Ah, the State of the Union Address, very possibly the most obnoxious event ever fabricated by man, the pinnacle of political theater, the crux of patriotic mumbo jumbo, the crowd mentality at its worst, the epitome of empty rhetoric, the festival of demagoguery. I am of the opinion that Jesus, who publicly denounced the hypocrites of his time and all their pomp would say boo to the whole affair. “Your actions speak so loud, I can’t hear what you’re saying” (Ralph Waldo Emerson). What if these ridiculous events were more like General Conference? Cut the relentless applause, cut all the facades, and tell the people what they need to hear instead of what’s calculated to win the best PR. That’s the world I want to live in.