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Show 4 OPINION Thursday March 22, 2012 CICE 651‘ 1.Nedo www.dailyutahchronicle.corn N EAte--r k 0 Stu owsitc V.) 11,,L 09 ° %/.1 A.0 1 WILLUS BRANHAM/The Daily Utah Chronicle Powder is Utah's best-kept secret W*th Utah claiming to have " The Greatest Snow on Earth," it is curious that Utah ski resorts and terrain parks rarely make it on the lists for best resorts in the nation. While reading Transworld Snowboarding magazine, I browsed through an article on top ro park picks and expected to see a few Utah resorts on the list. Much to my dismay, Utah wasn't mentioned throughout the entire article. In fact, the top three were all Colorado resorts, and the rest were in California. This is interesting because most Utahns know that we have the best snow, and many individuals move here because they can't get enough of it. "Words cannot do justice to how good the snow in Utah is," said Ohio RACHEL JACKSON StaffWriter native Kyle Blase, a sophomore in environmental studies and parks, recreation and tourism, who moved to Utah to go to school and ski powder. "We have a quarter of the tourists that Colorado ski resorts have, yet the snow is far better." It must come down to what you care about most when snowboarding or skiing. Is it more important to have a glitzy resort to hang your boots or to have the best snow conditions? Only having been to two other states to snowboard — Colorado and New Mexico — my opinion might be a little one-sided. Having said that, the snow here is incomparable to anywhere I have been. I just returned from a trip to Copper Mountain, Colo., and the snow there was tightly packed and treacherous. Even the fresh snow was heavy and burdensome. However, the current snow conditions in Utah make it difficult to compare. This season has been a tough one for winter sports — the country has seen some of the highest temperatures ever recorded during the winter, and, even stranger, Utah recently received the best snowstorm of the year — in the middle of March. It is also peculiar that so many great snowboarders and skiers come Be wary of charitable h e out of Utah, yet the Beehive State doesn't always get recognized as having the best snow. So, what makes Utah get overlooked so often when it comes to having well-known ski destinations? From my experience with fellow snowboarders, drinking seems to be a culprit. It is no wonder that when looking at a vacation spot, the one with the stricter drinking laws might fall down the ranks. The number of snowboarders also might be dwindling in Utah, unless they can afford their own private halfpipe like Shaun White can. Because of the risk of injury, many resorts have been limiting their terrain parks as well as requiring a certification to be able to ride some of the parks. One example of this is Brighton Resort, which now requires a Park Etiquette and Education Program pass. Basically, you pay sr() to watch a video on park safety, after which you are allowed to enter the park. The rules are pretty serious — if you break them you can get kicked out of the resort for the entire season. These rules include things such as "call your drop," which is yelling at the people below you to tell them you are hitting a jump, loud enough that they can hear you through their Skullcandy headphones. I would have to agree with Blase that Utah has the best powder on earth. If Utah doesn't get enough credit, maybe that's a good thing — it will keep away the crowds. I'd prefer it to be the best-kept secret rather than having tourists come in and carve up our mountains. letters@chronicle.utah.edu Online Comments "Be suspicious of the LDS Church blocking records of baptisms for the dead" by Joseph Suh, March 20, 2012 Viral video gives questionable campaign instant fame L ast week I watched the short online documentary "Kony 2012" and heard about Joseph Kony and the Lord's Resistance Army for the first time. My immediate impulse was to join three local Joseph Konyrelated events and look into getting a starter box so I could do my part in putting up posters and spreading the word. However, something about the documentary disturbed me. I was unsettled that my first impulse was to drop money on a T-shirt, wristband and starter box without doing any more research on the topic I was about to protest. The sleek design and high production value of the documentary momentarily blinded me from any alternative viewpoints. I have since talked with others about "Kony 2012" and the group running the program, Invisible Children. Apparently the organization has been facing allegations of scandal ranging from ambiguous use of funds to questionable donors. There have also been claims that the Lord's Resistance Army has already been defeated and the organization is late to the punch. The truth of the matter is muddled, and it is difficult to find any hard evidence for or against Invisible Children. What originally drew me to the documentary, and the ultimate cause of my suspicion, is the type of campaign Invisible Children is running. The documentary StaffWriter paints the problem of the Lord's Resistance Army as one that can be solved through awareness. The message is fairly straightforward: If people care and show they care about Joseph Kony being arrested, he will be. Alternatively, if people can't prove they care about the cause, then Kony will continue with his crimes unchecked. In essence, the campaign appeals to a generation invested in information and social media. This generation wants fast results and widespread response immediately. Unfortunately, awareness is meaningless if not followed by action, and action can be harmful if not properly executed. Before dedicating oneself to a cause, it's important to understand what you're truly dedicating to. The conflicts in Uganda cannot be summed up in a 3o-minute documentary, nor should decisions be made based on a 3o-minute documentary. Causes are meant to be actively pursued, not watched and commented on. Rather, the documentary should spur research from multiple sources that could eventually lead to informed action. Regrettably, altruistic causes and charity are fairly distracted topics at the moment. Problems don't stay in mind for long, and people can be quick to jump from one movement to another. Invisible Children seems to be aware of this trend and has set a concrete timetable on its campaign, one that will not easily be forgotten. Although Invisible Children might or might not be an organization to stand by, its campaign offers plenty to learn from. The documentary rapidly went viral and illustrated the power that social media possesses when it comes to getting a message to a great number of people. Invisible Children also uses the documentary to remind people to keep in touch with their government. By maintaining active cornmunication between the public and the government, real solutions to world problems become more achievable. However, the primary lesson to be taken from the massive amount of hype Kony 2012 has garnered is to always maintain an open mind. There are organizations in the world attempting to do real good, and there are those that are not. The ability to question a source — be it one that is doing good, one that is attempting to do good, or one that exists for self-gain — is a blessing. letters@chronicle.utah.edu Noma deGarre 11:12 a.m., March 20 I quote, from your column: "The LDS Church has implemented a new technological barrier to prevent abuse of the New FamilySearch system, he said. Anyone trying to access names that have been restricted will have their account suspended and be required to contact FamilySearch to establish their family relationship in order to have their access reinstated. Abuse of the system will result in the permanent loss of database access." I believe the Church's new system is intended to PREVENT the non-consensual baptism of prominent figures. People are only allowed to submit names to the temple for their own ancestors. Since Anne Frank has no descendents, this shouldn't be a problem in the future. But let's say Anne Frank did have a great-great-granddaughter who was a member of the Church, and out of respect and love for her ancestor, this granddaughter wanted to perform a religious ordinance on her behalf. She should be allowed to do that without controversy.The same applies for any prominent figure. The LDS Church looks like it's intent on keeping temple work a family affair. Can there be any real objection to that? Noma deGarre 11:54 p.m., March 20 It will indeed be up to your survivors whether or not someone is baptized on your behalf, as intended by the Church policy featured in this column. Clark Berlin 6:51 a.m., March 20 Whoever wrote this dribble doesn't understand the fact that NewFamilySearch is not for people to search for their ancestors just for the sake of making a family tree. NewFamilySearch is for members of the LDS Church to submit their FAMILY NAMES for Proxy Ordinance work in the Houses of the Lord. |