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Author Topic: Logan Utah-- My experiences
DarkGan
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Hey guys, first of all, yeah, I'm new here. Secondly, Don't make judgement until you read the entire thing. It might seem as if I'm deeming religion bad, but that is not my point.

Card's works have made me a more open-minded person. I live in Logan, a town about 75 miles away from SLC. I grew up Mormon, however when I entered highschool, I pretty much stopped believing in religion.

It was funny, I preached open-mindedness, and yet I was completely narrow towards the Mormons. Now--I had my fair share of hardships. I'm not one of those insanely popular kids, and I had a pretty bad case of clinical depression, however, Card's works helped bring me out of my depression and narrow mindedness.

Card's works strike home for me because of my particular conditions, which I'm sure other people have too. Card brings out the truth in religion for me. It is incredible how well he explains a lot of the Mormon society.

Here in Logan, you are a part of two different groups. You are either 'The good Mormon people' or you are 'The anti-Mormon druggies.' In this town, it is so hard to be your own person. It's sad to me that so many of these people are so sheltered, they miss out on the world. Vice versa, it's also sad to me, to see these anti-Mormon people, who are simply the product of their environment.

The 'Crazy religious' ostracize those not within the religion. Because of this, the ostracized become very anti-mormon. Meanwhile, the good people, the Mormons who do not judge others, and even though they believe their religion, still treat other humans like humans, Those Mormons suffer the wrath of the Anti-Mormons. In turn... they start to ostracize the Anti-Mormons, because of how the Anti-Mormons treat them.

Hate, and misunderstanding, go full circle. It is amazing that so many people understand each other so little. What if one of those people just took the time to sit down and understand each other? *Sigh* I feel like I am the only one within this forsaken town with half a brain-- and yet, because I take no sides, I am also ostracized. I am the Bad Guy to the Mormons, and a Mormon to the Bad Guys.

Card's works just... appeal to me, so much. I think it might be because I live within this culture, and it all makes so much sense to me. I have no idea what Card's teenage life was like... But for some reason, I think it might have been a simillar situation to mine. It's almost painful for me to read his books sometimes, because they strike upon the truth so well.

Card if you read this-- I have no idea on your childhood and I might be completely wrong. I'm no psychiatrist. I just have to know, do these things appeal to other people, because of the same situations?

Anyways, sorry for my half-rant. Often times, I don't make sense when I am trying to write how I feel down. It comes out in a very chaotic manner. Mr. Card, thank you for helping, and continuing to help me me through my teenage years here in Logan. Lastly-- I am still, not what I would personally consider Mormon. I feel as though I am a good person though. I am a spiritual person, but I am still learning who I really am.

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jamesbond007
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I actually would guess OSC was inactive during some of his earlier writings. And it does seem like he struggles with religion at times. Though, I could be wrong.

I think why good mormons sometimes ostracize inactives or anti-mormons, is because they are afraid of becoming inactive themselves or losing their whole world. What a huge -- and perhaps unlivable -- shock it would be.

I got a high of some sort going to LDS church as a convert and can see why mormons don't want anyone threatening their happiness, family and community. Now inactive, the world somtimes seems darker. IMHO, keeping mormon values is next to impossible without actually attending regularly. There is too much stuff in the world that seems good and fun, but is not right (got that from Wyrms).

One thing I like about OSC, is that he gives practical reasons to why his believers, believe, in his books. It does seem some of his characters decide religion has good purposes even if they don't have perfect faith. [Smile]

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Steev
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DarkGan,

I used to live there. I left one year ago and I don't have any desire to go back.

I found myself in countless situations where trying to reach out to the "anti-Mormons", and found myself quickly ostracized by the "Mormons".

Other people at church would shun me because I had been seen associating myself with people who were not of a particular lifestyle. "You should avoid the appearance of evil." They would say. Too bad they had no idea what that really meant.

It was really easy to go inactive in that town and indeed I did for almost 10 years. I even grew my hair really long. So the fact that there was this weird guy with long hair who wore strange cloths and lived alone in this little house really added to the terror many folks felt towards me. It was amazing the things people would say about me. I would find these things out from my brother or other friends who would hear it from people in the neighborhood who didn't know me and for some reason felt the need to comment on that "weirdo". In any case, it was clear to them that I was or had become "evil" and therefore unapproachable.

