ADoyle90815

Elizabeth Smart case: Barzee seeks forgiveness, desires re-baptism as LDS - Salt Lake Tribune

Besides "Where the Wild Things Are," I'm looking forward to the new Alice in Wonderland movie with Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter. As far as movies I've seen recently, I liked "Julie and Julia" and "September Issue" which is a documentary about Vogue magazine.

It's a good thing you're taking your time with this decision, as I personally feel that LDS missionaries and others put too much pressure on people to be baptized before they're fully ready. If they allowed people to decide if and when they're ready to live the culture as well as believe in the church, there would be more converts who stay active for life.

Same here.

Topping to hide political discussion that is now against board rules.

Right now, the seasonal flu kills more people every year than the swine flu ever has, and so far, those who died from the swine flu had some underlying condition that already put them in the high risk group for the seasonal flu.

That's definitely true, many people have the NIMBY(Not in My Backyard) mentality, and it has nothing to do with religion at all.

If she's gotten the counseling she needed in order to move past the trauma of what happened to her, I think that serving a mission will be a good thing for her. That's my only concern because something that traumatic should be dealt with by talking to a therapist who specializes in trauma recovery, even if that person is through the LDS church. That said, I wish her well on her mission, and hope that it helps her to get on with her life.

He's a real jerk for what he did, but Beyonce earned my respect for letting Taylor finish her original speech.

One thing about Catholics is that they view the Pope in a similar way that the LDS church views the President of the church, that he speaks on God's behalf. If you're a Christian, whether it's Catholic, Protestant, or LDS, you believe that the only way to God is through Jesus Christ. I'm not Catholic myself, but I have family members that are, so I have some idea as to what that church teaches. In fact, for a long time, I thought the LDS church also taught that birth control was a sin because like Catholics, they have larger families than the average. I later learned that wasn't true at all, that in the LDS church, family size is between the married couple and God.

It really means America's Next Top Model. Anyway, as far as American Idol goes, I've never cared for that show, so I have never watched a single episode. The same goes for Dancing With The Stars, America's Got Talent, and So You Think You Can Dance. Now, I love watching Ellen's show, as well as when she hosts award shows or does her comedy routine.

At least one doctor has been convicted and sent to prison for "helping" patients end their own lives when they were in severe pain from terminal illnesses such as cancer, so it's a fallacy to claim that euthanasia will be practiced among humans. People do die because their health insurance company refuses to pay for life-saving organ transplants or chemotherapy and radiation treatments for cancer. It's reasons like that that something NEEDS to be done to fix our health care system.

I've lived in Southern California my whole life, but I have visited 18 US states. I spent a day in Tijuana, Mexico once. I haven't been to any other country, but I would love to see Europe and Canada sometime. I'd love to visit Hawaii, which has been a US state for 59 years.

I've heard that Pat Buchannan is extremely anti-LDS.

One thing I'll never forget is that eerie silence when all planes were grounded, except for the occasional fighter plane flying overhead, as I live along the landing path of an airport. As it happened before 7am local time, I woke up to find out it happened, and before I was to go to my classes that day, it was announced that all state universities were closed for the rest of the day. The campus had a candlelight vigil the following evening, which was a huge event.

For the most part, I liked it, but I'm also not convinced that those here illegally won't get free healthcare. It was good that the Congressman who heckled Obama apologized for his outburst, and that it was accepted.

Well said! Both parties right now only care about their special interests, and not the voters. That's why I'm registered as nonpartisan as neither party out there reflects what I really want. The way that Republican elected official acted during Obama's speech was an embarrassment as it made him and others who disagree with him look like they don't respect the Office. It's one thing to disagree with the man in that office, but at least wait until you have the chance to debate the bill first before stating your views.

What drives me crazy is when even elected officials don't respect the office of President by shouting during his speech before Congress. It's one thing to disagree with the man, but wait until you get to debate the issue to bring it up.

She understands that the Office is something to be respected, even if you disagree with the person. I guess those years of being married into the Bush family has taught her that being President is not an easy job at all.

Here's the "socialist" speech that Obama is going to give tomorrow. To me, it's just a "study hard and stay in school" speech and something that not all children get from their parents. Media Resources Prepared School Remarks

I've taken the light rail system into downtown LA from my area several times, and it's really nice. They're even expanding it to cover more areas and even putting in turn styles in many of the downtown stations for the new pass card system. Before the pass card was introduced, they had an honor system where you kept your ticket or pass with you, and the metro police would frequently board the trains to check tickets. I do love the system they have in San Francisco and other cities since you don't have to rent a car while vacationing there as they have stations that are either right at the airport, or a quick shuttle bus ride away. It would be nice if LA's system grows to be as convenient as other cities are.

I'm not LDS, but I have heard mostly positive things about how members treat those who are disabled. I would hope that those who get SSI aren't expected to pay tithing on that alone since it really isn't much at all to live on. Obviously, if someone has a job, they would naturally pay tithing on their paycheck as part of their beliefs.

Even though I disagreed with the previous President, I had complete respect for the Office, and it would be nice if the fanatical conservatives did the same. I know people on this board do respect the office, so that doesn't apply here, so sorry for any offense. As for his speech, my local schools start Wednesday, with teachers going back on Tuesday. I don't know if they'll show the speech on Wednesday, but by then, I'm sure most parents would have heard what was said. My mom who is a middle school English teacher, hasn't said if her school will show the speech the following day, so I have no idea. Obama is talking about children studying and more importantly, staying in school, which is something even Republicans would have no issues about. As far as Presidents addressing children directly in speeches, I remember Regan mentioning children in his speech after the Challenger blew up. That was because those of us who were in elementary school on that day, watched the disaster in our classrooms as it happened.

I have an uncle who refuses to get treatment which includes medication, and he's got no friends because he's verbally abused everyone around him, and has been fired from every job. If it wasn't for my grandma, he would be living on the streets. As he's an adult and proving that he's a danger to himself or others is difficult, there's no way anyone can have him treated against his will. Even if this uncle were a vegan who only ate food he grew himself organically, he would still suffer from bipolar disorder without medication. I have another uncle who has been treated for bipolar, and takes his medication every day and will probably need to do so for the rest of his life. As a result of that, he's had a government job for at least 25 years, and has been able to support his family and pay taxes. The right medication has helped him to deal with his bipolar disorder, much as a diabetic is able to survive with insulin every day. The way I see it, God has guided scientists in developing medication that helps people with bipolar disorder and other mental illnesses to function in society. Unfortunately, a lot has to be done to get rid of the stigma that goes with mental health treatment. In a way, we treat our cars better than we treat our brains when it comes to chemical imbalances.