Chick-fil-A Vs. Planned Parenthood

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First off, this post is not intended to convince a supporter of Planned Parenthood that Congress should defund the organization, and it’s not intended to argue for defunding the organization (personally, I’m very torn about this issue). Rather, this is intended to show why it makes sense for pro-life people to support defunding Planned Parenthood despite the fact that no federal dollars are used for abortions in most circumstances.

In 2012, the CEO of Chick-fil-A made statements regarding his support for heterosexual marriage and opposition to gay marriage, and an LGBT watchdog group revealed that the company donated money to organizations deemed anti-LGBT. Those who support LGBT rights decided to boycott the restaurant chain, while those who support traditional marriage went to the restaurants (Wikipedia article). This is a classic example of people using their dollars to vote their conscience.

These events are well-known, but now we’re going to journey to a hypothetical world. Imagine that to help poor people find food to eat, the federal government decided to pay fast food restaurants to feed people. It’s a big stretch, but just work with me for a minute. There are various ways the government could pay for this, so we won’t worry about it. Suffice it to say that the government is paying for this with taxpayer money, and Chick-fil-A is one of the companies receiving money.

Now, taking aside the objections to the government paying fast food restaurants overall, would LGBT advocates be unhappy with the government giving money to Chick-fil-A in particular? It’s certainly possible. Now, imagine that Chick-fil-A assures us that the government money is only used to provide food to poor people, and in any case, only 3% of the company’s total money is used to fund anti-LGBT organizations. Would that appease LGBT activists, or would they still be unhappy with money going toward that organization?

Comparing this situation with the proposal to defund Planned Parenthood is imperfect, obviously, but I hope it gets my point across. Planned Parenthood provides plenty of great healthcare services, but on the other hand, it also kills hundreds of thousands of innocent people every year. (You can consult PP’s two most recent annual reports for exact numbers.) Do its positive services outweigh killing so many people? It’s a tough question. To some, the answer is a firm no, and understandably, these people don’t want to be forced to give money to an organization they vehemently disagree with, just like in my hypothetical situation, LGBT-rights activists may not like being forced to give money to Chick-fil-A.

There's a lot more I could go into, but to keep this post short and focused, I'll end right here. In short, people want the freedom to use their money to vote their conscience and not be forced in any way to support an organization they dislike.

Why Utah's Porn Resolution Is Okay

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There has been a lot backlash against the porn resolution that was passed in Utah, and I'm having a really difficult time understanding why. I think there must be a bunch of misunderstandings about this resolution, so I'm going to explain why it's okay.

First, it's important to understand that this is a resolution, not a bill or law. Resolutions are usually a legislatures way of celebrating something or someone, or complaining about something. In this case, the legislators and governor are telling everyone that porn is a health crisis, explaining why, and suggesting that society takes action to address the issue. They're not saying that it's the only health crisis or even the biggest health crisis. They're not spending any money or changing any laws. All they're doing is saying that porn is a problem.

And make no mistake about it, porn is a public health problem in Utah. Is it the biggest problem? No. Off the top of my head, I would say that air pollution, prescription drug abuse, the high suicide rate, and thousands of uninsured Utahns are bigger issues than pornography. But saying that porn is a problem does not at all diminish the significance of the other problems.

Keep in mind that these public health crises are difficult issues to solve. Take air pollution, for instance. For starters, the geography of the Wasatch Front is working against us. No matter what we do, we might always have inversions during the winter. Also, part of the solution is for Utahns to drive less often and for shorter distances, and use public transportation and carpool more. How many of us are willing to take this steps? Not many of us. Should the government step in and somehow force us to take action? That's a hard argument to sell.

Also, the legislature took action on all of these issues. They passed a few bills addressing pollution (granted, these bills have a very small impact), three bills to address opiate overdoses, a bill addressing suicide prevention, and a bill to expand Medicaid coverage. These are small steps in the right direction, and I can understand wanting much larger steps, but I fail to understand how passing the porn resolution is to blame in any way.

