What Happened to Christmas?

When an old Jewish lady comments that it doesn't feel or look like Christmas then you know there must be some truth to the observation. Since my second husband is a Christian, we came up with a non-religious tradition that we both enjoy. We get in the car and ride around looking at the Christmas lights and decorations. Then home for some hot chocolate. When we first came to South Florida in 2000 every neighborhood was a virtual wonderland of lights. Christmas in the tropics became a beautiful display of lights instead of a blanket of snow. One felt Christmas in the air.
Not now. The other night we drove around and got excited if we saw a house lit up. Then we noticed something else. We drove through two different towns and noticed there were no town decorations. Not one.
Hollywood, Florida has a park that taxpayers spent more than twenty million dollars to upgrade- but not one Christmas light was displayed. For an American Jew , who remembers school and church choirs singing at the malls, this is very sad. As a little girl I used to hate Christmas time because I couldn't participate, so one would think that I'd be glad that the signs of Christmas disappeared. No one was more surprised than I when I realized how terrible this was. I'd always loved the carols and seeing the beautifully decorated trees at the homes of friends and now there was none.
It was always very apparent to this Jew, that even though Christmas was a religious holiday, it was also American. The beautiful lights that lit up the darkness, and choirs in public places like the mall or town center singing the familiar Christmas carols, was a moment of " peace on earth goodwill to men." that reminded us who we were. Hearing the sounds of Christmas while running around the mall to finish shoppimng, was part of America. Taking the kids to sit on Santa's lap was tradition. What happened?
I remember when a creche was set up yearly outside the post office in the small town where we lived. No one went to the ACLU. Everyone assumed that was part of the Christmas landscape. But somehow and for some specious reason we no longer have public displays of this joyous holiday. Driving the dark streets of South Florida I commented to my husband that this must be what Christmas in a Communist country is like. He didn't disagree and said we'd better have our hot chocolate before that disappears too.

Rampant Racism at Hofstra ?

Scholarship thugs

 

Full disclosure: Hofstra is my alma mater. I graduated long enough ago that almost all the athletes were white. As a matter of fact, my boyfriend was on a football AND baseball scholarship, but since he needed spending money, worked as a teaching assistant.

That’s the background. Here’s the story. Until the other day, I didn’t know about the four black basketball players who were on scholarship at Hofstra University, a very expensive, private university. Other peoples’ money paid for their room and board, excellent education, and even their textbooks. They admitted guilt to stealing over $10,000 worth of tech products from other students.Even though one of these young men had already been kicked out of school for his unacceptable behavior, apparently winning basketball games was more important to decision makers.

Instead, we should start calling a spade a spade (for the ignorant- that’s a common expression). These boys are nothing but ungrateful, talented thugs. but they were treated with reverence by students, faculty, and administration.

This story ties in with the Jovan Belcher homicide/suicide. A black football player murdered his baby’s mother and excuse after excuse was given to rationalize his barbaric behavior. Reporters went so far as to blame this horrendous incident on a concussion. Since when is murder a symptom of a concussion? A follow up story shows that this was the tragic ending of a night of drinking and visiting a woman who was not his ” baby momma.” It must have been the concussion.

I could go on and on with stories. When my son was a gymnast at the University of Nebraska a a black football player threw his white girlfriend down the stairs and she landed in the hospital. The administration threatened her with pulling her scholarship if she reported it to the police.

How about OJ? I was sitting with a group of extras working on a movie in Atlanta when the verdict came in. Even though I was familiar with the cultural differences, I was appalled to see how joyous the black contingency was. We white folks looked at each other with looks of horror, consternation, and bewilderment. It was very clear that justice was not served.

It is time to stop the adulation of a thuggish. criminal culture. It’s great that so many top athletes are black or brown, but unless we demand the same behavior from all our citizens and enforce justice for all, our country will end in chaos. As citizens we must call savage, barbaric behavior what it is. As Pamela Geller’s posters encourage, ” In the war between the civilized person and savage support the civilized man.” As Americans we have to take these words to heart and start calling bad behavior what it is. If I were one of the parents PAYING for my child’s education I would be furious.

