatly encouraged by your faithfulness. (Be there.) 16. He is passionate for God’s Word to be made practical to you. (Be hungry.) 17. He longs for church to be your spiritual oasis. (Be loving.) 18. He dreams for your and your family’s spiritual health. (Be receptive.) 19. He needs to hear that you prayed for him. (Be interceding.) 20. He’s just a regular guy. (Be real.) http://caryschmidt.com/2014/02/20-things-you-should-know-about-your-pastor/ M.

It depends on a lot. If you try some of your "moral" ways of costing your product, you will be out of business in a month. You need to charge enough to cover your materials, your labor, to pay yourself, to pay insurance, taxes, advertising (and if you don't advertise you will make a small fraction of what you could have), You will also need to charge enough to pay your investors. That is just the tip of the iceburg. You will likely incur debt unless you start off wealthy. You need to charge enough to pay that off, and if you are smarter than a radish you'll want to have some cash set aside in the business in case something bad happens, like a machine breaking, or an entire batch of product having to be recalled. Your exact margin will depend greatly on the product. Generally you want to maximize your profit. Indeed in most countries if you have investors you are legally obligated to do so and can be sued if you fail to do so. More accurate responses to your questions would require far more information about your widgets, the market in which you wish to sell, etc. So let's go through each of your questions: "Should I charge cost price plus a percentage?" Yes, this is one way to look at it. figuring out that percentage is hard and would take a couple of masters level business courses worth of information to explain it fully. It depends greatly on your widget, what market it's in, your market segmentation, your competition, and a lot of other things. "Should I charge (as Karl Marx would want) for my labour only, and what rate should I charge my labour at?" You would be out of business in a week, because labor is far from the only cost in business. At a minimum you have your materials, your shipping, taxes, insurance, rent on whatever facility you're using, pay and benefits for any other employees, utilities, etc. "Should I charge some figure that guarantees me a lot of sales, so that most people will be able to afford, and benefit from, my widgets?" The more sales you have, the more widgets you need to make, this means hiring more people to make them, and thus more money you need to pay out to make them. You may need a larger factory, more machines etc. One of the biggest problems a lot of business have (and it's a good problem to have) is higher demand than supply. A lot of businesses seek investment just to get the money they need to ramp up production. If you use this method, you will either work yourself to death to keep up demand (and thus your business will fail), or you will run up against a hard limit on the number of your widgets. If the latter happens, people will buy up all of the widgets they can, and then sell them at an obscene profit, thus ruining your moral ideal. Your last option will be to find an investor to get the capital you need to ramp up production. If you get an investor, you get other fun issues with your ideas which we'll get into on the next question. "Should I charge some figure that maximises my profit/ return on my investment?" In most free market countries, if you have investors (see previous question) you will be legally required to maximize your profit, and in many places you can be sued for failing to do so. Moreover, most investors aren't going to invest if you aren't willing to do this. They want to make their money back. Investors that don't have such an attitude only invest in a few things and then go broke. "Should I charge some figure that optimises my effort/return ratio?" This would be an advisable approach to much of life. That doesn't mean take the easy way out, but it does mean that you shouldn't do things the hard way just because you want to show how hard you work. "Should I charge each person differently, according to what they can afford to pay?" While offering discounts to those in need is a laudable thing to do, and many companies have done this, you do have to be careful because a lot of people will take advantage. What happens is not that the people who need a lower price get charged a lower price, rather the ones who don't wish to be freeloaders end up paying for those who do. Remember the money from your business comes from customers. If you charge one less, you have to charge another more. Also remember that the ones you're charging more aren't going to appreciate having to subsidize others, and many will look to your competitors. The truth is that any attempt to moralize in how you charge your customers tends to end up in your business going under. This means that you lose out, and your employees end up unemployed. Essentially it will be your fault they're poor. The reason that businesses do the things they do is because that's what works. Attempts to do other things tend to result in failed businesses.

Why do Mormon women stop having babies at 36? Because 37 is too many.

Being repetitive doesn't necessarily mean it has any less significance to us. We shouldn't say the same prayer with no feeling, but just because you change some words up doesn't mean it is not in vain. You could say what sounds like a heart felt prayer and it may really mean nothing to you in your heart. I would state it not as repetitive being the issue, but rather lip service being the problem. If you don't in deed feel grateful for the food or the blessings, then it is repetitive and in vain. Your heart is what decides, I think. I try to add in specific people to ask a blessing for in my prayers for food. That seem to mix it up and reminds us that we truly should be grateful for what we have.

