This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2017, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

A Brigham Young University alum I know occasionally posts remarks using a pseudonym on a BYU sports fan website called "cougarboard."

On April 12, he posted a comment praising The Salt Lake Tribune for winning the Pulitzer Prize for its investigation of campus rapes, coverage that highlighted BYU's Honor Code treatment of alleged sexual-assault victims.

He noted that the problem never would have come to light without The Tribune and that, in the end, the stories and BYU's reforms made the school a better institution.

So how was his comment received?

It was moved from that particular stream, and he was suspended for a day from participating on the fan board.

The reason given to him was that the post was miscategorized. His message categorized as "BYU (nonsports)" should have been categorized as "Honor Code/Title IX," according to the fan board's manager, "El Jefe."

Because the alum has been given a lifetime ban from posting in the "Honor Code" category, he never should have posted the comment in the first place, the message scolded.

And why was he given a lifetime ban from the "Honor Code" section?

He says he once sent a post there criticizing the Honor Code office for the way it treats rape victims.

In an email, El Jefe disputes those assertions, saying he didn't send the poster an email. Instead, it was a notification sent automatically because the post wasn't in the right category. It should have been put under "Religious/Moral Discussion."

El Jefe says the post remains in that category, which is restricted to those who subscribe. "It excludes those who have been banned, of course," El Jefe writes.

Well, this BYU alum has been banned. While he says he was blocked for complaining about the Honor Code Office's treatment of sexual-assault victims, El Jefe insists the banishment was for his "mocking of LDS temple ordinances, links to anti-Mormon websites, etc."

Foiled again • The feud between Utah County Republican Party officers and GOP legislators from that county crescendoed this week after the party brass decided elected officials could not participate in grass-roots politics.

Those close to the dispute say the tea-party types who form the inner circle of the GOP see themselves in Book of Mormon terms as the "Freemen" and the legislators as the "Kingmen" — and therefore the enemy of the people.

So the party's steering committee decided in a recent huddle that the Utah County GOP bylaws bar elected officials from holding any of the county's 22 seats on the Utah Republican Party Central Committee, an interpretation that contradicts 20 years of tradition.

That determination came after three Utah County legislators filed to run for Central Committee seats when delegates vote at the April 29 county convention. The proposal was to go to the executive committee this week for final approval.

But when word surfaced about the attempted purge, 14 more legislators filed for Central Committee spots, which meant all 17 of the county's legislators were on that ballot.

After that show of force, the "Freemen" pulled the proposal from the executive committee's agenda so they can focus on other issues — like excommunicating from the party any Republicans who support the Count My Vote compromise.

The Utah vision • The American Lung Association's State of the Air report released this week ranks the Salt Lake City metro area among the worst nationally for ozone and particulate pollution.

And, it seems, the Utah Legislature is determined to make it worse.

Gov. Gary Herbert recently signed a bill that prohibits restrictions on burning wood if the primary purpose is to cook food — despite studies that show wood smoke contributes to particulate pollution.

Last year, lawmakers cut funding for a state program that distributed energy-efficient electric lawn mowers at a discounted price in exchange for residents' older gas-powered mowers and trimmers.

It had been a popular program that Department of Environmental Quality officials said had effectively cut down on pollution.

Above the law? • Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes' campaign signs from his re-election bid last fall still can be seen near the mouth of Emigration Canyon.

Nice signs. There's only one problem: Salt Lake County has an ordinance requiring that, in unincorporated areas, political signs be taken down within 15 days of the final voting.

Emigration Canyon is an unincorporated township. So Reyes' campaign is about 162 days past the deadline. Violation of the ordinance is a class C misdemeanor.

Reyes also has signs along Bangerter Highway. But West Valley City does not have an ordinance restricting how long political signs can stay up.