BYU Mathematics Professor David Cardon, the subject of our recent article, replied to our questions regarding his anti-Trump notice. The entirety of his response, including the questions we asked Dr. Cardon, is posted below.
Questions from The Cougar Chronicle:
1. What was your purpose in posting this notice?
2. When it comes to endorsing political candidates, BYU maintains a policy of neutrality. While faculty are given liberties of free speech, do you think a message like this could alienate many of your conservative students?
Dr. Cardon’s Response:
1. First of all, there is no question that Trump is a wicked man. The list of his crimes is very long.
2. The word “endorsement” does not apply. I didn’t say to vote for Trump or not to vote for Trump. My comment about supporting a candidate was neutral, in the sense that I did not endorse any candidate. I made a comment of what happened in the scriptures, when the majority of the people chose a wicked leader. Students should not confuse their political affiliation with the Gospel, and if they do they should be taking classes where the ideas are discussed. Being “neutral” is not the same as being ignorant and naive.
3. The idea from the last paragraph comes straight out of the Book of Mormon. If it offends you, then you should also be offended by the Book of Mormon. If it offends you, you probably don’t believe the Book of Mormon.
According to exit polling conducted by Fox News, members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints were polled highest among other religions in support of President Trump.
Written by: Jacob Christensen
The Cougar Chronicle is an independent student-run newspaper and is not affiliated with Brigham Young University or The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Cover Photo Source: https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-says-life-spared-restore-america-greatness-during-victory-speech
This is wild behavior from a BYU professor. It’s not obvious that what he says is true, though he states it as a matter of fact.
While he’s protected by tenure (presumably) in posting such nonsense, he will of course not be surprised when BYU students avoid his class for fear of his biased treatment.
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Let’s please try to avoid, and to discourage, efforts to divide the Church along political lines. Whether they’re intentional attempts or merely blundering. The Kingdom of God is more fundamental than partisan politics.
Wrangling and wrenching the scriptures to suit one’s own worldview is a sign of mental illness. His position is not to adjudicate righteousness or to stir up contention and make learning a sick and dangerous adventure. And all his points can be repudiated. We pray that his wishes upon those who don’t see it his way will bring a change of heart when his false prophecy and interpretation will be exposed with growth. Or, deeper separations will occur, and the wheat and tares will be manifested.
Why criticize the majority of Church members? What is his goal?
Surely you’re not this stupid. The goal is to hold up a mirror to absolute hypocrisy of the professed faith of those at BYU who have gone all in on someone so clearly counter to their “principles”. Not to mention the blindness with which they read their own scriptures, which they neither understand nor follow. The outcry to this whole thing is sufficient to show that so many have lost their way… And their fall… and the fall of the US…. well just pick up all those blue books they have on their bookshelves and read it….
Some questions for Prof. Cardon:
-Do students who voted for Trump need to go talk to their Bishop? Should the Honor Code Office get involved?
-What is the process of repentance for the sin of voting for Trump?
-Does he have some special insight that the leaders of the church do not? (See letter from First Pres. every election cycle)
-Has he analyzed the lives of Harris and Biden and found them to be righteous people?
Great questions! But before he answers he needs to climb down off his high horse of moral superiority.
I am disappointed by the people attacking and harassing this professor both online and in person. There may have been better ways about sharing his opinion, but I am sure he had no intentions of going viral. He posted it on his office door, thinking very few would see it. Also, it is important to note that no student taking a math class from him is going to receive biased treatment. Why? Because it is not a factor in the course, it will never come up. With that said, he is an amazing man who cares about his students. Harassment from Utah Trump supporters will only further his belief… It is time to respond with respect, accept the difference of opinion, and move on.
Whether or not he had intentions to go viral is irrelevant. Neither is the fact that his political opinions may differ from his students a concern. The problem is he is incapable of accepting that his candidate lost and instead behaves as a petulant child. This has undoubtedly, and deservedly, resulted in a loss of confidence among students and administration. There is no place for this at BYU and I hope he is punished accordingly.
I would agree with you…if Professor David Cardon was just David Cardon. But his “Professor” status holds him to a higher standard and level of accountability. A teacher of youth is expected to be patient, loving, and kind. When such an individual does something that is so irresponsible, there is no question that a reprimand and a request for more humility in the future be requested. Addressing this publicly, as has been done, serves as a deterrent to those who may think of doing something so irrational in the future.