I Shrugged

My husband and I had a rare Saturday night date. I say rare because our nights out have become unusual due to our fiscal downturn, so I was really looking forward to seeing Atlas Shrugged Part II. I was one of the few people who thought the first part was good. I even thought that the train scene of Dagny tranversing the magnificance of the USA was excellent, so I figured with a bigger budget and more publicity we had a winner. I was wrong.

First of all, there were only nine people at a 7:15 Saturday showing. That was my first disappointment. The only underlying excitement was realizing that we could have any seat in the whole theatre. That was really the best part of the evening. The rest was disappointing.

The reason, I believe, the movie failed is that there was no character development. It was made very clear to the audience that everything was falling apart in our country but we didn’t understand why we should care. Remember, we are inundated with post apocalyptic movies and TV shows daily, so a scene with a sign that gas is selling for $47.00 isn’t too moving.

A good movie develops both plot and character. The problem was that it didn’t really do either. Part of the problem could be the way the story was broken into parts. This part of the story focused on the industrialists, creators, and experts disappearing. Although the character of Hank Reardon was portrayed well, it would be quite confusing for anyone not familiar with the story to understand his relationships with Dagny and his insufferable wife. For me, whose first love was Howard Roark, the hero from Rand’s The Fountainhead, not to care what happened to any of the characters was the real disappointment.

Trick or Treason?

Do you think I was born yesterday?

 

Treason: “The betrayal of one’s own country by waging war against it or by consciously or purposely acting to aid its enemies.”

 

 

Under Article III, Section 3, of the Constitution, any person who levies war against the United States or adheres to its enemies by giving them aid and comfort has committed treason within the meaning of the Constitution. The term aid and comfort refers to any act that manifests a betrayal of allegiance to the United States, such as furnishing enemies with arms, troops, transportation, shelter, or classified information. If a subversive act has any tendency to weaken the power of the United States to attack or resist its enemies, aid and comfort has been given.

The Treason Clause applies only to disloyal acts committed during times of war. Acts of dis-loyalty during peacetime are not considered treasonous
.com/treason

So there’s the definition. It’s pretty clear to me that what actually happened in Libya is being covered up by the lying communist bunch currently running our government. If we were to continue to listen to the administration’s PR arm, or what used to be called “the media” we would still think that Watergate was the “the worst government cover-up” and that Woodstock was something glorious instead of a disgusting display of drug addled rutting bodies.

Although it’s quite amusing to watch the rats run for cover. I have a more amusing idea. Wouldn’t you like to see them all squirm in front of Judge Judy? Picture Judge Judy giving each and every one of them a piece of her mind. First , she’d start with a few innocuous questions like, ” WHO received those emails asking for more security? And that was WHEN?”

Then, when Susan Rice or another one of the democratic cronies roll her eyes pleading for help from Hillary the Judge would proceed to eviscerate her with her vinegar laced voice. “Don’t you look at Hillary when I’m talking to you.”
And then the climax of her diatribe… ” I believe that Representative Michelle Bachmann and four other patriotic representatives of the American people inquired about the Muslim Brotherhood affecting our foreign policy about a month ago. Everyone who thinks they’re so important… I’m talking to you Madam Secretary… ridiculed their concerns. But in my book, if it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck it’s not a chicken, but a DUCK. According to the evidence it looks like the main advice to you, the Secretary of State and to our dear leader have intimate ties to the enemy.
” But your Honor, it must have been the vast right wing conspiracy…”
” Listen you, I wasn’t born yesterday and furthermore, I didn’t need my husband to get where I am today. And by the way, you two crooks deserve each other. Now get out of my court and let the people take care of its business- and fast- before we lose this country.”