Here's the thing: the Utah State Legislature passed 474 bills this session on a variety of topics. Would it be better to pass fewer bills and spend more time on the biggest issues? It's very possible. I'm okay if anyone argues that the legislature passes too many frivolous bills, but to focus on the porn resolution seems silly.

How about H.C.R. 12 Concurrent Resolution Honoring Lin-manuel Miranda, Composer of the Musical Hamilton? Is this a great musical? I'm sure it is. Is passing that resolution the best use of the legislature's time? Probably not. The composer and the play have nothing to do with Utah.

How about H.B. 134 State Work of Art? Is the Spiral Jetty a great sculpture? It sure is. Is passing this bill the best use of the legislature's time? Probably not.

How about H.J.R. 22 Joint Resolution Honoring Utah Valley University's 75th Anniversary? Is this a great university? I sure think so. Is passing this resolution the best use of the legislature's time? Probably not.

Don't get me wrong. I'm a student at UVU, I'm an employee at UVU, I love UVU. Having it honored publicly is pretty cool. But honoring the university doesn't help anyone or solve any problem. Creating awareness about the dangers of pornography, on the other hand, has the potential to help people.

The bottom line is that I'm okay with people complaining about the Utah State Legislature. It's completely reasonable to be unhappy with some of the things they've done and haven't done. But blaming the porn resolution for issues that remain unresolved seems like a red herring.

Top 5 reasons To Never, Correct Anyone's Grammer (or Speling)

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First off, this is for unsolicited grammer or speling corrections. If someone asks you for help proofreading then of coarse help them out. However, if they don't ask you to correct they're grammar then don't. Heres why.

1. Its Obnoxious

This is the first and most important reason; correcting mistakes is obnoxious. The whole point of language is to discuss ideas and the whole point of grammar is to ensure that language is clear. Usually though you can understand what someone is saying even if they make a grammar mistake so if you bring it up, it's like in jr. high or high school when the teacher asks a thought-provoking question and someone raises their hand to ask to use the hall pass. Your detracting from the conversation for something that doesn't matter. Its obnoxious

If the grammar is bad enough that you don't understand you can kindly ask for clarification. Be kind not rude. Thats good advice for nearly every situation.

Utah State Legislature - Week 2

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I was very tempted to skip a post this week because most of my thoughts regarding this internship are political in nature and thus off-limits. Plus, I’m already keeping track in a journal. (I’m horrible at consistent journal writing, so the internship requiring me to keep a journal helps.) However, I said that I was going to post every week, so I feel obligated to.

One apolitical part of my intern experience is taking public transportation. I’ve taken it before, but always as a novelty, never as a serious means of getting from place to place. It’s a relaxing, fascinating, and melancholy experience.

Utah State Legislature - Week 1

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It would be cool if as legislative intern, I could fill my blog with my opinions on the issues based on my more-or-less insider information, but I can’t. As an intern, I work for the Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel, which is a nonpartisan organization that assists Utah state legislators in writing laws. So basically, as long as I’m an intern, I have no political opinion—all I do is support my assigned legislator.

However, that doesn’t mean that my blog has to be boring while I’m working on the Hill. (Not that it’s ever exciting because I rarely post.) Let me share a couple thoughts after my first week or so.

First, I’ve been very impressed with the legislators up here. From what I’ve seen, they care a lot about serving the people of Utah. They truly are public servants. Here’s a quote from our textbook, Utah Politics Under the Dome: Representation and the Utah Legislature by Adam R. Brown:

Why I'm Pro-Life

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I try to be open-minded and see issues from multiple points of view, and for the most part, I'd say I'm successful. One issue I have a hard time seeing one side of the issue is abortion. I understand pro-choice well enough to understand why some people could be pro-choice, but the fact that more Americans are pro-choice than pro-life is mind-boggling to me. It's incomprehensible because the moral and logical arguments for pro-life seem so much stronger than those for pro-choice.

