Disqus - Latest Comments for surakmn

Re: Joe. My. God.: FLORIDA: 18 Year-Old Girl Arrested & Expelled For Sex With 15 Year-Old Girl

surakmn — Mon, 20 May 2013 00:38:38 -0000

This kind of BS isn't unique to same sex relationships - fairly common when parents don't approve of one's partner and opportunistic given the treatment of sexuality in society. This is a practical application of the principle that seniors don't date freshmen. Of course in real life it sometimes happens and the laws should be written better to prevent idiocy such as this. There's absolutely no defensible reason to have a criminal case here. It's not the first time Florida has defied reason.

Re: T-Mobile Changing 200MB Data Plan Away From Throttling To Overage

surakmn — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 23:50:03 -0000

And thus we see it is possible to fool some of the people all the time. The incremental cost for bandwidth is going down as networks are built out and technology improves. It's not by chance that in developing countries, wireless is a predominant way of getting online. As usual, the US is playing catch up, with the carriers being dragged kicking and screaming.

Re: T-Mobile Changing 200MB Data Plan Away From Throttling To Overage

surakmn — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 20:12:29 -0000

Ala carte at $10 per gig would get them a lot more data users, and lot more smartphone sales. With family plans it's simply not cost effective to pay $30+ a line for data, esp. compared to offerings from Boost, Virgin Mobile, etc. Hopefully they'll figure it out sooner rather than later.

Re: If I were “Mope” (Mormon Pope) Revisited

surakmn — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 01:26:31 -0000

Yes, much clearer indeed. "Restoration" is used differently depending on context. There is of course the "restoration" branch off of Protestantism in the early 19th century. Authors within the Latter-day Saint movement also refer to that tradition as a "restoration" tradition. Certainly Joseph Smith was influenced by the restoration and reform movements of his era, but that doesn't make the LDS branch a direct, organic part of the Cambelite restoration movement. http://en.wikipedia.org/wik... and http://en.wikipedia.org/wik... do a good job explaining how both are properly restoration yet distinct. Matters of authority, for example, are more along Catholic or Orthodox lines for LDS traditions, which is to say the belief that they have it and others do not.

And it also helps to understand that you are not LDS or within the various LDS traditions but simply have ideas on what they should change. That is fine. I have ideas on how Catholicism, the Southern Baptists, etc. should change as well. And of course it's all well taken with several grains of salt. Faith is subjective and personal and what works for one won't for another and vice versa.

One's perspective influences what to make of the various suggestions. For example, the suggestion that spiritual gifts be brought back presupposes both that they are no longer extant (which I know from my own personal experience to be false) and that man has control over them such to restore, yet we know such belong to God to be administered to His purposes. Similarly, the notion that a person in church A understands scripture differently than church B is hardly surprising, and is no reason for church B to be obligated to change.

An interesting discussion. Thanks for hosting!

Re: If I were “Mope” (Mormon Pope) Revisited

surakmn — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 02:22:05 -0000

I guess that's the ultimate question, idealistic toward what ideal? The Worldwide Church of God is a good example - they became more like the Southern Baptists, but we already had Southern Baptists. What sells is part of it, always has been with successful organizations. If you're not meeting the needs of the participating members, they'll meet the needs elsewhere. I've offered some additional list items below. :)

Re: If I were “Mope” (Mormon Pope) Revisited

surakmn — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 02:19:07 -0000

Um, not really. I'd say the core was restoration in and of itself - of doctrine and of authority. Joseph Smith believed in the Bible as he believed it came from the authors themselves, not the current version with plain and precious parts removed which is why he spent his life revising it (granted that the JST is considered interesting for study not authoritative scripture). The Bible itself can be considered inspired and inspiring, but objectively is not historical (even if it does refer to some people who probably existed) and came to be in large part from stories of shepherds drinking grog around the fire. I see no value in pretending the Bible is magical compared to other works simply because it's older. I also think there's tremendous power in the principle that God speaks to many nations across many times - including in our day and age. That should be a great motivator in remaining sensitive to others and being instruments in His hands based on today's circumstances instead of superimposing our contemporary western preferences on what is ancient Eastern writing. I am not suggesting the Bible be jettisoned, I simply treat it like other scriptural works -- that we recognize what scripture is, what it is not, and that useful things even today can qualify as scripture.

