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worm.gif (3649 bytes)      Deseret News...
Scams -- Dishonesty -- Abuse -- Censorship


I wrote a letter to the editor.

The newspaper needlessly censored it...


Take up the White Man's burden --

Send forth the best ye breed --
Go, bind your sons to exile
To serve your captives' need;
To wait, in heavy harness,
On fluttered folk and wild --
Your new-caught sullen peoples,
Half devil and half child.

McClure's Magazine, Feb. 1899

The Deseret Newspaper is  owned by the Mormon church.
Would YOU be satisfied?  


 The boring details...

  

    The Deseret News published my letter under the heading Strangled by faith.  Here it is; the red is what was censored. 

It's sad and irritating to see the shoddy thinking of apologists like Allen Thorpe. (Readers' Forum May 27, 2003)  Allen, after first admitting some ignorance, glibly states that faith in a nebulous unknown causes a rational argument!  An argument for virtue, no less!  (What is faith? I think it is the idea that something is true, even in light of evidence to the contrary.  Archie Bunker is credited with having said "Faith is something you believe that nobody in his right mind would believe.") 

Above, I paraphrased Allen.  Here are his real words: "I'm not sure what atheists believe, other than that there is no God, but without faith in something greater beyond this life, it's pretty tough to give a reasoned argument for a number of virtues."  Many readers, no doubt, see such a statement and nod in agreement!  There's a ring of truth; we've heard similar slogans before. 

A second point - the faulty assertion that altruism and self-sacrifice work against Darwinian selection is shopworn, old fashioned and wrong. There isn't room here, in this Readers' Forum to unburden Allen of his flawed, faith-based view.

It's sad and irritating that such new white man's burden falls upon us atheists.  After all, as Allen thinks, we atheists are only interested in  "more money, more power, more fun, more life -- and [that] nobody else matters".

I complained about this to Deseret News. The paper deleted my notion of what faith is, and censored the idea that educated atheists should look towards bringing the  unfortunate, naive faith-based brethren up to intellectual par.  These were the main points of my submission to the Letters to the Editor.   In return, a Deseret News censor and apologist, J. Johnson, criticized my "spirit" and "tone".  (It's common for Mormons to find fault with form instead of substance -- to avoid thinking about the substance.)

It's my opinion from this experience that the people who transcribe the letters to the editor also judge them for fitness -- for congruence of views with the ideology of Mormon Church.  After all,  my two main points were censored -- my statement of what faith is, and that a certain analogue of "white man's burden" exists vis-ŕ-vis the faith based true believers and the opposing science basis of atheism.

From the immature response that I received from the newspaper's editors, I think that these people are young and inexperienced missionaries of the Mormon church.  For example, Mr. J. Johnson  thought that my letter had to do with racism.  You can see the reply I received from the Deseret News below.

 To: Deseret News 
 Subject: Re: Deseret News censorship...
 Date: May 30, 2003 


Next time, when you don't understand what something is, please give us the benefit of the doubt. You censored my remarks about "white man's burden", in the context of how we atheists feel burdened to educate you naive native religionists. This is not a politically incorrect reference!

Next time, when your snot-nosed censors think of draining the sap from a reader's comment, why not give the reader the benefit of the doubt, or simply ask him or her? Or -- look up the reference!

In future, I forbid you to censor my message. Print it en toto, or not at all. I don't care what your policy is. In this case, my policy, trumps your policy. You should act as if we readers had given some thought before submitting our words to the LDS official mouthpiece.

Best wishes and with all due respect, if any,

[signed]

The Deseret News is owned by the Mormon church (Church of Latter-day Saints of Jesus Christ). 
The paper often acts as an apologist for Mormonism . 

 

 Date: Fri, 30 May 2003 09:54:52         
  To: nowscape 
<Nowsc@yahoo.com>      
  From: Letters <letters@desnews.com>    
  Subject: Re: Deseret News censorship...



Your e-mail was so mean-spirited and condescending, the temptation is to simply junk it. I will attempt a reply, however.

Your "white man's burden" remark was understood perfectly. It was Kipling's comment about the "brown man is the white man's burden" that capsulized the folly of British Imperialism [*]. The remark has an inflamatory tone, however, and it was felt it would simply distort and muddle the essence of your  argument -- like a gun-shot in a melodrama. (sic) You were equating your position with the racist policies of England in India. Most writers, who are not tone-deaf, could see that (sic). We edit and trim most letters, but then most letter writers read our disclaimer before going in.


J. Johnston


 They censored me again...

  

    The Deseret News published my letter under the heading Romney seems disingenuous.  Here it is; the red is what was censored. 

Mitt Romney, as a good Mormon must pay 10% of his gross income to his church in Salt Lake City. He thus supports an organization which battalions thousands of young snot-nosed missionaries throughout the world, to explain to their audience that they have the wrong religion and will not fare well in the hereafter unless they switch (to the Mormon tithe-demanding religion). Yet today he espoused tolerance in matters of faith. Is he... what do we call it these days, "disingenuous?

