Top 10 Things Mormons Do Right
I am a non-Mormon living in Utah. Many of us “gentiles” find our own way, our own friends, and actually thrive here in Zion. Sometimes I read editorials in the newspaper where a Mormon, I presume, tells those of us who don’t “fit in” to move out of the state if we don’t like things as they are, rather than try to change things here to be a bit more open and accepting. Rather than agree with that viewpoint, I recall those who founded Utah; a bunch of outcasts who had been persecuted for being different from the norm, and who were kicked out of state after state after state. That makes me feel better.
In my day-to-day normal, boring life, I have Mormon friends. They are good friends AND good Mormons. What makes them good friends? They respect our differences. They don’t judge. They will walk into a liquor store with me and know it won’t condemn them to hell. And they don’t try to convert me to Mormonism. What makes them a good Mormon? They treat their neighbors as they would like to be treated themselves, and as Jesus Christ would treat those of other faiths.
With that said, let me share the good things I have discovered about the Mormon Church. I figure enough bad is said, so here is the good list. But of course, this is a biased view, because I do have good Mormon friends.
The Top 10 Things Mormons Do Right
10. Tithing. Where much is given, much is expected. Those of us who are blessed, should give back. I have been known to advise my Mormon friends that if they give 12% instead of 10%, they will get extra blessings.
9. Developing downtown Salt Lake City. 
The Mormon Church is a good corporate neighbor. They want downtown SLC to thrive. Now if only they could change their minds about liquor laws and letting stores on their property stay open on Sundays.
8. Public speaking. Anybody who can be called, at the age of 14, to walk spontaneously from the audience, up to the podium in Stake Conference, and speak on a topic in front of 2,000 people, can certainly handle pitching an idea to the board of directors of a publicly traded company as an adult.
7. Ward/Neighborhood calling tree. The Mormons have a great structure in place to contact one another in
case of emergency. Chemical spill from a local train derailment? Get the word out. Need people to sandbag after a flood? Get the word out. Asparagus on sale for $1 a pound? Get the word out. (Oh wait, it is just my family that has the Asparagus calling tree; not the Mormon Church.) Tell the non-Mormon neighbors too. Sounds like “It Takes a Village,” but hey, that would be too liberal.
6. Home teachers / visiting teachers. A nice touch to have someone check in on you every month. The good ones do it without you even knowing, don’t wait until the last day of the month, and they bring treats.
5. Food storage. I suspect that in the 60s, this was planned for the impending doom that would accompany the second coming of Jesus Christ. But Al Gore would be proud of the foresight the Mormons have. A two year supply of food and living essentials works for a returning deity, as well as famine, drought, asteroid attacks, flu pandemic, World War III, or global warming. Good call.
4. Genealogy. Yes, I have the Mormon genealogy software loaded on my computer. My love of history knows no religious bounds. And thanks to the Mormons, I find I am related to Eleanor of Aquitaine, Henry II, William the Conqueror, kings of France, Spain, Italy, and all Scandinavian countries, and a couple of Popes (they had sex?), to name a few.
3. Funeral potatoes. Immortalized with its own pin during the 2002 Winter Games. Cheese, potatoes, sour cream, and a variety of other pantry staples never tasted so good. My 
mother refuses to use the term “funeral potatoes” and opts for the more vanilla sounding “company potatoes.” Okay. But funeral potatoes are the only good thing about people dying.
2. No dating until age 16. My daughter has already questioned this one, but I am a believer. The Mormons are SO right on this one. In fact, I am going to write President Hinckley and ask that he consider changing the minimum dating age to 21. (If I tell him I’ll pay 50% more tithing than I currently do, he might do it.)
1. Family first. Enough said. A truth no matter the religion, belief system, country, or political belief. My definition of family is a bit more extended than theirs, but hey, lets work on that.
nice post! i was non-mormon who lived in mormon country for 7 years — and i agree with everything you say here. mormons are a funky group of people overall — conservative, traditional, sometimes not very open-minded — but i still had a fantastic time living there, finding my own niche, and making friends of the mormon and non-mormon variety.
and they really are a benevolent group, these mormons. they provide the most humanitarian aid when the world needs it. downtown salt lake is amazing and fun. and they have really contributed so much to the society there as well as to the nation and the world.
so in short . . .
cool post.