The Rejection of 'Merry Christmas'

E. Jeffrey Ludwig

. . .Although I grew up in a Jewish household, my parents never felt either threatened by Christian “exclusion” nor that it was a season of hostility towards Jews, and thus did not believe they needed to barricade either themselves or me from Christmas. The message of joy, love, and hope -- although originating in Christ -- overflowed to all of us,. . .

. . .“Merry Christmas” as a greeting or as a cheerful blessing of citizen-to-citizen or neighbor-to-neighbor is vanishing.  Invariably, when I wish someone in a store or in my neighborhood a Merry Christmas, they respond by saying “Happy Holidays” to me.   One woman suggested to me that Christmas was religion-specific and not all people celebrate it, which is why she uses what she believes is a more neutral term.  In other words, she believes she is being kind and showing a gentle respect for all people whether they be Christian or not.  She obviously did not understand that by not responding to my Merry Christmas, she was not obliging me, not showing me the “respect” that she is according to all others who give not even a passing thought to the birth of Christ. Christians are getting her much-needed greeting, but she will deny them any sense of preference.  My “Merry Christmas” to her is partisan and self-absorbed, lacking the largesse of the more neutral well wishes.

"The irony of this shift away from “religious preference” is that for most Americans Christmas has been distinctly irreligious for decades.  As long ago as the 1960s -- long before this writer became an evangelical believer -- some of my best friends complained at the materialism of our culture. They were disturbed that Christmas had become about trees, lights, gifts, Santa Claus, and meals.  At best, it was about togetherness. At worst, it indulged a commercialism that only Americans have really known.  Spirituality was trumped by materialism.  But my philosophical friends not only said we were mired in materialism but in runaway materialism.  That was decades ago.  For them, Christmas had lost its “spiritual meaning” by that decade.  When did this spiritual decline begin?  I was not interested in the religious significance of the holiday so I never asked for their historical assessment.

WSJ Editors: Guess What We Found in the $1.7T Omnibus Bill?

Townhall  

Just two days before an expected Senate vote, congressional leaders cooked up an outrageous $1.7 trillion omnibus spending bill, demanding that lawmakers open wide and swallow its 4,155 pages so everybody can leave town for the year. This is a scandal. It is not a scandal to be added to the salacious and shocking catalogue of notorious Washington scandals, but a scandal precisely because what is happening has become a completely ordinary way for business to be conducted in Washington.". . .

. . ." Tucked into the Senate’s version is $785 million for migrant services such as food and shelter. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer wants the cash doled out to cities by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Awards will supposedly be determined through a competitive process, but Mr. Schumer has one recipient in mind. Politico reports that his hometown of New York will likely get a “substantial share” of the cash. Expect other Democratic strongholds to join the queue...this migrant pile-up is a direct result of the Biden border policy. Illegal crossings surpassed two million this year, overwhelming DHS facilities and allowing a greater share of migrants to be released in the U.S. on parole. The number of daily crossing has climbed by the thousands in recent weeks...The brunt of the migrant crisis is borne by smaller cities in GOP-led border states. Among the hardest hit is El Paso, Texas, which declared an emergency Sunday after the daily arrivals climbed to more than 2,400. The emergency will help the city earn federal reimbursement for the services it provides, yet it was declared after about 80,000 migrants had been released into the region since August. Compare that with the about 30,000 sent to New York this year.

Reports of a quarter billion dollar ‘bond’ for Bankman-Fried are almost as fraudulent as the crimes of which he is accused

Has Ben & Jerry's named a flavor for this Democrat yet?

Thomas Lifson: Reports of a quarter billion dollar ‘bond’ for Bankman-Fried are almost as fraudulent as the crimes of which he is accused   "The public is being bamboozled about the conditions for pretrial release of accused mega-fraudster Sam Bankman-Fried.

"It is the worst possible signal to those who fear that his scores of millions of dollars of political donations have bought him kid-glove treatment by the judicial system.

"The stories you read and hear from the media would have you believe that a “record” bail of $250 million has been paid to ensure that he doesn’t flee the country or otherwise evade prosecution. Where that figure comes from, I don’t know, but this account from The Hill  suggests that the federal prosecutors from the Southern District of New York had a hand in it:

At the request of prosecutors, Manhattan U.S. District Court Judge Gabriel Gorenstein agreed to the bond price and said Bankman-Fried can reside at his parent’s home in Palo Alto, Calif., ahead of the trial, according to The Associated Press.