I found it somewhat amusing. However, what bothered me was they would send the missionaries to my house every 6 months. It was rather odd considering I was still mailing in my tithing and fast offerings. I just never went to church and if I did attend church no one would talk to me. I wouldn't even be greeted. I never saw a home teacher and no one ever called me. It was rather strange. When I finally shed the long hair and strange clothes people started approaching me as if I had suddenly become a different person. The reality was I had simply gotten sick of the long hair and hacked it off. The strange cloths had worn out and I assumed a more business casual attire because of my job.

During my two years or so of living in that place I moved into a new ward and had started going back to church. I had the thought that because I had lived somewhat on both sides now I could find a way to help people not be so afraid of the "anti-Mormons".

Well it turned out that I underestimated my ability to connect with the "Mormons". I guess that's because I don't consider myself a "Mormon". A member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints? Yes. A Mormon? No. My brother and I would always make that distinction as a way of coming to terms with the people that choose to isolate themselves from the rest of the world and those that see the world as an opportunity to make a difference in peoples lives.

I live on the east coast now. I have to drive 40 minutes to church now and the temple is a three-hour drive and yet I found it quite easy to be active in this ward.

Most of the people are converts and they see nothing wrong with being friendly to people who are not "Mormons". I work with 19 other co-workers in which only one other is LDS. These people are good people. One of them is even decidedly an anti-Christian in general but in talking to him I have found that he shares many of the beliefs taught in the LDS church yet has never even read the bible. Go figure.

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RunningBear
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Hmm.

This little half-rant appeals to me a lot more than most other full-rants or non-rants, possibly because I feel you are speaking the truth with no fear, or expectation of repercussions.

I feel that I may have witnessed some of what you have experienced. I am not part of any official church, but I am more religious than most of those who are part of the churches. I behave in a more moral fashion than quite a few of those who claim to be "Christian" . I use that term because I live in a very conservative town, where you are part of a church, or you arent part of anything. I often observe the actions of everyone around me, and I have noticed that a lot of the people at my high school are either involved in drugs, alcohol, or gang behavior. I am not saying that everyone is, but a large portion is. It is a major problem in my county, yet it seems that persons in my county are very religious.

I understand that may not make much sense, but I will use the example of a town nearby, Newberg. This town is almost "famous" because of its religious adherence, yet it has one of the worst drug problems, is full af racist sentiment, and clashes between white and hispanic persons are extremely violent. The leader of the KKK, for instance, is from this town. I am not joking. Every instance in which my XC, swim, track, etc. team has had an encounter with them, they have either insulted us or fellow members of our high school, or tried to pick a fight.

I am not trying to insult christianity, merely making an abservation. In my town, as well, the religious members are quite close-minded. One of my good friends, for instance, is a very moral person, yet he still harbors this (in my opinion) unnatural dislike of mormons. Many other persons whom I would consider reasonably liberal, have a deep distrust of Catholics/Protestants/Mormons, depending on their religious placement. I myself am agnostic, or perhaps gnostic, for I follow most of the religious codes af most religions but dont consider myself to be part of any one of them.

For instance:
I do not drink alcohol (it is available)
I do not smoke
I am very calm
I do not attack without extreme reason
I honor my parents
I defend the honor of my friends and family
I respect the legal edicts even if I do not believe in them.
I take care of my body.
I believe in a greater power (not a humanlike god, persay, but a force that underlies reality)
I respect all members of religious vocation, be they rabbi reverend preacher pastor bishop witch doctor monk whatever.

The hatred that some people have towards other religions has kept me away from any of them, simply because I want no part of it.

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TL
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Logan sounds like a pretty crappy place. I wonder if you're taking the behavior of a select few, maybe 5%, and painting everyone you know with broad brush-strokes.
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DarkGan
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Thanks for responding everyone-- RunningBear, you sound very simillar to me, at least in the sense of religion. I've learned a few things about all sorts of religions, and I find it fascinating. I'm not a part of any of them, I do however, take what I believe to be good, and try to apply it to my daily life. I think the problem might be, that some people get so stuck on "The little things" By that I mean, people sit back and ostracize those who swear, and don't realize that they may be pushing that person to do something far worse than swearing, perhaps even to the extremes of suicide or murder. I think people don't quite see the entire picture sometimes.

Obviously, in all religions (And non-religions for that matter) there are people who are close minded. In those same religions, there are also open minded individuals. It is the open minded individuals that give me faith in humanity.