MWS isn't behind this. They thought a good idea until they found out who was behind it.

One reason why I don't do religious surveys such as this.

Mormon Women Stand has updated their post on the survey. I just learned that "The survey was created by a group calling itself the “Mormon Gender Survey Group”, which includes in its membership well-known LDS dissenter and agitator, John Dehlin, as well as other progressive Mormon activists who have pushed for the church to ordain women and to change its doctrine regarding homosexuality. The survey questions are worded in ways that subtly push their typical agenda".

The survey's website is tied into Mormon Women Stand, i.e. the conservative "we like things the way the are" camp. The survey's phrasing could have been improved (they all can be), but it's not nearly as bad as some I'm seen.

I took it. Whatever. Stupid. Garbage. Who cares what people think on this. Waste of time.

A few years ago Elder Neal A. Maxwell gave a talk entitled "Content with the Things Allotted unto Us" .. One thing that I often remember from that talk is this: "Alma’s contentment rested on the reality that God finally allots to us according to our wills (see Alma 29:4). What could be more fair?" To me that says we wind up getting what we most desire and pursue. It also says to me, be careful what you wish for... you just might get it. If all we seek after and learn to love resides only in this world (i.e. telestial law) then how can we expect heaven to be anything more than a telestial heaven. Which, granted, is still a heaven.. a degree of glory beyond what this mortality offers. Probably more of a heaven than most people could imagine.. so a great reward, if you will. That being said... Our Father is trying to help us learn to want what He wants... which is so much more... Celestial heaven can be learned.. not earned... Isn't that what we're trying to do? Learn to be celestial? What we're actively engaged in becoming and longing for is where we'll feel we belong in the end... That will be heaven for us, whether telestial, terrestrial or celestial. As for those who don't want ANYTHING our Father has to offer, well, he won't force them to take anything. They will live somewhere without glory... probably a lonely dark corner somewhere... probably alone, I would imagine.

"Are you sure of your selection?" "Really?" "You're really, really sure?" (Thinking of that Youtube video about Florida voting machines; but I just realized there's some salty language in there so I guess I ought not to link to it.)

I would give thanks for what you have and ask for a blessing upon the food and help ask to help those in your local Ward who might be ill or injured. Lots of things to pray for. Even if it's just a meal.

Ask your bishop...:)

The Cultural Celebration was yesterday... Someone uploaded the broadcast The Dedication was today

The Bishop isn't a sounding board. He likely has many grave issues he's dealing with. I too was an Exec Sec and Clerk, but you won't see ALL he deals with. You'd be seriously wasting his time, if in fact you believe you understand what he would tell you (you've already demonstrated you understand). This isn't the Catholic church. The Bishop doesn't sit in a booth waiting for folks to look for absolution on the momentary lapses of judgement of the week.

MusicHeart, I’m also married to a non-believer. I can offer some advice, Awesome!! Keep doing that. Admire the good qualities in him (like honesty, work ethics, he’s a good man, wonderful father, etc.). Love is how you will make it through this (and you will make it through). Something important to point out: your husband was open and honest with you about how he feels. That honesty and that bond is a very good thing (even if what he said was unpleasant news and it took him a while to get there). Fabulous!! Yes another good thing: he’s loves you and trusts you enough to lean on your judgment of child rearing, even though he’s questioning some things himself. You’re not alone!! You have the people here online, there are support groups, etc. Not to mention the Lord Himself. And you’ll actually be surprised how random people can be empathic and supportive, even though they might not have been in this exact spot themselves (or at least I was shocked at people’s abilities to show Christ-like love). Before this all happened, did you and your husband tell your children what you believe and what you think is right? Did you bring your most precious gems to the table to share with your children? If so, why should that change now? You (mom) tell them about what you love and believe in. Your husband does the same. Ok, so maybe a testimony of JS isn't among your husband's prized beliefs-- that’s ok, that's where his faith is now. He’s still a wonderful dad and can teach them the many other good things that make him such a great man. You sound like an amazingly brave person. I admire that and will keep you in my prayers. Keep it up: this can work, you WILL make it through. If your husband finds faith again, it’ll be all that much stronger. And if he doesn’t, you will be stronger still. Remember: God only put weak things in our life so that they can be made into strengths.

