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Post by snsurone on Dec 3, 2017 19:57:11 GMT
For Heaven knows how many years, people have been brainwashed into believing that the Christmas season is the time of never-ending merriment, family togetherness, love and good cheer. And spending themselves into debt buying gifts!
I admit, the colored lights and decorations are pretty, but then there is the endless Christmas music piped into all the stores, plus the movies and TV shows on the subject, especially the 24/7 puke-a-thon from Hallmark Network that lasts from before Halloween until after New Year's Day!
In truth, so many people are stressed out and depressed during this time. Regarding "family togetherness", no thought has been given to those who either have no families or those whose families are so dysfunctional that gatherings are impossible without quarreling and hatred. In fact, more murders and suicides occur during the Christmas season than any other time of the year (except, maybe, summer).
IMHO, the only people who enjoy this season are the wealthy moguls who own the emporia that put ordinary mortals in debt each year.
BTW, the only Christmas movie I really love is the 1950 version of A CHRISTMAS CAROL, with the brilliant Alistair Sim as Scrooge.
To tell the truth, I'm glad I'm not Christian so I'm not sucked into this vortex each year.
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Post by mattgarth on Dec 3, 2017 20:00:38 GMT
Wishing Snsurone a jolly holly Christma ... ooppss, never mind.
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Post by snsurone on Dec 3, 2017 20:13:49 GMT
Matt, wish me a happy Chanukah, OK?
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Post by mattgarth on Dec 3, 2017 20:23:03 GMT
Matt, wish me a happy Chanukah, OK? Put on your yarmulke Here comes Hanukkah So much funukkah To celebrate Hanukkah
Hanukkah is The Festival of Lights Instead of one day of presents We have eight crazy nights!(so sang Adam Sandler)
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Post by howardschumann on Dec 3, 2017 21:05:14 GMT
For Heaven knows how many years, people have been brainwashed into believing that the Christmas season is the time of never-ending merriment, family togetherness, love and good cheer. And spending themselves into debt buying gifts! I admit, the colored lights and decorations are pretty, but then there is the endless Christmas music piped into all the stores, plus the movies and TV shows on the subject, especially the 24/7 puke-a-thon from Hallmark Network that lasts from before Halloween until after New Year's Day! In truth, so many people are stressed out and depressed during this time. Regarding "family togetherness", no thought has been given to those who either have no families or those whose families are so dysfunctional that gatherings are impossible without quarreling and hatred. In fact, more murders and suicides occur during the Christmas season than any other time of the year (except, maybe, summer). IMHO, the only people who enjoy this seasons are the wealthy moguls who own the emporia that put ordinary mortals in debt each year. BTW, the only Christmas movie I really love is the 1950 version of A CHRISTMAS CAROL, with the brilliant Alistair Sim as Scrooge. To tell the truth, I'm glad I'm not Christian so I'm not sucked into this vortex each year. I agree there is a lot of phoniness about Christmas but it is only a reflection of the materialism that dominates our culture every day of the year. In spite of all the hoopla, however, Christmas for me (I'm Jewish) has always been a time of spiritual beauty, even holiness (if that word still has any meaning) and I'm not even a wealthy mogul. It reminds me of how we are all connected through the infinite consciousness that transcends the limitations of our finite minds.
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Post by OldAussie on Dec 3, 2017 21:18:32 GMT
My favourite Xmas movies -
The Lion in Winter Die Hard
....Yes, I'm pretty cynical about this time of year but the one thing I look forward to is Xmas lunch with people I actually love. The one holiday I find pointless is New Year's Eve. Who cares?
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Post by snsurone on Dec 3, 2017 21:32:38 GMT
Howard, I wish that I could agree that Christmas is a time of spiritual beauty, but I'm sorry to say that it is not--at least not nowadays. IMHO, it's a time of selfishness and greed. The utter commercialism of this holiday makes me wanna heave. Think about the fact that nativity scenes are forbidden in public areas in most cities. The fact that this holiday is supposed to commemorate the birth of Jesus has been totally obscured by superficiality. I suggest watching A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS, where this dilemma is addressed. Charles Schultz was a genius. To be perfectly honest, I really don't know why I'm bitching about this, . Maybe it's because I read the advice columns where people complain about so much family dysfunction during the holidays. It just boils down to so much hypocrisy.
