Double-Wide Seats

Obesity is a certifiable epidemic in America. I have obsessed about my weight since I was a kid. Life for me has essentially been chubby interspersed with short stints of being lean and very proud of it. Now I'm just plain large. Definitely in the "obese" category by medical standards. As you can image, advising patients on weight loss in my clinic is not one of my strong points. "Physician, heal thyself."

Why is it that being fat is such a stigma? Where did that come from? In elementary school I hated being chubby because of the ridicule. At home I wanted to be skinny 'cause it seemed like the right way to be. (Important note: nobody every made me feel bad about my self image at home).

This really is a cultural phenomenon. A Western phenom. In Central America, where I spent two years on a mission for my church, nobody obsessed about their weight. It was a simple matter of fact. If you were overweight, you were likely affectionately nick-named, "gordo." Just the same if you were particularly skinny, "flaco." I knew several loving husbands that referred to their wives as "gordita." I mean, come on! Imagine what would happen to marriages in our culture if husbands routinely called their wives "my little fatso."

Imagine my shock, in the first months of my mission when people would say, "Elder, por que le salen tantos granos? Y ya se hizo muy gordo, no?" After a delayed moment of translation in my green missionary mind, to my horror I figured out what they were saying. "Elder, why do you have so many zits? And you've really put on a lot of weight, eh?" There was no pussy-footing around cosmetic topics while small-talking in Honduras. I'm frankly grateful for the exposure (culture shock), because it helped put my own self-image in better perspective. They just didn't care much about what you looked like.

Here's the real bothersome issue for me. Some where along the way, I decided that being over weight detracts from my spiritual life, that some how I am violating a basic moral law. So, it was meaningful to make the following observation. I was in a beautiful church building today. Guess what was recently installed? Double-wide seats! Believe it. Maybe you have noticed them too. "What a relief", I thought to myself. While appetites and passions need to be bridled, at least I have a little more evidence today that I'll never have to weigh-in during a priesthood interview.

1 Samuel 16:7.

Thoughts?

Holland on Words and a Word on Optimism

In April, 2007, Elder J. R. Holland, a member of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles of the LDS church, delivered an excellent sermon called The Tongue of Angels. In it, he teaches about the spiritual importance of the words we speak. Here are a couple exerpts:

The Prophet Joseph Smith deepened our understanding of the power of speech when he taught, "It is by words . . . [that] every being works when he works by faith. God said, 'Let there be light: and there was light.' Joshua spake, and the great lights which God had created stood still. Elijah commanded, and the heavens were stayed for the space of three years and six months, so that it did not rain. . . . All this was done by faith. . . . Faith, then, works by words; and with [words] its mightiest works have been, and will be, performed."

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I love what Elder Orson F. Whitney once said: "The spirit of the gospel is optimistic; it trusts in God and looks on the bright side of things. The opposite or pessimistic spirit drags men down and away from God, looks on the dark side, murmurs, complains, and is slow to yield obedience." We should honor the Savior's declaration to "be of good cheer." (Indeed, it seems to me we may be more guilty of breaking that commandment than almost any other!) Speak hopefully. Speak encouragingly, including about yourself. Try not to complain and moan incessantly. As someone once said, "Even in the golden age of civilization someone undoubtedly grumbled that everything looked too yellow."

My take: If all I have are words to decide whether to trust a man (or woman) enough to vote for him, then his words have to engender good faith (hope in things that are true but not seen). Did Obama say things that were true? Probably some. Did his words align with my understanding of truth regarding good government (constitutional principles of personal liberty and accountability)? No. Was his speech optimistic? I thought so. Truth is optimistic, according to Holland. All would agree that faith is essentially a principle of optimism. No?

When it comes down to it, I didn't vote for Obama, because I couldn't trust him. And I didn't trust him because what I believe to be good government for America is essentially different than his ideas(maybe more on this later: progressivism vs. constitutionalism). So, while I think the hint of optimism in his speech lured me in, it doesn't change the fact that in my view his words and plans are based on incorrect principles of good governement. Truth alone infers optimism, but optimism alone does not infer truth.

Any thoughts how you decide you can trust someone that you've only seen speaking on television?

Obama, Rhetoric and Alma 32

The Mormon Missionaries assigned to our area taught a neighbor tonight about faith. The Book of Mormon teaches that "if ye have faith ye hope for things which are not seen, which are true."

TAO commented about rhetoric. My question is, how do you decide if a public figure is being truthful or not? Fact checking is one thing. But how about sincerity, their heart? How do you know if you can trust them or not? That's what we really want to know, right? Can I trust this guy to do a good job? Can I have faith in him?

If you have a couple minutes, here's the YouTube/CBS SOTU link. Drag the playhead to 50:20 and watch until about 52:54. Should I, can I, have faith in this POTUS?

SOTU: I stand corrected...

While my wife and mother-in-law entertained two welcomed guests in our home tonight, I rudely hid in the bedroom to watch the SOTU address. I was curious to know how the POTUS would address the nation after a huge blow to his health care agenda (the MA senatorial race). After the speech ended, they asked, "how bad was it?"

"I thought it was pretty good," surprising myself. "Of the state of the union addresses I have watched, that was probably the best."

"What?" my wife jeered with a smile. "Have you become an Obama-lover?"

I was anxious to know how my opinion faired in comparison to the Fox News pundits. Fox is, of course, my go to source of thinkers who create opinions for me about topics that I care about but don't want to read about. Sadly, I can't think of anything I particularly like to read about unless it is a link from the Drudge Report.

About two seconds into Mr. Krauthammer's critique, I was disappointed to find that I was way off. It was obviously a really poor speech! I guess I stand corrected.

I'd love to hear what friends, family and acquaintances have to say about the speech tonight. Anyone? Was it right on key for all the independent voters out there? Was it liberal rhetoric as usual? Was it a lean to the Right?

Maybe more interesting is how you think televised pundits affect your opinion on matters of national debate.