But there are some very good aspects to summer in Utah, three of which I’ll mention here: fresh corn on the cob, fresh tomato-cucumber salad, and fresh peaches, which made up most of our dinner on Wednesday night. (Please note: No tithe payers were injured by my consumption of these foods, nor were any donors to the Interpreter Foundation or to the Becoming Brigham project defrauded by my having obtained them.)
Oh, hey—nice! Some vegetables! Maybe eating a couple of summer vegetables in July/August will offset the steady diet of junk for the other 10 months of the year.
And yet…I admit that the omissions here are troubling. *Maybe* the plain truth was spoken here. But I suspect that the corn was eaten with copious amounts of butter and salt. And the “tomato-cucumber salad”? Dressed with olive oil? Was there some feta crumbled into it? Well, hey: that was likely the healthiest part of the meal. The peaches, I think it’s safe to say, were either swimming in heavy cream or baked into a cobbler which was served ala mode.
Meanwhile, yes: there is the issue of asking donors to give money to Interpreter while he hoards his own money to spend on seemingly endless vacations and dining.
I was struck by the revealing content immediately following the mention of the culinary delights in summer in Utah. Underneath a photo of Christopher Hitchens posted on the Hitchens Obsession Blog, the Afore writes:
The eponymous Christopher Hitchens, speaking in Colorado in 2005. Please notice the cigarette in his right hand and learn from his sad story: Smoking seems to be what eventually did him in.
“Did him in”? Stay gracious and respectful, the Afore. To borrow the Afore’s language, I suspect that violations of healthy living principles “do in” many Latter-day Saints and non-Latter-day Saints each year. Yes, may we “learn from [their] sad stor[ies].”
Oh, hey—nice! Some vegetables! Maybe eating a couple of summer vegetables in July/August will offset the steady diet of junk for the other 10 months of the year.
And yet…I admit that the omissions here are troubling. *Maybe* the plain truth was spoken here. But I suspect that the corn was eaten with copious amounts of butter and salt. And the “tomato-cucumber salad”? Dressed with olive oil? Was there some feta crumbled into it? Well, hey: that was likely the healthiest part of the meal. The peaches, I think it’s safe to say, were either swimming in heavy cream or baked into a cobbler which was served ala mode.
Meanwhile, yes: there is the issue of asking donors to give money to Interpreter while he hoards his own money to spend on seemingly endless vacations and dining.
I was struck by the revealing content immediately following the mention of the culinary delights in summer in Utah. Underneath a photo of Christopher Hitchens posted on the Hitchens Obsession Blog, the Afore writes:
The eponymous Christopher Hitchens, speaking in Colorado in 2005. Please notice the cigarette in his right hand and learn from his sad story: Smoking seems to be what eventually did him in.
“Did him in”? Stay gracious and respectful, the Afore. To borrow the Afore’s language, I suspect that violations of healthy living principles “do in” many Latter-day Saints and non-Latter-day Saints each year. Yes, may we “learn from [their] sad stor[ies].”
Peterson has a poor turn of phrase when it suits his passive aggressive nature. His obsession with Hitchins continues unabated by grace or other Christian values that are absent from the Afore’s available repertoire.
Premise 1. Eyewitness testimony is notoriously unreliable.
Premise 2. The best evidence for the Book of Mormon is eyewitness testimony.
Conclusion. Therefore, the best evidence for the Book of Mormon is notoriously unreliable.
When DCP dies of coronary heart disease from a lifetime of being significantly overweight, we should all be sure to do likewise and honor his sad story by reminding others not to over indulge.
When DCP dies of coronary heart disease from a lifetime of being significantly overweight, we should all be sure to do likewise and honor his sad story by reminding others not to over indulge.
When DCP soon succumbs to diabetes, heart disease, or one of the many obesity-related cancers, after a life of treating his mortal body like a punching bag and looking like death warmed over, even having to rely on a cane just to walk around in his Bowdlerizing Brigham videos, we should all honor his memory appropriately. Let's pour one out (preferably Diet Coke, though who are we kidding) to ensure his memory will serve as a stark warning about the dangers of gluttony and not obeying the Word of Wisdom. We must all do our best to ensure that the legacy of this architect of self-abuse, obesity and neglect isn't just a cautionary tale, but a monument to the quiet tragedy of slowly eating oneself into the grave.
When DCP dies of coronary heart disease from a lifetime of being significantly overweight, we should all be sure to do likewise and honor his sad story by reminding others not to over indulge.
When DCP soon succumbs to diabetes, heart disease, or one of the many obesity-related cancers, after a life of treating his mortal body like a punching bag and looking like death warmed over, even having to rely on a cane just to walk around in his Bowdlerizing Brigham videos, we should all honor his memory appropriately. Let's pour one out (preferably Diet Coke, though who are we kidding) to ensure his memory will serve as a stark warning about the dangers of gluttony and not obeying the Word of Wisdom. We must all do our best to ensure that the legacy of this architect of self-abuse, obesity and neglect isn't just a cautionary tale, but a monument to the quiet tragedy of slowly eating oneself into the grave.
Hitchens said in many interviews that he had given up smoking and had cut back on the drink. I doubt Dan will have the willpower in this lifetime to curtail his own vice.
The real thing that the Afore is addicted to is online fighting with critics. He's admitted to this in interviews. Arguably, his impolite swipe at Hitchens is just yet another manifestation of that addiction. His now-famous bet with Dr. Moore, where he was unable to refrain from trash-talking in exchange for a $10,000 donation to Interpreter (imagine the chicken-fried steaks and onion rings you could purchase with *that*!) is yet more proof. He himself will admit publicly to being "unable to back down," though that leaves you to wonder how that's any different from someone who has a problem with carrying grudges (which he claims he has no problem with). But he absolutely cannot control this addiction, despite the harms it has caused. It has kept him from completing book projects; it has created literally hundreds of enemies; it played a key contributing factor in him getting kicked out of the Maxwell Institute. It is, arguably, something that continues to hamper the work he's trying to do with Interpreter.
You can even see instances of it pretty much daily on "SeN." He's got a lot of folks over there who, I'm sure, are basically dying for validation / affirmation from him--if only he would acknowledge them and talk to them and make them feel like they matter! But, no: his energies (even on the Sabbath Day) are put into sniping with Mom's Spaghetti. Meanwhile, so much of the other stuff--the travel, food, leisure activities--seems like it's there to convince others, and perhaps most of all himself, that the addiction is not a real problem, because see?? See how great life is??? But then you notice that, even while on vacation, taking in some of the most sublimely beautiful sights on planet Earth, he's still taking potshots, still whining about Everybody Wang Chung's AI-generated images, still butt-hurt about the "POB."
So, if the case of Hitchens is a "sad story," then what do we call the case of a Mopologist whose life was consumed by an addiction to fighting with online critics? Hilarious? Tragi-comic?
"If, while hoping that everybody else will be honest and so forth, I can personally prosper through unethical and immoral acts without being detected and without risk, why should I not?." --Daniel Peterson, 6/4/14
I'd imagine a combination of excessive weight, poor diet, and a lack of exercise are taking their toll on his ability to walk unaided.
Premise 1. Eyewitness testimony is notoriously unreliable.
Premise 2. The best evidence for the Book of Mormon is eyewitness testimony.
Conclusion. Therefore, the best evidence for the Book of Mormon is notoriously unreliable.
