“They lie in wait to deceive”

14 That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;

Ephesians 4:14

A few weeks ago, I received a two emails, within 45 minutes of each other, asking me to “approve” comments to two posts on this blog. Both comments were written by the same person, and both were impassioned screeds against Obama (neither of the posts he was responding to mentioned Obama at all), Democrats (he said, “They destroy everything they touch”), and me personally (he accused me of “blindness at noon day”).

I gave serious thought to the question of whether or not to approve these comments. I hoped that perhaps some of my readers would respond and help straighten this guy out. Then I realized that this person did not show any sign of being a seeker of truth and was, quite likely, spoiling for a fight. On the internet these people are called “trolls.” They deliberately seek online forums they disagree with and post provocative comments hoping to ignite a “flame war.”

I would love to see more comments on this blog and perhaps more back and forth discussion among our readers. I would also like to believe I am open to a legitimate, polite, logical, fact-based, discussion with people who disagree with something I have said. But the tone of these particular comments made it clear that respectful mutual understanding was not the writer’s goal.

The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity.

“The Second Coming,” W.B. Yeats, 1865-1939

I did save his two posts in a Word document, so that I could reread them and try to understand the mind of a true Trumpian. I believe this person has been thoroughly and literally brainwashed by decades of lies, distortions, and false outrage, and that the primary source of his intellectual destruction is most likely Fox News.

I am, however, interested in distinguishing this would-be commentator’s writing from my own. I try to stop occasionally and examine my own biases. It could be that I am a deluded propagandist and that this gentleman is kindly trying to awaken me to my true ignorance. He did list a number of “facts” that he worried were “confusing” me. He also mentioned Jesus’ reference to motes and beams clearly implying that I am the one with the beam in my eye.

So I started to examine his comments more closely. The first thing I noticed was his utter lack of sourcing for his claims. Where did he get the idea that “Obama helped the Russians more than any president in this century”? Where is his documentation that Obama “didn’t like Christian refugees”? Claims of fact are little more than personal opinion without source documentation.

Second, his undocumented claims were consistently outrageous on their face. He said, for example, that Democrats “destroy everything they touch.” This statement is shockingly accusatory, but it is meaningless as a fact claim. It is merely an emotionally dramatic opinion.

Third, his logic was weak. He gave no indication that he knows the difference between a fact and an opinion. And he was guilty of non sequiturs. For example, he argued that because of the possibility of child trafficking, it is good to separate children from their parents at the border. His conclusion was not logically connected to his premise.

Some of his claims were simply confusing. He wrote, “Obama never claimed to be a friend of the constitution.” What does that even mean? Isn’t “… and will, to the best of my ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States of America” part of the Presidential oath of office that Obama took twice?

Considering the above, I believe I can conclude that I am not a deluded propagandist. I do list my sources, usually with direct internet links. Those who have read many of my posts know that the source I use on this blog more than any other is the scriptures.

I don’t believe my claims are outrageous, though some may find them challenging. I typically draw direct parallels between events today and similar events, and/or warnings, from the scriptures. I invite anyone who disagrees with my conclusions to check my sources and come to their own conclusions.

As for my use of logic, and the clarity of my writing, I will let my readers decide. I do work hard on each post to see that it makes it’s point clearly and effectively, and I do rewrite and edit quite a bit before I post something.

I remain confused and saddened about how to help people who are so caught up in lies, distortions, distractions, deceptions, and false outrage that they can no longer see clearly or think rationally. I have found, to my dismay, that logic rarely works to educate people because most people stubbornly resist having their own ignorance revealed to them.

The best hope of enlightening the deliberately ignorant, or the ignorantly brainwashed, among the Latter-day Saints, is through the Light of Christ and the Power of God. However, the path to understanding and enlightenment requires humility. One must read and study (and pray) diligently. One must learn to listen more than one speaks. Truth is more likely to come in quiet revelations than in shouted slogans.

11 And the light which shineth, which giveth you light, is through him who enlighteneth your eyes, which is the same light that quickeneth your understandings;
12 Which light proceedeth forth from the presence of God to fill the immensity of space—

Doctrine and Covenants 88:11-12

According to the 88th Section of the Doctrine and Covenants, the light of understanding, and the light that we see with our eyes, and the light that gives life, and the very power of God, are all related and are, in some sense, the same thing. This is deep doctrine, but it does reinforce the idea that we must nurture our intellectual and critical thinking abilities, and also cultivate the spiritual gift of discernment, so we will not be lead astray by the “cunning craftiness” of those who deliberately want to deceive us.

Source: “Fox News viewers tend to be less informed, says new study,” JohnThomas Didymus, Digital Journal, May 20, 2015.