It's a shame that there is so little in the public's understanding about Mormonism's "quirks".

 

 

 *  Rudyard Kipling, poem, "The White Man's Burden" McClure's Magazine 1899.

The Mormon church was, and still is a racist organization. 

For example, Mormons believe that blacks are descendants of Cain -- it's spelled out in their Holy Scripture (Book of Abraham).  To de-emphasize this, and to make Mormonism more palatable, the censors of the Deseret News loathe references to this dark corner of its Faith. 

Does the Mormon church have temples in Africa?

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[ link ]

The bad parts of the White Man's Burden are congruent with Mormonism.
Here is what Mormon prophets and revelators reveal:
 

JOSEPH SMITH  the Inventor of Mormonism, first prophet and president of the Mormon Church:

"Had I anything to do with the Negro , I would confine them by strict law to their own species and put them on a national equalization.''

 MARK E. PETERSON of the Quorum of the 12 Apostles  shows a kindly disposition towards Blacks.

"I would be willing to let every Negro drive a Cadillac if they could afford it."

On the next day, I wrote one last time, hopefully I will not get a reply.

 To: Deseret News 
 Subject: Re: Deseret News censorship...

Dear J. Johnston --

I complained about your censorship of my thoughts -- of what faith is, and of censoring the idea that educated atheists should look towards bringing up to intellectual par, the more naive faith-based brethren.   [...]

You should not carry your agenda to the letters to the editor column.  You job is to transcribe the letters and touch up the typos, not to judge them for congruence of views with the ideology of Mormon Church.  My two main points were censored -- my statement of what faith is and that a certain analogue of "white man's burden" exists vis-ŕ-vis your faith based true beliefs and the rational, science basis of atheism.  [...]

I am sincerely un-interested in reading your reply, unless it contains only  an apology and the URL showing that you have apologized and re-printed my original letter.

Sincerely,
[signed]

Ellipsis indicates platitudes which I censored :)

 


 Note:    Emails received will be posted here, usually with name and email address. 

Subject: Re: Edited letter
--- Carol J Cook wrote:
I wrote a letter to Deseret News and the meaning was completely changed. I complained.
As far as you go, You are the Bigot, not the Church.
What is wrong with being a descendent of Cain?
I'd rather be that than from the KKK cross burners and athiests!!


 --- Kevin T [...] wrote:
 I like it, most I like the part of that the news openly admits to censorship and expect that those who are writing in openly accept this censorship "We edit and trim most letters, but then most letter writers read our disclaimer before going in."


 --- Summum Ra [...]  wrote:
 If you think yours is censored, our direct complaints on articles they write about us never get past the delete button.

 Example; Every time DN prints Stories about our Ten Commandments cases we win  they describe us, ("Summum, the Church that believes in aliens and makes  wine") Then in the same story they say the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints comes to the rescue and put the Ten Commandments monument on  their CHURCH property in Provo.

 Why not the Church that believes in Salamanders, angels talking humans, many wives in heaven. These statements would be just as valid to state, as what they say about us, neither statements, having anything to do with the story.

 Corky Ra
 Summum

Mr. Ra is the "Chief Visionary" of Summum. Here is a more detailed report.


Editor,

Robin Jackson, in her letter on the erection of Christian crosses on public highway property, asks: “Explain how that hurts you?”

It hurts me to live in a world where most think that an invisible man or trio lives in the sky with which one can talk or bargain and to which one channels thoughts.  It hurts me to think that I live in a world where people believe, for example, that praying works.  Try it, Robin:  Pray to make the pope Mormon!

As for a religious slogan emblazoned on our money, Jackson laments, in the same breath, “If they don't want to honor the people who have died protecting others […] don't try and take that right from others.”  Isn’t Jackson cross-treading her idioms?  Trusting in Jehovah or Quetzalchoatl or Allah has nothing to do with one’s ability to honour “dead people who protected others” or their memory.  Did Jackson have Allah or Quetzalcoatl in mind when she advocates a god-slogan on my money?  No. As James Rost points out (Forum Letter 04/05/08) -- she and the government are thinking: Christianity.   State Endorsement of religions hurts in many ways.  Mixing State and Church causes our legal system to be biased inquisitionally against those without religion.  Furthermore, it causes tax exemptions for Church property, vehicles, income, for the clergy and for the plebs who plop their tithing into the plate each Sunday.  Such missing tax revenues must be recovered by increasing the tax burden for everyone.  In Salt Lake City, utility bills are higher because churches refuse to pay sewer taxes for the water runoff from acres and acres of church roofs and parking lots.  Space here is short, but I could go on…


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Who is this... friend or foe?

 

 

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 2013-11-03