Filling a Life Sentence Behind Bars? You Might Prefer Death Row.

via latimes.com

In California, the quality of life--and even life expectancy--of death row inmates exceeds that of "lifers." Think about that next time you choose to commit a heinous crime.

Mormons and the Mainstream

Here's a very insightful article from The American Conservative magazine discussing how the religious right is finding the grassroots organization and fundraising capabilities of members of the Church of Jesus Christ more attractive. It cites Mormon support of California's Proposition 8 that defines marriage between a man and a woman.

After Prop 8, evangelical opinion leaders exhorted their audiences to stop worrying and learn to love the Latter Day Saints. John Mark Reynolds, a professor at evangelical Biola University wrote, “In the battle for the family…… traditional Christians have no better friends than the Mormon faithful.” A petition to thank the LDS church for its participation in the Prop 8 campaign circulated on conservative websites, and James Dobson signed it. Presbyterian writer John Schroeder said, “We Evangelicals must thank our Mormon cousins. …… They, along with our Catholic brethren, were better organized than us and that provided a base from which we could all work together to get this job done.”

Is this a continuing trend or a flash in the pan? Time will tell--but a lot can happen in the space of just a few years.

Romney's Super-Tuesday Surge

It looks like Mitt Romney is finding some traction leading up to all-important Super Tuesday tomorrow. In the last week in many areas of the country he has eliminated most or all of John McCain's lead in the polls; especially significant is delegate-rich California, where Romney leads by eight points. This is complemented by his non-binding landslide win in Maine. I'm sure this is due in no small part to the support of the conservative ideologues in the media - the Rush Limbaughs, Sean Hannitys, Laura Ingrahams, et. al. He may have been helped by comments from Mike Huckabee, who is believed to be siphoning votes from Romney in the South. Huckabee has turned negative toward the talking heads who oppose him, even going so far as to say that Sean Hannity was speaking from his pocketbook because he was on the Bain Capital payroll.

Romney is known to be the most hated candidate among his competition thanks to his Washington outsider status, his money and his evolution on key issues. If he can pull this off, it will be quite the upset. At the very least, I believe Mitt will win enough delegates on Tuesday to continue his run.