I don't see how you get rid of modern prophets, ongoing revelation, divine investiture, and distinctive theology and not tear the heart of the restoration. Churches ARE social clubs of a sort, they happen to claim a "special" place, but they are social/charitable organizations.

I've already given a few of my wishes. Others would be less correlation, more local control, more local flexibility on meeting structures across various cultures, more direct community involvement (including ability to donate money as well as man-hours to community efforts), etc.

Re: If I were “Mope” (Mormon Pope) Revisited

surakmn — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 16:04:29 -0000

The New is also rife with issues, origination mythology is inherently a bit whacked. By definition believers voluntarily suspend disbelief and run with it, often to the greater good.

Re: If I were “Mope” (Mormon Pope) Revisited

surakmn — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 15:57:43 -0000

In other words, turn Mormonism into yet another liberal Protestant denomination. I like some of the list, like embracing history and more transparency, but in terms of distinctive beliefs I don't see why I wouldn't just join an existing denomination if I wanted that, there's hardly a shortage of liberal Protestant traditions.

Re: Why Netflix Wants You to ‘Just Say No’ to DVDs

surakmn — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 16:50:03 -0000

The point isn't zero streaming content, and it's whether what you want is available. The hard media catalog is simply more robust. The combined services are complimentary, and are worth more together than separate.

What happens to the business model when more telcos place caps on data usage? You know it's going to be an issue.

Re: Breakdown of New Classic and Value Plans!

surakmn — Sun, 10 Jul 2011 01:24:07 -0000

Not always. Depends on how many minutes you use, what data plan you need, what phones you select, and a host of other factors. No question you're getting the best deal of the majors. Whether it's the absolute minimum you can be paying and still get what you need depends on your usage profile.

Re: Breakdown of New Classic and Value Plans!

surakmn — Sat, 09 Jul 2011 19:53:01 -0000

T-Mo is GSM. There are plenty of no contract options available in the US, though only the major carriers carry the latest high end phones.

Re: Breakdown of New Classic and Value Plans!

surakmn — Sat, 09 Jul 2011 19:40:59 -0000

We need to do the math looking at specific phones involved to know whether it saves money compared to the classic plans factoring in the additional payments for the phone. The last time I compared using the actual phones my family has across four lines, over the two year term we were better off taking the discounts. If you aren't looking at high end phones you can get the phones cheaper through somewhere like Boost or Virgin Mobile without being tied into a two year commitment. But it's definitely a step in the right direction, and an exciting enough change I'm breaking out the spreadsheets to see if it's worth redoing my own contracts

Re: Breakdown of New Classic and Value Plans!

surakmn — Sat, 09 Jul 2011 00:21:23 -0000

Certainly a step in the right direction. it's time to do the math again with the new rates factored in. Last time I did the exercise your total out of pocket expense over two years was still cheaper with the subsidy despite the higher monthly rate if you had high end phones. And if you're not using a high end phone, Virgin Mobile, Boost, et. al. sell the hardware for less and still undercut the pricing a bit. But definitely a step in the right direction. It's almost enough to have me considering renewing the contract before knowing the AT&T merger is blocked. I've had good luck with T-Mo over the past few years, but I'm not sticking around for AT&T.

Re: Bristol Palin’s memoir offers lessons for parents of teens

surakmn — Sat, 25 Jun 2011 18:04:17 -0000

Important messages deserve credible messengers. Unfortunately Bristol isn't one. They parade Levi around during the '08 campaign like a show pony on a leash, then three years ex post facto she's accusing him of rape. She learned historical revisionism from the best. I'm sure Levi's got plenty of faults, but it's unlikely she's a blushing innocent either..

Re: New York Senate approves gay marriage

surakmn — Sat, 25 Jun 2011 17:27:28 -0000

Very well done, as usual. Too many people are eager to confuse spiritual vs. secular spheres of responsibility. You make the distinction well.

Re: T-Mobile Comments on New FCC Filings, Calls Opponents Ostriches

surakmn — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 17:51:40 -0000

I'm waiting to see where the dust settles. If the merger is approved, I'm not renewing any of my lines on TMo.

