Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the News

[byu71]

I'm not sure you'd want to be the guy following John Holmes Jr anyway.

Maybe she has wised up and realizes a large unit is trivial compared to big money.

[cowboy]

She may lose all custody rights with her kids. And now the story and her photo will live forever in infamy on the internet. She has a tough road ahead.

Am I the only person whose heart broke at the kids' ages? Kids who are 4 and 8 losing their mother? That just sucks. I feel bad for her, but terrible for her kids, and hope she can get some help for their sake.

[LVAllen]

Do people in Las Vegas not know what a tree root is?

Yeah, the ones they showed were pruned to the trunks, not the roots. That said, these are mesquite and acacia trees. They're like carrots - big on top, REALLY big and long underneath. Even if they were cut down to ground level, the damn things would grow back.

[byu71]

Am I the only person whose heart broke at the kids' ages? Kids who are 4 and 8 losing their mother? That just sucks. I feel bad for her, but terrible for her kids, and hope she can get some help for their sake.

I do feel for them, but on the other hand they may end up in a environment much better for them. I can't imagine a drinking carousing mother is better than perhaps some stable family members for those kids.

[Nakoma]

Am I the only person whose heart broke at the kids' ages? Kids who are 4 and 8 losing their mother? That just sucks. I feel bad for her, but terrible for her kids, and hope she can get some help for their sake.

The children have a tough road ahead. Limited involvement with their mom; and their dad, who now has sole custody, suffers from PTSD and has anger issues.

[scottie]

This is a really sad story. If you believe her attorney, this is a Mormon woman who followed the program. Active in the church, stayed at home with her five kids (developing no job skills in the process), didn't touch alcohol until a year ago, when she separated from her husband, who came home from Iraq with anger issues. She's alone with no job prospects, in a city far away from her family, so she starts drinking when she doesn't have her kids, and does it stupidly. And now she's on national news.

This should have happened to her in college. Then no one bats an eye and she learns her lesson. And no kids get hurt.

From first drink to AA within a year is quite the downward spiral.

[myboynoah]

This is a really sad story. If you believe her attorney, this is a Mormon woman who followed the program. Active in the church, stayed at home with her five kids (developing no job skills in the process), didn't touch alcohol until a year ago, when she separated from her husband, who came home from Iraq with anger issues. She's alone with no job prospects, in a city far away from her family, so she starts drinking when she doesn't have her kids, and does it stupidly. And now she's on national news.

This should have happened to her in college. Then no one bats an eye and she learns her lesson. And no kids get hurt.

Yup, she had no other options.

[Shaka]

From first drink to AA within a year is quite the downward spiral.

Happens quite a bit.

[CardiacCoug]

Happens quite a bit.

Any data on this?

I think statistically it's very rare for people who don't start to drink alcohol until their mid-20s or later to become alcoholics. The vast majority of alcoholics started drinking as teens, no?

I've personally never met an ex-Mo who didn't drink until mid-20s or later who developed a drinking problem. That's my anecdote.

[scottie]

Any data on this?

I think statistically it's very rare for people who don't start to drink alcohol until their mid-20s or later to become alcoholics. The vast majority of alcoholics started drinking as teens, no?

I've personally never met an ex-Mo who didn't drink until mid-20s or later who developed a drinking problem. That's my anecdote.

http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/AA67/AA67.htm

[CardiacCoug]

http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/AA67/AA67.htm

Right I think it's a popular misconception that you need to teach young people to "drink responsibly" -- expose them to alcohol at a relatively young age and they will learn how to relate to alcohol in a healthy way and avoid problems with alcohol in the future. However the science shows that kids that start to sip some of their parents' alcoholic beverages and otherwise start consuming alcohol at a young age are much more likely to become alcoholics than those who don't drink at all (until adulthood). There is also this myth among Mormons that if they start to drink a little that they might become a raging alcoholic and that is of course totally ridiculous.

[falafel]

This is a really sad story. If you believe her attorney, this is a Mormon woman who followed the program. Active in the church, stayed at home with her five kids (developing no job skills in the process), didn't touch alcohol until a year ago, when she separated from her husband, who came home from Iraq with anger issues. She's alone with no job prospects, in a city far away from her family, so she starts drinking when she doesn't have her kids, and does it stupidly. And now she's on national news.

This should have happened to her in college. Then no one bats an eye and she learns her lesson. And no kids get hurt.

Vs..

Right I think it's a popular misconception that you need to teach young people to "drink responsibly" -- expose them to alcohol at a relatively young age and they will learn how to relate to alcohol in a healthy way and avoid problems with alcohol in the future. However the science shows that kids that start to sip some of their parents' alcoholic beverages and otherwise start consuming alcohol at a young age are much more likely to become alcoholics than those who don't drink at all (until adulthood). There is also this myth among Mormons that if they start to drink a little that they might become a raging alcoholic and that is of course totally ridiculous.

[CardiacCoug]

Well I would love to see the study that shows that people who binge drink in college are LESS likely to binge drink in middle age. To me that's a patently ridiculous hypothesis, that you get the drinking out of your system or learn your lesson and so become less likely to drink later.

No clearly the opposite is true. If this lady hadn't been devout LDS and thus had significant experience with drinking as a young woman she would be MORE likely to have problems with alcohol and do all this crazy shit as a middle-aged parent.

[ERCougar]

Well I would love to see the study that shows that people who binge drink in college are LESS likely to binge drink in middle age. To me that's a patently ridiculous hypothesis, that you get the drinking out of your system or learn your lesson and so become less likely to drink later.

No clearly the opposite is true. If this lady hadn't been devout LDS and thus had significant experience with drinking as a young woman she would be MORE likely to have problems with alcohol and do all this crazy shit as a middle-aged parent.

I don't think that's clear at all. There are plenty of people who binge drink in college and don't later in life.

You're assuming she's a one drink alcoholic, which may very well be true. It also may be true that stress making up for lost time, and it was all triggered by a stressful situation. I know of at least middle aged woman that is currently about 4-5 months sober whom that describes perfectly. Hadn't touched alcohol until her 30s, was in inpatient rehab a year ago.
I can tell you a dozen other late alcohol users who aren't necessarily alcoholics, but doing really stupid things because they're new and stupid at it. Shaka seems to agree.

[Pelado]

Indeed, a tough road ahead. I am sure you as I do, know people who we are surprised if not amazed at how down they were once and where they are now.

I am just saying because of her apparent looks, she has a better shot than a lot do.

Kind of poor form to be looking to hook up with her so soon after a tragedy, '71.

Would hooking up with 71 be a new low for her?