Backroads

I totally agree with you there. Utah is notorious for affinity fraud and MLM schemes. 
 
In fact, my friend who passed away several years ago became an attorney because his elderly parents lost all their money in a pyramid scheme they found out about through their local ward. 😞 

Interesting. 
I have no issue with those who are afraid/uncomfortable with it. It’s their life and they are allowed to do as they wish. I think it’s a silly thing to be uncomfortable with (so silly that I’m not sure what to say, to be honest) but if that’s how someone wants to live, knock yourself out. 

Ooh!  Knife to the heart!  @mirkwood, @Traveler, and I are never speaking to you again!  (Unless our therapists insist otherwise...)

Perhaps that would explain why it was so difficult trying to drive the neighbours dog the other day?

I think, these days, practically anyone can get some certificate or another to make it appear they are a counselor or therapist. @Vort is right this is a very muddied science these days, and add in "I can give you my thoughts and advice" from any Rando.
I've also met people who simply don't believe in it, that their private business is theirs alone to figure out. 
Edit: I'd also add that therapy is weirdly popular these days. On one hand, I think seeking help from a good therapist is great for many people. But I also get suspicious when things are too popular. 
On a personal and petty note, I have weird mock prejudice against the people of Salt Lake and Utah counties. That these two were operating out of that area where all sorts of weirdos are seeking special treatment for their weird issues (I am so sorry but this is the impression I have!) makes me think of, well, weird people and weird therapists.

Bad thereapists aren't a Mormon thing, but a human thing.   Just because someone is standing in a garage, it doesn't make them a car.

Jodi Hildebrandt is a therapist and the Church would refer members to her. There were countless allegations against Hilderbrandt and this is one of the reasons why she had her license put on probation by the Utah Clinical Mental Health Counselor Licensing Board for 18 months. The allegations are very serious in nature. This is the reason why (even though some people get upset with me) I always suggest that if you need to choose a mental health counselor/therapist/psychologist for you or a loved one please, please, please don't do it only based on Church membership.

Setting aside my personal feelings about gender transitions, I’ve noticed the word “narcissist” holds no meaning in 2023. It’s the most over used word in the English language. 
 
The word is used just like how non Christians use the phrase “judge not lest ye be judged.” Totally out of context with no understanding what the actual words mean. 

Did this as well a few times until I told the Primary Presidency my assigned partner was clearly unable to participate (My assigned partner at that time was and is a lovely woman, but she had a whole host of issues due to taking care of her daughter-in-law and grandchild on weekends and just didn't have the bandwidth to find subs). 

By and large they need firmness not compassion.
According to this study https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4301205/, about 57% of transgender are narcissists.  And my own take is: "no duh.  And you only caught those who got caught because narcissists don't want to be known as narcissists."
I tried looking for rebuttals but I didn't find a serious critique about the study's methods, only ad hominem attacks of it because it came out of Iran.  And that's fair enough to distrust a source but at some point if the data is bad you should attack the data not the researchers.
Looking for other studies I found another that does support a correlation between GD and other disorders, but they do not specifically mention narcissism; I suspect they didn't want to.  They do state that a fair percentage cluster around "Borderline Personality Disorder" which is a condition which, to me, sounds like a close cousin of narcissism.  This study does have a very large category of illness labelled "not otherwise specified" where narcissism is probably hiding if they tested for it at all.
But it's so obvious to me that by and large, they are narcissists.  It's apparently obvious to others too: https://drzphd.com/dr-z-phd-live-videos/why-you-go-through-narcissistic-inflation-during-transition, as this trans researcher says it's perfectly natural given their situation and tries to dress it up in slightly different terminology or indicate it may be temporary.
Personally I call BS.  They don't just seem narcissitic, they ARE narcissistic and I've never seen this change in my anecdotal experience.
---
Narcissists automatically disqualify themselves from unbridled compassion.  They manipulate nice people, turn them against each other, and eat them for breakfast.

There were a few times I had no co teacher in Primary.  I propped the door open, sat next to it and requested the Primary Presidency walk by a few times.

