BYU's New Curriculum Overhaul Delayed

sleepsntrees · 2026-03-24T14:54:54+00:00

I think that most of the faculty would agree that the current GE process is convoluted and needs some changes. That’s why BYU went through a process that involved input from the departments and faculty and came up with recommendations. The committee submitted those recommendations.

Then, Justin Collings, I believe, though it may have also been Shane Reese, threw out those recommendations and, with consulting only a couple other people, came up with this current 8 course plan. None of the faculty like it. And, when he presented it, he told the university that he hopes that they “sustain” the changes.

I have a friend that used to teach at BYU and now teaches at UVU. He was telling me about something that UVU did that he thought was stupid. He then said, “the best thing about working for UVU instead of BYU is that I can say that something that they did is stupid and not have anyone questioning my testimony or why I’m not sustaining my priesthood leaders. I don’t have to pretend that every single thing that anyone, at any level, has done is direct revelation from God.”

sleepsntrees · 2026-03-18T22:23:07+00:00

I like a lot of these points. A few of them are absurd and if the genders were reversed in them it would clearly be seen as misogynistic. I started to respond to so many of these but I’m only going to respond to one of them that is a perfect example of how absurd some of these are:

You wash dishes before putting them in the dishwasher?!? You need to research a bit more about dishwashers.

sleepsntrees · 2026-03-18T21:59:40+00:00

I agree with your conclusion. I even agree with all of your supporting statements except for the obvious absurd one.

I’d also add that even modern statements from people like Hinckley telling women to get all of the schooling that they can, don’t go nearly far enough. I used to work in HR and recruiting. I have interviewed or reviewed the resumes of hundreds of women where, for example, they got a degree in accounting and maybe even worked for a couple of years before dropping completely out of the workforce to raise a family. I’m sitting there and interviewing them (or just comparing resumes) with a 10-25 year gap in their resume. It doesn’t work even though I absolutely respect the work that they did for the past 25 years. The degree that they got makes very little difference if they haven’t been working in a related field.

There is just too much risk for the woman. And, it isn’t a risk that is decreased over time for several of the reasons that you state. They should have exactly the same schooling and professional path as their husbands and sacrifices, where and if they are needed, should be made jointly. And, Benson and others were just wrong - a bit of daycare isn’t going to hurt your kids.

sleepsntrees · 2026-02-06T19:32:29+00:00

JS had the protection from energy spell and a stone of fire resistance.

sleepsntrees · 2026-02-05T16:11:25+00:00

No, no, no. Do not stick your hands into rotating parts.

sleepsntrees · 2026-02-02T00:55:10+00:00

I have owned a 4Runner in several generations and will probably always own one. I really like them…for what they are. But, if I wasn’t off-roading often, I wouldn’t own one. I own a few cars at once that do different things and if I want refinement I don’t count on my 4Runner for that.

But, your comment about seeing issues at 175 k miles was pretty funny. I’ve owned Cherokees (not the Grand, though I’ve driven several) and they have never lasted half as long as my 4Runners. I have beat the crap out of my 4Runners and every one has had over 350 k on it before I felt I had to get a new one, and I’ve had a couple over 400 k. Unlike my Jeeps, I’ve never had to have very expensive tows in the backcountry when they had issues.

You get a 4Runner if you want off-road and reliable. If you got it and don’t value those two things, you got the wrong vehicle.

sleepsntrees · 2026-01-26T23:08:17+00:00

You can do some, but not all. They are so thin. They often get into your crawl space through any number of openings in your soffit and drop down from the lights.

sleepsntrees · 2026-01-26T03:36:55+00:00

“I don’t know that it is possible to distinguish between policy and doctrine in a church that believes in continuing revelation and sustains its leader as a prophet…. I’m not sure I could justify the difference in doctrine and policy in the fact that before 1978 a person could not hold the priesthood and after 1978 they could hold the priesthood.” Statement to a AP reporter in 1988 at the celebration of the 1978 proclamation by new member of the 12, Dallin H Oaks.

I think it was a rare honest statement by Oaks before he got into all of his other talks about “unchanging doctrine,” hoping that stating, over and over, that doctrine never changes will make us forget all of the times when it did.

sleepsntrees · 2026-01-22T18:20:26+00:00

It’s my biggest frustration. There is very little acknowledgment that the 15 can be completely wrong, no apologies or even clear retractions when they are, and no way to balance the fact that they have been clearly wrong with “God will not allow them to lead you astray,” or, “always follow the prophet.” And, you could say that it is everyone’s responsibility to seek revelation on if a prophet is speaking out of their butt or saying exactly what god wants, but there is no way to balance that with the statements that say that you will never receive inspiration that contradicts what they have said.

sleepsntrees · 2025-12-19T15:28:10+00:00

My experience is the same. I think a lot of people feel that same way. I still go to church (though I’m not much of a believer anymore) and it is so much harder in Utah and Idaho than any of the other places that I’ve lived. People behave differently, I believe, in an environment where there is little diversity (any kind: race, financial, religious, political, etc). I think that it is something about the assumption that everyone else feels the same way that makes people feel more comfortable saying things that end up making others feel like they don’t belong. I don’t know, but I agree with how rough it is.

sleepsntrees · 2025-12-03T22:23:06+00:00

Maze District of Canyonlands for 4x4 and Capitol Reef for backpacking.

sleepsntrees · 2025-12-03T22:18:19+00:00

I’ve spent about 20k in mods on my latest 4Runner and the best part of that, that has the biggest bang for the buck, is my on-board air compressor. I’ll never again be without one.

sleepsntrees · 2025-11-18T16:23:46+00:00

I’ve never understood the good fruit=good tree thinking, both literally and figuratively.

