very well said ! i find myself fighting a case of depression this time of year and it takes all of my will power not to turn postal on the people around me . which makes the depression even worse !
On Dec 10, 11:16 am, margareth <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > I would vastly prefer no mention of the Nativity, or any other part of > the religious celebration until after the fourth Sunday of Advent. One > of the things I like about may church, is that the tacky > commercialized version that attempts to use the Prince of Peace to > make me spend beyond my ability are kept out.....I don't want to hear > any of the traditional carols, until Christmas Eve, and then only if > they are in tune. There was one shop in this town that had the Kings > College choir on Nov. 15. One annual concert I participate in is the > Messiah. That should be produced as part of the Easter story, and > could legitimately be used as part of the great vigil, as it does > speak of the Passion. I am not a fan of gospel music, and can only > just tolerate modern "interpretations of the old favourites. > I think that I just said that I would really appreciate the real > separation of church and state at this time of year. That way I can > ignore the secularization, > > On Dec 10, 7:07 am, mike 532 <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > > > > Happy Holidays to Bill O'Reilly and the other rabid Republicans ! > > > On Dec 10, 4:53 am, mike 532 <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > > > The White Nationalist Behind Bill O'Reilly's War on Christmas > > > How a racist created the conservative movement's favorite holiday > > > season outrage -- and has O'Reilly dreaming of a pure, white > > > Christmas.http://www.alternet.org/story/111465/ > > > What would Christmas be without warnings of the secular crusade to > > > destroy it? Thanks to the fulminations of cable news cranks and > > > evangelical moralists, the War on Christmas has become an annual > > > outrage. The story typically goes as follows: secular elements have > > > intimidated stores into replacing the phrase “Merry Christmas” with > > > “Happy Holidays;” nativity scenes have been removed from public spaces > > > under threat of ACLU lawsuits; a decadent culture is moving ever > > > closer to eradicating Christian morality; and America slouches towards > > > Gomorrah. > > > > Judging from the panicked tone of movement conservatives, this year’s > > > War on Christmas campaign threatens the country’s moral fiber more > > > than ever. According to The Wall Street Journal’s Daniel Henninger, > > > the secular Grinch has claimed the economy as its latest casualty. “A > > > nation whose people can't say 'Merry Christmas' is a nation capable of > > > ruining its own economy,” he fumed on November 20. Having laid off 20 > > > percent of its staff the day after Election Day, Christian right mega- > > > ministry Focus on the Family declared “Merry Tossmas” imploring its > > > supporters to toss out holiday season product catalogs that wish > > > shoppers “Happy Holidays.” (The 201 freshly unemployed staffers might > > > have more practical reasons to trash their catalogs.) > > > > “If you can get religion out,” Bill O’Reilly warned, “then you can > > > pass secular progressive programs, like legalization of narcotics, > > > euthanasia, abortion at will, gay marriage.” > > > > On December 2, Utah Republican state senator Chris Buttars sponsored > > > an urgent resolution demanding that stores greet shoppers with the > > > phrase, “Merry Christmas.” “I'm sick of the Christmas wars,” Buttars > > > proclaimed. “We're a Christian nation and ought to use the word.” > > > > The Christmas kulturkampf is a growth industry in a shrinking economy, > > > providing an effective boost for conservative fundraising and a > > > ratings bonanza for right-wing media. So who was the genius that > > > created it? To find the answer, a visit with the ghost of > > > conservatism’s past is in order. > > > > Back during the culture wars of the 1990s, Peter Brimelow, then a > > > Fortune magazine editor, grew incensed with the increasing use of the > > > phrase “Happy Holidays” by retailers like Amazon.com. “I just got real > > > interested in the issue,” Brimelow told The Daily Beast, “because I > > > noticed over the years there was this social shift taking place where > > > people no longer said ‘Merry Christmas.’” > > > > In his 1995 book, Alien Nation, Brimelow argued that the influx of > > > “weird aliens with dubious habits” from developing nations was eroding > > > America’s white Christian “ethnic core,” and in turn, sullying its > > > cultural underpinnings. The War on Christmas was, in his view, a > > > particularly pernicious iteration of the multicultural “struggle to > > > abolish America.” > > > > Brimelow went to his fellow Briton and Tory, John O’Sullivan, then > > > editor of the conservative movement’s flagship publication, National > > > Review, with a big idea. National Review should host “an annual > > > competition for the most egregious attempt to suppress Christmas.” > > > Though O’Sullivan liked Brimelow’s idea, he was replaced as editor on > > > Christmas Eve 1997 by Rich Lowry. > > > > With the exception of a 2001 column in which O’Sullivan blamed > > > “religious minorities” for the War on Christmas, the issue disappeared > > > from the pages of National Review. At the same time, the magazine > > > jettisoned O’Sullivan’s anti-immigration politics in favor of the Big > > > Tent conservatism preferred by younger writers like Jonah Goldberg and > > > Ramesh Ponurru. > > > > The shift at National Review forced Brimelow even further into the > > > political wilderness. Shunned by conservatives there rankled by his > > > unabashed racial resentment -- Goldberg belittled him in a 2002 column > > > as a “once respected conservative voice” -- Brimelow founded what > > > would become the internet’s leading anti-immigration web journal, > > > VDare.com, named for the first British child born in the Americas. > > > Brimelow’s new venture provided a forum to allies like Jared Taylor, a > > > white supremacist publisher, and Kevin MacDonald, an evolutionary > > > psychology professor who has argued that Jews are genetically equipped > > > to out-compete Gentiles for resources and power. In 2003, four years > > > after VDare’s founding, the Southern Poverty Law Center classified the > > > journal as a “hate group.” > > > > 12Next page »- Hide quoted text - > > > - Show quoted text -- Hide quoted text - > > - Show quoted text - --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum * Visit our other community at http://www.PoliticalForum.com/ * It's active and moderated. Register and vote in our polls. * Read the latest breaking news, and more. -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
