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Same-sex marriage and the role of religion

Deseret News - The battle over the definition of marriage is also a battle to control religion's role in public discourse, said William C. Duncan at the annual conference of the Foundation for Apologetic Information and Research. It also is a relatively new issue. "Thirty years ago this topic of same-sex marriage … didn't really exist, certainly not as a mainstream legal topic or any kind of topic," said Duncan, the director of the Marriage Law Foundation and an attorney. "So we've seen a dramatic scene change over the past couple of years." If the topic didn't exist 30 years ago, it certainly does...

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Best Gift for the Grandkids?

Dave Ramsey - Dear Dave, What's the best financial gift for young grandchildren? Anonymous Dear Anonymous, Well, it's definitely not savings bonds. You get nothing in the way of a return from those things. I get mad just looking at them! I'd suggest opening up an Educational Savings Account (ESA) in a mutual fund in the child's name. You can put up to $2,000 a year, per child, into these, and they grow tax-free. If you started when your grandchild was born, and set aside $2,000 a year for 18 years, you'd have saved $36,000. But if you go the ESA route, and figure...

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Are You Listening?

Kedrik Hamblin - Listening is a vital part of all relationships; it is the bridge of true understanding between people. In reverse, when it is absent, misunderstanding prevails and people don't relate to one another. "The need to be paid attention to and appreciated is one of the deepest needs in human nature, and unfortunately for many people, much of the time, that need is frustrated," says Dr. Michael P. Nichols, a professor of psychology at the College of William and Mary. Studies show that great listeners have better relationships and are perceived as more helpful. Employees mention good listening skills among the top...

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The Best Place to Put Savings

Dave Ramsey - Dear Dave, Where is the best place for me to put my savings? Anonymous Dear Anonymous, Saving and investing are two things I talk about a lot. Investing is when you're going to leave the money alone for five years or more. I'm talking about things like retirement, college planning or saving up to buy a house. For these things, I recommend good, growth-stock mutual funds. Make sure you're looking at mutual funds that have stable track records of five to 10 years, and then spread your money across these four categories: growth, growth and income, aggressive growth, and international. Now,...

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Serve and Preserve

Angie Sullivan - I know there are many of you out there who are hesitant about using your food storage. You've read the previous articles about trying out some new recipes, or learning to make bread, but that's where you lose the nerve. You can't seem to get the gumption to open that can of milk, or pry the lid off that bucket. You're afraid that there will be no going back - that within a short time you will have lost the shelf life of your product, and as we can all agree, shelf life is a big deal in the world of...

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It's No Get Rich Quick Scheme

Dave Ramsey - Dear Dave, I'm about to complete Baby Step 3. I've been very intense about following your plan, but I was wondering if there's ever any kind of frustration or letdown after you've come this far. Rasheed Dear Rasheed, You're right. The beginning three Baby Steps are very intense. First, you get $1,000 in the bank - $500 if you make less than $20,000 a year - for a beginner emergency fund as fast as you can. Then, pay off all your debts, except the house, from smallest to largest, and after that you finish out your emergency fund with three to...

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BYU football: Manumaleuna is looking to make new memories

Deseret News - BYU's Eathyn Manumaleuna started every game at nose tackle as a true freshman. But that was three years ago. After a solid first season as a Cougar, Manumaleuna left for an LDS mission to Oklahoma City, Okla. He returned home in February, but Saturday marked his first official practice since coming back to BYU. "The first day was pretty hard. I'm not quite in shape as I thought I would be," said the 6-foot-2, 280-pound sophomore. "I've got a long ways to go. In two years, I've forgotten a lot of the defense. It's like I'm a freshman all over again."...

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LDS Church News -

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Editorial: A matter of faith

Philly.com - It is good to see plans for construction of a $70 million Mormon temple in Center City moving forward, despite the Nutter administration's almost undermining the deal. Mayor Nutter should be basking in one of the biggest development projects to come together on his watch. But instead, the administration managed to come away from a good deal looking bad. Even in reaching a settlement, the Nutter administration still managed to squeeze $100,000 from the owner of the property. The administration caved from its original demand, but still sent the wrong message in the end. At issue was a lawsuit the city's...

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Unfolding the future of online family history research

LDS Church News - Regarding FamilySearch, "something big is coming soon," proclaimed Daniel C. Lawyer on July 29, the third day of the Conference on Family History and Genealogy at BYU. In fact, that declaration was the parenthetical subtitle of his plenary session address, "The Future of FamilySearch." Brother Lawyer is a senior product manager for FamilySearch, the Church's family history website and its associated online genealogy services. But his self-applied title is "uber-techno-genealogist-ologist" (UTGO) which he facetiously defined as "a technologist specializing in the study of genealogists." He and other "UTGOs," colleagues from the FamilySearch staff, were sent around the world to observe people's...