The blog party at D’s was a great success. It was quite interesting to put faces to names. (Kristine’s reaction when Steve Evans introduced himself: “No you’re not!”). We had a lot of people there: D, Kristine, Steve and Sumer, Mat and Gigi Parke, Logan and Amy Bobo, Bob Caswell, Christina Taber-Kewene & Manahi, Chris Williams and wife (I didn’t get her name) and daughter, JL (Celibate in the city) and her sister, Rusty Clifton and Sara, Davis Bell, Jim Lucas, Mark Butler & his wife. I was also there, along with Mardell and the kids. There was good food… Read More

This afternoon, renowned historian (and former T & S guest-blogger) Richard Bushman was the speaker at a meeting of the J Reuben Clark society in New York. The event was held at a reputable law firm in midtown. Brother Bushman discussed Joseph Smith and how politics was viewed in the early church. He suggested that the divide between politics and religion — and the related tension between republican values and prophetic values — has played an important role throughout the church’s history. Read More

Last night on the NewsHour with Jim Lehrer there was a segment with Tom Frank, the author of What’s the Matter with Kansas?: How Conservatives Won the Heart of America. Frank argues that conservatives have successfully used cultural issues to con the lower and middle classes into voting against what Frank believes to be their “economic self-interest.” It’s probably the leading explanation for the migration of the middle class away from the Democratic party. A smart Democratic friend of mine from church recently used it while lamenting Mormons’ support for Republicans. The NewsHour invited conservative David Frum, one of Bush’s… Read More

NEW PRODUCT ANNOUNCEMENT FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE AUSTIN, Texas – October 28, 2004 – Smith Industries LLC today proudly announces the release of their latest product, Child 3.0. Also known as “Truman Michael Smith,� Child 3.0 has been under development for nine months and arrives just in time for the holiday season. Read More

I’m sure many of you have wondered how things work here at Times and Seasons. The crack legal minds here have managed to thwart all attempts by independent journalists to obtain documents via the Freedom of Information Act, but for some reason they’ve allowed a relative unknown in their midst without performing a thorough and complete background check. So to repay them for their kindness, I’m turning Paul O’Neill on them and giving the inside story they’re so desperate to keep from you. Read More

I grew up in a home where politics were never discussed. It’s not as though we didn’t have fascinating and stimulating dinnertime conversations (the most heated ones were always about English usage). We just never talked about the issues of the day. Consequently, I had little understanding of the political landscape of our country. When I was a freshman in high school, the first assignment I had in my social studies class was to compare and contrast the terms “liberal” and “conservative.” To complete the assignment, I had to look in the encyclopedia, as I had no idea what the… Read More

I was given an assignment in a Hebrew class years ago to write an essay about the topic of nostalgia. Feeling slightly rebellious I decided to bend the rules a little and write a poem instead. I don’t have the Hebrew original in my possession anymore but from memory and with a little bit of effort I’ve fleshed out a new revised English version. Feel free to give it a read and think whatever you will. I don’t claim to be a good poet. For me this was simply an opportunity to meditate, to ponder an idea, to imagine, to… Read More

A previous post may have led you to believe that Julie Smith would be parading around on Halloween as the old lady who swallowed a fly, or the whale who swallowed Jonah, but a recent inquiry reveals that she’s decided on going as a proud new mother. In other words, her scheduled delivery date was moved from November 3rd to today. I don’t know what the custom is around here, but I thought everyone would like to know. A Times and Seasons prayer roll, of sorts. Read More

I will handle this topic as gently as I can. In this post I wonder whether Mormons who choose to leave the church are disproportionately likely to lean left politically. As most of you know, I’m a political conservative, so I’m afraid this topic will make some readers defensive. That is not my intention. It would be easier to treat this subject delicately were someone else — someone who’s left of center — to raise it. (Only Nixon could go to China; only Bill Cosby could chastise black parents.) Anyway, let me emphatically say from the outset that I know… Read More

Tonight is a lunar eclipse. Don’t miss it. Next up in the series: Is Nate Oman really a space alien? New evidence and panel discussion, followed by a grape-juice and cheese reception. Read More

Recent posts at Wump and Birds Eye discuss the blog party which took place last week in Salt Lake. (Are there any more reports I’ve missed?). The consensus seems to be, in Monsonian terms: Blogging was discussed; cheese was eaten; fun was had. And in case anyone has missed the uber-thread (now available without abortion or SSM!), there’s another blog party coming up this Friday in New York City (at D.’s place). I guess that’s one thing you can say about Mormons — we surely know how to throw a party. (Non-members, please try not to laugh :P ). Read More