First off, let me clarify my stance. I think it's okay for a woman to have an abortion in cases of rape/incest or when her life is in danger because those are cases when her choices have been limited, but when a woman chooses to have sex and her life isn't in danger, she shouldn't be able to choose to kill her unborn child. (I know other pro-lifers think that women should be able to have an abortion when the child's health is danger, but I'm not quite sure about the reasoning behind that one, so I'm leaving it out.) For the rest of this post, I'll be focusing on normal circumstances that aren't related to rape, incest, or life endangerment (see tables 2 and 3 on pages 113-114 for reasons why women get abortions).

Lack of Ambition

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Recently, I read the book Catch a Falling Star by Kim Culbertson. It was enjoyable, and the part that struck a chord with me was one of the conflicts that the main character Carter faces. She used to be a dancer, and we find out later in the book that the reason she stopped is because it stopped being fun for her.She felt so much pressure from others to excel, to accept a scholarship to a premier dancing school, and to seek a career as a dancer. After hearing about how competitive, rigorous, and stressful a professional dancer's life is, Carter decided that it wasn't for her and quit dancing altogether.

I can empathize with her. It seems like from the womb, there's so much pressure from home and school to "succeed," "reach for the stars," "get ahead," etc. What does success really mean? Is it the same for everyone? Why should we reach for the stars? What's wrong with the good ol' Earth? Who are we trying to get ahead of? Does this stuff really matter?

Impossible Dreams

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Last weekend, I watched the movie Frozen with my family to see what all the hype surrounding the film was about. Personally, I thought it was pretty good, but it didn’t live up to all the attention it’s been getting. I couldn’t help drawing comparisons to the movie Tangled, which I think is better overall. They’re both Disney CGI films with musical elements and goofy leading ladies. True, “Let It Go” from Frozen is a killer song, but as far as story and characters go, Tangled seems more solid.

Have Yourself a Material Little Christmas

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Odds are good that sometime this holiday season you’ll watch a Christmas movie in which the characters struggle to find “the true meaning of Christmas.” Of course, it’s unpopular for mainstream films to identify the real reason we celebrate Christmas, the birth of Jesus Christ, so they spout off various “true meanings,” such as giving gifts or serving others, spending time with family and friends, or the idea that joy comes from people, not things. These are great aspects of the holiday, but they only represent how we celebrate Christ’s birth. One of my favorite themes in Christmas movies is anti-materialism , such as in A Charlie Brown Christmas. I’m embarrassed to say, however, that I was ignorant of the delicious irony of these films until recently. The creators of these movies are selling you something that tells you not to buy stuff. How can they pull this off? Because anti-materialism sells. Oh, man, this is the kind of irony that I just loooooove.

You might think that I’m bashing these movies, but I’m really not. Honestly, I’ll probably enjoy A Charlie Brown Christmas more now that I can appreciate the irony. You see, I’ve come to believe that there’s nothing wrong with buying things or with money. The problem comes when we “set [our] hearts upon riches and upon the vain things of the world” (Alma 4:8). I remember when I was younger, I used to think that the items I put on my Christmas list would change my life. One particular example I can think of is when I asked for a Game Boy Advance. I was so excited when I opened it up on Christmas morning, and I thought my life would be drastically improved, but as it turns out, my life was pretty much the same. Sure, it brought me some pleasure, but that was it. In time, I’ve come to view what I put on my Christmas list differently. I think the items will bring me some pleasure, entertainment, and possibly even enrichment, but overall, I’ve come to understand that joy in life comes from people, not things.

Obamacare, the Government Shutdown, and the Debt Crisis

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Argh, I just have to write about the political situation in the United States right now. The health care exchange for Obamacare opened up a couple days ago despite Republicans' attempt to defund it, parts of the federal government are shut down, and, of course, the nation is still deeply in debt. What's frustrating me the most, however, is some of the discussions surrounding the issues.

