Stanton Macfarlane

Live in Saratoga Springs, UT with wife and 3 boys. Love my family and BYU sports, mostly in that order Go Cougars!

[Clint Teeples @TeeplesCY]

History made. Gozo to Booth — the first Latter-day Saint to Latter-day Saint goal in MLS history.

[Jason S. @SpideYstow]

Ute fans last November after spending the summer making fun of ‘McCae Hillstead’

[Mark Durrant @DurrantMark]

I'm a 55 year old, highly educated, practicing attorney. I've read the Book of Mormon more times than I can count. I've spent thousands of hours studying the Old and New Testaments, as well as LDS Church doctrine and history. I've read the revelation, writings, and papers of Joseph Smith and many books written about him, by members and non members alike. I've read or heard virtually every piece of anti Mormon material imaginable. I've attended thousands of hours of church services, sunday school classes, seminary programs, college level religion courses, and devoted two years exclusively to study and preaching as an ordained minister. I've literally devoted much of my life to the pursuit of gospel knowledge. Most importantly, I've received divine confirmation from the Holy Ghost that Joseph Smith is a prophet and that the Book of Mormon is true. But yeah, with all due respect random anonymous Twitter guy, forgive me if I don't take your word for it that my religion is false.

[Clint Teeples @TeeplesCY]

"If I told you there was one free thing you could do every Sunday that would make your kids happier, healthier, smarter, and closer to you, you'd think I was selling something."

Take your kids to church regularly. I don't care if you believe. The data is so lopsided that skipping it is the parenting equivalent of refusing vegetables because you don't like the taste.

Grades. Religious teens get As at almost twice the rate of nonreligious teens. In a class of 100, that's 24 A-students instead of 14. Church gives a kid the same academic boost as being born rich instead of poor.

College. Working-class religious kids earn bachelor's degrees at double the rate of their nonreligious peers. Middle-class kids do it at 1.5x the rate. For families without a trust fund, this is one of the most powerful forms of upward mobility social scientists have measured.

Character. Religious teens are far less likely to lie, cheat, or do things they hope their parents never find out about. They're more likely to care about racial equality, the elderly, and the poor. They reject the idea that morality is whatever works for you in the moment. That kind of kid doesn't happen by accident. It's built.

Closeness. 60% of parents of religious teens say they feel "extremely close" to their kid, compared to 50% of nonreligious parents. The kids report the same thing back. They get along better with their parents, talk about hard stuff, and actually want to spend time with their family.

Despair. Religious teens are dramatically less likely to be depressed, anxious, lonely, or feel that life is meaningless. 90% of devoted religious teens never binge drink, compared to 41% of the disengaged. Economists named the modern epidemic "deaths of despair." Regular church attendance is one of the strongest known buffers against it. Parents are spending fortunes trying to solve teen mental health. The most evidence-backed intervention is free.

Purpose. Religious young adults report higher purpose, gratitude, life satisfaction, and resilience. These are the exact traits every parent says they want their kid to have.

Here's why it works. Affluent families already surround their kids with networks of stable, accomplished adults through neighborhoods, schools, and parents' colleagues. Working and middle-class families usually don't. A congregation is often the last institution in American life that puts your kid in weekly contact with dozens of stable, employed, sober adults who know their name. It used to be called "a village." Now it barely exists outside of churches.

"But I don't believe." Your kid doesn't need your theology. They need you to show up.

"But church is boring." So is sitting through a kindergarten music recital. Parenting is the deliberate choice to be bored on purpose for someone you love.

There's a church within 15 minutes of nearly every American home. You don't need money, connections, or credentials to walk in. Nothing else in this country will surround your kid with engaged adults, teach them moral seriousness, and give them a stable weekly rhythm at zero cost.

You already drive them to practices that produce far less. The free thing on Sunday produces more, on more dimensions, than almost anything else you do as a parent.

You don't have to believe anything. You just have to take them.

[David Daines @daviddorg]

Stanford paid 35,000 people to quit Facebook and Instagram for 6 weeks

Depression dropped. Anxiety dropped. Happiness went up. Women under 25 on Instagram saw the biggest gains

That was 6 weeks. I'm going a full year.

[Elon Musk @elonmusk]

NASA Artemis passing close to the Moon

[Spaceballs The X Account @Grunt2A]

Now that Artemis II has launched we have 10 days to get everyone on Earth a Planet of the Apes costume so we can do something hilarious when the astronauts return 😁

[Weston Macfarlane @westeban_mac]

Cougar nation! Let’s get to work!

[Church of Jesus Christ Temples @cofjctemples]

An exterior rendering for the Vienna Austria Temple was released today. The two-story, 15,300-square-foot temple will be constructed on the 0.8-acre site of a former meetinghouse located at Silbergasse 2 in Vienna. It will be the first temple built in Austria. A groundbreaking date has not yet been announced. Nearly 4,700 members of the Church reside in the country. (Rendering: Intellectual Reserve, Inc.) #viennatemple #viennaaustriatemple
https://t.co/N6Y5r5QR9G

[Stanton Macfarlane @stantonmac]

@jethhaines Woah, look who just showed up on my twitter feed! This must be my sign to start watching House of the Dragon!

[Stanton Macfarlane @stantonmac]

@oelma__ Rita. Mary. Lucille.

[Stanton Macfarlane @stantonmac]

@ShortStackUte What about the optics of millions of taxpayer dollars going to prop up Ute athletics?

[Stanton Macfarlane @stantonmac]

@j_divis 1985-1986 Caracas, Venezuela

[Stanton Macfarlane @stantonmac]

@therealutahutes I remember when Utah fans used to say “Good teams make their own luck”

[Stanton Macfarlane @stantonmac]

@DaveMcCannTV @DaveMcCannTV great show as always, but I was really hoping to see the speedometer on Chase’s long play to compare it to the 21.0 mph on Parker’s TD.

[Stanton Macfarlane @stantonmac]

@BradfatherSpeak @BYUfootball @Utah_Football I’m pretty sure the graphic is titled “Cougs in the NFL” not “Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the NFL”.

[Nicole Auerbach @NicoleAuerbach]

The greatest NIL deal in college sports history. @ManischewitzCo x @BYUfootball @jretz11

[Stanton Macfarlane @stantonmac]

@Leg_baseball Whether or not it’s an intentional drop, how are so many people saying this is an infield fly? It doesn’t come close to meeting the requirements for an infield fly.

[Stanton Macfarlane @stantonmac]

@JimMcMahon The one and only Terry Bradshaw