The fact that the media are trumpeting a phony amount for pretrial release bond and that the Southern District of New York prosecutors and the judge in the case, federal magistrate Gabriel W. Gorenstein – a former chief of the civil rights unit in that same Southern District of New York prosecutors’ office  -- have enabled this misreporting suggests that Bankman-Fried is getting treatment commensurate with the political influence his donations evidently sought to purchase. 

 

I fully support Ukraine in her defense against Putin; The opposition I see is to money given with no questions asked. Money given by silly people whose politics and intelligence I have little respect for, silly people dressed in anti-American cultural attire who have introduced and promoted hatred for white people and called any resistance to the leftist disdain for America as "racism". The scowling Schumerglower threatening Supreme Court Justices by name, sending threatening people into their neighborhoods and past their homes, with support from entertainment personalities and corrupt media. I feel we cannot respect people of the left, but we must fear them because of what they have done to this nation with the help of Soros, Antifa, educators, and MSNBC. They must not guide our nation into the future. The Tunnel Dweller

Zelensky and Biden with Your Comic War Relief   "Looks like it was comedy hour at the White House. Can you believe this mess? Zelensky and Biden just laughed it up in their joint press conference yesterday. Yes, that’s right, Volodymyr Zelensky, the leader of a country in the middle of a war, leaves his country to come to the United States to dine on American tax dollars.

"Zelensky simply waltzes right up into our House, displaying his slick charm and lecturing us to cooperate and fork over the dollars. I guess he is laughing all the way to the bank.

"And Biden was right there with him, on the stage, laughing and cracking jokes about Putin and this “war.”. . .

Victory Girls Blog

Zelenskyy Wows Congress but Many Ask Where the $100 Billion in Aid Went

There may be no congressional investigations but the Biden administration is doing a little sleuthing of its own, trying to find out how U.S. technology ended up in Iranian drones.

. . ." Whether you support or oppose aid to Ukraine, the American taxpayer has a fundamental right to know where that $100 billion is going. But pro-war partisans are framing opposition to more aid for any reason as supporting Putin.

“ 'Putin’s Useful Idiots: Right Wingers Lose It Over Zelensky Visit” reads the headline in The Bulwark. Apparently not thinking is a virtue among these people.

Whatever the reason, the anti-Ukraine animus on the right is quite real and widespread. (When journalist Bari Weiss, who has a largely “anti-woke” following, retweeted a Hanukkah greeting from Zelensky, the responses from her followers in the thread were mostly hostile.) But right now, it also smells of desperation. Ukraine’s cause is still massively popular in the United States, with two-thirds of Americans supportive of sending money and arms. Disingenuous laments about the poor Ukrainians exploited by American and European globalists ring hollow and false when the vast majority of Ukrainians are so clearly determined to resist the invasion. And Zelensky, as the smarter among the aid opponents, like Ungar-Sargon, can see, is a genuine hero: patriotic, incredibly courageous and charismatic, and a speaker so compelling that even congressional right-wingers who initially refused to join in the standing ovations (including Matt Gaetz, Lauren Boebert, and Andrew Clyde) finally rose up during the last portions of his speech.

"We can’t cut Ukraine off now — not when they have the Russian invaders on the run. And Zelenskyy and Biden are right; we can’t afford to allow Putin to sweep the board in Ukraine. It would certainly whet his appetite for further conquests in Poland and other states of the old Soviet empire.

"But you can bet if the shoe were on the other foot, Democrats would be demanding oversight and an audit. And that’s exactly what Republicans should do when they take power.". . .

Opinion | Zelensky and Churchill Are True Leaders - The New York Times (nytimes.com) "In his address to the House of Commons in London this month, President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine compared himself to Winston Churchill. But Mr. Zelensky never mentioned Churchill by name — he didn’t need to.

"He simply echoed the words and cadences of the famous speech Churchill made to the Commons on June 4, 1940, in the final stages of the evacuation from Dunkirk of the remains of the British Army and Allied troops in France.

