long ago ideas

“When we are tired, we are attacked by ideas we conquered long ago." - Friedrich Nietzsche. Long ago, Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery conquered false claims that the Book of Mormon was fiction or that it came through a stone in a hat. But these old claims have resurfaced in recent years. To conquer them again, we have to return to what Joseph and Oliver taught.

Monday, November 30, 2020

The Human OS and bias confirmation 1

Our M2C friends say they "cannot unsee" Mesoamerican culture and geography when they read the Book of Mormon. That's an expression of bias confirmation.

Our minds--the Human Operating System or OS--constantly creates a reality based on what we expect, even if it is not reality. 

Look at the image below. 

Does it look like it's moving?

It is not.

The motion is the Human OS that creates a reality your mind expects, even though it is not real.




Friday, November 27, 2020

Overeducated

"The overeducated are worse off than the undereducated, having traded common sense for the illusion of knowledge." -

Thursday, November 26, 2020

The Desolate Wilderness

Every year since 1961, the Wall St. Journal has published this account of the Pilgrims on Thanksgiving. I've always enjoyed it and I hope you do, too.

For more about William Bradford and the Pilgrims, see https://plymrock.org/tag/william-bradford/

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Here beginneth the chronicle of those memorable circumstances of the year 1620, as recorded by Nathaniel Morton, keeper of the records of Plymouth Colony, based on the account of William Bradford, sometime governor thereof:

So they left that goodly and pleasant city of Leyden, which had been their resting-place for above eleven years, but they knew that they were pilgrims and strangers here below, and looked not much on these things, but lifted up their eyes to Heaven, their dearest country, where God hath prepared for them a city (Heb. XI, 16), and therein quieted their spirits.

When they came to Delfs-Haven they found the ship and all things ready, and such of their friends as could not come with them followed after them, and sundry came from Amsterdam to see them shipt, and to take their leaves of them. One night was spent with little sleep with the most, but with friendly entertainment and Christian discourse, and other real expressions of true Christian love.

The next day they went on board, and their friends with them, where truly doleful was the sight of that sad and mournful parting, to hear what sighs and sobs and prayers did sound amongst them; what tears did gush from every eye, and pithy speeches pierced each other’s heart, that sundry of the Dutch strangers that stood on the Key as spectators could not refrain from tears. But the tide (which stays for no man) calling them away, that were thus loath to depart, their Reverend Pastor, falling down on his knees, and they all with him, with watery cheeks commended them with the most fervent prayers unto the Lord and His blessing; and then with mutual embraces and many tears they took their leaves one of another, which proved to be the last leave to many of them.

Being now passed the vast ocean, and a sea of troubles before them in expectations, they had now no friends to welcome them, no inns to entertain or refresh them, no houses, or much less towns, to repair unto to seek for succour; and for the season it was winter, and they that know the winters of the country know them to be sharp and violent, subject to cruel and fierce storms, dangerous to travel to known places, much more to search unknown coasts.

Besides, what could they see but a hideous and desolate wilderness, full of wilde beasts and wilde men? and what multitudes of them there were, they then knew not: for which way soever they turned their eyes (save upward to Heaven) they could have but little solace or content in respect of any outward object; for summer being ended, all things stand in appearance with a weatherbeaten face, and the whole country, full of woods and thickets, represented a wild and savage hew.

If they looked behind them, there was a mighty ocean which they had passed, and was now as a main bar or gulph to separate them from all the civil parts of the world.


 

Monday, November 23, 2020

#givethanks

On this blog, we're grateful for the restoration of the Gospel through prophets, and we believe the teachings of those prophets.

We're also grateful for the Book of Mormon and the abundant evidence the corroborates and vindicates the teachings of the prophets.




Tuesday, November 10, 2020

Moroni called "the hill in New York" Cumorah

Our M2C friends and scholars claim that early Church members created a false tradition that the hill where Joseph found the plates was the Cumorah of Mormon 6:6, and that Joseph passively adopted this false tradition, thereby misleading Church members for decades until RLDS scholars figured out that the "real" Cumorah was in southern Mexico. 

Then our M2C friends and scholars adopted the RLDS theory and enforced it with their M2C symbol.

They say Parley P. Pratt was wrong when he recorded this in his Autobiography.

"This book, which contained these things, was hid in the earth by Moroni, in a hill called by him Cumorah, which hill is now in the State of New York, near the village of Palmyra, in Ontario County."

https://archive.org/details/historicalrecord58jens/page/388/mode/2up?q=Moroni

Monday, November 9, 2020

Young "scholars"

This comment from the WSJ reminded me of the M2C citation cartel.

You may want to dispose of the stereotype of reporters [and young scholars] as irrepressible truth seekers. 

We seem to hire nowadays mainly people who are unnaturally conformist and unnaturally unwilling to perceive phenomena until their milieu gives them the OK. 

https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-unasked-fbi-question-why-11595372128?cx_testId=3&cx_testVariant=cx_4&cx_artPos=0#cxrecs_s


Friday, November 6, 2020

Markets and power

The credentialed class of the Bible: 

46 Beware of the scribes, which desire to walk in long robes, and love greetings in the markets, and the highest seats in the synagogues, and the chief rooms at feasts;

(Luke 20:46)

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The credentialed class of today:

For years, the knowledge-making institutions—academia, media, tech—have strengthened their grip on discourse in America. 

Now they're exercising their power: information is flagged, accounts are banned, dictionaries are updated in real time.

All in service of the Party.

Christopher F. Rufo @realchrisrufo

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More from Naval:


The only two ways to coordinate human societies at scale are free markets and physical power. 


Any ideology rejecting free markets is just advocating for power.


Socialism, communism, and fascism all converge to the same endpoint - rule by the biggest thug.

Tuesday, November 3, 2020

Elections have consequences

The choice:

When you vote today, pick the leader whose supporters are most likely to pull over in a dangerous neighborhood to help you change a tire and least likely to loot your store.

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25 Therefore, choose you by the voice of this people, judges, that ye may be judged according to the laws which have been given you by our fathers, which are correct, and which were given them by the hand of the Lord.

26 Now it is not common that the voice of the people desireth anything contrary to that which is right; but it is common for the lesser part of the people to desire that which is not right; therefore this shall ye observe and make it your law—to do your business by the voice of the people.

27 And if the time comes that the voice of the people doth choose iniquity, then is the time that the judgments of God will come upon you; yea, then is the time he will visit you with great destruction even as he has hitherto visited this land.

(Mosiah 29:25–27)

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Amish political rally:




Monday, November 2, 2020

Opportunity to learn

This tweet encapsulates my approach to life.

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I assume my worldview isn't accurate and I'm always looking to increase that. With this approach, why would I ever take a disagreement personally? All conflict is simply an opportunity to learn.

Problems to solve

Tomorrow is the final day of the election in the United States. Voting has been underway for several weeks in some states.

The election has been characterized by a tremendous amount of fake news and hoaxes. We'll discuss that more after the election, but for now, here is some wisdom to consider. 

Yuri Elkaim
Successful people look for problems to solve. Everyone else looks for problems to avoid.