As far as painting people in large brush strokes go--Well I won't say I'm not. No--The entire population is not like that, I admit. I did use exxageration in my previous post. However, It is simply too hard to go "Person A is narrow minded, Person B is not, Person C is both." Understand that while yes, I did use stereotypes, I only used it because it is too hard any other way.

As for the percentage of the population which acts in one of those manners... Well there really is quite a lot of people who do that. Now, in their defense, They are not feeling as if they are doing wrong. They don't know they are hurting people. I'm not in any way saying they are bad.

I appreciate your insight-- It's always good to know that people are looking at things in multiple views.

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DarkGan
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Oh--For the record--It's not that I hate Logan--I don't hate it. It's got positives and negatives like every other place. Things can be depressing here sometimes, especially during the winter, but hey, my friends are here, and my family is here. It all kind of... balances out, I guess.
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Steev
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TL,

I was born there. I spent 22 years of my life in that town. My desire to not go back is only in that when given the chance to move back I would never do it. I still have friends there so I will return to visit on occasion. Logan really isn't a crappy place to live. It's actually a really nice place to live. Especially if you're a Mormon. But what it really comes down to is if your willing to set aside the "Mormon/Anti-Mormon" game that is played there. It's easy to do when you don't live there. Although I fear that if I stayed there long enough I would find myself unable to resist it and get right back in the middle of it.

It's not even a violent game. It's passive-aggressive. If you are not Mormon and you express a strong disinterest in the religion expect to be ignored by your neighbors. Eventually you will not be invited to block parties. Your kids will have difficulty making friends with the other kids in your neighborhood because it's quite common for the other families to not allow their children to associate with your kids. If they do then they either aren't Mormons or they are and have been ostracized already and don't care.

What I have realized over the years is this:
Many of the Mormons living there are not really converted to their religion. They are converted to the Mormon culture and will do what ever they feel is necessary to protect the "sanctity" of that culture notwithstanding any religious teaching that stands counter to their actions.

Logan isn't unique in such antagonism as RunningBear's experience shows. I can name many other places that have similar issues. One of them doesn't even involve religion as the main source of contention. It is all just people being people.

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Steev
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DarkGan,

You're awesome. Next time I'm in Logan I've love to hang out with you.

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RunningBear
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DarkGan, that is precisely why I do not appreciate the atmosphere of most religions, I do not like what the small picture people do that sacrifices the overall good of something so that a small tradition or expectation is taken care of.

I did not know anyone who felt along those same lines, and it is very relieving to know I am not the only one. A lot of the atheists/agnostics I know are extremely so, because they have to be otherwise they are ostracized by both groups. It is nice to know there are those who live along the midline.

I am a fairly easy going person so I manage to make friends on both sides of the "fence", I suppose, but it is nice not having to guard what I say for fear of insulting someone.

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DarkGan
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Steev, I agree with what you said. I've really grown kind of fond of Logan itself, It's just the social aspects of it that bother me. I'm sure things get better as you get older, but then once you have kids, they have to deal with it too. I just don't think I want to have my kids (Whenever I have them) Go through that. Who knows though--I guess if you survive it, it makes you that much stronger.

Anyways yeah, you're awesome too, thanks [Big Grin]

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DarkGan
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RunningBear, Yeah, it is relieving to know that you're not the only one.

It's really nice to be on both sides of the fence, but its exhausting sometimes. My house is like... A safehaven for all of my friends. It gets pretty horrible sometimes, because I have ex girlfriends and boyfriends hanging out here, with all the people who hate each other... It sucks, but it's nice to feel like I'm contributing to at least a small part of their lives by being friendly.

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Farmgirl
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I like Logan, Utah very much!
Of course I have only been there as a tourist. Did have a fine time that weekend, however. [Smile]

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JLM
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My sister (who is LDS like me) lived in Logan for a while (her husband went to Utah State) and she didn't have a good experience. She felt there was a great division among the LDS members. As she described it the members who "lived on the hill" didn't associate with the members who "lived at the bottom of the hill".

Very odd. Most of the wards I have lived in have much socio-economic diversity. You knew who was rich and who was not, but it made no difference. Rich and poor alike served in callings at all levels.

