# Are Mormons really that happy? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [July 23, 2012, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-mormons-really-that-happy/629096 "2012-07-23T01:31:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-mormons-really-that-happy/629096/21 "2012-07-23T13:59:20Z")
> [@FuzzyOgre](#): > > The mind-boggling thing is there are Mormon men who meet outsider women and say “They are not [Stepford]-ish enough.” I would say the majority of 20 year old men in the US want a Stepford type wife with a great rack and a nice ass. Mind boggling? ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-mormons-really-that-happy/629096/22 "2012-07-23T14:24:34Z")
> [@Morgenstern](#): > > I would say the majority of 20 year old men in the US want a Stepford type wife with a great rack and a nice ass. Mind boggling? Great body yes; Stepford, no. Even most shallow men at least fantasize about a woman who loves, or at least lusts after him; not an automaton. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-mormons-really-that-happy/629096/23 "2012-07-23T14:39:17Z")
> [@PrettyVacant](#): > > Kind of depends if it’s the Mormons who are using them, or whether people are depressed by coming into contact with them. I chuckled. ---
**Author:** ![Victor\_Charlie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/7ea924/32.png) [@Victor\_Charlie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Victor_Charlie)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-mormons-really-that-happy/629096/24 "2012-07-23T15:34:03Z")
> [@Morgenstern](#): > > I would say the majority of 20 year old men in the US want a Stepford type wife with a great rack and a nice ass. Mind boggling? Are we still talking about Mormon women? The magic underwear are starting to make more sense. ---
**Author:** ![Rune](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e68b1a/32.png) [@Rune](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rune)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-mormons-really-that-happy/629096/25 "2012-07-23T16:10:15Z")
A lot of Mormons are descended from Danish immigrants ([Danish Immigration and Life in Utah](http://www.media.utah.edu/UHE/d/DANISHIMM.html)) And Danes of course are the happiest people on Earth ([Denmark: The Happiest Place on Earth](http://abcnews.go.com/2020/story?id=4086092&page=1)). So Mormons are happy not because they are Mormons, but because they are Danes. Who wouldn’t be. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-mormons-really-that-happy/629096/26 "2012-07-23T16:41:18Z")
Whoah. That was fascinating. Thanks, **Rune**! ---
**Author:** ![al27052](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/41988e/32.png) [@al27052](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/al27052)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-mormons-really-that-happy/629096/27 "2012-07-23T19:36:30Z")
> [@Victor\_Charlie](#): > > This might be drifting into another territory, but they, in general, seem very concerned about outward appearances, especially with respect to their religion. As more people learn about the weirder or more controversial specifics, they’re fairly quick to make changes. > > “What’s that? You think polygamy is wrong? Oh, uh, we do too!” > “You say it’s socially backward to view blacks as second class? Uh, yeah, we do, too… we’ve just been meaning to change a few words around in the doctrine, but no big deal. (Josiah, tell the professors at BYU to ixnay the acismray.”) > “Yeah, about that ‘getting-a-planet-after-you-die-thing’, look, uh, that’s just how a few people have interpreted that… It’s actually not that specific in our official liturgy… What’s that? It was Brigham Young? You know about that?” > (“Hey, Josiah, they know about the underwear. Let’s tone it down.”) > > Seems to me they have a bit of a history of putting up fronts for the sake of appearances. That was actually pretty hilarious. ROFL ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-mormons-really-that-happy/629096/28 "2012-07-23T19:53:33Z")
> [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > 😕 There’s more than one? Hell yes. [Here](http://www.byui.edu/) is the page for the Idaho version, a quick Google found one in Hawaii also. Everyone wants to go the SLC, of course, but there are others. ---
**Author:** ![florez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b9e5f3/32.png) [@florez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/florez)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2012, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-mormons-really-that-happy/629096/29 "2012-07-24T02:38:42Z")
This might be a happy Mormon family. [![Imgur](https://live.staticflickr.com/89/249270409_664e6841fa_z.jpg "Vagina: It") ](https://www.flickr.com/photos/skyzyx/249270409/) ---
**Author:** ![MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MPB_in_Salt_Lake)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2012, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-mormons-really-that-happy/629096/30 "2012-07-24T02:46:15Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > Hell yes. [Here](http://www.byui.edu/) is the page for the Idaho version, a quick Google found one in Hawaii also. Everyone wants to go the SLC, of course, but there are others. The main campus of BYU is in Provo UT, which is about 50 miles from downtown Salt Lake City. ETA—and I guess while I am at it, it’s Weber State, not Weaver State. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2012, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-mormons-really-that-happy/629096/31 "2012-07-24T02:59:07Z")
> [@Victor\_Charlie](#): > > This might be drifting into another territory, but they, in general, seem very concerned about outward appearances, especially with respect to their religion. As more people learn about the weirder or more controversial specifics, they’re fairly quick to make changes. > > “What’s that? You think polygamy is wrong? Oh, uh, we do too!” > “You say it’s socially backward to view blacks as second class? Uh, yeah, we do, too… we’ve just been meaning to change a few words around in the doctrine, but no big deal. (Josiah, tell the professors at BYU to ixnay the acismray.”) > “Yeah, about that ‘getting-a-planet-after-you-die-thing’, look, uh, that’s just how a few people have interpreted that… It’s actually not that specific in our official liturgy… What’s that? It was Brigham Young? You know about that?” > (“Hey, Josiah, they know about the underwear. Let’s tone it down.”) > > Seems to me they have a bit of a history of putting up fronts for the sake of appearances. So _Mormonism_ is how Romney got ‘turned out’ as the flip-flopper of all flip-floppers. Huh. ---