Friend, what denies us our exaltation isn't what we do; it's what those actions lead us to become. We should be becoming the kind of person who wouldn't look; and if we find we're having trouble in that quest--well, that's exactly what the bishop is for. Not to give us absolution; but to coach us in becoming what God wants us to become. Adultery and fornication are definitely so destructive to that quest and hostile to the Spirit, that we need to get help ASAP. Ditto for masturbation and for flat-out pornography. R-rated movies and incidental nudity in popular media is perhaps more of a gray area; but IMHO the fact that you're even asking about this suggests that in your case the Spirit has been sufficiently grieved that a chat with your bishop would be appropriate.

Speaking anecdotally: I just got health coverage through through my current employer this month after not having had any health insurance since 2004 (I am now 34 years old, for what that's worth). Assuming that my insurance would have cost $100/month, that's $12,000 that I haven't paid in premiums. During that same time period I might have paid $5K for two or three health issues that cropped up. As far as I can see it, I'm $7K ahead of the game. That doesn't make a lot of difference to a health insurer or national health service, where one surgery could easily blow through that and more (a health insurer would have to enroll me and fifty-six other people with identical health histories, and keep us on the rolls for ten years, just to get back into the black after paying for Bytor's heart attack; for example). But it makes a BIG difference to me--$7K pretty near covered the down payment for our house. If a private sector group runs the odds and thinks it can turn a profit by limiting its membership and managing costs, and invites me to join the insurance pool--sure, if the numbers look good for me, I'll join (as, in fact, I have recently done). But I'm not hot on being compelled to join such a pool. Nor do I trust the US federal government to perform reliable calculations in creating such a system. (In 1935, for example, it was estimated that Social Security costs would stabilize by 1980--which of course didn't happen. And in 1966, projected costs for Medicare for 1990 were $12 billion; as it turned out, they topped $107 billion.) I suppose the bottom line is that in a compulsory redistribution scheme, the people who are getting more than they put into it can always be counted on to defend the status quo and the ones putting more into it than they get back can always be counted on to want it changed. That's hardly surprising. :)

Frankenstein....the original one with Boris Karloff in the title role. I love these old Universal horror movies, so I thought it was great.

Well you medical bills are really broken down three ways. 1) What the hospital or Dr. "bills" the insurance. 2) What the insurance actually negotiates the rates to and then pays the provider. 3) What you actually pay. The 1st is really more of a wish price. I've seen providers bill the insurance for 20k+ and the real amount is 3-5k. Several people have mentioned reasons why the 1st is so high . . . but the real reason is lack of price transparency and insurance. Studies have been done showing that prices vary wildly for the same medical procedure in the same city but different hospitals and even the same hospital but different insurance plans. The actual consumer has absolutely 0 idea prior to service how much it will actually cost. Most people think, I've got insurance so just go to the doctor without even considering if the place they are going is worth the cost. In no other industry do you actually have service done without knowing ahead of time how much it will cost, only in the medical industry. This is why I actually like HSA high-deductible plans . . . generally much cheaper it is actual insurance (i.e. unexpected high dollar cost events rather than normal medical), and it forces people to actually shop around since until you hit the deductible you pay for it out of pocket.

I have to confess, that expression is not original to me. I remember it from high school, when some U.S. politician (Henry "Scoop" Jackson, perhaps) claimed he trusted the Soviet Union about as far as he could throw a grand piano. Maybe I shouldn't be so hard on the U.S. medical system. Let's change it to a spinet instead.