Over at We Win, They Lose, Brent argues that Amendment 3 opponents are being disingenuous to suggest that the amendment could have a negative effect on unmarried couples. Brent suggests that this is not the case, writing that “I can draft a will leaving property to whomever I like. . . . Furthermore, the Amendment only prohibits government recognition of non-marital relationships (marriage being limited to one man and one woman) by the government, not by private employers or citizens. Thus, what opponents are saying is patently false.” Brent’s position is understandable. However, my impression on reading the proposed amendment… Read More

A couple of months ago I got a call from a member of the bishopric in which he asked me if I would consider being the early-morning seminary teacher for our ward. My wife and I had just made the decision to sign our oldest daughter up for a swim team that would require her to practice early in the morning three days a week, so I had to reluctantly decline. I offered my services as a potential substitute on the days when I didn’t have to take my daughter to the pool. Read More

Though I have never been on a formal mission, my first five years in the Church were closely tied to missionaries. I was their age, I worked intensely with them. Read More

As readers of this blog already know, I have a tendency to whine a great deal about the quality Mormon discussions. I have even been accused of being boring on the subject, which is no doubt a fair enough criticism. Read More

I was surfing around some of my favorite blogs for something to post about, and there were a couple of interesting posts, none of which I am going to link to. Rather, I am going to muse for a few minutes about the pernicious effect of democracy on blogging. Read More

It’s completely off-topic, but we can use a few excursions to the off-topic every now and then, in between our discussions of abortion, gay marriage, and the evils of Sunstone. Besides, it’s a fun mental exercise, and it’s also fun to see other people’s musical tastes. So here are the rules: You have a CD with 20 22 songs, and it’s all that you will have to listen to as you’re stranded on a desert island. What are your song choices? Read More

Even in laughter the heart is sorrowful, and the end of that mirth is heaviness. (Proverbs 14:13) Read More

I write this as a room full of nursery-aged children jump and dance to The Wiggles. The reason is that for Family Home Evening tonight, a group of our friends has gathered at the home of another friend whose mother died in an accident this weekend. While the family is away at the funeral, our group is cleaning the house and taking care of any other needs there. I’m in charge of the child care at our house so that the parents can go clean without the kids making a mess behind them. Read More

Recently, I’ve noticed a bit of bloggernacle discussion over a question of burning importance: How to pronounce “Kaimi.” Here’s the short answer: Ka-EE-mee. It has three syllables, you stress the middle one, and Hawaiian pronounces its vowels more-or-less identical to Spanish. Read More

A new week brings with it a new guest blogger. We’re very happy to have as a guest someone whose name most regular T & S readers will recognize: bloggernacker and frequent comment participator Daniel H. Bartholomew, aka Danithew. Read More

To continue with the international perspective I was asked to give, here is one post that opens the door to some political debate… I hope it will not deviate too much from the questions asked at the end! Two items to set the perspective: 1) First, the vast majority of Mormon pioneers who came from Europe in the 19th century were people with leftist traits. Mostly workmen and craftsmen, dedicated to social justice, inspired by egalitarian dreams, they turned their back to an exploitative society. In Mormonism they found this galvanizing combination of religious conviction and communalist ideals (I said… Read More

Yes, it’s that time of year again. Primary programs all around. I have mixed feelings on these. Some of them are clearly disastrous. But some can be a fun experience for kids, and not too awful for adults either. Read More

Our former guest-blogger, the intrepid Claudia Bushman, has alerted me to the party of the year. It is (of course) the celebration of the 70th anniversary of the New York, New York stake. (What, didn’t you all know?) She writes: A special commemorative meeting of music, talks, and film will celebrate the organization of the NY NY Stake which began in 1934, and will take place on Saturday, November 13th at 7:15 as part of the Stake Conference. Read More

Some of you know by reading my posts here that my wife and I homeschool our children. Actually, my wife Kristen does most of the teaching, although I like to be as involved as I can. I really like talking about homeschooling. Jaymie, our oldest daughter, is 6, followed by Julia (3) and Stanley (1). Jaymie is the only child actively being taught, but Julia gets to participate as well, and Stanley participates whether we want him to or not. We’ve been doing it for a year and a few months now, and the results have been encouraging. Read More

One of the more amusing things about this campaign season has been the struggle of politicians and the mainstream media to come to grips with the blogosphere. They try to define it, contain it, co-opt it, manipulate it, yet despite their best efforts, it keeps slipping away. I laughed out loud when I heard a commentary by Mickey Kaus of Slate magazine on NPR’s Day to Day introduced as a “radio blogâ€?. Don’t blogs by definition live on the Internet? Kaus’ piece sounded just like any other radio dispatch, except that it happened to be done by a well-known blogger… Read More