Google Webmaster Tools
 
Picture
Well friends, another year has past and it's now time for some reflections on operating this site. Whenever I think of something lasting 2 years I think of a mission. Unlike a mission that ends after 2 years, mormonsandscience will go on for now. I know this is disappointing to those of you who would like to see mormonsandscience permanently released (ha), but mormonsandscience is turning out to be something more like Stake Seventies who were never released. (Back in the day when sacrament meetings were in the evening, Stake Seventies were called from the ward membership.)

Sometimes I feel like I am running out of ideas to post on, which is silly because there are many more interesting topics to explore. It is not that I am lazy, it’s just that I have other things vying for my attention like kids, writing a book, writing another book after the previous book is written, and work. However, I am committed to providing thought provoking posts on science (and occasionally politics) on a regular basis.

Thanks to those who are regular visitors. According to the stats meter, mormonsandscience receives an average of 200 hits per day. That is nothing to boast about and half of those are probably bots, but at least 100 of you find the site worthwhile.  

Thanks to those who post comments. I welcome all comments except, of course, those that are mean spirited. Unfortunately 2 months ago I was compelled to turn on the “approve comments” setting. Some of the comments were not appropriate while others were auto comments selling tennis shoes or whatever else. Several of the good comments I receive express views that are contrary to mine. If I had to choose between (A) mormonsandscience being a ‘group think’ forum where everyone pats each other on the back and we all see things the same way, or (B) mormonsandscience being a forum where people explore and express divergent viewpoints with the goal of uncovering truth and bringing it to Zion, I would choose B. 

I’ve added some resources to mormonsandscience to help LDS students and researchers. There is a page for asking statistical and research design questions, a page on how to use G*Power (a free power and sample size calculation program), and a page on how to use R (a free statistical analysis program). These R and G*Power pages are meaningless (and perhaps nauseating) to many of you, but to students and researchers they can be very useful, so please tell others if you think they might be interested.

Finally, when an acquaintance at the BYU Salt Lake Center told me that he was making $200 a month on Google ads, I thought, “Hey, my personal slush fund could benefit from a $200 cash injection every month.”  So I set up Google ads and . . . well, they aren’t there anymore. Too many advertisements like “Click here to discover the shocking truth about Mormons” and “Click here to learn more about Joe Smith’s Mormon bible” kept popping up. Ergo, advertisements are gonzo.

As always, thanks for dropping by.

Sincerely,

Dave
4 Comments
 
 
Picture
Recently homosexual activists have succeeded in gaining medical, employment, and insurance benefits for same-sex partnerships (e.g., granted to federal government workers in June 2009). In California they have succeeded in getting the gay lifestyle into elementary school curriculum with the proviso that kids cannot opt out (passed May, 2009). And in Montana they have succeeded in getting a school district to consider sex education for young children that includes instruction on same-sex intercourse.

It may surprise you to learn that none of these accomplishments is the ultimate objective of homosexual activists. Their grand prize is to repeal the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) signed into law in 1996 by President Bill Clinton. DOMA states that the federal government recognizes marriage as between a man and a woman, and that no state can be forced to recognize same-sex marriages from other states. The activists are working hard on getting DOMA repealed. One of their covert operatives, an activist judge named Joseph Tauro from NY, recently ruled that DOMA is unconstitutional. 

Don’t be misled about activists’ reasons for repealing DOMA. Repealing DOMA is not about allowing gay couples to marry for the sake of being married. It is about normalizing homosexuality. Even some activists who read this post will be surprised to learn this fact. It is not about marriage; it is about getting society to approve of the homosexual lifestyle.  

If DOMA is repealed, I predict that our fundamental understanding of marriage will gradually be transformed. Indeed, transforming marriage may very well be an objective of some activists. According to the words of one gay activist, after winning the “fight for same-sex marriage and its benefits, . . . [we’ll] redefine the institution of marriage completely, to demand the right to marry not as a way of adhering to society's moral codes but rather to debunk a myth and radically alter an archaic institution” (Michelangelo Signorile, OUT Magazine, December, 1994).

If our society allows a radical altering of the divinely appointed institution of marriage, this will, as stated in the Proclamation on the Family, “bring upon individuals, communities, and nations the calamities foretold by ancient and modern prophets.”

As Latter-day Saints we have a moral obligation to support Judaeo-Christian values and, in particular, traditional marriage. Find out what’s going on in your schools and communities and get involved.
9 Comments
 
 
When Charlie Bolden was appointed chief of NASA, President Obama gave him 3 mandates (direct quotes from Mr. Bolden):

1. “He wanted me to re-inspire children to want to get into science and math.”

In my opinion, great.

2. “He wanted me to expand our international relationships.”

In my opinion, good (International Space Station).

3. “Third, and perhaps foremost, he wanted me to find a way to reach out to the Muslim world and engage much more with predominantly Muslim nations to help them feel good about their historic contribution to science, math, and engineering.”

What!? Islam has been in the throes of scholarly and scientific darkness since the 13th century AD.

In Truth and Science, chapter 4, I mention Islam’s important yet limited contributions to science. I also point out that a Islamic religious backlash against scholarship during the Middle Ages resulted in the death of Muslim scholarly learning and progress.

Now, having made the previous point, I will say that Islamic scholars were indirectly responsible for the re-awakening of classical Greek science and learning in the West. Islamic scholars like Avicenna and Averroes (Latin names) preserved and commented on Aristotle’s works, and it was their writings that re-introduced the West to the lost teachings of Aristotle (i.e., rationalism, empiricism) around 1200 AD. The rediscovery of Aristotle's works helped bring the West out of the Dark Ages, but to associate this accomplishment with NASA is quite a stretch.

The President ought to leave recognition of Islam’s contributions to the history writers and let NASA concentrate on space science.
Add Comment
 
Google Analytics