This hot take is a little extreme but not too far from the truth.
You'll only understand the depths to which the LDS church controls the state and enforces it's social and moral code if you've lived in Utah for an extended period as an outsider. It's pretty fucking weird.
- Hard liquor only sold by State Liquor stores, where they digitally record your ID. Only open a few hours a day, and on certain days. Additional state-mandated restrictions on what may be stocked (not too high of proof, etc). Fiendishly overpriced.
- Beer is all 1/2 the standard alcohol content, and may not be purchased on Sundays or after something like 10pm (forgive me, I don't recall the exact hours but you get the point). You must drive to a neighboring state to get regular alcoholic beverages.
- The LDS church wields immense financial power, usually wielded with a thin veil indirection to avoid running afoul of federal non-profit tax law.
- The LDS church is above the law, because they control it. Can't say they hijacked the state, because they founded it. There is no other place in the United States controlled by a single faction like Utah, which should terrify you. Fortunately for the rest of us outsiders, if you leave the morms alone in the macro sense, they'll ignore you, seeing you as a non-variable / non-threat.
- Church is full of porno fiends and sexual abusers; hypocrites at every level (denying human nature breeds curiosity and extremist effects on the population). It's really sad for all the victims, who are often the perpetrators' own family members.
- Lots of closet homosexuality. Also sad. The church has also squashed gay rights in the state and attempted to also suppress same-sex rights at th e federal level.
It's worth noting that over time as more non-morms move to Salt Lake City, some of the cultural norms and somewhat diluted just by sheer numbers of outsiders.
Once you get away from that lone big city, it's something like 80-90% "active" mormons. This is the phenomenon granting the church indirect controls over the vast majority of the politics and state at large.
The mormons and church are clever, going to great lengths to ensure their activities are technically legal.
Lots of nice individual people, but a scary powerful organization. It's a cult.
https://dailyutahchronicle.com/2022/06/20/mendenhall-lds-chu...
https://www.sltrib.com/news/2021/08/10/lds-church-moves-quas...
You'll only understand the depths to which the LDS church controls the state and enforces it's social and moral code if you've lived in Utah for an extended period as an outsider. It's pretty fucking weird.
- Hard liquor only sold by State Liquor stores, where they digitally record your ID. Only open a few hours a day, and on certain days. Additional state-mandated restrictions on what may be stocked (not too high of proof, etc). Fiendishly overpriced.
- Beer is all 1/2 the standard alcohol content, and may not be purchased on Sundays or after something like 10pm (forgive me, I don't recall the exact hours but you get the point). You must drive to a neighboring state to get regular alcoholic beverages.
- The LDS church wields immense financial power, usually wielded with a thin veil indirection to avoid running afoul of federal non-profit tax law.
- The LDS church is above the law, because they control it. Can't say they hijacked the state, because they founded it. There is no other place in the United States controlled by a single faction like Utah, which should terrify you. Fortunately for the rest of us outsiders, if you leave the morms alone in the macro sense, they'll ignore you, seeing you as a non-variable / non-threat.
- Church is full of porno fiends and sexual abusers; hypocrites at every level (denying human nature breeds curiosity and extremist effects on the population). It's really sad for all the victims, who are often the perpetrators' own family members.
- Lots of closet homosexuality. Also sad. The church has also squashed gay rights in the state and attempted to also suppress same-sex rights at th e federal level.
It's worth noting that over time as more non-morms move to Salt Lake City, some of the cultural norms and somewhat diluted just by sheer numbers of outsiders.
Once you get away from that lone big city, it's something like 80-90% "active" mormons. This is the phenomenon granting the church indirect controls over the vast majority of the politics and state at large.
The mormons and church are clever, going to great lengths to ensure their activities are technically legal.
Lots of nice individual people, but a scary powerful organization. It's a cult.
https://dailyutahchronicle.com/2022/06/20/mendenhall-lds-chu...
https://www.sltrib.com/news/2021/08/10/lds-church-moves-quas...