tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-188101302011-10-13T19:50:17.217-05:00Blog Rule #1 - No cynicism without proposed solutions. Any idiot can find fault. It takes intellect to find solutions. (Remind me if I break this rule.)Garretthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04963513287623523903noreply@blogger.comBlogger251100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18810130.post-1143474532996606322006-03-27T09:46:00.000-06:002006-03-27T09:50:41.716-06:00

This article accurately sums up my feelings on the absurdity of college football's BCS system for deciding a national champion.

Garretthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04963513287623523903noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18810130.post-1140641644059437612006-02-22T13:50:00.000-06:002006-02-23T14:41:25.700-06:00

Recent debate over the national security of the US has heated up in the past few days as political figures, the media, and the public have all expressed their concerns regarding news that a company based in the United Arab Emirates purchased the British company that runs some of our American ports.I, frankly, have never even thought about the fact that like most other industries in the US, our

Garretthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04963513287623523903noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18810130.post-1139345480221858012006-02-07T14:40:00.000-06:002006-02-07T14:51:20.243-06:00

Neil Cavuto of Fox News is a big fan of Jon Huntsman Sr., so much so that he praises him in his interview with the billionaire last Sunday. The subject of Mormons, and in particular, Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and his potential 2008 presidential election bid came up. I've commented on Gov. Romney's presidential future in a previous post, but an excerpt from the text of the Fox interview with

Garretthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04963513287623523903noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18810130.post-1139247036565757492006-02-06T11:09:00.000-06:002006-02-06T11:30:36.770-06:00

This year’s Super Bowl followed in suit to many previous “big games.” The game can be summed up in two short words—ho-hum—once again adding another reason why I love watching college football so much more than the NFL. Take this year’s Rose Bowl, a competitive, classic clash of titans fighting it out to the last second, opposed to every Super Bowl that I can remember, a non-competitive game

Garretthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04963513287623523903noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18810130.post-1138817558588703522006-02-01T11:41:00.000-06:002006-02-01T12:12:38.686-06:00

Just yesterday, leaders in the Wisconsin State Assembly voted to uphold Gov. Doyle's veto on a bill allowing private citizens to carry concealed weapons, despite the bill having the overwhelming support of the constituents of Wisconsin. The bill would have allowed citizens who completed a thorough registration and training by state-certified trainers to carry concealed weapons in public.

Garretthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04963513287623523903noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18810130.post-1138390257493969232006-01-27T13:22:00.000-06:002006-01-27T13:31:36.523-06:00

For those of you looking for more practical reasons to get (or stay) married, check out this article detailing the results of a study showing the financial benefits of a marriage. I'm definately not advocating seeking out an eternal companion as a way of accumulating greater wealth, but the unintended benefits of a healthy relationship, such as the ones detailed in the article, offer motivation

Garretthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04963513287623523903noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18810130.post-1138306903289744042006-01-26T13:44:00.000-06:002006-01-30T11:39:33.466-06:00

I want to send my greetings and love out to all of my Mongolian friends and family this Tsagaan Sar holiday. This Sunday marks Bituun, kind of the Christmas Eve of the three-day Mongolian holiday. Tsagaan Sar coincides with the Chinese New Year, although Mongolians will vehemently deny any connection. The word "tsagaan" means white, while "sar" means month and/or moon. Mongolians celebrate the

Garretthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04963513287623523903noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18810130.post-1138223190218989562006-01-25T14:56:00.000-06:002006-01-25T15:06:30.376-06:00

Anyone who knows me personally knows I know next to nothing about automobiles. I do, however, keep a pulse on the way each brand is graded in the media as a feeble attempt to be an educated consumer. I am not loyal to one brand over another (I own a Toyota and a Dodge). I was, though, taken back by the findings of a J.D. Power and Assoc. Long-term Dependability Survey as reported by CNN. Although

Garretthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04963513287623523903noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18810130.post-1137776305971902402006-01-20T10:53:00.000-06:002006-01-20T10:58:26.006-06:00

