Dusty Rusty isn’t very smart nor inspired. If he doesn’t understand “branding” then his supposed employer, GOD, should. I wouldn’t want to be accused of helping the “church” but I can’t resist the obvious problem.

When I was a member many years ago I used to hear stories in “Testimony Meetings” about people’s travails of getting to the temple. Many people had to travel great distances and saved money and “spiritually prepared” for the event. The temple had a mystique associated with the attendance.

Dusty Rusty has reduced the temple experience to a cleaning and maintenance assignment. Rather then retaining the mystique it has turned into a McDonald’s where you would have to cook your own food, serve your own food and cleanup after your visit but still be required to pay for the experience.

Birdman Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Rather then
> retaining the mystique it has turned into a
> McDonald’s where you would have to cook your own
> food, serve your own food and cleanup after your
> visit but still be required to pay for the
> experience.

I wouldn't mind a BnB experience like that as long as it was fun. The temple isn't fun or much mystique.

IT is more a "been there, done that" signed, sealed, delivered to Kolob upon death experience.

I think Rusty is playing to his audience, the ones who are or pretend to be TBM. They are always on their feet applauding him, because that’s how you prove you’re TBM.

I hope Rusty lives to be 100, and I hope Oaks outlives him and gets a couple of years at the helm. Mean, aren’t I?

If you think about it, Nelson has robbed the youth of any MEANINGFUL experiences growing up in the church. The church is dumping scouting, re-tooling the young men and women program. The word mutual is no longer proper in mormonism. The primary has dropped all the previously used class titles. The young women will be known as their age and nothing else.

He is tightening it down to be more cultish.

What can he do? It's not sustainable in its present form. Not enough leaders for that many divisions. Not enough members either. You can't hold a meeting with one leader and one member.

Bwa-ha-ha-ha! Good point, MCR!

That's the way it was in Sweden. Two missionaries, our family, the bishopric, and their families, in their living room. I was played the piano, Mom led the singing, and Dad gave the Sunday school lesson. None of us had to be janitors. No seminary, no Mutual, no Scouts. I felt it was more like things must have been in the early days, with JS and his family, and a few neighbors, trying to write the rules, and sell their scam to others. It was in Sweden, that I realized it was all just a bunch of made-up parlor-game hooey.

"In the world, but not of the world!" worked just fine when there were so many things to do!

As a young teen, my only night off from church or a church-related activity was Thursday.

Monday: Choir practice. In the chapel with friends, feeling good, feeling part of something, with chatting and laughing before and after.

Tuesday: MIA Goofing around big-time before, then getting away with whatever we could during class, and then goofing around BIG TIME after class, in the cultural hall/gym, playing basketball, volleyball or dodgeball.

Wednesday: (just the last year before my mission) Stake MIA rep from my ward, along with my G/F. Just nice to be with her.

Thursday: Nothing!

Friday: date night with the G/F, keeping things mormon pure, which sort of makes it mormon.

Saturday: A dance somewhere in the Stake, or visit the National Guard Armory dance that was a regular Saturday thing, but way edgy for us mormons, because people were outside drinking and smoking.

Sunday: church all day and then a youth fireside, either in the ward or somewhere in the Stake. As I've often mentioned, Bishop Worthen turned on the TV at his house during a fireside so we could watch the Beatles their first time on the Ed Sullivan Show.

In conclusion, there was a life to be lived in the church and for the youth, it was cutting edge, but it was very endurable because they weren't out to remove the "Fun" of being young.

There were also Hay Rides, Ice Skating, and on one memorable occasion, a bus trip to the Bay Area... If there was a mormon angle to it, I've forgotten it. What I do remember is touring the Treasure Island Naval Base and all of us going down into a submarine and then while being shown around, 'someone' hit the "Ahoogha-Ahoogha" claxon and yelled, "Dive, Dive, Dive!!"

There was a sign prominently posted that said "Do Not Touch!" But it was in English, so that was my excuse, Señor Navy guy.


I'm sure I was like many a young mormon: I could easily have stayed mormon if I got laid regularly. And thus the attraction of polygamy, right?