Calm down... I think many medical bills are rubbery and phony. I ran into a metal fence post on my bike as a kid and broke my nose. The bridge of my nose got so wide that I couldn't even wear glasses... they rode up so high that my eyebrows were in the middle of the lenses and looked really weird. As soon as I got out of college and paid off my debts, I saved up for a nose job. The surgeon normally did bust enlargements, but I had heard he was very good and he agreed to take a crack at my nose. But because it was totally cosmetic I had to pay everything myself. I think it was $2000 in 1989, which would be about $3800 in 2014 dollars. Anyway, after the surgery (which was a total success) the hospital messed up my paperwork and sent me a bill under the assumption that my insurance would pay it. It was around $5000 and contained all kinds of scandalous itemizations. I clearly recall they charged me $12 for each aspirin pill they gave me. The next day I happened to bump into my nose surgeon at Wendy's, and I asked him what I should do. He told me to bring the bill to the hospital with a copy of my cancelled check and to tell them it was a total self-pay surgery. I got all my documents and paperwork together and girded myself for battle (I felt like the Armor of God from Ephesians 6) and marched into the hospital... I had barely got the words "self pay" out of my mouth and the administrator snatched my bill from my hands, rolled his eyes, reached into his desk, took out the biggest rubber stamp I have ever seen in my life, and stamped "Paid in Full" on my bill. I also had a friend who worked in the collections department of a hospital. His job was to call people at night and demand payment for hospital bills that they had not paid. I was utterly astonished at my friend's power. He would wheedle and haggle and nag and negotiate and could chop mountain-sized chunks out of a patient's bill if the patient agreed to pay something. (If a hospital ever calls you nagging about a bill, always start the conversation with "Gee, I maybe can pay 10%, will 10% work for you?") And finally, about 10 years ago I was bitten by a cat and had a monster allergic reaction to something in the cat's saliva and was in the hospital for a week. On my last day they told me at breakfast that I'd be discharged right away, so I dressed and packed... and then waited 4 hours for them to finish the paperwork. I was discharged at around 12:10pm. Later a nurse friend of mine told me the hospital wanted to keep me past noon so they could charge my insurance company for another day. I trust the U.S. medical system about as far as I can throw a grand piano.

Tell your son that when he is an adult and paying the bills he can make the rules. Be the parent, not the friend who negotiates with a dependent teenager. Kids don't need more friends at home, they need a parent who will help guide them through their adolescent years.

Maybe. But I know a bit more about history: it was Friedrich der Große, King of Prussia, and it was in the battle of Kolin, when he called to his soldiers in a fury: „Ihr verfluchten Racker, wollt ihr denn ewig leben?“ (You dogs, you want to live forever?) You certainly mean this would be the right credo for the Obama Care?

The quote, if one reads it carefully, does not really say when those things will be given to the saints. It is just saying if you desire any of those things and do so while being guided by the Holy Ghost then the Lord is willing to give those things according to the promises made through his Apostles and Prophets - in other words, the promises made by covenants, all things will be given to the faithful. Receiving everything God has eventually, in other words, requires a desire for it but that doesn't necessarily mean desiring it for use in this life except under the circumstances by which the Holy Ghost guides it for this life. Otherwise, he is talking about receiving all God has in the next life.

Interesting OP. It seems to me a somewhat cynical, mercenary proposition, though, that families should remain intact because that way they will be richer, and so will be the offspring. Even at my advanced age, I'm romantic enough to believe in love and happiness, and that these considerations should be fundamental to the longevity of a marriage. I might add that correlation is not causation. It just may not be that a sustained marriage causes offspring success. It may be that the stresses caused by poverty, or ill-health, or poor educational attainment, and/or other factors, like alcoholism or drug addiction, affect both the stability of a marriage and the subsequent success of the children. It may be also that wealth is instrumental to both long marriages and offspring success. If this is true, then we should be tackling the causes of low achievement, and not, in marital breakdown, one of the symptoms of it. It's my belief that happy marriages are made by happy people being together, and that unhappy people being together does not make for a long marriage, and nor should it. Best wishes, 2RM.

I think it is definitely a spiritual gift. So many people are unaware of how much Heavenly Father loves them, and if you can feel it, it is a gift for sure.

I'm excited for the US. Now, instead of the Republicans filibustering and blocking all laws from being passed they're going to have a President who vetoes every law from being passed. That's progress you can count on!

Well... your error was telling your son he watches too much TV. He watches too much "bad" TV. :) Do you know who Dr. Ben Carson is? I just saw an interview with him. He credits his success in life to his mother, who required him and his sibling to read two books a week and write a lengthy report on each book. The mother would read each report carefully and check off and underline the good parts. Many years later, Dr. Carson learned that his mother was illiterate and had not really read any of his reports... but she still went through the motions to teach her son the value of learning, books, study, and writing. Think of how different the world would be if we all had mothers like that.