The Interpreter Radio Show

[_Tom]

this segment has caused the meltdown of one orthodox Latter-day Saint supporter of Interpreter

That link was the must-read of the day for sure. Shear beauty. by the way, it did make me wonder what orthodox Muslims would think of the multi-discipline "BYU Koran" had history been a little different.

Fortunately, that faithful brother has seen fit to publish two more comments (December 14 at 1:11 pm and December 14 at 9:21 am). I hope Allen Wyatt invites him to review Smith's commentary for Interpreter.

[_Lemmie]

this segment has caused the meltdown of one orthodox Latter-day Saint supporter of Interpreter

That link was the must-read of the day for sure. Shear beauty. by the way, it did make me wonder what orthodox Muslims would think of the multi-discipline "BYU Koran" had history been a little different.

Fortunately, that faithful brother has seen fit to publish two more comments (December 14 at 1:11 pm and December 14 at 9:21 am). I hope Allen Wyatt invites him to review Smith's commentary for Interpreter.

Wow. He has fully embraced the idea that even a drop of what he calls "feminism" will taint his learning process irrevocably. I fully believe him when he says he never has that problem while reading McConkie.

Tom, your summaries are a delight, thank you so much!! Also, i find your ongoing compilations of financial data very interesting, thank you for that as well. A webfestschrift in your honor would be a pleasure.

[Guest]

Tom, your summaries are a delight, thank you so much!! Also, i find your ongoing compilations of financial data very interesting, thank you for that as well. A webfestschrift in your honor would be a pleasure.

You're too kind, Lemmie. Really, I would also be willing to accept a modest living allowance that is akin to the salary of the average full university professor in America.

By the way, I am currently feasting on a savory baloney sandwich (toasted rye bread, spicy dijon mustard, and Boston lettuce) while making my way through volume 1 of Cumorah: The Journal of Book of Mormon Geography. I predict that this significant new player in the field of faithful Latter-day Saint scholarship will pull away a number of subscribers from Interpreter. Life is good.

Posted from Lynndyl, Utah

[_Gadianton]

Thanks for Alerting me, Tom. I've cracked open a third Stone Delicious to celebrate the fresh commentary.

After reading Horne's comments, and his citations of Gee etc., I feel moved to arbitrate:

Dennis Horne: PLEASE LISTEN CAREFULLY. Whatever you do, DO NOT withdraw your financial support of the Interpreter over this. There has been a misunderstanding, and I'm here to help. You have to understand that a publication as elite as Interpreter can't escape politics in the way that you and I can merely navigating our own opinions. Have you ever been to the misspelled Forn Spǫll Fira blog? Have you ever been to Sic et Non? Have you ever read Lou Midgley's comments at Sic et Non? Have you ever been to Enigmatic Mirror? If you have, then do you really believe that Mopologetics will be compromised by feminism any time soon?

Let's put a find point on it: feminism + reader-response theory. Two birds, one stone. The Mopologists brilliantly get a token feminist and token critical theorist worked into their volume for the price of one, in order to maintain plausible deniability that they are not a one-track outfit, and to lend credibility to their accusations against the New MI, that the new MI only does critical theory and no historico-critical. They are the renaissance men who do it all, not the impostors at the new MI. Now you might be thinking, is it really worth going through all this trouble just to subtly try and make a point like this?

The answer is, YES! What do you think this volume is to begin with? This whole project is an effort to maintain plausible deniability that Mormons give a rat's ass about the Bible! Why not add another layer of deniability to it? When you hand this out to your friends and family this year, it's with a *wink wink* and a *nudge nudge* where both giver and receiver bristle, "Oh, this is a tremendous addition to our legacy of respect for the *cough* Bible (sneer). And look, these men are so open minded that they include feminism in their commentary" and then they quietly file the book away on their shelves next to all the other Mopologist works they've never read. But they know who was right back in 2012, and who will be restored to their rightful place in power one day, one day very soon.

[_Doctor Scratch]

It seems clear to me that Brother Horne is a front-runner for the 2019 Sampson Avard Golden Scepter Award.

