An Open Letter to Mr. and Mrs. Keyes
Posted: Sat May 03, 2008 5:46 am
Dear Mr. and Mrs. Keyes,
I have every reason to believe that you are good people. Tal obviously thinks highly of you both, and because I respect his integrity, I'll take him at his word on the good things he said as I take him at his word on the conversation that took place a few years ago. But while you are good people, I think you've set yourselves down a dark path.
Had not someone from FAIR contacted you, the realm of Internet Mormonism would likely have remained hidden from you for the rest of your days. Can I speak honestly? No one in Internet Mormonism has a deep interest in your well-being. They have an interest in settling scores. You are convenient to their purpose of acting in revenge on deeply held personal grievances. Please, as a psychiatrist, read some of the comments by the church members on the FAIR/MAD thread dedicated to your letters and tell me (or rather yourself) that these people aren't suffering. Now, do I think that the critics on this board don't have their issues and don't act in revenge, and aren't part of a series of bitter feuds? Not at all. I happen to think that the popular critics are on the whole more self-actualized and happier than the popular apologists, but there is plenty of bitterness and anger on this side too. I'm just being honest my friends, when I tell you that you aren't playing a Godly role in setting a record true, you've merely been suckered into assisting a very bitter and angry crowd into getting some strong punches in on a long standing battle.
Now, that crowd thinks that the "critics" will be distraught over having the accused put his own side of the story in writing. That is hardly the case. How do I put this: I am not a good person. At all. And I'm delighted to see Tal reveal a conversation that shows the doubts of an SP, and then that SP coming back and in perfectly scripted GA language, denounce Tal's side of the story and robotically bear testimony of the restoration. It's fun to watch. It's the kind of drama that drives me back to the boards in times when I feel there's nothing for me here anymore. I hope you stick around and watch it unfold, register on FAIR/MAD, and become part of some nasty board wars. But is that what you want, and are you ready for it? The anger and vindictiveness of Internet Mormonism is contagious. And be assured, your personal lives here are mere ammunition for the big-guns over at FAIR/MAD. Not to mention Tal obviously has an ace up his sleeve. But you're both so eager to bet, and for what? For the sake of allowing a bunch of angry counter-critics to feel like they've been vindicated?
Now I'd like to offer some personal counsel to each of you.
Mrs. Keyes,
I had to smile when you said you know your husband intimately. And based on that, you know he'd never say what Tal claims he said. You know, there is a reason why wives always worry about their husbands hanging out with their friends. It's because, male bonding supercedes all other earthly and heavenly contracts. When men get together and hang out, they become totally different people than they are at the office, the pulpit, and saying grace over family dinner. If Mr. Keys has doubts about the church, believe me, one of his buddies is going to hear about it long before you. Now, as a psychiatrist and an ecclesiastical leader, one might be doubly ensured that he would not concede such things in a "session" with a "patient". Normally, I'd agree. But Tal -- let's face it -- is semi-famous, he's very intelligent and charismatic. I have no doubts that these attributes put him immediately on an equal level with your husband and that your husbands concerns about the church could most definitely come out in a conversation with Tal. Get him a setting with me and some of the guys and let's see how fast the "Nephi talk" goes out the window and he becomes your typical male horn-dog and clown that shows off to his friends. And in that relaxed settings, the inhibitians are torn down and the deeper concerns will flow.
Mr. Keyes,
My friend, you are a psychiatrist. You can claim knowledge of Christ and God, Nephi and Moroni and the plates until the cows come home but, if someone comes into your office and claims they know Gorgax rules the galaxy and the message of Zin was inscribed on the fourth rock inside the Great Cave, the only thing to keep you from rolling your eyes will be your concern over how the three or four medications you're about to prescribe might interact with each other. In fact, I doubt you even believe most other church members know Jesus Christ personally and all that when they claim it. In fact, making such a big deal of it in your letter and going over all the things you've been conditioned to recite as factual knowledge as a Mormon only reveals your insecurity. Or if not that, the ruse. The ruse you must play into that most of the time, you almost convince yourself to be reality. In fact, as a psychiatrist, you may reach such levels of skepticism that you salvage it all on the fact that all this BS any of us subscribe to is so equally ridiculous that why not just go along with what you're comfortable with and built into a life of your own?