There is far too much questioning of leadership and second-guessing. So many Christian churches lost members and adherents because the pastor was thought to be too acquiescent to government mask mandates, or not diligent enough in promoting them. The cliche "holier than thou," is an actual thing. There are many people who believe they are holier than church leadership. 
On the other hand, we are all commanded to exercise the Spirit's gift of discernment. How often is a decision made and members are asked to signify if the Holy Spirit has confirmed the decision to them? I'm old enough to remember the tragedy of the People's Temple (Rev. Jim Jones) tragedy. For those unaware, he took about 1,000 members from his California church and set up Jonestown, in Guyana. Nearly a year later they were all dead--having committed mass suicide. The phrase, "Don't drink the Kool Aide" literally came from that tragedy. Sadly, more than a year earlier Jim Jones was preaching in his church. He said, "I want you to be gods as I am God. I tell you; I am God Almighty God!" After proclaiming this heresy, a lady towards the back (I heard the actual recording) said, "Amen! Praise Jesus!"
Humility is the answer. Generally, submitting to authority is appropriate. However, the ultimate humility is to obey the Holy Spirit.

Is it any wonder that members of other Christian sects are scandalized by the LDS belief in (for want of a better term) the deification of man? Yet the idea has existed throughout the history of Christianity, being a fairly obvious extension of bedrock Christian beliefs. But most people had the good sense to keep the idea private and discuss it only among those to whom the idea was not offensive. At this point, the cat is 180 years out of the bag, but perhaps we should learn not to cast our pearls before swine by parading certain sacred beliefs and practices before an unbelieving world, including an unbelieving non-LDS Christianity.

In just 2 weeks one of our forum members gets the extreme pleasure of meeting me in person.  🤣🤣🤣
 

Man this is one of those esoteric topics.  Here goes.
As a surgeon I have seen some ugly and outrageous tats.  We even have a ratio that we use to pigeon-hole patients into categories.  
Tattoo to Tooth Ratio.  Anything above one is real bad.
I love to see Polynesians cultural tattoos in the temple though.
My personal preference is for a clean canvas.
Personally, I don't think tattoos will be a thing in the spirit world.  
How about orthopedic hardware? Breast augmentation? Cosmetic surgery? Dental implants? These are all way more aggressive body modifications than ink…
I can’t imagine God requiring someone to live for an eternity with a Stryker total knee plastic and stainless steel implant.  Nonsense.
And dust to dust.  Unless great care is taken to preserve a body, it will return to the elements.  All antediluvian bodies will have to be regenerated.  I don’t see why modern day mortals would have to keep the matter that currently resides within our bodies.  Oreos, Cheetos, GMO foods, medications, lead poisoning, micro plastics, etc…
I’ll pass.
 
Jesus Christ’s wounds are a whole different matter though.  They seem to be part of his identity.  Not sure if they are part of an ordinance or if they are his preference.
I suspect that our Heavenly Father has similar markings though.

Or perhaps he's detailing how those who are perpetrating the gender identity crisis are trying to make it tricky - grasping at every straw to twist it to their use.  I couldn't say which (JJ's posts often seem to me to be unclear in what they're trying to accomplish).

Again, it's not.  There are two.  Spoons don't have gender.  Neither do ships.
You're trying to make it tricky.  You're trying to make it more complex than it is.  It isn't.

This idea of multiple genders kills me. It's like... how intense into the labyrinth of culture can you get? 
My mom buys piano books off this music guy (it's a legitimate business and I don't mean to make it sound like a black market for music teachers). Great guy, but his business is running a music store and he's very nice, friendly, dresses exceedingly well, compliments outfits... and his dear wife of many years is a mechanic. We joke about this guy, but it's probably nothing more than a guy who likes good clothes and music and a woman who is really good at working on cars. 
I'm sure we can find all sorts of examples of people who are bending societal gender norms and I really have no problem with that until it becomes "so they must be transgender or some other gender entirely" in some crazy meaning to define their unique existence and perspectives.

lol autocorrect.   At.   I wanted to be at burning man this year.  
 

Stuff like this is why I won't go near the lds freedom forum.

I did, but it's been awhile, and I'm trying to recall what you might be referencing? The joke about the lack of genitals? 
(I honestly quite enjoyed the movie while and right after I watched it, but then I realized it was one that wasn't sticking in my brain). 

