I think it's really cool that we're teaching people in prison how to code, sincerely.
I hope soon we can start teaching kids in Idaho where I grew up how to code as well....
228 karma · joined May 11, 2018
I hope soon we can start teaching kids in Idaho where I grew up how to code as well....
DC just seems a little boring after you visit the museums a few times. No skiing, the beaches are too far, etc.
Any fun ideas? I guess maybe my life is different having a family of four, but DC just seems like it doesn't have much of a real culture to me.
Also interestingly she is half-Mexican and I speak Spanish fluently so we have some things in common with you.
I mean look at NYC - property taxes are really high there and the rent is almost as high as SF, and higher than LA.
Even BYU, the church-owned school, now sells fully-caffeinated Coke on campus. This was a fairly recent development.
As well, members are encouraged to avoid any media that includes sexually explicit, violent, or otherwise negative content -- not only avoiding R-rated movies. The church teaches that people should be careful about their media choices and consume media that enlightens or edifies, not just entertains. Active members of the church definitely vary in how they interpret that, of course.
I do love your point about sacrificing some things and getting a community in return. I work as a software engineer and at the age of 25 I already have two kids. My wife and I definitely sacrifice for them, but I hope we can build a loving family that will give us social returns that are lifelong. Growing up, I had a large network of cousins and siblings that were closer to me than friends were. I know much of this is because of the influence of the church.
It is also true that being a member gives you a network of people -- people are always around to help you move in and out, they're always there every Sunday, etc. Members are assigned "ministers", two people who check up on them, are officially assigned to love them, and report back to the leadership of each ward (congregation) regularly about any problems the people they minister to may have. All this in addition to the friendships that naturally form with people you see once a week.
Sacrificing alcohol, swearing, and other things -- tithing, Sundays, a two year-mission -- seems like a small trade in comparison for the creation of relationships with people who love you and who you love in return.
This is usually enough for me to see NYT, WaPo, Economist, and other articles. Only in rare cases has this strategy not worked. I consume a lot of news, so whenever I see a paywall -- boom! Scripts blocked, paywall goes down.
It seems that it remembers these settings on a site-by-site basis, as well. I encounter fewer paywalls as time goes by.
It comes across much clearer than many other religious books like the Bible (even though the Bible I recommend as well) because it has a common narrator who fills in the gaps for you and helps you understand the links between stories.
It also is fairly scientific in its premise-- if you do an experiment by reading some of it and asking God if it is true, you can receive an answer from God if you ask Him sincerely and are willing to act upon the answer you receive. See Moroni 10:3-5 [1]
The Book of Mormon also answers questions like why am I here? [2]
and where am I going after I die? [3]
A key idea of the Book of Mormon that is reflected many times is the cycle of "pride", where a group of people first humbles themselves, then prospers, then becomes prideful and makes poor choices, forgets love for others, and then falls, then causing the people to humble themselves again and repeat the cycle.
Overall I heartily recommend this book. Reading it will make you feel great.
[1] https://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm/moro/10?lang=eng