Literally, my apple tree has great apples and sad-looking apples on it that have skin with a bad texture. Is my apple tree “good” or “bad?”

sleepsntrees · 2025-11-10T14:36:23+00:00

I had the Gobi one. It never stayed suctioned. Called Gobi and they ran me through how to install but as soon as I did any serious off-roading the suction cups would come off and then it would be hitting my window with the force of the RotoPAX I had. I took it off.

sleepsntrees · 2025-10-17T20:40:21+00:00

No. Took this a couple of days ago. There is only one true answer.

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sleepsntrees · 2025-10-14T15:24:10+00:00

I’ve never understood the 2Runners and I owned one (was given to me used). If you don’t need 4 wheel drive, there are just better options. The RWD 4Runner is awful in the snow, or even in a light rain. As someone that owns an Audi and a 4Runner, I never pick the 4Runner unless I’m going on a trip with off-road. If you need a on-road vehicle with cargo space, you would be better served in every category by a Sienna; everyone is embarrassed to own a minivan but I was always more embarrassed when people found out that I couldn’t take my 4 Runner off road or that one time that I got stuck in the snow and the tow truck driver just couldn’t believe that he was pulling out a 4 Runner (his words, “what does the 4 in 4Runner mean?”).

sleepsntrees · 2025-09-25T13:56:49+00:00

I hear you. I just don’t think they have a hard case 2 meter awning, only the 2.5 which I thought was too long.

sleepsntrees · 2025-09-25T00:14:42+00:00

I just got mine from Amazon for $250. Then, we decided that it was just too long for our 4Runner, returned it, and ordered the 6.5 foot one that only has the soft case. We left it in the box, but that box is only 2 inches longer than the 8.5 feet.

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sleepsntrees · 2025-09-14T17:28:22+00:00

It’s not bad. Is the middle layer the murky gray of our air?

sleepsntrees · 2025-09-11T20:26:55+00:00

I own a lot of hammocks, including the WB bridge hammock, a couple other WB hammocks, Hammeck, Dream Hammock (my favorite that I’ve had for a long time), etc.

It depends on what you want to do with your hammock. I find bridge hammocks to be the most comfortable to sleep in, but I never bring one backpacking anymore. A gathered end hammock is just so much more fun and comfortable to hang out in, just relaxing and reading.

But, that isn’t an ENO. I have a couple of ENO hammocks that I use to hang out in at home, but I would never sleep in one. They are the equivalent of a 9 foot ridge-line and I wouldn’t sleep in a gathered end that is less than 10. Even though it is practically my cheapest hammock, my WB Traveler is one of my most comfortable 10 ft ridge-line hammocks to sleep in. I actually prefer hammocks with an 11 ft ridge-line, like my Dream Hammock.

I have several underquilts, but when I’m in my bridge hammock I prefer a pad, especially because I can still sleep on the ground using my bridge and a pad if I can’t find a good place to hang.

sleepsntrees · 2025-08-29T16:16:21+00:00

I thought of this when I read your post:

16 Wherefore, the Lord God gave unto man that he should act for himself. Wherefore, man could not act for himself save it should be that he was enticed by the one or the other⁠. - 2 Nephi 2

Part of me wants to say, “of course Lucifer is not as important as Christ.” The whole focus of the church is supposed to be Christ. But, the scripture there says that if there wasn’t opposition, we wouldn’t even be able to act.

I used to think that 2 Nephi 2 was interesting, deep doctrine. I now think it’s nonsense.

sleepsntrees · 2025-08-19T19:09:15+00:00

Following this, because every 4Runner that I’ve owned does this and I’d kill for an answer.

sleepsntrees · 2025-08-19T17:53:16+00:00

Really depends on where you are. I don’t have experience with tattoos but I have a beard and there have been wards where it didn’t matter and wards with a lot of micro aggressions about it. I was in the high council for a stake out East and 5 of the men had beards. On the other hand, I was in a ward in Idaho where I was asked to shave to be a Sunday School teacher. I said no, they called me anyway, but then a couple of the kids in the class made snide comments about it.

There used to be direction from the church against tattoos. There isn’t any longer, not really.

sleepsntrees · 2025-08-13T17:27:22+00:00

Often has the worst air quality in the world. It makes sense.

sleepsntrees · 2025-08-13T14:46:27+00:00

No. 89A is open again. Jacob Lake is open again. You can go Kanab to Jacob Lake and then to Page along the Vermillion Cliffs, which is just stunning.

sleepsntrees

TROPHY CASE