So as you read, I went on a Church History tour and saw all the sites. I went to Carthage, and to Nauvoo, and to Independence, and even went to Adam ah Dahmon (sp?

And even with my powerful conviction at Carthage that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God (which thankfully after doing some more logical thinking my mania is starting to clear)

even in the mists of all of these 'spiritual' feelings a thought kept coming up in my head as I was visiting all these places and getting a confirmation that they were all TRUE was...

"Did Joseph Smith pull this crap from his ass?"

I mean seriously everywhere he went he DISCOVERED something significant from ancient history!

This is WHERE Adam and Eve were expelled from the Garden of Eden.

This is where the lands of the Nephites and Lamanites was!

These plates are ancient scriptures.

This is an ancient Lamanite WHITE dude.

Just over and over and over again he is making discoveries where if any modern day scholar did it would put Einstein and Hawkings fame to shame.

Its just like Star Trek...it's not just a planet that's simple dead rock...but something that must have implications for the whole Federation.

I was starting to think maybe anytime the Saints who had ADHD and started getting bored with what they were being taught...he would pull some more shit out.

and yet because I was in a spiritual high the other part was thinking this is all TRUE. GACK!!!!

Maybe Joe's seer stone was lead, and he spent too much time licking it? He was completely mad by the time he reached 30.

Or, maybe it was radioactive. He felt a strong tingling feeling when he first held it, and he concluded that it was magic. After years of holding it close to his head, he lost it. The mob at Carthage saved him from a painful death that was sure to shortly follow.

Soak it in. You've been hoodwinked, baby. Yes sir, it's all complete and utter horse crap.

People flocked to the 19th century Americanized version of "Be Excellent to Each Other". That was the hook. Then the lies started coming, each whopper bigger than the last. They had to be big, or nobody would believe them.

But don't feel bad. Modern civilization is built on lies. If you hadn't bought into Joseph's lies you would have bought into someone else's.

Thanks, ultra.... you have forever ruined Star Trek for me...... :P

At first I was like, really mad and offended and going to quit RFM or at least go inactive because I thought you were bagging on Star Trek.

But you are totally right about your observations. Just think about zions camp. Traveling along they find some bones..."oh, joseph, you are king of the world and the holy ghost and everything, so what is this burial mound?" "Why THAT is the white lamanite Zelph who served under the great prophet Onendagus who ruled from the Atlantic to the rocky mountains."

Yes, and obviously he was so famous that he just happens to still have a county in NY named after him (Onandaga). okay.