Just as a follow up to my post on abortion, I wanted to post a link to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' official stance on abortion. The text is copied below. My feelings on the issue reflect a similar stance. Question:What is the position of the Church on Abortion?Answer:The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints believes in the sanctity of human life. Therefore, the Church

Garretthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04963513287623523903noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18810130.post-1137009717616476852006-01-11T13:36:00.000-06:002006-01-11T14:01:57.680-06:00

I admit I am quite unfamiliar with the life of a professional clergyman, as the leaders in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are generally not paid and have professional careers aside from serving in the church. However, even with this unfamiliarity, I was shocked to read the following blurb in a U.S. News & World Report article posted in the business section of Yahoo. The article

Garretthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04963513287623523903noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18810130.post-1136845100325151502006-01-09T15:16:00.000-06:002006-01-09T16:18:20.400-06:00

With the ubiquitous debate over Supreme Court nominee Judge Alito, I thought I'd chime in and make my stance known on one of the only issues being focused on during his nomination--abortion. One's qualification to the Supreme Court should focus on much more than the nominee's personal feelings for one issue, but because abortion is such a black-and-white issue (I'm convinced it is, so if you

Garretthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04963513287623523903noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18810130.post-1135900012729347852005-12-29T17:32:00.000-06:002005-12-30T13:51:06.080-06:00

I admit I did not accomplish all of my 2005 resolutions, but that in no way leads me to not setting new goals for 2006. Among those goals were financial, intellectual, spiritual, and physical resolutions--several in each category. Perhaps for this upcoming year, I will set fewer goals keeping them every bit as challenging as I believe if we shoot for the stars and fall short, at least we get the

Garretthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04963513287623523903noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18810130.post-1134713428127795532005-12-15T22:26:00.000-06:002005-12-16T11:51:50.566-06:00

ElectionAgain, a wonderful election in Iraq today provides another sign that democracy can succeed in an Arab nation. Considering travel in vehicles is prohibited there on election day to prevent cowardly terrorist attacks, to think that in a country where the media portrays the political advances as so unpopular, the fact that they still had an 80% voter turnout is unimaginable. Iraqis, having

Garretthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04963513287623523903noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18810130.post-1134505389088327602005-12-13T13:30:00.000-06:002005-12-13T14:25:47.683-06:00

Since a high-profile execution has made big headlines over the past couple of days, I think now is a good time to continue with my resolve to leave my views regarding various issues. I'll start with capital punishment. I feel the chance for repentance should be afforded to all, and we should let God judge the souls of the guilty, while we do what we can to protect the public. In the same breath,

Garretthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04963513287623523903noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18810130.post-1133822261593187972005-12-05T16:12:00.000-06:002005-12-05T16:37:55.386-06:00

Much has been said and written in the media lately about the debates over the use of the greeting "Happy holidays!" over "Merry Christmas!" and "Holiday Tree" over "Christmas Tree." I take no offense whatsoever to the commercial practice of using "Happy Holidays!" to greet customers and employees instead of "Merry Christmas." Granted, Christmas is far and away the biggest holiday celebrated

Garretthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04963513287623523903noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18810130.post-1133236604973658942005-11-28T21:38:00.000-06:002005-11-28T21:59:21.730-06:00

Okay, I'm going to claim ignorance on this one. It was raining this morning as I drove to work. I was driving the speed limit down a 35-mph street when suddenly I hit a puddle along the right side of the road, sending a large spray of water up on the sidewalk. Unfortunately, a pedestrian was walking along the road and got drenched by the spray from my car. It was unavoidable as there was a car to

Garretthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04963513287623523903noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18810130.post-1133201289184687202005-11-28T12:02:00.000-06:002005-11-28T12:17:59.520-06:00

This one was too wacky to not mention in this blog. Apparently some girl was killed by a kiss from her boyfriend who had just eaten peanut butter and she was allergic. I guess all of that teaching in Sunday School denouncing teenage open-mouthed kissing may have saved countless lives. Check out the write up on CNN.

Garretthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04963513287623523903noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18810130.post-1132774018507859802005-11-23T13:26:00.000-06:002005-12-08T10:49:48.350-06:00

1- Christ, our Savior2- Living prophets3- Every good and decent thing taught and implemented by members of all faiths and the good that comes from their trust in a loving God.4- a loving wife and companion5- two beautiful, healthy children6- a family who is close even though we're far apart7- employment and the resources to buy the necessities of life8- the freedoms of this nation9- the

Garretthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04963513287623523903noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18810130.post-1132631886425392462005-11-21T21:54:00.000-06:002005-11-22T14:13:56.986-06:00

I'd feel I'd regret it if I didn't designate a post to President Bush's historic visit to our beloved Mongolia, the first of such a visit of any sitting American President. Of the dozens of articles I've found reporting on the visit, I like this one from CNN for it's focus on the culture Pres. Bush was exposed to and also for it's colorful slideshow. We're hoping this is the first of many and a

Garretthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04963513287623523903noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18810130.post-1132612346360740812005-11-21T16:23:00.000-06:002005-11-21T16:32:26.380-06:00

I believe having a sense of humor about yourself, your identity, and your religion is important to keeping a cool head in this life. Check out the funny routine below in Jeff-Foxworthy style (although I don't think this comes from Jeff himself). On MormonsIf you postdate your checks while shopping on Sunday...You might be a Mormon.If you believe Heck is the place for people who do not believe

Garretthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04963513287623523903noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18810130.post-1132253249424018242005-11-17T12:05:00.000-06:002005-11-18T09:23:34.440-06:00

I can't allow this week to pass without at least a brief (or not-so brief) message on my take of the BYU-Utah rivalry and the game coming up on Saturday. Unlike many who consider themselves active in the rivalry spirit, I do not "hate" the opponents. I believe the University of Utah is a fine institution of learning and its medical research is top notch. Although its academic requirements are

Garretthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04963513287623523903noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18810130.post-1131744859198963742005-11-12T08:25:00.000-06:002005-11-11T15:34:19.206-06:00

While there is a part of me that would love to see Romney win the presidency in 2008, a bigger part of me doesn't want to see my religion demonized and treated like a pinata. Amy Sullivan, writer for the Washington Monthly, hits the nail on the head with her article, "Mitt Romney's Evangelical Problem." The problem isn't that he's Mormon, it's that the evangelicals slander Mormonism in the

Garretthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04963513287623523903noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18810130.post-1131738606129703432005-11-11T18:43:00.000-06:002005-11-11T13:52:38.833-06:00

Issue #2 - ANWRAlaska National Wildlife Refuge - this week Senators tried to tack on the approval to pursue tapping into the petroleum reserves in Alaska onto the budget cuts bill. On a side bar: I hate the fact that so many times good bills are shot down because of these addendums. I think each and every issue should be a separate bill. This may not be possible and may expose my ignorance to

Garretthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04963513287623523903noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18810130.post-1131735807715947102005-11-11T12:00:00.000-06:002005-11-11T13:03:27.723-06:00

I've decided to begin a series of posts of my views regarding a number of the current issues circulating throughout today's media. While each issue probably deserves a series of posts in order to thoroughly discuss each one, a short paragraph or two establishing my stance will have to suffice. My take on Environmental Issues - Part 1Energy - Much has been said lately following the recent

Garretthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04963513287623523903noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18810130.post-1131652208540349902005-11-10T13:33:00.000-06:002005-11-11T11:14:04.603-06:00

I've decided to create this forum, separate from our family blog, so my family and friends can keep a pulse on the latest and greatest with our kids and family without having to sort through the posts of my opinions unrelated to our family. Many thoughts swirl through my head, thoughts on politics, economics, sports, religion, and society in general, but many of them rarely get expressed. So what

Garretthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04963513287623523903noreply@blogger.com2