I'm sorry, but I think you're too intelligent and educated in the right ways to NOT have doubts and Tal's story rings credible to my ear.
I have every reason to believe that you are good people. Tal obviously thinks highly of you both, and because I respect his integrity, I'll take him at his word on the good things he said as I take him at his word on the conversation that took place a few years ago. But while you are good people, I think you've set yourselves down a dark path.
Had not someone from FAIR contacted you, the realm of Internet Mormonism would likely have remained hidden from you for the rest of your days. Can I speak honestly? No one in Internet Mormonism has a deep interest in your well-being. They have an interest in settling scores. You are convenient to their purpose of acting in revenge on deeply held personal grievances. Please, as a psychiatrist, read some of the comments by the church members on the FAIR/MAD thread dedicated to your letters and tell me (or rather yourself) that these people aren't suffering. Now, do I think that the critics on this board don't have their issues and don't act in revenge, and aren't part of a series of bitter feuds? Not at all. I happen to think that the popular critics are on the whole more self-actualized and happier than the popular apologists, but there is plenty of bitterness and anger on this side too. I'm just being honest my friends, when I tell you that you aren't playing a Godly role in setting a record true, you've merely been suckered into assisting a very bitter and angry crowd into getting some strong punches in on a long standing battle.
Now, that crowd thinks that the "critics" will be distraught over having the accused put his own side of the story in writing. That is hardly the case. How do I put this: I am not a good person. At all. And I'm delighted to see Tal reveal a conversation that shows the doubts of an SP, and then that SP coming back and in perfectly scripted GA language, denounce Tal's side of the story and robotically bear testimony of the restoration. It's fun to watch. It's the kind of drama that drives me back to the boards in times when I feel there's nothing for me here anymore. I hope you stick around and watch it unfold, register on FAIR/MAD, and become part of some nasty board wars. But is that what you want, and are you ready for it? The anger and vindictiveness of Internet Mormonism is contagious. And be assured, your personal lives here are mere ammunition for the big-guns over at FAIR/MAD. Not to mention Tal obviously has an ace up his sleeve. But you're both so eager to bet, and for what? For the sake of allowing a bunch of angry counter-critics to feel like they've been vindicated?
Now I'd like to offer some personal counsel to each of you.
Mrs. Keyes,
I had to smile when you said you know your husband intimately. And based on that, you know he'd never say what Tal claims he said. You know, there is a reason why wives always worry about their husbands hanging out with their friends. It's because, male bonding supercedes all other earthly and heavenly contracts. When men get together and hang out, they become totally different people than they are at the office, the pulpit, and saying grace over family dinner. If Mr. Keys has doubts about the church, believe me, one of his buddies is going to hear about it long before you. Now, as a psychiatrist and an ecclesiastical leader, one might be doubly ensured that he would not concede such things in a "session" with a "patient". Normally, I'd agree. But Tal -- let's face it -- is semi-famous, he's very intelligent and charismatic. I have no doubts that these attributes put him immediately on an equal level with your husband and that your husbands concerns about the church could most definitely come out in a conversation with Tal. Get him a setting with me and some of the guys and let's see how fast the "Nephi talk" goes out the window and he becomes your typical male horn-dog and clown that shows off to his friends. And in that relaxed settings, the inhibitians are torn down and the deeper concerns will flow.
Mr. Keyes,
My friend, you are a psychiatrist. You can claim knowledge of Christ and God, Nephi and Moroni and the plates until the cows come home but, if someone comes into your office and claims they know Gorgax rules the galaxy and the message of Zin was inscribed on the fourth rock inside the Great Cave, the only thing to keep you from rolling your eyes will be your concern over how the three or four medications you're about to prescribe might interact with each other. In fact, I doubt you even believe most other church members know Jesus Christ personally and all that when they claim it. In fact, making such a big deal of it in your letter and going over all the things you've been conditioned to recite as factual knowledge as a Mormon only reveals your insecurity. Or if not that, the ruse. The ruse you must play into that most of the time, you almost convince yourself to be reality. In fact, as a psychiatrist, you may reach such levels of skepticism that you salvage it all on the fact that all this BS any of us subscribe to is so equally ridiculous that why not just go along with what you're comfortable with and built into a life of your own?
I'm sorry, but I think you're too intelligent and educated in the right ways to NOT have doubts and Tal's story rings credible to my ear.