Terminating NAFTA: Lessons from Ninth-Century Nuns

August 28, 2017 By Gary A.

The tragic deaths of ninth-century Scottish nuns could teach Donald Trump about the hazards of ending NAFTA. In 867 A.D., Viking raiders assailed Scotland, raping and pillaging their way across the countryside. Eventually, their armies neared the gates of Coldingham Priory in the southeast of the country. When the nuns who dwelt there heard about the menacing invaders, they were struck by an overwhelming sense of dread. As women who had taken solemn vows of chastity, they feared that the... Read more

Trump Fiddles While Texas Floods

August 27, 2017 By Gary A.

While calamity befalls America, Trump, like Roman Emperor Nero, can’t stop focusing on himself. First, if you want to help those suffering from the hurricane and flooding in Texas, I’d recommend donating to All Hands, a charity with top ratings and personnel on the ground in the state. Second, if you want some words of guidance and comfort as calamity strikes Houston and surrounding cities, you probably shouldn’t look at Trump’s Twitter feed. While Texas is pounded by tempests, Trump... Read more

The Overlooked Victims of Trump’s Arpaio Pardon: Police Officers

August 26, 2017 By Gary A.

Trump’s pardon of Arpaio could endanger the lives of police officers. Last night, in an attempt to dampen media scrutiny, Trump pardoned notorious Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio while a raging Category 4 hurricane struck the Texas coast. But if Trump thought that granting clemency while Texas battled Mother Nature would help him avoid a backlash, he was sorely mistaken. Media sources from across the spectrum voiced outrage, accurately noting that Trump’s waiver of Arpaio’s conviction showed a cavalier disdain for the... Read more

Far from the Tree: George Romney’s Granddaughter Forsakes His Legacy

August 25, 2017 By Gary A.

RNC Chairwoman Ronna Romney McDaniel has forsaken the pro-civil rights legacy of her grandfather George Romney. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormon Church) has a fraught history with race. Up until 1978, persons of African ancestry could not hold the faith’s priesthood or participate in ceremonies in its temples. Further, some prominent Mormons were bitter opponents of the civil rights movement. For example, Ezra Taft Benson, the 13th President of the Church, gave strident talks condemning the... Read more

Trump’s Middle Finger to a Mormon Judge

August 23, 2017 By Gary A.

Donald Trump is undermining the authority of a Mormon federal judge – and the rule of law while he’s at it. Donald Trump has Mormon problems. During his presidential campaign, he struggled to win over Mormon voters, suffered a humiliating defeat during the Utah Republican primary, and was the first Republican since George H.W. Bush to win Utah in the general election by a plurality instead of a majority. America’s most prominent Mormon, former GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney, castigated... Read more

Steve Bannon, Meet Amlici

August 19, 2017 By Gary A.

Svengali, Rasputin, Darth Vader. These are all nicknames that people gave to the recently deposed Chief Strategist of the Trump White House. But as we now watch the fallen Anakin Skywalker Steve Bannon retreat to his lair in the fiery depths of the lava plant Mustafar Breitbart, I’d like to lend him another moniker – Amlici. For those not familiar with Mormon scripture, Amlici was a member of a people called the Nephites. Described as a “very cunning man,” he... Read more

Trump’s Confederate Nostalgia: Rooted in Georgia History?

August 18, 2017 By Gary A.

Trump’s bizarre embrace of Confederate nostalgia may be rooted in the electoral history of his Secretary of Agriculture. Donald Trump loves statues. At least that’s what you would gather from reading his Twitter feed yesterday, where he pecked-out a tirade about how removing Confederate statutes erases history. Given the controversy surrounding his comments about radical white terrorism in Charlottesville, one would think that he would want to avoid any topic even remotely linked to race or white supremacy. Also, what... Read more

Confederate Treason is Not My Culture

August 17, 2017 By Gary A.

On Saturday, President Trump dug himself into a hole with his apologetics for white supremacy. On Monday, he tried to dig himself out, only to, on Tuesday, throw away his shovel, rent a backhoe, and start tunneling toward China. This morning, he appeared to be nearing Beijing as he took to Twitter: Sad to see the history and culture of our great country being ripped apart with the removal of our beautiful statues and monuments. You….. — Donald J. Trump... Read more

Wrestling with Hate in the Church

August 16, 2017 By Gary A.

By now, most people have heard about President Trump’s meltdown yesterday at his eponymous tower. In a press conference that was supposed to address his infrastructure plans, Trump appeared to walk back his denunciation on Monday of white supremacists and neo-Nazis, claiming that there were some “very fine people” among their ranks. Predictably, this apologism for white supremacy, something that hasn’t been engaged in publically by a U.S. president since the days of Woodrow Wilson, sparked a firestorm of criticism.... Read more

President Trump to James E. Faust – What’s in It for Me?

August 15, 2017 By Gary A.

In the October 2002 LDS General Conference, then-Second Counselor in the First Presidency James E. Faust gave a talk titled “What’s in It for Me?” In it, he related the following story: Many years ago I was in a professional association with two older, more experienced men. We had been friends for many years and found it mutually beneficial to help one another. One day, one associate sought our help on a complex matter. As soon as the issue had... Read more