Comments on: LDS Democrats still trying to reconcile opposing values

By: Utahlady

Utahlady — Mon, 15 Oct 2012 20:16:00 +0000

Well I do not want to shock any of you but I am a Catholic. I once had a Jesuit tell me”If you are not a Democrat when you are young,you have no heart .If you are not a Republican as you mature ,you have no brain.” Thus I have learned when you are young ,you care about solving the problems of the world and improving the human condition,as you age you realize it takes more than caring.Indeed you must use your God given brain to solve the worlds problems .Sooooo as you may have anticipated I started out as a Democrat and am now a Republican.I have truly learned that although we must care for the poor ,we must also teach them to care for themselves.Unfortunately the government and liberal thinkers have made the teaching a very difficult task.

By: Aaron

Aaron — Tue, 25 Sep 2012 06:17:00 +0000

I liked your article Paul. I saw nothing but negative comments, so I wanted to let you know that someone at least agreed with what you wrote.
I know this topic can get someone complicated and pedantic, so I like to boil it down to a couple things. The democrat party supports gay marriage and abortion on demand. The LDS church supports neither. These are not small or trivial things. Things like education, the environment, immigration, and helping the poor, are small things. As long as the democrat party supports views contrary to the churches and these huge issues you can’t be a good Mormon and a good democrat.

By: Melissa

Melissa — Thu, 20 Sep 2012 02:04:00 +0000

I am undeclared an an ex-mormon by choice. I have read her article and your response. She tells the story of this group of people she represents. You pretend to know better their feelings and what they represent. I thought her words, clear, insightful and full of intelligence and soul. I found your arguments full of contradictions, your theories full of holes. Your article reeked of hubris and left an acerbic taste in my mind. Your words are just empty anger.

By: Bill Ruesch

Bill Ruesch — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 23:15:00 +0000

I always thought that I was a Conservative Republican who sometimes leaned Libertarian. I had to rethink that position when I discovered how much damage free-market investors did to the economy. The relatively small percentage of Investment Bankers nearly collapsed the world economy and almost caused another depression in the US. If I was wrong about that, what else was I wrong about? I conducted a soul searching study of a perfect world by asking myself what kind of world do I want to live in. Ask yourself the same question sometime and then compare your answers to what is going on.

Do you believe that people ought to die in the streets if they don’t have enough food, or shelter, or clothing? Do you want wars that serve no real purpose except to make the war profiteers richer? Before you answer that we are spreading the cause of Democracy, think about Vietnam. They are doing quite well without us interfering. The million Afghans and Iraqis who lost their lives and are still dying at our hands don’t love our methods. I can guarantee that. Do you want every young person who wants an education to be able to get one without being burdened for the rest of their lives with school loans? Do you really believe that the 1% are job creators? If they are where are the jobs? You have to look at reality and not just fantasy.

When I see, and I could go on, what a perfect world means to me I come to the conclusion that it is a world operating on the teachings of Jesus. The teachings of Jesus, but NOT the practices of the LDS Church. The Mormon Church fails to live by Christian mores. I am not by the way, a born again fundamental christian. I’m just saying that I agree with Gandhi that the teachings of Christ are exemplary but the followers are not. Your article Paul shows me that you don’t value Jesus very much. I find that sad.

By: Whil McCutchan

Whil McCutchan — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 23:06:00 +0000

Fine job of taking someone’s feelings and beliefs and belittling them for no reason.

“We believe that it is the Democratic Party that best meets our values.”
I think the author means “her” values, because I’m pretty sure the
Democratic Party doesn’t meet “my” values, and I’m a Latter-day Saint,
so not “our” values.” She’s obviously talking about her group of democrats, not the church. You make a silly point here that even the simplest of people should understand, yet you do not.

“being good stewards of the earth” – you some how make this into a bad thing even though it’s a fairly obvious principle of the church. You can’t destroy the planet god created with poor sustainability practices and expect god to be cool with that.

You sir, sound like a republican and then an LDS church member. How embarassing for your political party and church.

By: Marshall Thompson

Marshall Thompson — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 22:50:00 +0000

The most striking part of this article is how little Mero seems to understand about Mormonism.

By: CuriousCity

CuriousCity — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 22:28:00 +0000

My goodness!

How many illegal immigrants did Jesus criticize? How many homosexuals? How many benefactors or the poor (almsgivers)? How many teachers? Zero.

How many hypocritical authorities did Jesus criticize? How many greedy businessmen? How many men who would rather the the poor starved quickly and quietly? All of them.

Jesus supported paying an honest tax. He spent his time (all He had) teaching, feeding the poor lower class, curing the sick and urging that we value every person as God’s child.

In the parable of the rich man and Lazarus, the rich man is clearly who the Republican party identifies with. Lazarus is who the Democratic party identifies with. Read the parable to find who God identifies with.

I do not intend to defend every Democratic policy or platform. The party is rife with problems and errors, but not in bad intentions. The Republican party has both bad policies and bad intentions.

The Green Party is not a part of the Democratic Party. It is an occasional ally but not a supporter. get your facts right before writing. Your facts on conservation versus preservation versus stewardship are so wrong there isn’t space to refute them.

You simply can’t make a moral case for the republican Party or what passes for “conservatism” in the US today. It is amoral at its core whether measure by Christian values or LDS values.

By: Joel Otterstrom

Joel Otterstrom — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 22:23:00 +0000

Your rational to why you couldnt be first a member of the LDS church and second a Democrat begs the question that you hardly understand the church. It seems to me from your writing you dont feel very comfortable in the Republican party, and longing for something better. So we welcome you into the LDS Dems any time.

By: Farmer Rick

Farmer Rick — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 22:22:00 +0000

I am a Democrat, LDS and I enjoyed your closed minded reply. You explained your ignorance by comparing public education to slavery? You belong were your at, stay in the Republican Party. Love you Brother. I enjoyed attending the Democratic Convention. Maybe next time you can be my guest!