Free Republic

SIERRA VISTA — “I’m here to help the kids who won’t have any toys,” said Anthony Nieuwenhuls, 10. He had a bag at the ready with a couple of hula hoops hung around his neck Sunday morning. He was just one of many kids, folks, firefighters and their families who turned out to pack or deliver the big, blue Santa sack to the homes of families who need a bit of help at Christmastime. “I’ve been helping since I was 6,” Nieuwenhuls said proudly. Annually for the past 38 years, the Sierra Vista and Fry fire departments have joined forces...

THE BOOB TUBE: .....Sharp introduced the first AQUOS liquid crystal television in 2001 (it came to Canada in 2002). I don’t know this offhand, by the way — I learned it in an information session I attended on Sharp’s new AQUOS LE700 series of LED backlit flatscreen televisions a few months ago......

In these troubled economic times, when money is scarce for many people, it's important that we remind ourselves, and our loved ones, that the holiday season is not about buying things. Then we and our loved ones can enjoy a hearty laugh, because, of COURSE the holiday season is about buying things. Now more than ever, the U.S. retail economy depends on consumers spending money they don't actually have on gifts that nobody actually needs. That is the thinking behind the federal government's recently passed $783-billion Emergency Holiday Retail Stimulus Act, which will be used to purchase, among other things,...

It was a simple question, posed to us in the Highlands Writers Group. “What was the best Christmas gift you ever received?” That question made me think deeply. I discovered that gifts change as years pass. I don’t mean the obvious, that you get different gifts in different years. I mean that the gifts you did get, even long, long ago, change with time. I was six in 1949, when the first Christmas I clearly remember, came around. We lived at 205 W. College Avenue, in Salisbury, Maryland. On the Eastern Shore, Salisbury was, and mostly still is, a sleepy...

12/18/2009 - RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany (AFNS) -- Imagine driving home from the base exchange with your spouse and child. It's Christmastime -- the first away from the rest of your family -- and the thought pops into your mind, "What can I do for others who are away from their families as well?" It was at this moment that Project Rudolph was born, as founder Tawny Archibald Campbell, her husband and their daughter decided to give a "piece" of the holidays to deployed troops in the form of goodie bags. The bags are filled with American and German candy;...

Emboldened by the folks who released the data and e-mails creating the Climategate scandal (except for the United States) someone has accessed White House computers and has found President Barack Obama’s Christmas List.

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – Tennessee investigators say a 4-year-old boy was found roaming his neighborhood in the night, drinking beer and wearing a little girl's dress taken from under a neighbor's Christmas tree. The child's mother, 21-year-old April Wright, tells WTVC-TV the boy "wants to go to jail because that's where his daddy is." Wright says she and the boy's father are going though a divorce.

I ordered two autographed copies of Liberty and Tyranny for Christmas gifts, right from Levin's website. They just arrived today, and I just opened the box like 10 minutes ago, to have a look.

One way to reduce the wear and tear of shopping at the mall is to give books as presents. Books can be bought on the Internet, and they can be matched to the person who receives them without having to know that person's measurements. Dick Morris' new book — "Catastrophe" — is an education in itself, on politics, on economics and on foreign policy. It is a strong antidote to the pious rhetoric and spin that come out of Washington and the media. Partly this is because Dick Morris was once a Beltway insider — an adviser to President Bill...

"The cow is the most comical-looking creature in the world, and the notion that the Earth is being visited by UFOs is the craziest idea I have ever heard. Now there's a gift that combines the crazy and comical cow with the silly and ridiculous idea of of UFO abductions:"

My husband and I have decided this year not to give each other extravagant Christmas gifts, and are not going to be able to purchase large presents for his or my extended family either. We will only be able to give simple, useful, needed items for close family and friends. Instead, we would like to do something for a needy, struggling family. We'd prefer to do it anonymously and be able to provide them with a nice holiday. We just don't need "things" this year, and I'd much rather help out someone who does. We both feel that the true...

Every Christmas you buy gifts and hope that people like them. Then you figure up the bill for Christmas shopping and those presents have put you in the hole for months to come. With the worsening economy for so many, maybe it is time to go for the meaningful present that is free or close to it. Maybe it will reinforce what Christmas was supposed to be about all those long years ago.