One of my biggest pet peeves I've found is when people spread misinformation, whether intentionally or not, to further their argument. The big piece of information that is really bothering me right now is the idea that Congress is exempt from Obamacare. Conservatives against the law keep saying that's the case, but from what I understand, it's untrue. My understanding is that a provision created by a Republican senator forced Congress and its staff to obtain health care from the exchanges that Obamacare would create instead of being able to keep their current insurance, which most Americans from large companies would be able to do. I wish I could find the original article where I read about this, but this one will have to do. The original one said that the Republican Senator, Sen. Chuck Grassley, originally proposed the addition to the bill for partisan reasons. He thought that Democrats would oppose the provision, and then he would tell Americans that they wanted to be exempt from the law (which would've been utter nonsense). However, Democrats embraced Sen. Grassley's proposal, and now, in an ironic twist, Republicans are attacking the bill for an "exemption" that a Republican created!

Artistic Integrity

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It's weird for me to write two blog posts in one day since I usually post seldom and sporadically, but receiving constructive criticism for The Newfangled World has got me thinking about the struggles artists have between being true to themselves and making a living. That sounds really cheesy to me, but let me explain what I'm talking about. The main reason I submitted my story to Leading Edge wasn't to get published, although that would've been great, of course. The main reason was because I'm not satisfied with the story, and I was hoping they could help me make it better. Oddly, even though it was intimidating for me to write the story in the first place, it's much, much more intimidating to me to figure out how to go back and make it better. Unfortunately, the criticism I received doesn't seem very helpful. Maybe I'm just too connected to more story, maybe it's too personal, but their suggestions seemed, for the most part, kind of out there. I'll have to read it over again, but the characterization of Malcolm Lee as an egoist seems so weird to me. The main criticism I understand is the scene with Malcolm's family. I'm very torn about that scene because it does seem out of place and break up the story, but overall, I feel like it's important to have a scene to establish Malcolm's love for his family. So I may end up changing it, but I do want to keep a scene with his family.

One of the big problems I run into is that I care more about how I feel about my creations than I care about how other people feel about them. Yeah, it's great when other people seem to like them, and I love that, but whether or not I like what I make is more important to me. That's a bad attitude for anyone who wants to share what they create.

Prejudice Vs. Understanding

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Watching 42 the other day, which I enjoyed, I couldn't help but draw parallels from the civil rights battles they fought in Jackie Robinson's time to the civil rights battles that are being fought today. Anyone might tell you that racism is alive in America, but I think we can all concede that the situations for racial minorities in America have gotten better and continue to improve. Therefore, the civil rights movement of today has shifted focus to the LGBT community.

Gay marriage is going to be legalized in the entire United States. It's just a matter of time. It's crazy that an idea that was so foreign to me just a few years ago now seems inevitable. I remember in junior high and high school that kids would use the term "gay" to refer to things or people they didn't like. Of course, I don't think they were thinking of the word in the homosexual sense, but it was still definitely a word that was meant in a derogatory sense. I never thought much about gays in high school, and now it seems like the gay movement is everywhere. The conversation is everywhere as well, and people are being forced to question their preconceptions and beliefs.

The Real Me

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"For intelligence cleaveth unto intelligence; wisdom recieveth wisdom; truth embraceth truth; virtue loveth virtue; light cleaveth unto light . . ." - D&C 88:40.

I'm pretty sure I've only ever heard this scripture used in relationship to courtship and dating. The old adage that opposites attract is usually inaccurate. Most romantic couples have similar interests, socioeconomic status, race, ethnicity, education, religious views, political views, etc. I remember young men's leaders and seminary teachers interpreting this scripture as saying become who you want to marry.

When I develop romantic feelings for a woman, I become totally smitten. I begin to think she's totally amazing. It makes it hard because I feel like she's out of my league, and then I start to wonder about that scripture. Surely, if I'm so attracted to that woman, surely I have some of the same attributes as she does. But then I wonder, am I attracted to her because of the man I am or the man I want to be?

