My father had business dealings in Utah in the 1970’s.
As a Yankee Catholic traveling in Mormon lands, he made the following observations to me.
-The Mormon people were polite, and maintained very high ethical standards. He actually knew someone who sent his coat out for dry cleaning in Salt Lake and left $500 cash in the pocket. It came back with the cash still intact.
-Their devotion to family and to taking care of their own was truly admirable. From what he observed there was barely any need for the state to operate a welfare system, as their church was doing all the heavy lifting.
-Like the Deep South in the 1950’s, the place virtually shut down on Sunday mornings. As it would again when Family Night rolled around.
-Forget ordering a beer! It was no doubt easier to purchase a baggie of weed from some hustler on the street. Beer was only available at super-secret backdoor speakeasies where you had to pay a fee to become a member. He said they actually made our 17th. Century liquor laws in Pennsylvania seem sane by comparison.
-It was also very difficult to get a cup of coffee. With no alcohol and no coffee, he was awestruck by the sight of Kool Aid being served in a 3 1/2 star restaurant.
-Once they found out how many kids he had, they put on the full-court press to try and convert him. He would come back loaded down with all sorts of Mormon literature, including a Book of Mormon (which I have never seen again. She denies this, but I suspect it freaked my mother out so badly that she burned it)
-His one negative thought was that once it became very clear to them that he was not going to convert, the locals all became very cool to him and would barely give him the time of day anymore.
Don't know about the 1970s, but I've been to Utah recently. Beer is available on most menus of an Appleby's class restaurant on up. And if you want to buy a six-pack. you can do so in any local convenience store if you are of the proper age.
Compare that to Pennsylvania where we still have those 17th Century liquor laws, including state-owned stores