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My stance on the "controversial" social issues

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I've seen a lot of political discussions in the last week in the aftermath of the assassination of Charlie Kirk, an outspoken and controversial conservative activist.  This has caused me to reflect on what my current positions are on the "controversial" issues.  Over time, my political stances have shifted from my conservative upbringing, but I don't think any of my political positions are as set in stone as I used to believe they were. Does anyone probably care about my current political beliefs? Eh, maybe not.. but this is more of an exercise for myself to write out and try to clarify for myself what my current stance is on various issues. Gun control The US has far too many gun deaths compared to other countries.  Part of this stems from mental health issues as well as the breakdown of families and community support that lead to self-inflicted gun deaths, gang violence, and other forms of violence like school shootings. A large part of the problem, though, seems to...
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The One Big Beautiful Bill Act - Personal Income Tax Changes

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  On July 4, 2025, President Trump signed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) which includes several provisions that impact taxes and spending.   Whenever I tell people I'm a CPA, I get a lot of questions about taxes and usually push back that tax is not my area of expertise. This is true - I've never done anyone's taxes other than my own and am not a tax expert. I do, however, have a basic understanding of our tax code and a natural curiosity when there are significant changes in tax legislation.  I've also seen a lot of mis-information being shared online - which is likely in part due to the fact that our US tax code is unnecessarily complicated.  Here's my summary of the most prominent personal income tax provisions of the OBBBA. These are largely sourced through Google Gemini AI , do not cover non-tax spending provisions of the bill and do not include my own personal opinions on the bill (maybe I'll do a separate post on that). 1. Makes Tax Cuts and Jobs ...
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"Hell Together" and My Last LDS Temple Experience

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I haven't posted in a bit - partly because I've been busy but also because I'm trying to figure out what kind of voice I want to contribute. I like the idea of being a "bridge builder"- trying to find the common or middle ground with others. But maybe finding common ground isn't so much always about only talking about areas where we agree but also sharing different ideas and perspectives and then learning and refining our ideas and beliefs based on those disagreements. Anyways, I'll move on to what's currently on my mind. Hell Together This week, David Archuleta released a new single called " Hell Together " which has gotten a lot of attention in certain social media circles. I've personally never followed much of David Archuleta's music and only started following him a little bit over the last year or so after he publicly came out as gay and left the LDS Church. His new song is inspired by his mother who put her full support and love...
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Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources (part 3)

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Sidra tul-Muntaha - The Lote Tree of Uttermost End Muhammad was said to have been taken by the Angel Gabriel on a night journey from Mecca to a distance sanctuary (later interpreted to mean Jerusalem) where he met with Abraham, Moses, Jesus and other prophets.  From Jerusalem, together they ascended through the seven heavens .  At the summit of the universe, he encountered the Sidra tul-Muntaha, the Lote Tree of Uttermost End, which "marks the end of the knowledge of every knower" and "all beyond is a hidden mystery, unknown to any." A Divine Light is said to have fallen on the Lote Tree which enshrouded it and all else beside, and "the eye of the Prophet beheld the Light without wavering and without turning aside from it." The Sidra tree is described  as "growing strong and proud in the harshest of environments... a symbol of perseverance and nourishment across the borders of the Arab World. With its roots bound in the soil of this world and its bran...
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Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources (part 2)

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I've recently been reading a biography of the Prophet Muhammad , written by Muslim scholar Martin Lings.  While I am no closer to converting to Islam, I have learned quite a bit about what Muslims believe about Muhammad's life.   Side note: Muslims will generally refer to Muhammad as "Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him."  I don't know if the "peace be upon him" phrase would be considered disrespectful for a non-Muslim to use or seen as mocking, and I do not share their beliefs around his calling as a prophet, so I will simply use his name without such titles, but mean no disrespect by this.  I am also trying to relay an accurate summary of what I've read, but I'm sure there is diversity in belief among Muslims so the views here may not represent all Muslims. Abraham and Ishmael Coming from a Christian background, I'm familiar with the story of Abraham, Sarah and Hagar. Sarah was too old to bear children and when Abraham was around 85 years o...
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Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources (part 1)

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A Facebook friend of mine recently started a TikTok series about reading the Qur'an as an atheist.  I commented on one of his posts that I had made an attempt to read the Qur'an (more properly a translation of the message of the Qur'an, as Muslim's see the only true Qur'an as the Arabic version as revealed to Muhammad), but that my attempt fell short as I had a hard time getting past the "us vs them" "believer vs disbeliever" black and white thinking that was so prevalent in the first few surahs (chapters) of the Qur'an that I read and common to so much religious and political discourse today. A Muslim responded to my comment that I should read a biography of the Prophet Muhammad, the founder of Islam and he recommended " Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources " by Martin Lings. I ordered a copy and have been reading for the last week or so - about 100 pages in so far. Martin Lings and His Earliest Sources Martin Lings (19...
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Re-reading the Book of Mormon as a former Mormon - 1 Nephi

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In the past, I've read through sacred texts of other religions to provide some of my thoughts.  I've found a lot of beauty in Zen Buddhism , the  Bhagavad Gita , the Tao Te Ching or the Dhammapada, while pretty easily being able to disregard the parts of those texts that I found problematic or less than inspired.  I've wanted for some time to re-read the Book or Mormon in a similar light, but I've struggled with attempts to do this as I read through the texts and naturally hone in on all of the problems of the text based my own history with the text and the religion.  I'm trying again to make an attempt at reading the Book of Mormon and trying to focus on what positive messages I can take from the text while trying to let go of the problems and less-than-inspiring parts.  Challenges I re-read through the first of the fifteen books of the Book of Mormon again today, 1 Nephi - putting my notes as I read in this google sheet . I tried to maintain a positive attitu...
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