Kinship and Disappointment

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Alex Davis died yesterday. It feels surreal. This is the first time that someone I felt close to has died. Yes, my dad died when I was 6, but I barely remember him. I remember Alex. I remember mowing lawns with him, jamming with him and my bros., and I remember how much fun we had. I also remember that even though he was a fun and happy guy, he had his share of heartaches and disappointments. I remember how he loved football, but suffered an injury that didn't allow him to play anymore. I remember that he loved a girl that he thought he could never be with. Those are tough things for anyone to deal with, and I remember that it was hard to remember that he was just a teenager because he seemed so mature for his age. He might be surprised to hear me say that.

Thinking about what I know about Alex's life, it made me look back on my life and the disappointments I faced. Growing up, my two biggest goals in life were to get married and go on a mission. Then I didn't get a chance to date the girl of my dreams who I was sure I was going to marry, and I didn't go on a mission because of problems I have with the Gospel and because I'm scared. It's been over a year since I've had a goal I've been working toward or wanted to work toward. I'm going to school, yes, but I constantly have doubts about the major I picked. As silly as this sounds, sometimes, after I read a great book or watch a great movie or TV episode, I feel like I was made to tell stories. Like my calling in life is to write stories that entertain and/or inspire people. But sometimes I look at all the books, movies, and TV shows that have been written, and I wonder if I could possibly add to it.

Uncommon Sense

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Whenever I hear about common sense, I like to joke that credit cards are replacing common cents. Har, har. But seriously, I don't believe in common sense anymore for two reasons: one of my roommates, and, of course, preschoolers (since I mention them in many of my posts).

First, my roommate. He defies logic. To me, it's common sense to wash your dishes in a reasonable time frame. By reasonable time frame, the same day as you use dishes would be ideal, but life gets in the way, so I think three or fours days is a reasonable time period. Leaving dishes out for weeks on end is something I would deem unreasonable, especially since we have a dishwasher. To me, it's common sense to not turn the living room into a hydroponics garden. (As a side note, he's growing Venus flytraps to eat the bugs that are possibly spawning because of the dirty dishes he leaves out. Oh, I love irony.) To me, it's common sense to listen to music at a moderate volume and not blasting out of the speakers so the whole apartment can hear it, whether they want to or not (most cases, not).

Offense Taken

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Our society has gotten to the point where people who get offended are looked down upon. Now, there are some cases in which offended people bug me. For instance, I have a hard time believing atheists are actually offended by the Pledge of Allegiance containing the phrase "under God," and I'm annoyed when people overreact to offensive things. Overall, though, I think that our society would be better if people were offended more. To clarify, I'm not saying that I want people to go around complaining constantly about all the offensive things to be found in our culture. In most cases, avoidance is the best and easiest solution. However, I really think that our society's values and morals are degrading, and it's definitely causing problems.

Take me, for example. I have seen way too much sex and violence in movies, TV shows, video games, the Internet, books, and the media in general. After experiencing all of that, I've become desensitized to sex and violence, and that bothers me. What's more, it's hard to convince myself to try to re-sensitize myself, if that's even possible, because I enjoy things that have sex and violence. For example, one of my favorite TV shows is The Office. The awkward humor in that show makes me laugh my head off, and between the character's interactions and the Jim and Pam love story, The Office means a lot to me. Those of you who have seen the show know that it has a lot of sexual humor. The sexual humor bothers me, but it doesn't bother me enough to get me to stop watching the show, and that's a problem.

Rejection

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One of the things I love about preschoolers is how real they are. They've only been on this earth for a few years, and most of their time here has likely been spent in a loving home with a loving family. They haven't had enough time to experience a lot of rejection. Because they haven't been rejected much, they don't have many of the social barriers that humans naturally develop as they age. They commit faux pas such as picking their nose, passing gas, or crying in public without a second thought or any feeling of abashment. Preschoolers will very easily let you know if they're upset or let you know if they love you, things that become harder and harder as life goes on.