" 'We shall fight on the seas and oceans. We shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air. We shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be. We shall fight on the beaches. We shall fight on the landing grounds. We shall fight in the fields and in the streets. We shall fight in the hills. We shall never surrender,” Churchill said.". . .

Brittney Griner makes major move for imprisoned Marine

I hope she has the class to make this a sincere effort and is not doing this out of guilt. So far she has been to me a Megan Rapinoe clone and not to be taken seriously. Except, that is, maybe to be Secretary of State for some Democrat POTUS candidate. TD

 Brittney Griner makes major move for imprisoned Marine (msn.com)   

"When the United States secured the release of WNBA star Brittney Griner with a prisoner swap that sent convicted Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout back to Russia. The move was controversial to many because even though Joe Biden brought back Griner, the United States left former Marine Paul Whelan imprisoned in Russia. Griner’s negotiator made it clear that they will try to bring Whelan back next, and Griner wants to help other Americans falsely imprisoned. And she had a message for Whelan.". . .

Hey Brittney Griner, Do You Respect the National Anthem Now? (stevegruber.com)  "What was Griner doing in Russia? Well, she didn’t feel she was being paid enough by the WNBA and in order the chase the almighty dollar, she has been playing for a Russia team in the offseason since 2014. She gets over $1 million per season from the Russians.

"This woke basketball star wasn’t just a National Anthem kneeler, she didn’t even go out on the floor when it was played. She didn’t want to give America or those who fought for our freedoms their due respect.

"Back in June of 2021, Griner said “I honestly feel we should not play the Nation Anthem during our season, I think we should take that much of a stand. I’m going to protest regardless. I’m not going to be out there for the National Anthem.”. . .

Sen. Kennedy: Nobody is this incompetent, this is intentional

Whatfinger News  "National Border Patrol Council President Brandon Judd reacts to Fox News’ Bill Melugin’s reporting at the border, as the crisis continues to overwhelm border communities and Republicans call out the Biden administration".

Mister Zelensky goes to Washington

 Russia Mocks ‘Hollywood-Style’ Zelensky D.C. Trip: ‘No Calls for Peace’

. . .“It is just a matter of time before they will strike against your other allies if we do not stop them now. We must do it,” he warned. “I believe there should be no taboos between us in our alliance. Ukraine never asked the American soldiers to fight on our land instead of us. I assure you that Ukrainian soldiers can perfectly operate American tanks and planes themselves". . .

Here’s Everything Wrong With Congress’s Plan To Give Zelensky Cash For Christmas   . . .Ukraine Is Not a Top Strategic U.S. Security Interest

"Not only is Ukraine not our biggest foreign policy problem, but it’s also not even a top strategic U.S. security interest. McConnell regularly justifies funneling dollars to Ukraine under the guise that the spending is part of “Essential Investments in American Strength and Security.” But the truth of the matter is that spending endless money on an indefinite war in Ukraine does nothing for Americans but create a national security threat.

The Biden Admin Is Incapable of Handling Problems Properly "Americans don’t trust Biden to handle the Russia-Ukraine war because every problem the Biden administration touches turns into an even bigger disaster.

"Not only does the White House exacerbate crises, but it also creates them. Take one look at the economy, the southern border, the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, and the political war waged by the Department of Justice and FBI against Americans, and you’ll understand why our president shouldn’t be so eager to be a cash cow for a foreign country.". . .

Tucker Carlson Calls Out the Hubris and Arrogance of Ukrainian President Zelenskyy   "Tucker Carlson called out the ridiculous pantomime on display and the hubris of a character installed to operate the world’s biggest financial laundry operation."   Watch

Zelensky Doesn’t Know the End of His Story. Churchill Didn’t Either.

Idiot Leftist Of The Year Nominee No. 5

 (The fifth in a series of nominees, the winner will be announced in a December 27th column. The first, second, third and fourth nominees can be found here and here and here and here.)

Derek Hunter

"[Nevertheless], the final nominee is MSNBC. I could have included CNN but they simply don’t matter, even CNN employees don’t seem to watch CNN. And I could have gone with the whole media, but in that Petri dish of progressive activism MSNBC is the strain of bacteria towering above all others. 

"Yes, the New York Times has a larger impact insofar as what the rest of the media covers, especially since MSNBC doesn’t even pretend to do journalism anymore, but nothing infects the vacuous area where a leftist’s brain is supposed to go like a monologue from Rachel Maddow or some random tantrum by Joe Scarborough. MSNBC is the COVID of the mind for Democrats, infecting many with a destructive stupidity for which there is no real treatment. 

