scottyg

I accepted a job 6 years ago that the Lord led me to. It was a step down in salary, and yet one of the top 3 decisions I have made in my life.

I do agree with what you wrote, as I too have neighbors that take things too far, and it leads them down a path of pride, and eventual distancing from the church. One of them has left because he thinks we aren't doing enough to worship the Lord, and he has found a better way on his own. It actually started with him taking the word of wisdom to very far extremes. On the other hand, perhaps I over-wonder about others too much as well.
That being said, tying up your children with duct tape and allowing them to become emaciated with non-healing open wounds is about as far as you can get from true gospel teachings. It's just plain evil, and I believe these folks simply used the faith as a cover for their scheme, because unfortunately, our church is full of ignorant patsies. It is no different than any other industry using shady sales tactics, and anyone who uses the church or gospel in any way, no matter how small, to further their business interests of any kind immediately gets a red flag in my book. These are truly disgusting people that hopefully get what they deserve. They are not extreme members, because they never were good members to begin with. I don't care what good things their friends or neighbors have to say in their defense - this is no small mistake on their part. This is who they are. They have no testimony of the church or gospel. If they did, they wouldn't have treated their children this way as the two cannot go hand in hand. Can they change, sure. But right now, they are evil.
(I used to be a pediatric nurse, so I acknowledge a potential bias towards those in cases where child abuse is present.)

The facts of the world? You just tried to prove your point by gendering a spoon. Take a step back and look at the mental gymnastics you are doing to try and prove yourself right.
"Gender is an essential characteristic of individual premortal, mortal, and eternal identity and purpose".
I am not going to argue over your traditions, feelings or "facts". All of it is based of of mankind's false perceptions. I will however share my testimony with you that there are 2 genders, male and female. End of discussion.

The facts of the world? You just tried to prove your point by gendering a spoon. Take a step back and look at the mental gymnastics you are doing to try and prove yourself right.
"Gender is an essential characteristic of individual premortal, mortal, and eternal identity and purpose".
I am not going to argue over your traditions, feelings or "facts". All of it is based of of mankind's false perceptions. I will however share my testimony with you that there are 2 genders, male and female. End of discussion.

I want to offer a cautionary note here, gleaned from hard experience both personal and professional:
Many people like this, actually deeply love the Gospel (as they understand it).  They search their scriptures.  They take fastidious notes at conference.  They pray for hours, and think they receive revelations; some of them very beautiful and moving.  But it goes in a weird direction, and suddenly they start thinking they’re getting better revelation than the mainstream Church; better revelation than their local priesthood leaders.  We will be seeing more of this, not less, in coming decades; and the Church will not always be quick to hold membership councils for people who deserve it.  
Guys, stay humble.  Stick with your priesthood authorities—from the Prophet down to your elders quorum president.  Do. Not. Let. Go.  A lot of tragedies could have and would have been avoided if some of Mormonism’s most infamous psychopaths of the past five years had stayed a little closer to, been more patient with, and considered with more humility the counsel of their bishops and stake presidents.

That was once a great site.  Sadly it turned into a cesspool of apostasy.

Only it isn't.  There are 2.

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/business/academic-programs/2023/09/01/first-three-year-degree-programs-win-accreditor-approval
“Ramaswamy also said he did a deep dive into the origins of the 120-credit hour degree and found that it was rooted largely in the number of work hours required for faculty members. He also noted the commonality of three-year college degrees in the United Kingdom and elsewhere.”
 
This gives me some hope.
I have 26.5 years of formal education. Worse than a marathon.
13 years to get thru grade school (had to do the 3rd grade twice)
4.5 years of undergrad (Nutrition Science / Track & Field)  and 2 year mission hiatus.  
   2 years of business sales waiting for a med school to recognize my potential.
4 years of med school
5 years of residency
Many of those years were a total waste of time and $$.
I should have started medical practice 10 years earlier, age 26 instead of 36.
Doctors are at their peak from years 45-55.  Finally have enough experience while still having mental acuity, manual dexterity, constitution, good eyesight, etc…
We must make some changes.  We are wasting so many resources so that faculty can have tenure.

BYU needs to get a handle on this sort of thing yesterday.

100%

I suppose I was wondering how far things can go before you have that dramatic twist and tie up your children. I've been following the Daybell murder case and it kind of seems that, once, those people were decent people as far as anyone could tell. But I may be cynical enough to say one was probably never that good of a person if they were able to fall to such extremes from where they allegedly were. 
On a less famous note, I have a cousin who had a trouble childhood. My aunt was very good in the gospel. She's passed away, and I like to hope the mental illnesses that ruined her kids' lives have been healed. Anyway, the one cousin was into all sorts of trouble and eventually was put in foster care with an "upstanding family of the church". Abuse apparently ran rampant there, the bishop wouldn't believe anything because he was friends with the family, and my cousin wound up running away from there, never to be seen again until we had the brilliant idea of Facebook search her (this was back in the day). 
Yes, I think I agree with you. The church (and I'll say that for any church or good group) can be a shockingly great way to hide not just your issues but actual crimes. 

