Vacation in a Theocracy?

My hunch is that the majority of local media across the U.S., over the past few days, have covered the horrible events in Japan. At times like this our collective eye and heart go to the place of greatest need. American society has always been this way. We want to help everyone everywhere all the time and at the same time. This isn't always easy, but our media, left right or center, keep us informed and give us opportunities to express our concerns. As a child I was raised on the evening news as we had dinner during the Vietnam war with Huntley & Brinkley's grim casualty board almost every night. News and politics are part of my DNA and I want to be kept up to the minute on all things big and important.

Hence, the events in Japan qualify as "big and important" so last night I expected the latest info on the local TV news from the CBS affiliate in Salt Lake City. Quickly, my disappointment changed to absolute disgust when the lead story wasn't about the fires and melting fuel rods in the nuclear reactors or the number of people still missing or the risk of radiation poisoning to the local people. No, the lead story on this major network affiliate was, "All LDS missionaries in Japan are safe." The story included footage of one of the leaders from the quorum of the twelve expressing his relief that all 600 Mormon missionaries were located by Saturday morning last weekend and none of them were even hurt. He then went on to discuss how they really don't know yet what kind of relief support the LDS church can provide at this time. The next story on the newscast was about the two immigration bills the Governor signed and how much support the LDS church had for said bills.

I'm glad the young men and women missionaries are alright. I want everyone to be alright. I don't think, though, that the lead story on the news in Louisville, Kentucky last night was about the Presbyterian missionaries in Japan. The Presbyterian Church (USA) headquarters are in Kentucky, but the difference is that Kentucky isn't a theocracy. The LDS world headquarters are in Salt Lake City and Utah is a theocracy. Absolutely.

If you're looking for a theocracy to visit on vacation this year, no need to go the the Middle East. Just come to Utah -- we're so much closer.