Inside Tad's Mind

Last Friday, Federal Judge Robert Shelby ruled that Utah's Amendment 3, defining marriage as between "one man and one woman" is unconstitutional, opening the gates for same sex marriages in Utah. Shelby and the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals denied stays on the ruling, leaving the US Supreme Court as the only, and unlikely, avenue left to halt same gender marriages. Shelby's ruling specifically found that the state had failed to show that any harm would come to the state or to the heterosexual majority by allowing same gender couples to enjoy the legal benefits of marriage. The preceding Friday, Federal Judge Clark Waddoups ruled that the Utah polygamy statute could only apply to poly-amorous families that sought to obtain more than one marriage license, essentially saying that the state cannot regulate how, or whether, people choosing to live in such arrangements cohabit. As I have read the news articles and the associated comments, I have come to see the argument...

The gap between the "haves" and the "have-nots" has widened significantly in this distopian science fiction film. The wealthy and powerful have moved off planet to a wheeled space station called Elysium, while the less affluent remain on an overpopulated and polluted Earth that has become a global slum. Think orbital Beverly Hills vs global Watts and you'll have the picture. Elysium has a medical technology capable of healing almost any disease or injury. Hospitals on Earth are overcrowded and patients are turned away. An industrial accident leaves Max (Matt Damon) with only a short time to live unless he can get to Elysium and gain access to the technology there, but the the folks on the space station aren't sharing. Add a love interest, Frey (Alice Braga), a power-mad politician (Jodie Foster) and a crazy Aussie thug-for-hire (Sharlto Copley) to add complications, and you have the plot. In the end Max reaches his goal, but the victory, for him is Pyrrhic...

Charles Dickens' timeless classic Oliver Twist is a study in dominance and the establishment of pecking orders. It is also the story of an orphan boy who is misused, and a study in the economics of scarcity and the effectiveness of government. It would therefore be very difficult for me to see the musical adaption Oliver! and not comment. Theater, orphans, economics and government all in one! First, the theatrical review. In keeping with the notion that a theatrical work's purpose is to entertain the audience, the standing ovation the performance received is evidence that the show has done it's job. The show was indeed entertaining, but I felt it could have been more. So, in the event that any members of the cast or production team should read this, know that you've done well, and take what follows as merely comments on how the show might have been. Oliver's story is one of creating, or creating the illusion of, dominance of one person over another. It starts with...

A friend of mine was offended by my recent post which compared many religion's acceptance of either a book or a person as being infallible with similar conduct by the German people during the rule of Hitler and the Nazi party. I had focused on the LDS religion in particular, and my friend is LDS. His comments bring up many topics for further discussion, but none more than a discussion of the difference between opinions, errors and lies. First, for the benefit of anyone who thinks my chief beef with the LDS Church is related to the controversy over same sex marriage, let me set the record straight. I disagree with the church on this issue, but it is far from being the chief complaint I have against the LDS leadership. As those who have followed my postings over the last year are aware, I left the church over the policy of encouraging all unwed mothers to relinquish their babies to LDS Family Services so they could be placed for adoption with good, temple worthy Mormon families. Now,...

Throughout history, one of the most common sources of division among peoples has been divergent views toward deity. In ancient times it was along the lines of "Our city god is better than your city god," or "Our national god is more powerful than yours." Arguments have sprung up over the number of gods, over their essence, and over the proper way to worship them. Ancient Israel was commanded not to bow down to Ba'al or Asherah, and to "have no other gods before me." Before Constantine converted to Christianity, Christians were persecuted in Rome. Christian writings from the first two or three centuries are as concerend with denouncing dissenting views as they are with expounding truth. In early Christian times, a great dispute arose that resulted in the Nicene Creed. Among some today, those who do not adhere to this creed are considered to not be Christians. After Christianity became dominant throughout Europe, those who didn't accept Christian do...

It's been about a year since I had my name formally removed from the records of the LDS Church, and I'm sure that my readers, all three of you, are tired of my anti-LDS rants. So, I thought the time appropriate for me to declare what my beliefs are and where I think my spiritual path lies. Or at least where I'm headed today. Comments are welcome, but no sales pitches for your particular beliefs, please. If you're reading this on Facebook or somewhere else, please click on the appropriate link and read the full post on the actual blog. Almost all religions I've encountered have some sort of special knowledge, or at least they claim to. Some of them keep their secrets and divulge them only to members in good standing. Some of the rituals and practices are for member eyes only, and often for good reason. If the uninitiated were to observe these practices they would not understand them, and such lack of understanding could impair their later ability to understand. I...

During World War II, about 6,000,000 Jews were murdered in death camps across German occupied territory. Auschwitz-Birkenau , Belzec , Chelmno , Majdanek , Sobibor , and Treblinka are well recorded in the annals of historical atrocities. What happened that allowed intelligent men to commit such heinous acts? There were two things in Hitler's Germany that led to the Holocaust. The first was racial and ethnic prejudice, the second was uncritical obedience to der Fuhrer. The Germans believed they were "the Master Race," and they also believed that the Jews, nearly two-thousand years after the fact, were responsible for the crucifixion of Jesus of Nazareth. Hitler, operating on this prejudice and using it as a pretext, ordered the concentration camps and the mass executions. The German military and the German people obeyed his orders uncritically. They just accepted as fact that their supreme leader knew what he was doing, that he was doing what was right, and complied wit...