Calm

I don’t think I have ever said that unless as a child before I understood what it actually meant, but in many ways I have a literal mind. And an odd nonviolent streak in that in my dreams I can’t express effective violence, if I dream I am holding a gun for example, it turns into just my hand pointing a finger like we did as little kids. I don’t think I am that unusual in never expressing anger or whatever by proclaiming I want to kill someone, even in the two or three times I was filled with rage and hate because someone hurt someone I love. Now wanting to hit or slap someone, that I have wanted to do along with slashing tires and a few other less admirable things. My favorite form of punishment would be to remove one’s wealth and require a person to support any victim or someone the victim designates as the victim or their family may want nothing to do with them…though one would need to find a way to motivate them to do so. In this case it seems the officers came into active shooting (at least one individual report being shot at in their car in the parking lot iirc) and thus were unable to have the time to attempt to defuse the situation and responsibly stopped the man from hurting more than he did. I am grateful they were able to be so quick getting there and it was not prolonged (8 minutes iirc) so that people could be safe once they were out of the building and thus able to help each other as well as needed rescue and medical help getting to them sooner. I would not be surprised if the community gave these two medals. If the article I read was accurate, it seems the shooter had a son who needed his father to be there to give him love and care even more than usual. The son’s loss through the actions of his father (whether as a result of the father’s death or mental illness that might have caused issues earlier for the shooter’s family) and the burden that relationship will now give him (being a child of a mass murderer must do a number on one’s head and heart) is also a great tragedy.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/live-blog/michigan-church-shooting-live-updates-rcna234368

That is just awful on too many levels. Hope it’s not true.

From the article… For some reason, I associated the threats with the shooter, thinking they happened before the attack. It sounds like these were more copy cat. If so, there are some really sick people out there. Not that we didn’t know it already, but I just had to say it again. I am also finding it weird I would rather have the killer a Mormon (can’t call him a Saint or even LDS) or exmormon than a nonMormon for some reason…maybe that translates to me as he was just sick and not so much hate against us as a people. That poor family.

Was he possibly LDS? Not that everyone who lives in Utah is LDS. Summit County actually has the lowest percentage in Utah according to AI, 37%.

This is especially concerning. Obviously the ward is very disorganized at the moment, but my guess is most Saints would have the impulse to call to let the bishop or RS or someone else in the loop know they are okay…plus if ward members are unavailable, there is always the Stake. We have had it drilled into us since childhood we are a family and we are to be concerned with each other and that often translates in my experience into not letting others worry about us.

Move to Utah….

I have done a little when they are persistent and widespread because I want to understand how rational people can be convinced by irrational ideas, such as a flat earth given we have numerous satellite pictures from many different sources and other solid evidence (cherry picking evidence mostly by those who don’t understand the science and by a few who do, but err).

Thank you…. And I will be praying for the best for your wife and you.

And possibly more to come. This will be a sad conference. I anticipate uplifting talks reminding us of God’s heavenly promises for family and friends and an emphasis on peacemaking and finding peace in God.

He did identify “radical Islam” first, but then just used “Muslims” at the end, so my response was the same as yours. The mote (or chip if you prefer) and beam advice seems particularly applicable lately. If only we had built in alarms when we messed up ourselves what we criticize in others.

Off topic, but just a note to be careful with AI…. The AI headline on my google was “Church fire in Michigan leaves multiple casualties”. Think it’s missed the point.

I appreciate the thought.

The current type of expression, yes, that was absent or low incidence because of lack of accessibility just as certain social identities that exist today were also absent, but likely tendencies that might lead to such expression could have been present…such as what attracts a person to high risk sports or adventure. Since personality types and tendencies were barely beginning to be studied in depth, we don’t know if the underlying personality structures that get expressed today existed in the same amount in the general population back then.

There are studies out there on this, not just as victims. I have read them. I think it wise to study violence in all social groups. I think it very unwise to assume violence is higher for a group based on a very small percentage of that group without comparing such against other groups. For example, do you have the stats for known violent American transgender individuals to compare to white American males (chosen because this is the most common group studied in psych in my experience plus they are a significant group in the American population, so useful for comparisons…or you can just use general population for an average if you prefer). As far as chosen identities (I use this for adopted and openly expressed social identities in contrast to biological nature), some social identities are indeed more likely to be violent. Suggesting an identity is violent without credible evidence (and even several anecdotes are not sufficient to be labeled credible, imo, when dealing with a population of millions) unless it’s associated with violent rhetoric seems inappropriate to me (the KKK has been associated as a group with violent rhetoric and actual violence, there is no parallel transgender group using such rhetoric even if some individuals have done so).

One more victim is in critical condition, the rest are stable. Lots of pictures, mostly of emergency services…I suggesting using the “Reader” view to avoid all the ads https://www.freep.com/picture-gallery/news/local/michigan/2025/09/28/shooting-fire-at-church-of-jesus-christ-of-latter-day-saints-in-grand-blanc/86407096007/

Is a foal born to a champion race horse a champion race horse itself or potentially one? Is God only God because of his inherent nature or because of his chosen behaviours over the eons as well? In LDS doctrine God is God both because of his nature and his expressed agency, his chosen behaviours to be our God.

Thanks for enduring it for the rest of us…

The apostles are all prophets though. I do agree the mantle of President of the Church with all that entails both temporally and spiritually changes a person. I remember a talk from one president talking how they felt the transformation pretty quickly, though I can’t remember who and if it was mentioned shortly after he became president. I am very much looking forward to hearing from Pres. Oaks so soon after he receives it. I find the process very interesting. I doubt it happens enough that there are any set in stone rules. That kind of stuff….seems like they would adjust on a case by case basis. Even with another reading a prepared talk for someone who isn’t up to speaking in person.

It does wonderful things for me to remember this coming joy for us all (even if there are some less than joyful moments for us in the process of refinement), so thank you.

Then it might be wisest for us to be that type of fool rather than just go along with the rest…

Oh my. Expecting, but not expecting. Thanks for letting us know. I am much more emotional than I thought I would be. He was a good man.

I have seen very few, they were former Fundamentalist Evangelicals and likely carried their distrust of our faith and habits of argument from their previous faith.

Just double checking because I am spacing if you mentioned it before (brain is offline today), is this your work hat or a hat you keep for dress up?

People are creating conspiracies primarily because of the politics around it. Either they want more drama, more reason to be outraged or they don’t want the kid to be the shooter. Or they are drumming up traffic to their stuff to make money, get famous…pretty selfish reasons to mess with people, imo. It is not respectful to Kirk, imo. It is not a good thing to encourage by publicizing it, imo. If Tyler Robinson actually denies shooting Charlie Kirk and he and his roommate both say the texts between them are fake, then is the time to start looking for another shooter imo. And why wouldn’t either or both of them have spoken up before now? Even if Robinson was crazy enough to confess when innocent, his partner would unlikely be backing him. And the text info gives significant detail. And everyone around Robinson, even his parents, are apparently accepting him as a shooter now even if shocked when first confronted by it.