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Scooter
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Interesting discussion. I am LDS and have lived outside of Utah most of my life. I currently live in Indiana and Mormons are definitely looked down upon (to say the least) from the more mainstream religions here--which bonds us as a small group.

Momonism is very much a culture AND religion, and when you have a relatively large group of a culture in the same area, cultural elements really take hold (which are probably exascerbated by the fact that people know each other very well because they go to church together AND live by each other--it is very easy for others to feel like an outsider).

I think that some Mormons fall into the typical traps of being in a majority culture and treating others accordingly, but I also think that some outside a culture often feel hypersentive to any action of the majority culture and feel shunned when such an intent didn't even exist. Those in the minority tend to dig in even deeper and become more extreme as a counter balance.

As far as kids feeling shunned, I can understand why that impression could be left. My wife is real sensitive to our children's friends who have parents that smoke at home, or are casual with their language, or have birthday parties on Sundays, etc. Because we are very much the minority around here, that hesitation doesn't come across as a reflection of a certain close-minded culture--in fact, it probably isn't even noticed. In Utah, if parents have these hesitations (not because they think the people are evil--they just want their kids to learn a certain set of values), it can easily come across as intolerance and condemning--especially since their children will have so many other options of LDS kids to play with. I am certain that there are less innocent motivations in some cases, but I think in large part this is just an artifact of numbers as much or more than anything.

I would really hope that LDS folks were above the normal challenges that come along with majority/minority cultures, but the sad truth is that people are people, and if LDS don't take deliberate steps to really live LDS doctrine then they are subject to these problems.

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DarkGan
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JLM, Yeah, that is very much what it is like. (Well--For the most part)

I feel the need to say that I am not in any way saying that being LDS, or any religion for that matter, is the cause of all these problems. I do agree that it is simply a human problem and I do understand the other side to it.

Scooter, I can definately see the entire thing being turned around. It seems that there is always some kind of minority which we all take out our frustrations on. It's frustrating.

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mistaben
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I love what Steev said about some people being adherents to the culture instead of the restored gospel. That really rings true, unfortunately.

Evidently the poor way in which some members of the church treat each other and those who aren't members is serious enough that President Hinckley spoke on this subject last month in General Conference.

I admit that his words were sort of a shock to me, as I haven't had much experience with this sort of behavior among Latter-day Saints. Here in Seattle I haven't observed transparent racism or elitism (Latter-day Saints are not the majority). The 3 wards I attended in Utah were composed of some of the finest people I've ever met, and any ugly behavior was either absent or very subtle. Yet as has been said, LDS are people, and it's easy (perhaps especially in Utah) to be complacent about this sort of thing.

I feel for you folks caught in the middle. Something that helps me sometimes is to pretend that most people try to do good, and that lots of offensive behavior is done with good intentions. Whether it's true or not, it does make it much easier for me to forgive, forget, and move on.

Note that this method requires an enormous amount of empathy, and any reductionism (e.g. X is an active Mormon and therefore snobby/brainwashed/etc., Y is anti and therefore evil/calculating/sinful/etc.) is extremely counterproductive.

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BaoQingTian
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quote:
Originally posted by mistaben:
The 3 wards I attended in Utah were composed of some of the finest people I've ever met, and any ugly behavior was either absent or very subtle. Yet as has been said, LDS are people, and it's easy (perhaps especially in Utah) to be complacent about this sort of thing.

Yes, but as Scooter discussed, you wouldn't really know if they were the finest people if you were on the inside. If you were inactive, a non-member, or even a pretty 'counter-cultural' member, you may have had a different opinion.

Caveat: I don't know anything about you, and you didn't mention in what capacity your relationship with the Utah wards was, so I'm basically just presuming that you were a mainstream, active member.

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DarkGan
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mistaben, yeah, the cultural thing also rang very true with me. My parents used to have a tough time with it, but have since realized things and now they do fine.

BaoQingTian, Yeah, it's true it is very hard to know how 'good' a person is unless you are on the outside. However, if you see them treating everyone fair, even the non-members, I could see you making a correlation with them being good people.

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Steev
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Being an active LDS member and living an active 'counter-culture' to that community is the sure fire way to get yourself snubbed and that is exactly what I did. Not on purpose but because I just didn't get the culture. I never have. That's why I can't watch any of the so-called Mormon comedies. They're just too silly for me and I don't understand most of them anyway.

But religion is not to blame. Religion is just one out of millions of memes that aggregates into a larger cultural.