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Post by BATouttaheck on Dec 3, 2017 21:32:50 GMT
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Post by Doghouse6 on Dec 3, 2017 21:34:36 GMT
The one holiday I find pointless is New Year's Eve. Who cares? I've always had an affinity for New Year's Eve, but never gave much thought to why. I think your assessment nailed it for me: it's really nothing more than an excuse for a huge party. That's a rationale that earns my support.
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Post by snsurone on Dec 3, 2017 21:37:26 GMT
Dog, most American holidays are excuses for parties, or store sales.
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Post by howardschumann on Dec 3, 2017 21:55:07 GMT
Howard, I wish that I could agree that Christmas is a time of spiritual beauty, but I'm sorry to say that it is not--at least not nowadays. IMHO, it's a time of selfishness and greed. The utter commercialism of this holiday makes me wanna heave. Think about the fact that nativity scenes are forbidden in public areas in most cities. The fact that this holiday is supposed to commemorate the birth of Jesus has been totally obscured by superficiality. I suggest watching A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS, where this dilemma is addressed. Charles Schultz was a genius. To be perfectly honest, I really don't know why I'm bitching about this, LOL. Maybe it's because I read the advice columns where people complain about so much family dysfunction during the holidays. It just boils down to so much hypocrisy. I got that it is that way for you. For me and my kids growing up it always was a magical time. Giving of yourself to others is always spiritually rewarding, whether or not the merchant makes a profit.
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Post by Doghouse6 on Dec 3, 2017 22:56:59 GMT
Dog, most American holidays are excuses for parties, or store sales. While I can get behind flimsy excuses for parties, I'm absolutely not a fan of absolutely monetizing absolutely everything: every public agency or function privatized; every political dustup a pretext for fundraising; every last aspect of human life re-purposed as a profit center, etc. Bleeeah!
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Post by Lebowskidoo 🦞 on Dec 3, 2017 23:16:15 GMT
Think about the fact that nativity scenes are forbidden in public areas in most cities. The fact that this holiday is supposed to commemorate the birth of Jesus has been totally obscured by superficiality. I suggest watching A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS, where this dilemma is addressed. Charles Schultz was a genius. Where I work we had to phase out the nativity scene and all actual true Christian Christmas items so as not to offend anyone. Now, I get that Christmas is a massive bruhaha for us in this part of the world and we dominate the media and everything else with our holiday, but pretending it's not really what it is just seems like a big lie. If I were of another persusion belief-wise I would not object to anyone celebrating their beliefs. Some say a business should remain neutral and just display a Santa Claus so as not to offend, but that's offensive in my mind. I'm not overly religious, just raised to love Christmas, and have no problem with others displaying their own holiday displays as well, not at the expense of any others. Over the years, the idea of only a neutral Santa Claus seems more and more like it's promoting capitalism and greed, not what Christmas really is about. It 's perfectly understandable for snsurone to want to retreat from Christmas if she's surrounded by that type of Christmas.
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Post by marianne48 on Dec 4, 2017 0:49:23 GMT
I was raised Catholic and I'm pretty sick of how the Christmas season has become an excuse for, as snsurone so eloquently put it, a 24/7 puke-a-thon of movies on the Hallmark Network, movies which are really just two-hour commercials for the obscenely overpriced stuff that is peddled at Hallmark stores. I'm also irritated by the constant holiday music on the radio which began in early November; the behavior of stressed-out crowds in stores (I used to work in retail, and I know how berserk some customers can become this time of year); and that TV commercial that proclaims their product, a light that projects floating snowflakes and Santas on the front of your house, to be an example of "the miracle of Christmas!"
I have to ask, though--one of the supposed Christmas "traditions" that apparently originated within the last decade or so is the "Elf on the Shelf," a cheap little elf doll (which sells for about $30, without the accessories) which parents can use to torment their children ("the elf is always watching you!"). Today, I discovered there's a "brand new" Chanukah tradition--the "Mensch on the Bench," a little doll wearing a yarmulke sitting on a little bench. Now is this really something that is gaining popularity among Jews in the same way that the annoying elf seems to be everywhere among Christian families, or is it just a desperate attempt on the part of Bed Bath and Beyond to make some extra bucks on a manufactured "tradition"?
