Another proud day for Utah

This is probably old news in Utah, but since the Cap'n hasn't said anything about it, I'll "scoop" him. Gordon B. Hinckley, the prophet and president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, will be awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in a ceremony in the White House on Wednesday. The Presidential Medal of Freedom is an award given out to honor distinguished service, whatever that maybe. The award has been given to presidents, public figures, entertainers, foreign leaders, etc., so it's probably not as prestigious as the Nobel Prize, but in the big scheme of things, it's ranks right up there. I know that the Great El-ahrairah would be honored to be given this award for his work in blogging punditry (Right, when hell freezes over). This will also be the first year when two religious figure are honored, the other recipient being John Paul II. I think that this is the first time that the president of the LDS Church has been so honored.

Some could point to this as President Bush pandering to the LDS Church to get the "Mormon" vote and win the state of Utah, but that would be wrong. For this to be true, you would have to suspend your powers of logic and assume that John Kerry had a snowball's chance in hell of winning the state of Utah. Utah is one of, if not the most conservative state in the nation. From Jimmy Cah-tah to "Fritz" Mondale to "Tank Commander" Dukakis to "Slick Willy" Clinton to Al Gore, Democrats always come in last in Utah. So, if President Bush did this to shore up the "Mormon" vote, he is wasting his time. He has already got the "Mormon" vote just by waking up in the morning.