What I'm about to say will probably be an unpopular opinion here (what's new).
 
In truth, if one focused solely on their college degree they probably could finish most of them in two or three years.
The question is if that is the purpose of college or a university.  There are those that say yes...it is. 
For some degrees it is probable that you could get away with this idea (Engineering, Nursing, etc).  However, that ignores the majority of degrees out there.  Why do those degrees even exist?
Let's take Law or a Law degree.  In theory, you could ignore the undergraduate and simply let them go to Law School.  If this is so, then why not do this.  Why is it that Law Schools in the United States generally require an undergraduate degree? 
There is an idea of well rounded education, or of a well rounded individual.  Education from a University has traditionally (looking at education from the viewpoint of the past several centuries) not been something for the everyday individual.  They everyday individual went into trades (such as carpentry, smithy, cobbling, etc).  They had their own system of advancement and training that was DIFFERENT than the University system.
Those who went to the University went to learn in general.  They went to learn about the world and about how it worked.  Because it took money, and sometimes was seen as not all that useful in life (as opposed to trades) it leaned more heavily on those who had money and time to spend. 
In the more recent past (as in the past 200 years, and still evolving) those who went and got a university education were seen as different.  Universities were not simply teaching a subject, but teaching the individual HOW to learn and HOW to adapt.  Those who could actually LEARN this skill and graduate were seen as superior in how they could learn to adapt to different situations, learn to improve things, and were better able to be managers and handle the varies situations over that of what tradesmen could do.
It is THIS skill that was sought after by many companies and groups during the mid-20th and late 20th centuries.
This is why someone with an Art Degree in the 80s may be able to become the district manager of a grocery chain, and advance even higher.  This is why someone with a Music degree could sign on with Oracle and become a VP in the 90s.  They weren't trained specifically in Business, but it was the training of their minds.
Furthermore, by giving them a sampling of different venues of life (English, History, Sciences, etc) the universities were creating a more well rounded individual.  Someone who could know a little bit of many things, though only practicing becoming an expert (eventually, if they went for graduate studies) in one thing. 
It slowly (it was not always so) became that THESE individuals were seen as more desirable than others.  Medical Schools, Law Schools, and then even Law degrees got vectored to where they were looking for these specific types of people.  Those who excelled in the university environment, but who also were well rounded in many different areas.
Which would you rather have as a criminal defense lawyer in a trespassing case in a city stadium Chicago.  Someone who only studied law...or Someone who studied law but also understood a little bit about the history of Chicago, the situation of the politics and ethnic groups there, and had a little background sports and stadiums themselves when they were younger and played sports?  Which do you prefer?
Today, undergraduate classes have an added boon.  Many of the young people coming do not have a clear picture of WHAT they want to major in.  Different classes can give them a taste of what each major may have to offer.  It gives them time to decide what they want to do as they take their generals.  It also adds to their understanding in how different things may interact (for example, take a History of Civilization class with a focus on science and you can see how the two interact quite intricately throughout human civilization). 
I think if one wants to focus on one subject entirely there are still the trades out there (and some of them pay quite handsomely.  I know a plumber and an electrician that earn FAR more than I do.  They are experts at what they do and are very skilled).  There is also graduate school.  If they feel so inclined to go to another nation and apply to their programs they can do that.  However, I think the value of the US educational system is extremely good IF you spend wisely and act wisely in how you choose what you study. 

I confess it's been a long time since high school but here's what I remember for me:
AP classes: Free college credit if I actually feel I'm clever enough to pass those tests. I did take two tests and I appreciated the credit edge they gave me, and I thoroughly enjoyed the classes for their own sake (AP Environmental Science is one of my fondest high school memories, and two of the kids at our table wound up getting married). But a proper college class they were not.
Honors: I took the English honors course because everyone said it was more classroom discussion and less busywork. This was true. It was basically one big book club, just using classic-ish world novels instead of whatever Reese Weatherspoon just read. 
But I think AP and Honors exist more for their name than anything substantial they can produce. A lot of smoke and mirrors. 
 

I can't seem to let this go by without adding this:

 
Feel free to blame my poor education for my impulsive behavior....