"Starting in the morning with Morning Joe, where a round table circle-jerk of sameness sets the tone for the day, you will not find a dissenting voice on the network. The closest you will come to disagreement is “Republicans are awful” followed by a “No, Republicans are REALLY awful.” Hunter Biden could be screaming about how he sold access to his father while doing lines of blow off Mika’s nose job in the green room and the idea of articulating the thought that that might not be a great idea or could possibly be newsworthy will not be mentioned on air. 

"The on-air personalities at MSNBC are like a Saturday Night Live skit waiting to happen – if SNL were funny anymore – where each person tries to out-stupid each other. A place where socialism works and conservatism is exemplified by people like Nicolle Wallace and Michael Steele, which is like using prostitution to extoll the virtues of monogamy. 

"It’s a plane of existence where the racist Joy Reid is smart and Al Sharpton is a “man of God.” Where Chris Hayes is tough and Larry O’Donnell is clever. Where Chuck Todd brings integrity and intelligence to Meet the Press and Rachel Maddow working one day a week for $30 million per year is a smart investment. . . ."

All the Presidents' Insurrections

Former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan must be relieved to hear liberals admit that how we treat those who put their lives on the line for our country will determine how we are willing to do so in the future. Whelan, you'll recall, is rotting in a Russian prison, because a lesbian, Women's National Basketball Association star (but I repeat myself) took precedence over him in a prisoner trade. We're looking for a few good men. Anybody? Anybody? 

 Ann Coulter   "Well, the Jan. 6 committee has produced its long-awaited report. In a surprise move, the committee referred former President Donald Trump for criminal prosecution, accusing him of inciting insurrection, among other crimes.

"In fairness, Jan. 6, 2021, was the day that Trump announced he would open our southern border and allow nearly 5 million unvetted illegal immigrants into our country, whereupon they would be flown to various cities around the U.S. and given full access to all our welfare programs.

"Obviously, this constitutes insurrectionary behavior. The committee had no choice but to demand criminal charges.

"LATE BULLETIN: It was NOT the former president who did this, but the current president, Joe Biden. In another development, it turns out that engineering a foreign invasion of our country has been redefined as a "humanitarian mission."

"When will this "humanitarian mission" end? Apparently, never -- not until all 7 billion humans living in places less luxe than America have moved here, at which point America won't be so hot anymore, so no one will want to come.

"Thus, The New York Times quoted Jennifer Quigley, of Human Rights First, saying of our intervention in Afghanistan: "We can't claim mission accomplished. There are still too many vulnerable people abroad."

 . . .I can't help but notice that Quigley seamlessly shifted from "Afghanistan" to "people abroad."

'Christmas came early': Kari Lake's election lawsuit goes to trial

WND

'We have a chance to show the world that our elections are truly corrupt'

" 'Christmas came early yesterday," declared Republican gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake to an enthusiastically supportive gathering in Phoenix on Tuesday.

"She was referring to a judge's ruling Monday that her legal challenge to Democratic Governor-elect Katie Hobbs election victory will be heard by a jury.

" 'We are going to trial," she told the audience at America Fest 2022, hosted by Turning Point USA.

" 'This is so historic, and you know what, I couldn’t have done it without you," said Lake.". . .

BREAKING: Our Election Case is going to trial. Katie Hobbs attempt to have our case thrown out FAILED. She will have to take the stand & testify.

Buckle up, America.
This is far from over. pic.twitter.com/291EnXPP3U

— Kari Lake (@KariLake) December 20, 2022

 Kari Lake Legal Team Finds 42.5 Percent of Ballots Examined Were Invalid

. . ."As RedState’s Jennifer Oliver O’Connell reported, Lake spoke at the Turning Point USA AmFest convention last weekend, and was enthusiastic about her legal chances:

Yesterday, we got great news–we’re taking these bastards to trial.

And I’m so excited. You know I ran against our own version of Joe Biden here, Katie Hobbs. Basement Hobbs. She ducked out on the debate, but she can’t duck out from taking the stand in our trial. She will have to take the stand. Katie Hobbs is gonna have to put her hand on the Bible and swear to tell the truth. That might be hard. That might be hard. And so is Stephen Richer, they’re going to have to swear to tell the truth. And I just want to remind them that perjury is a felony.