It’s obvious that he wanted to make this point to his students in specific, and calling them wicked and ripe for destruction if they didn’t vote the way he wanted was the point. Trying to sway his students opinion who are under his authority directly, and unable to defend themselves publicly without fear of retribution, is compelling thought. This makes him unable to wield the priesthood, unless he repents, as he has exercised unrighteous dominion over those he seeks to sway. This is clear evidence of left wing TDS in academia, and sorry to say, at BYU. By the way, it seems that those who like to post things on doors don’t remain long in the church they claim to be affiliated with (a.k.a. Martin Luther)
If he didn’t want his feelings known, he shouldn’t have posted them at all in his place of work. We can disagree on the election. We can even make statements of our personal social media. But when a paid member of a university uses his position to promote his personal agenda, I’m glad it’s getting called out. I hope he is formally reprimanded for not following church standards on the topic. He’s not apologetic, but doubled down. He could have simply said that he made a mistake in posting it at work.
As far as impact on students, you honestly don’t believe someone walking in with a MAGA hat won’t get treated differently in his class? Why is his personal rant more protected because he teaches math rather than political science?
Took a class from prof Cardon in analysis. I wish he could handle moral reasoning and politics with the same amount of nuance and sophistication used in rigorous mathematical proof work in his lectures. Instead, he lazily declares arbitrary moral axioms by which he casts judgement on most of his students. He is not objective in his analysis nor prophetic in his declarations. I suggest he spend the same amount of time thinking about his messaging as he requires his students spend on homework assignments each week (9-12 hours).
It does not require sophisticated moral reasoning to understand that Trump is a unique threat, a moral degenerate and those LDS among us who have voted for him and supported him and championed him are blind to the warnings in the BOM…
Why did you not challenge his premise that Donald Trump is evil? How is Trump evil? What is Professor Cardon’s rationale argument for that?
He has no rationale argument to make.
This is clearly a case of don’t get into the mud to wrestle with a pig; you won’t win and you’ll just get muddy. The professor is shamelessly short on facts and he couches his assertions with phrases like, “there is no question that…” Excuse me, but there are many questions. I’m certainly not an expert on the Book of Mormon (being Jewish) but it seems I can understand it’s precepts more clearly than the professor. How can someone with such a deficient grasp on reason, logic and facts be a professor at a major university? Now that’s a silly question on my part.
I won’t pay or send another DIME to BYU as long as professors are allowed to teach there and promulgate this kind of crap. If he, in his personal opinion wants to vote for Kamala — GO FOR IT. Who cares? But he should NOT be allowed to post something on his door, effectively condemning half of the student body. And certainly, tearing up the Family Proclamation should be grounds for dismissal and firing. If he has the GALL to do that, KNOWING he’s being filmed, what kind of anti-LDS doctrine does he spout in class behind closed doors??? This kind of stuff has been going on for far too long. More and more professors are actually TEACHING OUR YOUTH RIGHT OUT OF THE CHURCH. I KNOW the church has tried to address it. I’ve SEEN the addresses to faculty. But if there isn’t DISCIPLINE and CONSEQUENCES, there’s no reason for them to stop.
It’s one thing to go to a non-LDS school and hear the “philosophies of man” taught as truth. It’s another thing entirely to have LDS people teaching it.
Nope– I’d rather send my kids to a secular school where they can clearly SEE the difference, and where their faith isn’t being challenged by those who are supposed to be helping strengthen it.
Like it or not, the mathematics of polling and elections is relativistic and biased. When results fail to meet expectations, either one’s biases finally align with reality, or a mental health crisis arises if refusal to acknowledge facts in real-time or after the dust clears is the response.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30769197/
With realism and humility, we can all seek the Kingdom of God FIRST, and then allow all things to be added upon our righteous desires. Temporality and mortality are much too variable to apply fixed absolutes of judgment.
“1. First of all, there is no question that Trump is a wicked man. The list of his crimes is very long.”
and Jesus said:
“He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone . . .”
This guy tore up a copy of the Family Proclamation that a student posted on his door, and then called the student a coward after the student told him he just ripped up modern revelation from a prophet of God.
I can’t imagine why this professor is LDS. Such a hypocrite!
It’s one thing to cry about the election and bending scripture for that point but what is shocking is in the video of the student who taped a copy of “The Family Proclamation” and respectively confronting him about him, for the professor to tear up the words of a living prophet, its pure disgusting. Will administration do anything about this? He might as well have just lit the Scriptures on fire while at it.
Fire this guy!
I saw a video of a student confronting him. It’s clear this professor isn’t all there mentally. And the scripture he used was talking about choosing iniquity, not about choosing individuals.
Any follow up on the ripping up of the family proclamation on video?