Washington post - "How Mormons are winning the web"

http://mobile.washingtonpost.com/c.jsp?item=http%3a%2f%2fwww.washingtonpost.com%2flifestyle%2fstyle%2fmormons-using-the-web-to-control-their-own-image%2f2011%2f08%2f11%2fgIQA1J6BMJ_mobile.mobile&cid=578815&spf=1

What pushes sites to the top of search engines? Is it the number of hits the site gets or the number of times it is searched for? Does it help if we search on the word Mormon and then click on RFM? Are there any other ways we can push RFM, Post-mormon, etc. to the top when people search for Mormon?

A site's tendency for position on search engine results is called page rank, and is based on the number and quality of other sites that link to it.

So basically, the more links that other sites have to RFM, the higher it will appear on the google search results.

For example, if I have a website and 3 other websites have links to mine somewhere on theirs, and they all have a page rank of 1, That boosts my position on google a little. If there is only one website that has a link to it, but it has a page rank of 4, that boosts my position a lot more.

The only way to boost a website is to create a highly-rated website youself, and make a link to it.

I found this quote to be particularly interesting --

"This month, an independent Mormon group launched the Mormon Defense League to monitor reporting on the church. The group threatened to confront writers who it believes misrepresent the church."

One does not need to "misrepresent" Mormonism. Just portray it as it is, honestly, without embellishment and that will be crazy enough!

Oh, I'd love them to see them come here. The people here will demolish 'em in a debate!

summer Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I found this quote to be particularly interesting
> --
>
> "This month, an independent Mormon group launched
> the Mormon Defense League to monitor reporting on
> the church. The group threatened to confront
> writers who it believes misrepresent the church."


This is going to keep they busy! There must be dozens of pages on Mormonism that they will believe misrepresent the church!
That's going to open a can of worms!
And what are they going to do about the right to free speech?

From the article: "This month, an independent Mormon group launched the Mormon Defense League to monitor reporting on the church. The group threatened to confront writers who it believes misrepresent the church."

What kind of clout do they have they can use legally in the business of confronting writers ? Where is the line drawn between belief, facts, and interpretation?
This could get messy in a hurry if the "Mormon Defense League" is going to be confronting web sites!

From the article: "Try this. Type “church,” “Old Testament” or even “friend” into Google, and the Web site of the LDS church, the Mormons, pops up near the top of the list."

Now try this. Type "lamanite" into google, and the Web site of the LDS church does not show up until page 2. Odd isn't it? The people the Book of Mormon was written to are getting harder to find. But exmormon.org is right at the top of the list!

LOL. That was great Hoggle. Lamanites are becoming as lame-in-tights at LDStinc. They're working hard to cast a newly forged image of run-of-mill Christians with just slight lime twists on top.

The LDS Corp manages its message in just the same manner as the Communist Chinese do: attacking anyone who puts out information they don't agree with, punishing their own people who tell the truth, and pretending that some things in their history never happened. Very similar organizations.

Seriously, I can think of very few organizations who espouse communist behaviors and policies more than the lds church.

Yes, all the while they detest "communism" (socialism) in politics. "How can you vote for Obama--he's a socialist!" Then in the temple: "All of you bow your head and covenant to give all that you have to the COJCOLDS and say yes!" Yeah!!!

So if I put a link to RfM in the signature line of my profile on other websites, that will boost RfM's page rank?

Is that how it works? My signature shows up under all my posts on these other sites I'm thinking of, so that would be a good crop of referring links, I think.

From the Q&A on the Mormon Defense webpage.

http://mdl.org/103/polygamy

. But aren’t they still “Mormons” because they believe in the Book of Mormon?

A. No, they aren’t. You certainly wouldn’t ask if Lutherans are still Catholic because they believe in the Bible. It is most appropriate to call them by the name of their church. The term “Mormon” is used for members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. So it is inappropriate to use that term with other groups, unless it is modified. Some modify the term ‘Mormon” with “Fundamentalist”, however, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints objects to that usage as that usage leads to confusion between the groups and isn’t very accurate.

Regarding polygamy, why don't they ask and answer the tough questions - like do Mormons believe in polygamy in the next life? Did the prophets say polygamy was required for exaltation? Did Joseph marry 11 women that already had husbands, etc.


KC Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> From the Q&A on the Mormon Defense webpage.
>
> http://mdl.org/103/polygamy
>
> . But aren’t they still “Mormons” because
> they believe in the Book of Mormon?
>
> A. No, they aren’t. You certainly wouldn’t ask
> if Lutherans are still Catholic because they
> believe in the Bible. It is most appropriate to
> call them by the name of their church. The term
> “Mormon” is used for members of The Church of
> Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. So it is
> inappropriate to use that term with other groups,
> unless it is modified. Some modify the term
> ‘Mormon” with “Fundamentalist”, however,
> The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
> objects to that usage as that usage leads to
> confusion between the groups and isn’t very
> accurate.

Tip of the hat to the poster who coined this the other day.

And weren't they trying a few years ago to do away with the 'mormon' nickname, claiming that it shone a bad light on them?

Why oh why can't that Tom guy give some counsel to his people regarding the issue instead of the Public Relations telling thwe Press what to say?

I've always viewed the title "Mormon" like I would "Christian". Religions that believe in Jesus and the NT/Bible are Christian. Religions that believe in Joe Smith and the BoM are Mormons.

Now, the LDSinc sect of Mormons in SLC is just as "Mormon" as a Fundie Mormon sect in AZ or TX. In fact, the fundie Mos would argue they are more mormon because they follow Joe Smith more faithfully than the apostate SLCers.

By their own logic they aren't Mormon either because the word "Mormon" is no where to be found in the name of their church which is "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints."

If I start a church called "The Cool and Hip Beer Drinking Mormon Church" does that mean I can have claim to being a Mormon then?

They don't pack around the Book of Commandments anymore, why keep polygamy?