The Dink Network

This is a serious topic, guys. One that affects my life directly. As a lot of you know, I'm a Christian, and the 'holiday tree' bullshoot has got me wound up. The 'holiday tree' thing is what some people in Congress believe we should refer the Christmas Tree as so as to not insult other religions. If you're like me, you see the problem immediately since Christmas is a Christian holiday celebrating the birth of Christ.
The following was written by Ben Stein and recited by him on CBS Sunday Morning Commentary.

"My confession:

I am a Jew, and every single one of my ancestors was Jewish. And it does not bother me even a little bit when people call those beautiful lit up, bejeweled trees, Christmas trees. I don't feel threatened. I don't feel discriminated against. That's what they are, Christmas trees.

It doesn't bother me a bit when people say, 'Merry Christmas' to me. I don't think they are slighting me or getting ready to put me in a ghetto. In fact, I kind of like it. It shows that we are all brothers and sisters celebrating this happy time of year. It doesn't bother me at all that there is a manger scene on display at a key intersection near my beach house in Malibu . If people want a crèche, it's just as fine with me as is the Menorah a few hundred yards away.

I don't like getting pushed around for being a Jew, and I don't think Christians like getting pushed around for being Christians. I think people who believe in God are sick and tired of getting pushed around, period. I have no idea where the concept came from, that America is an explicitly atheist country. I can't find it in the Constitution and I don't like it being shoved down my throat.

Or maybe I can put it another way: where did the idea come from that we should worship celebrities and we aren't allowed to worship God ? I guess that's a sign that I'm getting old, too. But there are a lot of us who are wondering where these celebrities came from and where the America we knew went to.

In light of the many jokes we send to one another for a laugh, this is a little different: This is not intended to be a joke; it's not funny, it's intended to get you thinking.

Billy Graham's daughter was interviewed on the Early Show and Jane Clayson asked her 'How could God let something like this happen?' (regarding Hurricane Katrina).. Anne Graham gave an extremely profound and insightful response. She said, 'I believe God is deeply saddened by this, just as we are, but for years we've been telling God to get out of our schools, to get out of our government and to get out of our lives. And being the gentleman He is, I believe He has calmly backed out. How can we expect God to give us His blessing and His protection if we demand He leave us alone?'

In light of recent events... terrorists attack, school shootings, etc. I think it started when Madeleine Murray O'Hare (she was murdered, her body found a few years ago) complained she didn't want prayer in our schools, and we said OK. Then someone said you better not read the Bible in school. The Bible says thou shalt not kill; thou shalt not steal, and love your neighbor as yourself. And we said OK.

Then Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn't spank our children when they misbehave, because their little personalities would be warped and we might damage their self-esteem (Dr. Spock's son committed suicide). We said an expert should know what he's talking about. And we said okay.

Now we're asking ourselves why our children have no conscience, why they don't know right from wrong, and why it doesn't bother them to kill strangers, their classmates, and themselves.

Probably, if we think about it long and hard enough, we can figure it out. I think it has a great deal to do with 'WE REAP WHAT WE SOW.'

Funny how simple it is for people to trash God and then wonder why the world's going to hell. Funny how we believe what the newspapers say, but question what the Bible says. Funny how you can send 'jokes' through e-mail and they spread like wildfire, but when you start sending messages regarding the Lord, people think twice about sharing. Funny how lewd, crude, vulgar and obscene articles pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion of God is suppressed in the school and workplace.

Are you laughing yet?

Funny how when you forward this message, you will not send it to many on your address list because you're not sure what they believe, or what they will think of you for sending it.

Funny how we can be more worried about what other people think of us than what God thinks of us.

Pass it on if you think it has merit.

If not, then just discard it.... no one will know you did. But, if you discard this thought process, don't sit back and complain about what bad shape the world is in.

My Best Regards, Honestly and respectfully

Ben Stein"

How does it affect your life directly? xD Sure, what the guy writes is true and all, but even if they called it the BlaBlaTree, why would it lose meaning for you personally?

The 'holiday tree' thing is what some people in Congress believe we should refer the Christmas Tree as so as to not insult other religions

Sounds like total and utter bullcrap to me. Take away people's habits and you'll notice that a seed of hate is sown.

They want to call it a 'holiday' tree so as to not offend people of other religions. I'm offended, therefore their point is lost. I say 'Merry Christmas' a person, and if they say, 'I'm not a Christian' or 'I don't celebrate christmas', I say, 'Well, I'm still wishing you a happy day on the day that it coincides.' For me, it doesn't matter if a person is Muslim, Buddhist, or any other religion. I respect their choice even if they don't respect mine.

Yes that's great and all, but you're not exactly the prime example of the common man like that A lot of people get offended all the time because someone doesn't share their religious view. Hence, they want to remove as many potential issues as they can. It's a flawed logic and pretty much the exact opposite of what they should aim for, but that's the world for ya.

