About

What is this blog for?
This blog began as a way for me to organize my thoughts and responses to questions that people have had about my religion.  I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, commonly referred to as the Mormons.  There is a lot of misinformation out there (especially on the internet) about my religion and I sometimes get flustered when people ask difficult questions or raise controversial issues.  There are answers though; I've found my mind works best when I have a while to ponder and organize my thoughts and then explain my conclusions in a non-confrontational manner.  Hence this blog.  The first few posts were all answers to questions about what we Mormons believe.

As time has gone by, I've wanted to talk about other things as well, such as social, economic, or political issues that are often strongly polarized.  I've realized that whenever there are hard feelings between individuals with differing opinions, it is nearly always due to a lack of understanding.  The way we tend to argue about things--whether in person or online--it's no wonder we have such a hard time understanding one another.  But I've found that when we try to see another's point of view, we often learn something new about them, about ourselves, and about the issue, even if we still disagree afterwards.  I've expanded my blog to include some of these other important topics.  Posts represent both my own opinions as well as my attempts to understand those held by others.

Why 3 Cents?
"My 3 Cents" is my attempt at a witty blog title.  Basically, it means I'm doing more than simply "throwing in my two cents" by doing research and organizing my thoughts, but at the same time I'm no expert on any of the topics I write about.  I put forth an honest effort to understand each issue and explain both sides of each issue, but usually stop there.  I try to include links to relevant sources and encourage those seeking more details to look them up.

Keep it Civil
I moderate all comments to my blog posts, meaning I review them before deciding whether or not they will be posted or deleted.  I will not allow any comments to be posted that contain any amount of profanity or insults, or that clearly just want to pick a fight.  I also don't allow annonymous comments; readers who wish to comment need to take responsibility for their words by including at least a screenname.  That may mean I won't have as many comments or traffic, and I'm okay with that.  It's more important to me that my blog remain a safe and civil environment.  If you disagree with what I or another commenter has said, explain why without getting nasty.  I will allow comments that disagree radically from my own point of view, but even the most well thought out argument will not be accepted if the tone is condescending or rude.