What is to blame is the lack of acceptance of diversity and empathy.

I now attend the Salisbury ward in Salisbury, MD and I have not experienced any sort of social behavior within the church members out here that is anywhere close to what it was like in any town in Utah or Southern Idaho.

This area does have a residual level of racial and economic division in the community but it doesn't carry into the church out here like it would in Utah. One of the main reasons I think is because there is only one Ward covering three counties and serving a diverse population of about 160,000 people. Rich, Poor, Black, White, Hispanic, Asian, all have to share the same church building and attend the same meetings together.

Where as in Logan or any city in Utah for that matter, the people on the hill are in one ward and the people in the valley are in another and never the two shall meet. The people on the hill are already predisposed to think lesser of the people in the valley regardless of the Ward boundaries.

Now here's a scenario that I went through back in the 80's.

They rearrange the Ward boundaries so that the wards straddle hill and valley.
Even though the divisions are created for administration purposes only, it still doesn't prevent the people from getting very protective of their old Ward boundaries especially if they are using the ward boundaries to keep the hill and valley neighborhoods from intermingling. Just look into any set of Wards that have had to have its boundaries adjusted. There will always people who will leave the church because of that change.

It's not the fault of the religion. People have the right to choose how they behave to change and if they want to behave like bigots or brats there is nothing in the world to stop them.

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DarkGan
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Steev, I agree. People are to blame, not religion. We always find some kind of minority to hate against.
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RunningBear
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Hmmm, brings to mind the old adage, a person is smart, people are stupid.

the trick is to get groups of persons together, and make sure they dont become a people. Then they begin to identify against other people. then the bad stuff happens.

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pooka
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I found Logan a very charming town whenever I visited, though it was in my late 20's so the social scene wasn't of great importance. I also have some friends from there through the LDS 12 step movement. One of our favorite scriptures is the one about confessing your sins to your fellow saints on the sabbath. I think it's important to put the best face on things you can, but not by wearing a mask.
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BaoQingTian
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I grew up in Rexburg, Idaho, and it's exactly like Logan except about 1/3 the size. So add small town syndrome on top of what you mentioned about Logan [Wink]
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BaoQingTian
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People are right about it being a culture, not a religious issue. I think that Mormonism in those areas has incorporated a lot of Western United States cultural habits into it. Some of the culture is admirable and compliments values taught by the Church (self reliance, hard work, etc). Some of it is unrelated to church doctrine (you're not a Republican?!?!). Some of it even seems kind of contradictory to church teachings (past trends of indifference to environmental concerns, pro-war sentiments, etc). I think sometimes religion is given too much credit in shaping communities- a lot of the time regional culture is the source.
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DarkGan
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RunningBear, Thats an interesting way to put it. I like it.

Pooka, Logan is a great town in a few different aspects. If you are a part of the culture and religion here, I'm sure it makes it a lot better. The people here are very friendly, almost too friendly, when you aren't in the ostracized category of people. The environment itself is awesome as well, The mountains nearby make all sorts of interesting possibilities. I think this town is good for people of similar culture trends, or similar religious values, however, if you ever stray away from the "Accepted dress code, accepted ideas, accepted interests, etc" You run into problems.

I'm fairly certain the worst of it is when you are a teenager, because in high school, social life is the only thing that matters. That's not to say other's dont experience ostracization.

BaoQing, Small towns are hard to survive when you aren't socially accepted. Yeah, its definately more of a culture issue than a religious one. Religion does play into it a lot though.

Many groups of people are ostracized here because of their political stances. Whenever we have anti-war protesters here, people ALWAYS say bad things. Then again, it seems like war protestors are always a minority, with the exception of the Vietnam War. But the added 'Republican idolization' here only makes it a worse issue.

Another thing people are very bad about here, is homosexuality. I think you should believe whatever you want, as long as you dont hurt other people in the process. However, many of the people here, do not understand their own religion fully. People actually changed high schools because Logan High School has a GSA (Gay-Straight Alliance) Yet the reason such a club was made in the first place, was because some people of homosexual orientation were badly hurt and hospitalized.

I suppose they are just protecting their religious ideals, I just wish they would look at the whole picture first. After all, Jesus didn't teach using violence. Quite the opposite.

I am not FOR gays, nor AGAINST them. I just feel they are people, and should be treated as such.

