Sen. Hatch said something yesterday regarding the Fort Hood massacre that I think is very reasonable:

I don’t think all Islamic people in this country should be tarred by the fact that one guy goes off the rails.  I think we ought to be fair.  There are many wonderful Islamic people in this country.  One of the best is my old friend Muhammad Ali.  He’s a great, great person.  You can’t put everybody in that category because one guy goes nuts.

I thank Sen. Hatch for this sane, uplifting comment.  But I do think he is missing the point in some ways.

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The results from the 2009 elections are in.   Many people will misinterpret the results.  On the right, you will hearing a lot of crowing on talk radio about how this is a rejection of President Obama.  Not true.   On the left, there will be relief about a Democrat pickup in NY-23, the congressional seat won by Bill Owens, and complete rejection of the idea the results have any national implications whatsoever.  Also not true.

It seems to me there is a middle-way narrative which goes like this:  the left interpreted the 2008 results, in which Democrats took over the White House and both houses of Congress, as evidence of a new progressive majority.  Their leadership immediately pressed forward with an array of new initiatives, especially health care and cap-and-trade.  The tea party movement has slowed the momentum of the progressive platform.  The results from Tuesday’s voting could be another barrier slowing that momentum.

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As a fan of long distance running for almost 35 years, I cannot let this day go by without remarking on how wonderful it was to see the performance of American men in the New York marathon Nov. 1.  An American immigrant, Meb Keflizighi, won, the first time that has happened since 1982.  And another American, Ryan Hall, took 4th.  In fact, Americans took six of the top 10 spots.  That has not happened since the 1970s.

Why is this noteworthy?  Well, first of all, long distance running has been dominated by Africans and South Americans since the 1980s, especially the New York and Boston marathons, the premier U.S. events.  Meb pointed to his racing singlet, which said “USA” on it, proudly in the last half-mile to highlight the return of American long-distance running.

But there was also something new:  both Meb and Ryan Hall are openly and proudly religious, and this is definitely something new for American long-distance runners.

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This video provides the simplified version of the story of the Book of Mormon.  I think it’s a great thing to share with friends and neighbors, so much so that I forwarded it to my non-member friends on Facebook.  However, I spotted one significant error in the video and one implied error.  So, in the spirit of “constructive criticism,” I’m offering them up here.  Please feel free to add any additional errors that I may have missed.  But please be nice.

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So, my wife is pregnant.  Yes, I know, I am way, way, WAAY too old to be having another newborn.  But it still is a wonderful thing.

Except for that sympathy morning sickness.  I mean, doesn’t the Bible say Eve is supposed to suffer during childbirth, not Adam (Gen. 3:16)?  I have been traveling for a week now, and I have had sympathy morning sickness all day long the whole time.  Apparently there is no geographic limitation to this malady.

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