One of my friends has several Mormon employees. He loves the work ethic but cringes at their automatic acceptance of the status quo.

It made me think of the days of seeing the mad scramble to get to the church meetings on time. Stressing to get 100% home teaching. Dropping hobbies that were loved to fill some boring church assignment. Neglecting time with the kids to attend boring meetings. Not to mention paying a lot of your hard earned income to the church only to be rewarded with guilt, shame, and a challenge to do more and work harder for the church.

Yeah, you can't be lazy in the church but you have to be brain dead to exist in it. I remember a show that interviewed prostitutes and they all said they just turned their mind off to get through the line of clients they had to service. They had to remove themselves emotionally from it. Well, Mormons are the same way. They service the church but have to turn their minds off to avoid the trauma. And yes, the church does f*ck the members.

Not all of them do, though.

I have met too many lazy Mos that'd rip you off rather than work.

They work hard and don't question authority.

Oddly, the ones I worked with and know can all apply critical thinking skills to certain areas, like computer software.

I think it's just when it comes to human systems that they expect to be told how it should be.

I don't think it's a matter of being incapable of critical thinking -- most Mormons I have met are well-educated. I think it's just a culture that encourages an over-emotional approach to life. Everything is about feelings. I mean, a lot of people are like that, not just Mormons, but it seems more pronounced for them. I've rarely seen men cry in public, just the random stranger you might encounter, you know? But I've seen LOTS of LDS men cry in church.

And it makes sense from the cult's point of view -- feelings are easier to manipulate than reason, so of course they want a flock that is very emotional and thus easier to control.

I think this is why people rarely persuade Mormons of the problems with church history & doctrine by presenting logical arguments. They're encouraged to respond to challenges by fasting and praying themselves into feeling okay again after the discomfort of being confronted with evidence that might undermine their belief. They're not stupid -- they're just living in a totally different cultural & psychological reality than many of the rest of us.

"They're not stupid -- they're just living in a totally different cultural & psychological reality than many of the rest of us."

The reality of people in a cult is totally skewed. A family I knew growing up were JW. Oh, man, why didn't I see the similarities? They were in MEETING AFTER MEETING, kept extremely busy, and associated ONLY with those who were "Witness". It was a total immersion into their cult culture and extremely sad.

"The thinking has been done."

They believe it's good to follow the leader. The joy and "freedom" of Mormonism is having so many of your decisions made for you. "Just tell me what to do."

Your last paragraph says it all. Great incite.

I remember an interview with a muslim convert who said that her life was "so much freer" because of islam; in other words, she didn't have to think for herself anymore. She was told when to pray, what to wear, etc., etc., etc,.....

Mormons are cult-ridden.

Why do you thing Mormons love the "sheep" motif so much? Sheep are stupid but useful.

Humans are apes: clever, innovative and difficult to enslave.