All that being said, there are most definately people of the LDS religion here who are very good people. Some of my best friends, and my parents, are among them.

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aragorn64
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Wow, that was a surprise to come here and see my town in a topic title! Yeah, I live in Logan too. I like the town, but I do see where you guys are all coming at--but it is a game of sorts that is played in towns all across Utah.

I was born and raised LDS in this town. I'm currently in my Junior year AT Logan High School. I think you've presented a fair assessment of the things that go on in this town, in my eyes.

Case in point: the aforementioned Gay-Straight Alliance at this High School. On one hand you have people that absolutely hate everything that it stands for (without actually knowing what that is, heh) and think that its members are the spawn of Satan or something to that affect. They seem to think they're supporting their religion (or want people to think that they are), when in fact they're doing the exact opposite.

However, I do know quite a few members of the GSA personally. Some of them really seem to believe the ideals of their club, while others seem to think its just another excuse for them to show how much they hate Mormons, and how special they are that they aren't in the majority. I think having the GSA at our school is a GOOD thing even if I don't agree with homesexuality--but I don't think that either party is doing a great job of suporrting their own ideals. The Mormon crowd acts hypocritical in its hatred of the club and the other doesn't always stand up to its claims against hate crimes. (My German teacher is one of the teachers involved with the club. I think she gets what it's actually for.)

I guess there seem to be two things that go on around here that I really hate:

The Mormon side that believes that any non-Mormon, or person who doesn't follow their exact ideals is wrong in every aspect. And then what really bothers me is when THEY don't follow their own beliefs while expecting others who don't agree with them to uphold them. They seem to think that all non-Mormons are druggies.

The Anti-Mormon side: They are definitely the minority, but they are the most outspoken group. It just really bothers me when they brand all Mormons as being uninformed, lazy, stupid, Republicans. I've actually been told that just because I believe in my religion that I've been "brainwashed by a corrupt society" and that I need to learn to think on my own. I guess it doesn't occur to them that there are specific reasons why I believe what I do, and that I actually THINK about these things and TRY to stay informed.

Maybe this is an overly cynical view. I'm, by nature, a pretty reserved person. This kind of sets me oustide of the realm of most groups, giving me an interesting "outsiders" look at what's going on. Unfortunately, I also think that leads to some cynicism coming out in my personality.

I think that this is an over-generalization of what goes on around here. However, both of these two groups seem to be more prevelant and outspoken then the people who can actually treat each other with respect. Which is a large number, I think. I know tons of Mormons that are pretensious, or hypocritical. I know plenty of people that don't agree with that faith that are respectful.

I know this was focusing mainly on Logan High, but I think it gives a pretty clear view of Logan in general.

I actually think about this subject a lot, and it's surprising to me that somebody from my hometown would bring it up on a forum that I visit. Maybe I'm wrong about some of these things. I'm going to let them stew in my head even more for awhile, and maybe post some of my thoughts again later.

[ May 14, 2006, 12:43 AM: Message edited by: aragorn64 ]

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DarkGan
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Haha, wow I probably know you, you're in the same grade as me.

Anyways, I see what you mean. It really bothers me that the anti-mormons are so narrow minded. I used to be like that... I would preach open mindedness, but then I would hate anyone religious.

It's so interesting to me, that even the people who have been treated badly by a majority, turn around and do the exact same thing to other people.

Frau is one of those teachers who really understands things, I think. She's a great teacher, I'm sad to see her retire [Frown]

Anyways, I completely understand what you mean with the Mormon and Anti-Mormon sides both having some problems. I'm glad to see I'm not the only person of this age group who see's these things.

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Flaming Toad on a Stick
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Whenever a group of people are juxtaposed with people who think differently, tension and conflict is almost inevitable.

I'm a Catholic, going to a Catholic high school in the small town of Leamington. Almost everyday, I see some sort of conflict between people who think differently on different issues. Last year, at a pro-life presentation set up by some of our students, a girl started yelling and arguing with them.

I've seen the best and worst of both sides, having friends who are in each of the different groups. It can tear you apart sometimes.

That's human nature for you. They will use whatever they have to try to make themselves superior to others. It saddens me that, occasionaly, my faith is used by others to put someone down. Didn't Jesus teach tolerance and acceptance?

I guess the point of this little rant is this: no place on Earth is free of corruption. In the end it's all about this
-"I'm better than you"

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