Maxel

I haven't heard about this yet. If I were a parent I wouldn't want my child to watch a presentation by him about any facet of personal responsibility (I feel he's a deceitful liar, and I don't want my child to "sit at his feet", as it were, and learn anything from him). That being said, I doubt he'll do/say anything terrible to the children, and talking about goal-setting could help many children in public school. I looked through the 'Classroom Activities' PDF's and it looks like the speech will focus mainly on setting and achieving goals (which I think is admirable). For children who don't already know how to do that, they could benefit from the speech. If there is widespread opposition to this, it probably comes from people fearing the president will insert liberal rhetoric (like you said, JAG) into the speech. However, in a 15-20 minute broadcast on goal-setting, I don't know how much 'rhetoric' he would be able to insert even if he wanted to.

Ouch... I just remember the happy story of the conversion; I forgot there was a denominational difference between the two. Anyway... I could drag this tangent so far into Lewis and Tolkien... Better go

pam... Whatchu been saying about me? *Puppy dog eyes* I'm too cute for anyone to not like me. Just check my avatar- that's really me!

I dunno Mason. Maybe because if the Book of Mormon is God's work, then Joseph Smith was indeed a prophet of God? Maybe we ought to... you know... follow the prophets of God? Just an idea. Don't want to get too technical or anything, but your implied assertion- that even if the Book of Mormon is true, then God either did or did not approve of EVERYTHING Joseph Smith did- is a false dilemna. We can reasonably assume that the Lord approved of some things Smith did, and did not approve of others. Who's using bad logic now?

Michael Moore = bona fide idiot. And I don't use that word lightly. He's a fool using hyperbole to further his own controversial claims to fame. His presence means the project is compromised, whatever it is. Making fun of honest police officers over the mistakes of others? Who is Michael Moore to do this and judge those officers?! He does this entire thing over one incident in New York (but I forgot- in the entire U.S., there's 3-4 other cases of the same thing happening! Oh no!), mocking the men who keep idiots like him safe?! I can't believe some people have the gall to do what he does, and I can't believe others actually enjoy such sick displays. And who's creating the tension in the situation? Moore! The policemen in the video responded with dignity- which is more than can be said of Moore and those he suckers into his display of ignorant idiocy. People like him bring contention to whatever they touch- and we all know where contention comes from (if you need a hint, check out 3 Nephi 11:29).

Hadn't Smeagol killed his cousin (to obtain the One Ring) before he became Gollum? Regardless of that, I don't think dissecting the actions and words of fictional characters (no matter how awesome they are) will get us very far in the discussion of capital punishment. To continue the tangent: you're right LM, Tolkien did have a crucial role in helping Lewis convert to Christianity (in his autobiography Surpised by Joy, Lewis points to one moment when he and Tolkien were walking and talking. Tolkien told Lewis about his (Tolkien's) religious convictions, and Lewis felt 'moved'.).

The situation seems to boil down to whether the antidepressants are effectively treating a real chemical imbalance in the body. If there's a chemical imbalance that the drugs fix, that's wonderful. If there's not that imbalance, the drugs further complicate the matter. I take paroxetene (generic form of Paxil, and antidepressant) and I can feel the spirit very strongly when on it. My whole family has clinical depression, and for me paroxetene corrects the problem the best.

Whoops, forgot there was a 'Youtube videos' forum- thanks to whoever moved it.

I tend to think Hemidakota is talking about the way that Sodom fell into wickedness and the path things took, not necessarily its presentation or method of presentation (that Eliezer copied the events down on the Sodom scrolls).

Hey, I don't want to beat beefche (or any horses or cows). I thought there was a smilie about digging your own grave somewhere... Beefche, I wubs you! Keep on being awesome.

Err... Okay.Do you understand the LDS doctrine of prophets (I'm not trying to be condescending; genuinely confused)? Personal revelation given to those not in authority fits the requirement of what you say- but revelation that makes its way to canonization we are most definitely under an obligation to believe, if we have a testimony of the work.

There are cases when some people might benefit from getting off of anti-depressants. However, that doesn't mean all can. I think that some people with real chemical imbalances can be healed of those, through faith. However, that's between a person and God and if they ever try to go off their medications, they need to be monitored by a doctor and loved ones. That being said, I went to the website offered (the one by Ms. Tracy) and the first thing I saw was what appears to be some sort of ad from Michael Moore. Apparantely, Columbine may have been a result of bad perscriptions according to him (not the satanic/suicidal music they loved to listen to, nor their lifestyle or- heck- even their own choices!). Anyone willing to put an endorsement/whatever from Michael Moore on their site, I'm willing to discount it as nothing more than a scam. Can you tell I don't like the guy?

Not even two or three words, pam! I seem to have dug myself into a hole here... Wasn't there a smilie for this ocassion?

I meant appetite-wise. I wants me a hamburger!; I wubs hamburgers! Why, what did you think I meant?

Anyone can, but few people actually do. Fewer still understand what God is saying to them.

Beefche... Looking good...

I thought it might have been you when I first started searching- but an advanced search looking for the words "Abraham" and "sodom" in your posts didn't return any results (unfortunately). I had to look for "Eliezer", the name of Abraham's servant. I could have saved a lot of effort just by asking you.

I wouldn't be surprised if the Church did want more tithing paid. After all, more tithing = more temples, money to contribute to various humanitarian efforts worldwide, and a more efficient and expanding welfare system. Plus, paying tithing brings blessings to the individual paying it. Why wouldn't the Church want more tithing paid? And there's plenty of reasons for wanting to keep inactive members on the books- one being that home teachers doing their jobs can still keep tabs on them. It's the way the Kingdom of God works- seek after the lost sheep (at least until the lost sheep bites the hand of the shepherd and says 'go away, I don't want to be of your flock any more').

Thanks pam!

Don't have the energy for a long answer, but a few simple ones: We can show obedience to the Lord by doing what He has asked us to do and by following the leaders He has elected to be at the head of His earthly church. 'Doing what He asks' includes living a Christ-like life and studying and following the commandments of Christ in the New Testament. There are some laws from the Old Testament that are still in application, but it can be difficult to discern which ones.

I laughed and cried.

Haven't met my eternal companion yet, but I'm pretty sure the event will consist of me- adorned in shining armor sitting astride a brave steed- saving her from the evil dragon that has come to devour her.

UPDATE: Found it! I wasn't going crazy (I'm relieved): This is the post I was thinking of. It's from a book called "Look Back at Sodom" by Neal A. Maxwell. (published in 1975, before Maxwell became an apostle). Case closed, mystery of the missing excerpt solved.

Aaaaaah! I must find it... Or remember what site I read it on; if not on this one. It might not have been Bednar who wrote it; that's just my first guess. Oh well, I guess I'll let this thread die... I can't believe no one remembers what I'm talking about. It was SO COOL.