Freedom?????s just another word for ?????nothing left to lose?????

[_antishock8]

[_beastie]

I think we should all rise up and force will to use antishock's pix as his avatar.

tee hee

[_wenglund]

And a happy April Fool's Day to you too, Will.

(Too bad that you're unaware that every word you wrote is true, however.)

Alas, I expected this reaction. I guess I should have waited until tomorrow . . .

I would hope, for your sake, that your post is truthful. However, you don't seem either angry or sad enough to be genuine.

So, are you suggesting that an unspecified level of anger and sadness is the litmus test for genuine ex-Mormonism? If so, then how angry and sad does an ex-Mormon have to be to qualify as genuine?

Thanks, -Wade Englund-

For Mormons who were strong in the faith, leaving is very very difficult and is usually met with overwhelming emotion that finds its way out. Much like someone whose parent or child has died. Likewise if someone comes into work and announces that their father just died, you would expect the person to be sad and somewhat emotionally effected, as that would be normal. There is no litmus test of sadness or anger. I am just suggesting that, after observing many people leave their faith, Wills confession seemed a little off. It might be true.

The reason for me asking is because, contrary to the conclusions you jumped to about me below, my considerable experience with former members (including those who were strong in the faith) has taught me that emotional responses when leaving run the gamit from very significant to very mild, and it does ex-Mormons a disservice to stereotype them in the way that you did. In short, it may falsely raise questions about "genuinness" with those who have genuinely left the Church, though without the same level of emotional drama you may have experienced.

It is typical for members to underestimate the emotional hardship encountered in leaving the Church, so unlike Will's, I think your remarks are par for course. However, I don't expect you to understand something you have not encountered yourself. So I hold no ill will towards you.

I believe you have grossly misjudged me. All I did was ask you a clarifying question in hopes of testing your stereotypical perception of former members, and from that you mistakenly claimed that I have made remarks that "are par for the course", and wrongly suggested that I underestimate the emotional hardships of those leaving the Church, and falsely presumed that I wouldn't understand and hadn't encounter ex-Mormonism myself. Whoo!! So many errors from so little. ;-)

Thanks, -Wade Englund-

[_Mercury]

And a happy April Fool's Day to you too, Will.

(Too bad that you're unaware that every word you wrote is true, however.)

Alas, I expected this reaction. I guess I should have waited until tomorrow . . .

I would hope, for your sake, that your post is truthful. However, you don't seem either angry or sad enough to be genuine.

So, are you suggesting that an unspecified level of anger and sadness is the litmus test for genuine ex-Mormonism? If so, then how angry and sad does an ex-Mormon have to be to qualify as genuine?

Thanks, -Wade Englund-

I said what I meant and I meant what I said Wade is a tool 100 percent.

You are a tool, wade.

[_Coggins7]

I figure I owe it to all of you here in Shadyville to be the first ones to hear the news: After an arduous struggle between the two conflicted parts of my mind, I have come to the unavoidable conclusion that I must face the facts, awaken from my intellectual slumber, and make the break from the chains of LDS apologia and the mythology of Mormonism.

I realize that this might come as a shock to many of you, especially some of the former targets of my zealotry like Dartagnan, Mr. Scratch, Sethbag, The Dude, and others. But, as you can well imagine (each of you having previously gone through the process) there comes a time when you can no longer pretend that it all makes sense; that there are plausible answers to the unanswerable questions; that the proverbial “shelf” can hold all those things you have placed on it over the years.

So, this is my declaration of freedom. I choose to face the formidable world on its own terms, casting aside the crutch of religion and my false hopes for a better world to come. I only regret that I permitted so much of my life to be wasted before I came to this moment of liberation. But, better late than never. Better now before another day is wasted following down the rabbit holes of a philosophy and theology that is only designed to lead you from trick to trick, never once gratifying your deepest needs for meaning and purpose. Now I see that meaning and purpose are of my own making; if I am to worship a god, he will be of my own creation. And should I desire to live forever, then I must leave behind something that will be remembered long after I have crumbled to the basic elements of which I am made.

Thank you all for assisting me in reaching this epiphanous moment. Though my path may lead me away from message boards forever, I will never forget you and the important role you played in helping me find my way.

And...

Already I am being vilified by the TBMs! I guess that is quite predictable. But your insinuation that my alleged over-supply of masculinity would make me unsuited for continued association with Mormonism is quite backwards, if you ask me. The LDS church welcomes and promotes those who are committed to the patriarchal order of the priesthood. Were I to continue among them, what hope would my daughters ever have for purpose and fulfillment in their lives? None! They would simply be groomed for early marriage, as many children as they could bear, and a lifetime of working in the shadows, doing all the menial tasks that men feel themselves too "masculine" to perform.

My liberation is undoubtedly the best thing to ever happen to my precious daughters. Now they have a future.

And...

This is precisely the kind of thing you would expect from someone who thinks he has "priesthood." And, of course, he doesn't care if any of them are his age. In fact, if he follows the course of his revered prophet, he will pick them as young as possible.

Just a spoonful of Kool-Aid helps the medicine go down. As a set of rationalizations for leaving the Church, this is rather standard potboiler stuff; shallow, self serving, and vain.

Its always tragic to see this happen, but such standard, strained rationalizations always seem to consume the tragic elements in intellectual and psychological farce.

[Guest]

No comment on the OP -- sorry. :)

Oh! My! Goodness! No Country For Old Men is amazing! I watched it twice in one night. It was such an unexpected plot. Oh, and just the right amount of shivers, mouth gaping, and cringing to keep me paranoid for a week straight! The ending had me just sitting there staring at the screen -- HUH? Huh? Huhhhhh? I wanted more! Yet, what more was there? I liked!

[_harmony]

Just a spoonful of Kool-Aid helps the medicine go down. As a set of rationalizations for leaving the Church, this is rather standard potboiler stuff; shallow, self serving, and vain.

Its always tragic to see this happen, but such standard, strained rationalizations always seem to consume the tragic elements in intellectual and psychological farce.

Loran... he's joking. It's an April Fool joke.

[_Scottie]

You're kidding but there's always truth in a joke. You will fall away, Will. It's inevitable. Your beard and hair over the collar are sure signs of impending apostasy.

Wait...That's actually a pic of Will? I thought that was Al from Home Improvement.

And, nice April Fools joke, Will.

[_Mercury]

Just a spoonful of Kool-Aid helps the medicine go down. As a set of rationalizations for leaving the Church, this is rather standard potboiler stuff; shallow, self serving, and vain.

Its always tragic to see this happen, but such standard, strained rationalizations always seem to consume the tragic elements in intellectual and psychological farce.

Loran... he's joking. It's an April Fool joke.

more proof Loran has burgers of the ass syndrome.

[_beastie]

There is one part of Will's prank that I find very believable - that he's not that active in the church. After seeing several surprising confessions, over the years, by defenders of the faith regarding their minimal or nonexistent level of "real life" church activity, I have come to believe that a significant percentage of online defenders of the faith are either inactive or nominally active, or they have struggled with issues that would prevent them from obtaining temple recommends. Maybe something serious, like an affair, or WoW infractions, or something questionable like addiction to internet porn and/or masturbation. I wonder if they think by posting in defense of the church they're earning heavenly brownie points that compensate for their other problems. Or do they mentally count this as a form of "missionary work" so they can put a little check in that To Do column?