"However, it does not appear as if Hobbs will actually take the stand, as Lake’s attorneys announced later that they had withdrawn their subpoena for her to testify.

"The trial has adjourned for the day, but not before we got to see Maricopa County Elections Director Scott Jarrett act like the irregularities at the polls in November were no big deal:. . ."

Kari Lake Expert Witness: Missized Ballots That Caused Election Day Chaos Could Not Have Been An Accident

Lake’s lawyers attempted to make that case with their bombshell revelation that a review of random ballots found that 48 out of 113 (42.5 percent) were “19-inch ballots produced on 20-inch paper,” causing them to be rejected. 

When asked whether it could not have happened by
 accident, Parikh said “no.”

When asked by Lake’s attorney Bryan Blehm if the county knew on Election Day how many ballots had been submitted by the voters, Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer testified that they did not. According to Richer, individual polling places did not tally the number of votes cast — an apparent violation of state law.

How government sneaks up on you

The proposal to stop selling gas-powered cars in Delaware finally broke through the media noise this week, but it's been years in the making.

Michael Swartz @ Substack  "Here’s the deal: if the state of Delaware has its way, in 13 years, and for all practical purposes, you won’t be able to buy a new conventional gasoline-powered vehicle in the state. (I don’t think automakers are phasing them out that quickly.) Your choices would be limited to what they deem “zero emission vehicles,” meaning you’ll have to buy an electric vehicle (EV) whether you want one or not. It also means you’ll be dependent on the availability of charging stations if you are traveling and electricity if you choose to purchase the additional equipment required for home charging.

"So how did it become a big deal all of a sudden?

. . ."Speaking to my last question, as state Representative Jesse Vanderwende, who represents an area just up Delaware’s western border from me, noted in a social media post:

By imposing the transition through coercive regulatory measures, the Carney Administration is all but ensuring needless turmoil, pain, and expense for all Delawareans. I will be joining with colleagues who share my concerns to introduce legislation to restore consumer freedom in our state.Here is the legislature’s chance to get on the record.

"We are NOT bound by the Paris Climate Agreement; however, it can be argued that, through the use of our heretofore bountiful supplies of natural gas as a source of electricity, we have done more to reduce the carbon in the atmosphere than most of the signatories to the agreement, particularly the exempt nations of China and India - the former building smoke-belching coal plant after coal plant to supply their needs. We could do more to limit carbon emissions by revamping and restarting our nuclear power program than we will ever do with this regulation - but the state can’t steal from automakers if we do things my way."In essence, what we are debating here is legalized extortion: make cars that people don’t want but make us feel like we’re saving the planet or we will exact our toll upon you. And don’t believe the automakers will take this in the shorts; nope, they’re going to raise their prices even more to cover this cost.

"Send this back to California and let them suffer with it."

Zelensky Takes Aim at Isolationism in Address to Congress, Says World ‘Too Interconnected’ to Indulge Russian Aggression

 NR 

"Addressing a joint session of the U.S. Congress in his first overseas trip since Russia invaded his country more than 300 days ago, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky took aim at the burgeoning isolationist tendency in American politics, urging lawmakers to ramp up support for his embattled homeland out of self-interest rather than any charitable impulse.

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Clad in his trademark dark green sweatshirt and cargo pants, Zelensky pressed Congress to continue to provide the overwhelming military and financial aid that began to flow when Russia invaded and has continued unabated since, arguing that Russian aggression would further destabilize the U.S.-led international order if left unchecked.

The wartime leader went on to point out that Russian president Vladimir Putin has benefitted from weaponry provided by a hostile Iranian regime that is also intent on disrupting U.S. leadership of the international order, making the case that other rogue states will draw inspiration from Putin’s regime if Russia proves successful in its violation of international law.

“Iranian deadly drones, sent Russia hundreds, began a threat to our critical infrastructure, that is how one terrorist has found the other. It is just a matter of time when they will strike against your other allies, if we do not stop them now – we must do it,” Zelensky said.

“Your money is not charity; it’s an investment in the global security and democracy that we handle in the most responsible way,” he added.". . .