I have been reading about this model and in my opinion it has some very strong supporting evidence, much more than the Mesoamerica model.
But, the Heartland Model as currently expounded has some serious flaws. The geography that is mentioned in the Book of Mormon can't simply be disregarded.
If the Mississippi River is the river Sidon, then what is the Sea West? The Sea West is so prominently mentioned that it has to be identified for a model to have any credibility.
If the Heartland Model is correct, then the Mississippi is the grand candidate for the Sea West, the Great Lakes for the Sea North, the Gulf of Mexico for the Sea South and the Atlantic as the Sea East.
That makes the Ohio River a good candidate for the river Sidon, considering it's confluence with the Mississippi as the head waters of the Sidon.
I plan to work this up with the detailed geographic descriptions in the Book of Mormon in the coming weeks.
One very good reason for the Mississippi to be the Sea West is because of the extensive shipping and transporting of migrants to the unsettled parts of the Land North. The Mississippi has a large number of estuaries that could take ships west to the Rockies, north to Canada, south to the gulf, and east to the Atlantic.
More to come.