[_Tom]

It's scarcely a secret that I am an avid listener of the Interpreter Radio Show. Imagine my distress, then, when I came across a passing note from Dr. Peterson last Sunday reporting that that evening's broadcast "may be our last." What? Why? Where would I get my weekly fix of discussion, debate, and the latest information on all kinds of religious issues and topics? How would I continue to enjoy Dr. Gee's desiccated wit and enigmatic and solemn insights on a regular basis? (His blog is essentially dead.) Where else would I get updates on the Interpreter Foundation's million-dollar Book of Mormon Witnesses docudrama? What other program plays Gene Loves Jezebel bumper music and has the same creaking chairs, delayed introductions, awkward silences, and dead microphones? What other show attracts wacky callers from Enoch and Ophir asking about Hugh Nibley's remarkable discovery of Laban's Sword in the Lehi Cave or rumors about ancient scrolls hidden inside the Dream Mine? A million thoughts raced through my head.

Dr. Peterson subsequently provided some explanation:

K-Talk is asking all shows to pay a certain amount per month in order to stay on the air.

We're not inclined to pay, so we're looking at other ways of keeping it going.

This brings to mind comments several years ago from FairMormon chairman John Lynch indicating that FairMormon volunteers "pay to help us." The volunteers cannot simply donate their time and talents and all their material possessions to FairMormon. In essence, to use Mr. Lynch's words, K-Talk has told the Interpreter Foundation that "we need you to put some skin in the game." No more free milk from the cow. No more free airtime and advertising for the Foundation's work.

To my relief, and to the relief of literally hundreds of Latter-day Saints living along the Wasatch front, though, Dr. Peterson subsequently provided some additional reassurance about the radio show's future: "I think that it will continue. The only question is where and precisely how."

It seems that Interpreter doesn't want to pay to play, so we may be seeing future Interpreter Radio Show broadcasts from Dr. Peterson's finished basement. But that's good enough for me.

[_Gadianton]

How did the "last" broadcast go?

seems to me the Interpreter is just a shell for the critical text project as everything else besides that add up to less than 1% of the budget.

[_Doctor Scratch]

How did the "last" broadcast go?

seems to me the Interpreter is just a shell for the critical text project as everything else besides that add up to less than 1% of the budget.

That's a very interesting observation, Dr. Robbers. The Godfather Trilogy has been airing on cable a lot lately, so maybe my thinking is being influenced by that fact, but let me posit a theoretical situation. Suppose you wanted to profit off of Mopologetics, but you're operating in a religious system that has vilified priestcraft. You are *not* supposed to make money off of things relating to your religion: even the Prophet and the Apostles don't do that sort of thing. Still, hey: you've put in your time, you've suffered your lot, and so why shouldn't you try to achieve the American Dream?

So let's say you've got a close friend who is working on this "project," and you, as CEO of the non-profit, have influence as to where the funds in that non-profit can go, and you decide to fund your close friend's "project." The "project," as it were, it just some kooky BS that has some vague connection to the purported "mission" of the non-profit: it was all just a McGuffin anyway. Meanwhile, this close friend takes the payment, and you and he split it right down the middle, 50/50. He reports it on his taxes and pays your half of it to you in cash. Or, perhaps there is a fund at BYU that pays for scholars to travel all around the globe, and this close friend opts to donate a huge chunk of his payment into this fund.

Look: this is all just speculation, just for the fun of it. None of us can know whether this resembles the truth in any way. All I will say is that, like you, Dr. Robbers, I feel that the massive sums paid out to Skousen feel "strange." I wonder if readers are really getting their money's worth, and I wonder what the rationale has been behind this project, and, more importantly, the decision to fund it.

[_Dr. Shades]

You are *not* supposed to make money off of things relating to your religion: even the Prophet and the Apostles don't do that sort of thing.

Said with tongue planted firmly in cheek, of course. . . right?

[_Kishkumen]

It seems clear to me that Brother Horne is a front-runner for the 2019 Sampson Avard Golden Scepter Award.

I sure hope so!