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Post by Doghouse6 on Dec 4, 2017 2:11:04 GMT
...as snsurone so eloquently put it, a 24/7 puke-a-thon of movies on the Hallmark Network, movies which are really just two-hour commercials for the obscenely overpriced stuff that is peddled at Hallmark stores. Well, it's the Hallmark channel, so I don't know what anyone can expect. I occasionally DVR something from it, like the odd Perry Mason movie or episode of Diagnosis Murder, and it seems like the other nine months of the year that they're not flogging Christmas, they're flogging insipid romances about cosmetically perfect women finding the cosmetically Perfect Sensitive Guy and/or their weddings. And just who the hell is Lacey Chabert, anyway?
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Post by them1ghtyhumph on Dec 4, 2017 2:21:38 GMT
Christmas is the most bullshit and disheartening season of the year
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Post by snsurone on Dec 4, 2017 2:25:57 GMT
Think about the fact that nativity scenes are forbidden in public areas in most cities. The fact that this holiday is supposed to commemorate the birth of Jesus has been totally obscured by superficiality. I suggest watching A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS, where this dilemma is addressed. Charles Schultz was a genius. Where I work we had to phase out the nativity scene and all actual true Christian Christmas items so as not to offend anyone. Now, I get that Christmas is a massive bruhaha for us in this part of the world and we dominate the media and everything else with our holiday, but pretending it's not really what it is just seems like a big lie. If I were of another persusion belief-wise I would not object to anyone celebrating their beliefs. Some say a business should remain neutral and just display a Santa Claus so as not to offend, but that's offensive in my mind. I'm not overly religious, just raised to love Christmas, and have no problem with others displaying their own holiday displays as well, not at the expense of any others. Over the years, the idea of only a neutral Santa Claus seems more and more like it's promoting capitalism and greed, not what Christmas really is about. It 's perfectly understandable for snsurone to want to retreat from Christmas if she's surrounded by that type of Christmas. Speaking for myself, I'm not at all offended by nativity scenes. In fact, I just LOVE the Neopolitan Christmas tree at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC. It's one of the most beautiful works of art I've ever seen. If you're ever in Manhattan during this season, I highly recommend it. By the same token, I'm not offended by carols mentioning Jesus, either. But, unfortunately, there are certain fringe groups (mostly atheists, I think) who object to ANY public display of ANY religion, citing "separation of church and state", and their voices are too damned strong. IMHO, that's why Christmas has become a commercialized mess.
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Post by snsurone on Dec 4, 2017 2:30:14 GMT
marianne, I have to check out that "mensch on a bench". Sounds cute.
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Post by Doghouse6 on Dec 4, 2017 2:46:53 GMT
But, unfortunately, there are certain fringe groups (mostly atheists, I think) who object to ANY public display of ANY religion, citing "separation of church and state", and their voices are too damned strong. I don't know that it's fringe groups or mostly atheists, necessarily; the primary objection is to government entities endorsing or promoting religion. Businesses that take a "religion neutral" approach do so because they hope to maximize revenue. But we do still have two annual Christian holidays that tend to take over for weeks at their respective times of the year, "God" is printed on every piece of currency we spend and was inserted into the Pledge Of Allegiance within my lifetime, and yet, there's no national observance of anything connected to atheism, like even a single "Day Without God" for instance, in which no presidential speeches or legislative sessions feature mentions thereof. That doesn't sound to me much like atheist voices being "too damned strong."
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Post by snsurone on Dec 4, 2017 3:09:36 GMT
You're right, Dog, and in courtrooms in NYC, the slogan "In God We Trust" is promenently displayed above the judge's banc.
But just wait--there will probably be a time when that slogan will be removed. I hope it won't be in my lifetime.
And let us not forget that it was atheists, led by Madlyn Murray O'Hair, who were responsible for banning prayer in public schools. IMO, the voice of atheists are stronger than you may think.
BTW, I'm old enough to remember the prayer we said every morning in early elementary school, which was completely non-denominational: "Almighty God, we acknowledge our dependence upon Thee. And beg Thy blessing upon ourselves, our parents, our teachers, and our country." Of course, to first graders, these were just words whose meaning we did not understand, just like the Pledge of Allegience.
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