If men were angels, no government would be necessary.  If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary.  In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men, the great difficulty lies in this: you must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place, oblige it to control itself. James Madison (Federalist 51, 1788)       Read more

    For the record (and for what little my opinion matters), I fully support this imam’s decision to participate in an interfaith religious service connected with the 2017 presidential inauguration:   http://www.cnn.com/2017/01/20/politics/trump-imam-magid/index.html   I say this as someone who sorrowfully wishes that today’s solemnities and celebrations centered on a more worthy individual than Mr. Donald J. Trump, and as someone who (among many other concerns) is worried about the attitude of President Trump and some in his new administration toward Islam and... Read more

    I found this article extremely interesting:   “How East and West think in profoundly different ways”   Heck, I think it may even help to explain something of the difference between the eastern and western United States.   While I’m at it, I’ve long thought that, should Québécois separatists ever succeed in seceding from Canada, the western provinces — at least British Columbia and Alberta, and maybe some of the others — might as well join up with... Read more

    Another week, another new article from Interpreter: A Journal of Mormon Scripture:   “Experiencing Battle in the Book of Mormon”     Read more

      Elsewhere, my hapless victim Stephen Smoot makes a good point, using the nineteenth-century “wanted” poster above as an illustration:   Times have changed a bit.  Whatever one thinks of our new president, it was rather remarkable to have the Mormon Tabernacle Choir at the center of the inaugural platform, on the steps of the United States Capitol, providing the musical bridge between the swearing in, by Justice Clarence Thomas, of Vice President Mike Pence and the administration... Read more

    http://www.newyorker.com/?p=3304677&mbid=nl_012017%20Borowitz%20Newsletter%20(1)&CNDID=23287945&spMailingID=10263908&spUserID=MTc5NTcwNjkwMTE4S0&spJobID=1081602213&spReportId=MTA4MTYwMjIxMwS2     Read more

    Love is our true destiny.  We do not find the meaning of life by ourselves alone — we find it with another. Thomas Merton (1915-1968)     Read more

    Permit me to introduce two people to you.   The first is Stephen Smoot.  He is an exceptionally bright and relatively recent graduate of Brigham Young University.  He’s currently pursuing studies in Egyptology at the University of Toronto.  He’s also been, among other things, a significant contributor to both Interpreter: A Journal of Mormon Scripture and Book of Mormon Central and a participant in a substantial number of the Interpreter Foundation’s scripture roundtables.   The second character is one of the more bizarre residents... Read more

    A rather optimistic article:   http://www.realclearreligion.org/articles/2017/01/17/for_all_our_sakes_trump_must_stand_up_for_religious_freedom_for_muslims_too_110101.html   His attitude toward Muslims was one of many things that concerned (and concern) me about Donald Trump, and I’ve been worried about his nominee to head the Department of State.  But things might work out . . .     Read more

    Yesterday, I posted a rather sardonic comment about the idiocy and aggressive hostility that run rampant in many portions of the internet.   However, there are very positive aspects to the internet, as well.  In response to yesterday’s comment and in that context, Alex Barclay, of Chorley, England, shared two marvelous quotations that I hadn’t seen before.  I pass them on here:   Quote from Nephi Anderson on 6 October 1912 “In conclusion, let me suggest the future... Read more