FORT HUACHUCA — With the handout of turkeys and food vouchers Wednesday, a major holiday problem for some military families has been answered. But with Thanksgiving needs met, still ahead for the fort’s outreach ministries program is Christmas. Before noon, employees of Sundt Construction purchased and delivered 300 turkeys to the main post chapel administrative offices. The turkeys — with a total weight of more than 2 tons — will be handed out with $50 in food coupons for the post commissary. Josephine Moore, who heads the outreach ministries, said the needs of 300 military families, ranging in size from...

With the economy in sad shape I have heard reports of people changing their gift giving habits this year. As the owner of a company that produces custom gifts, I would like to hear from Freepers what plans they have for gifts - both personal and business - this season. Are you planning on giving more, less, or the same? Are you cutting back on who you are giving to or are you giving to the same number of people, but changing the value of the gifts? Are you planning on giving more "home made" gifts? If so, what kind?

Some people are just really good at giving gifts. My friend Tan is one of those people. Shortly before I left on vacation a few weeks ago, Tan and I were having a conversation about babies, which led to a discussion about Blake’s nighttime routine. To sleep soundly, she requires a noise machine and music. I was lamenting the fact that we did not have a viable gadget on which to play music while we were on vacation, and we were worried that she might regress in her sleeping habits. Tan listened and said he knew what I was talking...

An Iraqi Soldier distributes the contents of a food bag to residents of the "1st of June" area of Abu Ghraib, during a joint Coalition/Iraqi foot patrol, June 25. Photo by Sgt. Philip Schratwieser, 1st Infantry Division. BAGHDAD — U.S. and Iraqi Soldiers conducted a combined patrol through Abu Ghraib to deliver supplies, disrupt insurgents and foster relationships, June 25. The area they patrolled is called the "1st of June," as Iraqis often name areas after significant dates in their history.Leading the patrol was a platoon from the 24th Brigade, 6th Iraqi Army Division. As a result of the agreement...

It has now been confirmed that President Obama will have an audience with Pope Benedict XVI on July 10th. In preparation for the momentous visit, the crack White House protocol office has sent the President a list of gifts to choose from. After a series of embarrassing gaffes surrounding wildly inappropriate and narcissistic gifts given to heads of State, the President is determined to get this one right. These are the gifts that Obama has settled on. Digital Photo frame with pictures from the Obamas' date night in NYCContinue Reading >>>>

It's a first lady faux pas -- wearing expensive, high-fashion French designer sneakers to a food bank. Michelle Obama wore the sneakers, made by Lanvin, while helping feed the poor at a Washington food bank on Wednesday. The pricetag on the footwear? A cool $540. Keds, they're not. The sneakers, which come in denim and satin, are a favorite of comic Ellen DeGeneres and rapper Kanye West -- and they're "certainly not a reflection of the poor economy," said FOX News' Noelle Watters, host of iMag Style. "She paired the kicks with a much more reasonably priced cardigan from J....

This just in: Diplomatic jaws dropped across the continent yesterday when it was revealed that U.S. President Barack Obama had, once again, fumbled a routine protocal of international statecraft: finding the right gift for a foreign leader or head of state. In a private ceremony with Queen Elizabeth, Her Royal Highness bequeathed to the Obamas one of the earliest known copies of William Shakespeare's Henry V. She also presented him with the framed orginal sheet music of John Newton's "Amazing Grace." To the Obama daughters, the Queen gave a dollhouse-sized replica of Windsor Castle with a functioning train station in...

I have compiled a list of gifts that Obama might have considered giving to the Prime Minister, that are about on par with the gift he did give. Perhaps he can borrow these ideas to use for any other visiting dignitaries: 10. $40 gift card to Olive Garden 9. Lifestylez Ov Da Poor & Dangerous CD by Big L 8. Crest Whitestrips Daily Whitening Multicare Kit by Crest (Qty 4) 7. Free hosting account with iPower web, plus a free domain name Click to see the top 6 gift ideas, or leave your own ideas in the comments