**Author:** ![Erdosain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/erdosain/32/7284_2.png) [@Erdosain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Erdosain)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2012, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-mormons-really-that-happy/629096/32 "2012-07-24T03:34:25Z")
Are Mormons all that happy? Probably not, but not miserable either. On the one side of the ledger, you have a strong community and social support network. There’s also a sense of certainty; everything has answer. I’m not certain, but I’d assume the rates of alcohol abuse are lower, and fewer cigarettes mean you’ll live longer (although that may be balanced out by obesity). On the other hand, you have a grinding pressure to conform, an obscene number of hours per week given over to various meetings and assignments, 10% of your income, and constant pressure to live up to an impossible standard. Less money, less free time, more guilt/shame. Plus you are constantly exhorted to set an example for your non-Mormon friends and neighbors, to show them how wonderful it is to be Mormon. I miss the social aspects a lot. Man is a social animal and human interaction is an important element to happiness and sanity. However, if that social network is mostly interested in controlling your behavior for their own ends, then it is no longer a net positive. ---
**Author:** ![boytyperanma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4491bb/32.png) [@boytyperanma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boytyperanma)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2012, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-mormons-really-that-happy/629096/33 "2012-07-24T05:44:11Z")
No one in my family was happy being Mormon except my mother. It was a source of my misery, but you learn to lie and put on a false face as to not draw suspicion… ---
**Author:** ![Dogzilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@Dogzilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dogzilla)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2012, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-mormons-really-that-happy/629096/34 "2012-07-24T16:35:49Z")
> [@florez](#): > > This might be a happy Mormon family. > [Vagina: It's not a clown car | Skyzyx | Flickr](http://www.flickr.com/photos/skyzyx/249270409/) Not mormons. ---
**Author:** ![florez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b9e5f3/32.png) [@florez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/florez)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2012, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-mormons-really-that-happy/629096/35 "2012-07-24T17:07:59Z")
> [@Dogzilla](#): > > Not mormons. Can you tell what system of faith they might be practicing? I got the impression they were Mormon but not polygamous, because there is only one wife who apparently bore all those children. ---
**Author:** ![Erdosain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/erdosain/32/7284_2.png) [@Erdosain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Erdosain)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2012, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-mormons-really-that-happy/629096/36 "2012-07-24T17:34:51Z")
> [@florez](#): > > Can you tell what system of faith they might be practicing? I got the impression they were Mormon but not polygamous, because there is only one wife who apparently bore all those children. Baptist. > **[Jim Bob Duggar](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Bob_Duggar)** > > James Robert Duggar (born July 18, 1965) is an American politician and television personality. He appeared on the reality series 19 Kids and Counting, which aired from 2008 to 2015. From 1999 to 2003, he was a Republican member of the Arkansas House of Representatives. > Duggar was born in Springdale, now the fourth largest city in Arkansas, the son of James Lee "Jimmy Lee" Duggar (1936–2009) and the former Mary Leona Lester (1941–2019), who owned a real estate brokerage agency. He graduated fro... ---
**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2012, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-mormons-really-that-happy/629096/37 "2012-07-24T22:44:42Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > So _Mormonism_ is how Romney got ‘turned out’ as the flip-flopper of all flip-floppers. Huh. my thought as well when reading that post. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2012, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-mormons-really-that-happy/629096/38 "2012-07-24T22:55:53Z")
> [@Rune](#): > > A lot of Mormons are descended from Danish immigrants ([Danish Immigration and Life in Utah](http://www.media.utah.edu/UHE/d/DANISHIMM.html)) And Danes of course are the happiest people on Earth ([Denmark: The Happiest Place on Earth](http://abcnews.go.com/2020/story?id=4086092&page=1)). So Mormons are happy not because they are Mormons, but because they are Danes. Who wouldn’t be. (descended from a Danish Mormon) Me, I’d probably crack a smile more often once I realized “Hey, the church isn’t going to pressure me into taking a second wife… sweet!” ---
**Author:** ![AboutAsWeirdAsYouCanGet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/22d042/32.png) [@AboutAsWeirdAsYouCanGet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AboutAsWeirdAsYouCanGet)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2012, 8:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-mormons-really-that-happy/629096/39 "2012-07-25T08:37:34Z")
One of my friends says that there’s a high rate of drug abuse among Mormon teens, as well as a very high rate of meth abuse. She also said that yes, things are very superfical and Stepford wive-ish in Utah. ---
**Author:** ![Ele\_the\_Stoic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/4bbf92/32.png) [@Ele\_the\_Stoic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ele_the_Stoic)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 7:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-mormons-really-that-happy/629096/40 "2012-07-26T07:23:20Z")
> [@Rune](#): > > A lot of Mormons are descended from Danish immigrants ([Danish Immigration and Life in Utah](http://www.media.utah.edu/UHE/d/DANISHIMM.html)) And Danes of course are the happiest people on Earth ([Denmark: The Happiest Place on Earth](http://abcnews.go.com/2020/story?id=4086092&page=1)). So Mormons are happy not because they are Mormons, but because they are Danes. Who wouldn’t be. I love you. This actually answers a few questions in my genealogical tree, thanks for posting it. 😃 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-mormons-really-that-happy/629096.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-mormons-really-that-happy/629096.md?page=3)