As we grow and experience more, we learn to put barriers around ourselves. We learn to hide parts of ourselves. At school, work, home, play, everywhere, we're constantly bombarded with subtle and not-so-subtle messages that we're not good enough, smart enough, good-looking enough, etc. Some friendships that we think will last forever fall apart. People are human, life happens, and the sum of our experiences teaches us that we need to be careful with who we trust and careful with who we give our heart to.

Help, Please!

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Christmas is coming. I must confess that although I used to love Christmas, I'm not a huge fan of it anymore. I concur with the Charlie Brown and Stan Freberg school of thought that the holiday has become too commercial. The true meaning of Christmas, celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ, gets a bit lost with all the decorations, Santa, and presents. Plus, in an ideal world, I would prefer it if we could give each other presents as surprises out of love or because of accomplishments rather than a couple of set times each year. However, I also understand that having a set time like Christmas is useful because it might be easy to forget to give loved ones presents otherwise.

Anyway, odds are that this time of year, you're going to hear someone say, "It's better to give than receive." It's one of those phrases that everyone says but not everyone necessarily believes. I mean, let's face, it's pretty awesome when you get a gift that someone obviously put a lot of time and thought into. A gift that tells you that the giver really loves you a lot. In that case, is it really better to give than receive?

Better than Real?

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Nowadays, children or their parents can pay extra money to have photographers digitally remove blemishes from their school photos. That's disgusting. Let me elaborate. Ever since high school, I've had a fair amount of zits on my face. On picture day of my senior year, I had the good fortune of having an enormous pimple on my nose. I could've paid more (or more likely, asked my mom to pay more, lol) to have it removed, but I didn't consider it seriously. I mean, the main reason for school photos and most other photos is to preserve memories, right? Why would I want to preserve a memory that isn't real? I had a zit that day, it's on the picture, and to this day, you can see that picture in all of its 8" x 10" pimply glory in my mom's dining room. That is a real memory. Unfortunately, we live in a society that seems to favor "fakeality" over reality.

I've already mentioned how digitally altered photos preserve fake memories, but there's something else I want to discuss with regards to photographs - the myth of the perfect body. Newsflash: in case the word "myth" didn't clue you in, there is no such thing as a perfect body. Every culture and time period has a different definition of beauty. To me, I can only find one thing in common with the various definitions: achieving beauty is painful, time-consuming, and dangerous. Today, individuals with a certain body type are photographed and celebrated as being incredibly beautiful, making the majority of people without that body type feel ugly. Further adding to this disgusting practice is the fact that models are also digitally "enhanced." Modern women suffer from body image issues and eating disorders. Some modern men have body image issues, but I'd have to say that they're biggest problem along these lines is porn addiction. They become addicted to looking at fake women. Who benefits from perpetuating the myth of the perfect body? Well, take a look at this video from a famous doctor of cultural commentary. So, yeah, in today's society, diet and exercise fad salesmen benefit.

Vote For Me!

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Ok, I've been trying to avoid writing about politics on this blog, but the political atmosphere in the country right now is driving me crazy, so I have to write something. I've got so much to say on this issue that I hope I don't ramble, but what it all boils down to is I think it's incredibly important for people to question their own beliefs.

The other day, a friend of mine posted a picture of an Abraham Lincoln quote (which, as it turns out, was never actually said by Abe Lincoln) on Facebook. We both posted a few comments on it back and forth, and then he said it was a good quote even though Lincoln didn't say it, "But quotes don't create anything other than a feel good confirmation of an already set bias. People don't speak to persuade or listen with the intent to question their belief. They speak to hear themselves speak and listen for anything to justify their views; ALL people not just Democrats or Republicans or Mormons or athiests. All people."