What good does changing the name to holiday tree even do? The tree is only used a Christmas thing anyway. Personally, I don't celebrate Christmas, but it doesn't bother me any. If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck its still a duck, so why call it a pig?

The Christmas tree and Christmas in general has nothing to do with Christianity. With more explained Here.(Gee, Christian Education is getting to me.)There's more if you are a critic.

Tree of Christmas? Suggest it as a compromise!

Why would anyone be offended over a stupid name? People wish me Christmas and I wish 'em back. Same with Eid.

Exactly.

I'm Muslim, but I don't mind calling it a Christmas tree or Christmas because I know it's a happy occasion for Christians.
A holiday tree could be any cherry tree you could have planted on a holiday. Christmas Tree means the tree you decorate and hang presents on on Christmas Eve (Am I right?) So yeah, this holiday tree thing is ... useless.

Christmas Tree has nothing to do with Christians

^ Yes, but it is celebrated as his Birthday. Even though he was born in Spring. And where did the Santa Clause thing come from? Marketing scheme?

Hmm, Ben Stein is one angry dude. I agree that renaming the christmas tree to the holiday tree is silly, but calling it the christmas tree in the first place is very silly as well. I'm not sure if Christmas as a word is even used anywhere outside of English-speaking countries... It's certainly not called that in Finland or other northern countries, where the holiday is still known as Yule (or whatever the local translation is).

I celebrate Hogswatch. I hope the Hogfather gives me some nice sausages this year.

And some version of Santa Claus has been around in many countries for hundreds of years, so he wasn't invented by marketers.

Don't take religion so seriously. Don't take Christmas so seriously. The tree is a christmas tree, if you call it a christmas tree. If someone wishes to call it a holiday tree, cause he feels he is offended otherwise, then let him. The tree and Christmas have originally nothing to do with religions.

Christmas was very very VERY originally a celebration on the shortest day of the year. I don't know where this modern Santa has originated from, but the original Santa Claus, who had nothing to do with Santa Claus, wasn't anything like the one today. Pretty much every country around here has their own Santa, with Finnish being one of the very first to have its own, which was called "Nuuttipukki". I believe the tree has originated from Finland, as some kind of a defense against Nuuttipukki, who brought sticks each Christmas, to whip children with them.

Hogswatch sounds cool !! Do you get presents wrapped in animal stomach lining?? (like sausages are) Oooooo Dinky one tell us more

And hogfather wow hes so - sausagey...

They celebrate it on the Discworld, where I live. It's basically like Christmas except it's all pork related. Hey, we have to eat in winter too, right? Gotta get those pig products stored away! I don't know about the animal stomachs. I wrap my presents in these newfangled "newspaper" things they've just invented.

Interesting thing my mom found:

'Why do we have a decorated Christmas Tree? In the 7th century a monk from Crediton, Devonshire, went to Germany to teach the Word of God. He did many good works there, and spent much time in Thuringia, an area which was to become the cradle of the Christmas Decoration Industry.
Legend has it that he used the triangular shape of the Fir Tree to describe the Holy Trinity of God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The converted people began to revere the Fir tree as God's Tree, as they had previously revered the Oak. By the 12th century it was being hung, upside-down, from ceilings at Christmastime in Central Europe, as a symbol of Christianity. (excerpt from christmasarchives.com)'

The Wite House indeed calls its Christmas trees "Christmas trees," and teh commentary attributed to Ben Stein has been circulating since at least Christmas 2005. It takes very, very little effort to check out stuff like this. Unless it's just more fun to be angry.

Now there was no law against a man’s belief; for it was strictly contrary to the commands of God that there should be a law which should bring men on to unequal grounds.

For thus saith the scripture: Choose ye this day, whom ye will serve.

Now if a man desired to serve God, it was his privilege; or rather, if he believed in God it was his privilege to serve him; but if he did not believe in him there was no law to punish him.

I now find the name ghosts for our unknown people a little offensive to them since the thing with ghosts, also Can we call a duck something else

People should feel privileged to be called ghosts. Ghosts have special powers, like being able to walk through walls.

I mean the "R" word ghosts taht say something power and I think are mainly rednecks.

I mean the "R" word

Revenant?

I have no idea what that means,but I have heard of it, I mean something involveing race.

Was I the only one to notice that a lot of that rambling had nothing to do with KrisKnox's aforementioned dilemma?
Anyway, speaking of Finland you guys should watch "Rare Exports." That is THE xmas movie...well, maybe not a family xmas movie, but as you all enjoy Dink Smallwood I know I can trust your humour and sense for good entertainment, so I know most of you would get a kick out of it.
On another note, I too like the sound of this "Hogswatch",,,now, has someone invented a similar tradition related to the beheading of ducks?

It has everything to do with Christianity. Yeah, it's not the exact day Christ was born, but there is a reason for that. When Christmas started in the Roman Empire, it was illegal to be a Christian, so they had to piggy back on a pagan holiday as to not arise suspicion. It has been turned into something to where it has lost it's main message, but it is still very much a Christian holiday.