We in the United States like to think that we live in a representative democracy. We are attracted to Lincoln’s optimistic idea that America stands for “government of the people, by the people, and for the people” We have been taught that, despite the wrangling that occurs, our political processes eventually result in government policies … Read more
Anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that “my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.” Isaac Asimov The strain of anti-intellectualism among American Latter-day Saints has largely been captured and magnified by Trumpism. Distrust of experts and … Read more
On Sunday March 24, 2019, Attorney General William Barr sent a letter to Congress summarizing the recently delivered Mueller report. On Monday, March 25, late-night TV talk show host Stephen Colbert conceded the point in Barr’s letter that Donald Trump did not “collude” with Russia’s efforts to help him during the 2016 presidential campaign. Colbert … Read more
“He’s an idiot. It’s pointless to try to convince him of anything. He’s gone off the rails. We’re in Crazytown. I don’t even know why any of us are here. This is the worst job I’ve ever had.” — John F. Kelly, White House Chief of Staff. Bob Woodward’s new book, Fear: Trump in the … Read more
The Earth is under increasing stress. There is more crime, poverty, and suffering than ever before. There are more fires and fewer glaciers. Desperate people continue to take up arms to steal from other desperate people. Air and water quality continue to degrade. Democracy is on the decline and authoritarianism is spreading. I often hear … Read more
“When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice: but when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn.” (Proverbs 29:2) The United States is not a democracy. It is a form of corporate totalitarianism. Political theorist Sheldon Wolin explained that our democracy was poisoned by a unique fusion of economic and political power that he … Read more
Psychologist Eric Berne taught that people sometimes get caught up in interactions that follow a pre-defined pattern and progress to a predictable outcome. He called these interactions “Games” and described a number of these games in detail in his 1964 best-seller, Games People Play: The Psychology of Human Relationships. One game that is common in … Read more
“And seeing the people in a state of such awful wickedness, and those Gadianton robbers filling the judgment-seats—having usurped the power and authority of the land; laying aside the commandments of God, and not in the least aright before him; doing no justice unto the children of men; “Condemning the righteous because of their righteousness; … Read more