Re: Mormons talk policy & more at Obama White House | The Salt Lake Tribune

surakmn — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 01:12:19 -0000

"If the White House could ensure that gay marriage would not lead to
requiring the LDS Church to allow same-sex weddings in its temples, that
would go a long way toward allaying Mormon fears."

Reading the Constitution would go a long way toward allaying Mormon fears. Lots of people are allowed to marry who don't marry in Mormon temples because they don't have temple recommends. It has absolutely nothing to do with a government issued permit.

Re: German government votes to go nuke free by 2022

surakmn — Mon, 30 May 2011 11:57:51 -0000

Good on the surface of it, but they replace the power sources with what? Climate change isn't going away and if they replace it with fossil fuels it's not really a step forward.

Re: Mitt Romney’s “Garments”

surakmn — Sat, 21 May 2011 14:26:10 -0000

I appreciate what you're saying but it seems a little self serving if not childish. So you've drawn Multiple Choice Mitt wearing boxer briefs and a t-shirt. So? Responsible grown ups don't make a habit of talking about their underwear. Clinton was an exception, dignifying the "briefs vs. boxers" question, and we've established how responsible he was in his personal life. Assuming Romney were to do something stupid enough to require drawing him in underwear the standard image of a (male) politician in underwear is boxer shorts. I don't see how you deviate from that without otherwise distracting from whatever point you're trying to make.

Re: Switched On: Chrome alone

surakmn — Sun, 15 May 2011 22:30:21 -0000

I've been very interested in the idea, but don't know how comfortable I am with the idea of a computing tool that's a brick without a network connection. Particularly when for the same money I could get a laptop. It'll be very interesting to see how things develop.

Re: What "The King's Speech" Teaches about Mormon Culture

surakmn — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 12:20:04 -0000

I suppose this one is in the eye of the beholder. I have not seen any softening at all in the "you have agency to obey" crowd, other people never paid much attention to the taboo in the first place.

There is a lot of variety in the media and the quality has much more to do with content than with movie ratings. To be honest I'm more cautious about what my children watch with PG13 and PG ratings simply because too many people give them a pass without scrutinizing what is in them.

Re: Senate Bill First, Then Tweaks Via Reconciliation

surakmn — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 16:29:34 -0000

Conrad is wrong, which happens more often than Montanans should be comfortable with. The House is well within its rights and on the smarter side of history to not trust the Senate and demand a good faith showing by passing the necessary fixes. The House can then pass the Senate bill with associated fixes which can then be signed into law in the correct order. It would be foolishness to demand anything less than full accountable up front from the Senate.

Re: Caster Semenya Update

surakmn — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 23:32:00 -0000

This is one of those situations that basically sucks because there is no solution that is fair to all parties involved. They'll almost certainly not take away her medal, she wasn't doping. It will be interesting to see what they do wrt future eligibility. Her competitors cannot level the playing field without illegal doping (and comparing hormones to longer legs isn't an argument if you understand biology), yet Semenya has done nothing wrong at all. It's a fluke of mother nature, and mother nature isn't fair.

The asshats who released her results to the public before the courtesy of conferring with her and with South African officials should burn in hell. She deserves more respect and common courtesy than that.

Liss' comments wrt Michael Phelps are interesting. Yes, if you are that much above average, which at the elite sports level is a pretty damn high average, something must be "wrong" with you. Wrong probably isn't the right word, but certainly "different" would apply. Intersex isn't the same thing as Marfan's, but at what point are they consistent in how they apply the rules and are they interpreted differently for men vs. women?

Re: I have Issues with cell phones. Do you?

surakmn — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 16:41:27 -0000

I disagree that talking to people in the car, etc., can't be just as distracting - I've missed turns, etc. because of it. The problem is distracted driving rather than cell phones in particular. That said, laws prohibiting texting and the like while driving are needed, even if it's a sad commentary on the state of common sense that people need laws to compel such.

Re: John Ensign, Double Standards On Both Sides ?

surakmn — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 01:37:08 -0000

Who are the people on the left calling for his resignation? I've heard a lot of amusement over his hypocrisy and that he would condemn Clinton and Craig but not Vitter, but nobody seriously expects him to resign.