This Week Marked the 80th Anniversary of Utahns Vote Against Prohibition

   There was a time, you know, when Utah cast not only a vote, but the deciding vote, in allowing alcohol to flow freely through the streets of our nation.
   This week marked the 80th anniversary of that moment. It was Dec. 5, 1933 when Utah became the 36th and deciding state to vote for changing the Constitution to allow for alcohol, and, with that vote, on that day, the Prohibition ended.
   Repeal Day, it is called. It even has a name, although it is not widely marked.
   And, is it true the president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints opposed the 21st Amendment? It is. Of a certain, it is. President Heber J. Grant was vocal and unequivical in his stand. Later he would say, "With the help of the Lord to the very best of my ability, I warned this people not to vote for the repeal of the Eighteenth Amendment." (Conference talk in the spring of 1937)
   "I have never felt so humiliated in my life over anything as that the state of Utah voted for the repeal of Prohibition," President Grant would say about a year after the vote. (Conference talk in the fall of 1934)
   His arguments remain arguments strong.
   Is it a matter of agency? The 89th Section of a book of scripture called the Doctrine and Covenants does say the Lord's Word of Wisdom was given "not by commandment or constraint. To that, President Grant replied, "I think one of the weakest excuses I ever heard in my life is that one -- 'not by commandment or constraint' -- when before the verse ends it tells you that it is the will of God."
   Today, the accepted wisdom is that the Prohibition just did not work. It was a failure. I do not know that that accepted wisdom is true. President Grant did not believe it so. In the 1937 Conference talk, he said,  "I warned them against lies that were being circulated to the effect that there was more drunkenness and more use of liquor than there had been when we did not have Prohibition."
http://kristacook.blogspot.com/2010/08/prohibition-heber-j-grant-and-same.html

A Day for Mourning, a Day for Remembering

   A day for looking back at tragedies, it has been.
   Like the Dec. 7, 1941 attack by the Imperial Japanese Navy upon the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. A surprise attack, it was the 9-11 of its time, with 2,402 killed compared to 2,978 in 9-11. The two events stand together as the greatest attacks on American soil in modern times, both coming by surprise, and both prompting entry into notable wars. The U.S. declared war on Japan the very next day.
   And, the nation's media has already started memorializing on the first anniversary of the Sandy Hook shootings. The shootings took place Dec. 14, 2012.
   And, a third tragedy remains fresh in our minds, the death of Nelson Mandela.
   A fourth tragedy should be added. In lives lost, it ranks as the worst of them all. On Dec. 8, 1941 -- one day after Pearl Harbor -- the Holocaust began, as the first of six extermination camps in Poland began operation in Chelmno. That camp, alone, would account for the deaths of between 152,000 and 340,000 Jews. By the end of the Holocaust, two-thirds of the estimate 9 million Jews in Europe had been killed. Other minorities and unwanted people were also killed in the Holocaust, though Jews were by far the prime targets.
 

Failure to Use Our Equipment is One of Failures of Our Health System

   So, I go to the doctor, get a vein study, it shows problems, and I go back into the world realizing what some of those sensations I've had in my legs are all about.
   I quit jogging. I wonder if the jarring, pounding footfall shocked the blood right out of my veins.
   Don't I deserve a revisit? I mean, once the pain has subsided, shouldn't I be able to go back, get a new study, and see if I'm okay?
    There's a lot of equipment in the doctor's office I think should be used more frequently. Seems, once the doctor owns the equipment, it shouldn't cost much for him to use it repeatedly. The failure to make the equipment more available is one of the failures of our health system.

Nelson Mandela Quotes

   What better way to honor Nelson Mandela than to learn from him. The Deseret News online once published some of his quotes. Here are a few I like:
   “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”
   “I am not a saint, unless you think of a saint as a sinner who keeps on trying.”
   “As I walked out the door toward the gate that would lead to my freedom, I knew if I didn't leave my bitterness and hatred behind, I'd still be in prison.” 
   “Lead from the back — and let others believe they are in front.”
   “Where you stand depends on where you sit.”
   A leader is no better than the things he teaches. Perhaps, then, Mandella should be considered a good leader. He believed strongly in democracy, but did not care much for capitalism. I do not agree with him on capitalism, but still find a lot in what he said and taught to consider him a good leader. And, I note, he never nationalized anything while he was president. Can a man even be said to be a practicing socialist if he doesn't nationalize a thing when he gets the chance to do so?

http://www.deseretnews.com/top/1635/9/-The-23-best-Nelson-Mandela-quotes-in-pictures.html

With PISA Study in, Debate on Education Will be Renewed

   The study is in, so let the debate renew. The U.S. lags in education, again. Every three years, the Program for International Student Assessment study comes in, and, each time it does, the U.S. comes up short.
   The newest study was released yesterday.
   A quick search of stories showed one of the solutions being mentioned is to properly fund education. I guess that is an obvious plus, and an obvious solution, but I think the clearer answer is to instill the love of learning.
   My guess is, the key to good education is to turn them loose on their educational passions as early as they display them. If they are interested in astronomy, let them study it from every angle they want, going to the observatory, subscribing to all the astronomy magazines, etc.
  Find their heart's desires, and you've found the key to having them learn. Instead of dictating topics to them, we should let them select their own. Oh, I don't mean to say we should teach them all the basics. Having core studies can be good. But, the heart of each student's program should be determined by what is in their heart. If it is music -- even at age 6, so be it. Let the "master's degree" begin, at whatever the age, whatever age the child first displays a passion. Take that passion and kindle it, for passion is the key to education.
http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865591753/US-scores-stagnant-on-global-test-other-nations-surge-ahead.html

http://newsasnewstravelsfast.blogspot.com/2013/10/blog-post_25.html

Thirty-seven Percent Pull Out Their Credit Cards for Christmas

   Christmas as an economic issue, as in, should we measure our economy's health by how much we spend during the Christmas season?
    Let me ask that another way. Should we measure our economy's health by how debt we accumulate buying Christmas presents? It seems to me, running our populace into debt is not a healthy thing for said populace.
   Granted, only an estimate 37 percent use their credit cards (survey by CreditDonkey.com). Still, that's 37 percent engaging in an unhealthy practice, and that's a sizeable portion being hurt.
   If I can say borrowing hurts a person, and I do. There might be things to borrow for, and times to borrow, but I'm not sure I'd count Christmas as one of them.
   I read tonight that the average American spends $935 on Christmas each year (according to the American Consumer Credit Council). That, too, is worthy of consideration as to whether it is a benefit to our economy.
   I suppose, from the vantage point of all spending being a good thing, $935 is wonderful for the economy. I would have a hard time arguing against that, admittedly.

http://askville.amazon.com/average-american-spend-christmas/AnswerViewer.do?requestId=270681

Santa Claus is Second Only to Uncle Sam

   Think I read somewhere the past couple days that the average Christmas shopper spent about $800 one year.
   Eight hundred dollars? Or, to punctuate that more correctly, eight hundred dollars !?!
   I guess I am surprised. I think it no surprise, though, that many have come to dread the holiday, what with them feeling obligated to spend so much. More money comes out of our pockets for this day than for any other day of the year other than Tax Day. Nobody besides Uncle Sam gets more money out of us as does Santa Claus.