I do agree with what you wrote, as I too have neighbors that take things too far, and it leads them down a path of pride, and eventual distancing from the church. One of them has left because he thinks we aren't doing enough to worship the Lord, and he has found a better way on his own. It actually started with him taking the word of wisdom to very far extremes. On the other hand, perhaps I over-wonder about others too much as well.
That being said, tying up your children with duct tape and allowing them to become emaciated with non-healing open wounds is about as far as you can get from true gospel teachings. It's just plain evil, and I believe these folks simply used the faith as a cover for their scheme, because unfortunately, our church is full of ignorant patsies. It is no different than any other industry using shady sales tactics, and anyone who uses the church or gospel in any way, no matter how small, to further their business interests of any kind immediately gets a red flag in my book. These are truly disgusting people that hopefully get what they deserve. They are not extreme members, because they never were good members to begin with. I don't care what good things their friends or neighbors have to say in their defense - this is no small mistake on their part. This is who they are. They have no testimony of the church or gospel. If they did, they wouldn't have treated their children this way as the two cannot go hand in hand. Can they change, sure. But right now, they are evil.
(I used to be a pediatric nurse, so I acknowledge a potential bias towards those in cases where child abuse is present.)

If I bake a fresh batch of warm, sweet, moist, gooey, and scrumdiddlyumptious pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, place them in front of my 5 year old, and say "don't eat them", and then go out to mow the lawn leaving said child unsupervised with a tray of cookies, I know full well what will happen...my kid will eat some cookies. They have the ability and freedom to choose, and my knowing exactly what they will choose ahead of time in no way causes them to do so.
So, that's not what I do. I also tell my child that she can have a cookie later when I come in, and I leave my child in the care of her older siblings who have more experience. They set an example, encourage, and help guide her into making right choices. Then when I come in later, everyone gets a cookie without anyone having a time-out. (or getting burnt from hot melted chocolate)
We cannot become as God without the ability to exercise agency; choosing God and His Christ over the things of this world.

I think it's great, but a majority of other Christian denominations would unfortunately consider it heresy.

I'm waiting for legal counsel before answering.

Is it still entrapment if the goal isn't to punish, but rather to teach and reward good behavior? Our entire earth life could be called entrapment. Even now, though we know there will be consequences, we still sin. We all knew ahead of time that we would, as did God, but we all accepted the plan of having a redeemer.
(In full disclosure...I would also partake of a pumpkin chocolate chip cookie. Can't resist em 😋)

If I bake a fresh batch of warm, sweet, moist, gooey, and scrumdiddlyumptious pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, place them in front of my 5 year old, and say "don't eat them", and then go out to mow the lawn leaving said child unsupervised with a tray of cookies, I know full well what will happen...my kid will eat some cookies. They have the ability and freedom to choose, and my knowing exactly what they will choose ahead of time in no way causes them to do so.
So, that's not what I do. I also tell my child that she can have a cookie later when I come in, and I leave my child in the care of her older siblings who have more experience. They set an example, encourage, and help guide her into making right choices. Then when I come in later, everyone gets a cookie without anyone having a time-out. (or getting burnt from hot melted chocolate)
We cannot become as God without the ability to exercise agency; choosing God and His Christ over the things of this world.

A Eunuch is still male.

We have 2 bishops in our stake that wear full beards. They both have different reasons why. They have been asked to clean shave, but are not required to do so. Personally, I try to follow the example set by the brethren when in church settings. During the week I only shave prior to mid-week church meetings and on Sunday mornings. Most men don't shave every day as it causes razor burn. My poor neck looked like it had chicken pox from having to shave every day.
I don't understand why BYU allows moustaches but not beards though. Just wearing a moustache looks goofy on a majority of men, and I have never heard a young woman say she finds it attractive.

Most Christian denominations would appreciate the article's emphasis on the differences between Father and Son. Trinitarians agree that the Father and Son are distinct beings. The main area of disagreement would be the doctrine that human intelligence was eternal in the pre-existence. 

I think it's great, but a majority of other Christian denominations would unfortunately consider it heresy.

“Never memorize what you can look up in books” is a quote often attributed to Einstein, though what he actually said was somewhat different. He was asked, but did not know the speed of sound as included in the Edison Test. When this was pointed out, he said, “[I do not] carry such information in my mind since it is readily available in books. He also said, “…The value of a college education is not the learning of many facts but the training of the mind to think.” 

If it's disqualified for someone not liking that I don't toe the party line, or thinking that I am just trying to make waves, then that's on them. The "other" / write in section is there for a reason. I will vote my conscience, and refuse to vote for someone who doesn't have both the leadership direction I desire, and the necessary moral character I believe in.
The only wasted votes are from those who don't vote.

..."in coming days, it will not be possible to survive spiritually without the guiding, directing, comforting, and constant influence of the Holy Ghost."
"If we are to have any hope of sifting through the myriad of voices and the philosophies of men that attack truth, we must learn to receive revelation."
Why do we need the influence of the Holy Ghost? Why do we need to receive revelation? Is it so we can be guided and directed...or is it so we can become converted? There is great power in receiving revelation. Although receiving an answer to a heartfelt prayer is great, the conversion that takes place when one spirit converses with another is greater. I like getting spiritual promptings to do things, but the foundation of faith that comes from it is greater than the actual small bit of instruction. If we (and especially our youth) have spiritual experiences with the Holy Ghost, we will over time become truly converted. Gone are the days when you can just follow the crowd...because the crowd is going the other way. Even if an entire ward was doing the right thing, an individual who does not have real faith will not be able to follow them as he will lose his desire to be a part of the church.
We know that Covid-19, the alphabet soup community, and church finances have been a trial for many in various ways, but other trials are on the way that will worsen the sifting. We must learn to receive revelation.

If it's disqualified for someone not liking that I don't toe the party line, or thinking that I am just trying to make waves, then that's on them. The "other" / write in section is there for a reason. I will vote my conscience, and refuse to vote for someone who doesn't have both the leadership direction I desire, and the necessary moral character I believe in.
The only wasted votes are from those who don't vote.