Free Republic

President, Savior, or Santa Claus? By Dr. Mark W. Hendrickson FrontPageMagazine.com | Tuesday, January 15, 2008 Let’s consider a simple question: What exactly are we electing when we choose a president of the United States? The traditional answer would be: “Commander-in-Chief of our armed forces and the CEO of the executive branch of government.” Those two roles alone make the president the most powerful person in the world, but for some Americans, the presidency has taken on an overtly messianic character. One of the leading candidates for the next president, Hillary Clinton, once stated, “I can’t save every undercapitalized business...

The original server has been overwhelmed, so I'm using the Fark mirror to post. Watch out, the comments can get a little on the wild side, as most of the members are younger. Still worth posting. 'It was your dad that answered all those letters that the kids wrote to Santa every year' Background: Tim Russert's Wisdom of Our Fathers has hundreds of stories men and women tell about their fathers, including the one below. It's a remarkable book--to learn more, see my co-authored column America's Father Hunger (World Net Daily, 10/13/06). The story below is "The Mail" from John...

New York has given the country and the world many things in its 380-year history — the hot dog, the American musical, the martini, electric signs — but who knew it also gave us what the modern world thinks of as the traditional way to celebrate Christmas? Christmas was originally a combination of the day of worship of the birth of Christ and the Roman winter solstice festival called the Saturnalia. The latter was a very raucous, townwide affair, and its raunchy and riotous ways persisted until nearly modern times. Then the Puritans outlawed Christmas altogether. When it was revived...

We take pleasure in answering thus prominently the communication below, expressing at the same time our great gratification that its faithful author is numbered among the friends of The Sun: Dear Editor— I am 8 years old. Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus. Papa says, "If you see it in The Sun, it's so." Please tell me the truth, is there a Santa Claus? Virginia O'Hanlon 115 West Ninety Fifth Street Virginia, your little friends are wrong. They have been affected by the skepticism of a skeptical age. They do not believe except they see....

Executive Order: Closing of Executive Departments and Agencies of the Federal Government on Monday, December 24, 2007 By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered as follows: Section 1. All executive branch departments and agencies of the Federal Government shall be closed and their employees excused from duty on Monday, December 24, 2007, the day before Christmas Day, except as provided in section 2 below. Sec. 2. The heads of executive branch departments and agencies may determine that certain offices and installations of their...

A 70-year-old man working as Santa Claus says he was sacked from a Cairns department store for saying "ho, ho, ho" and singing Christmas carols. In a case of political correctness seemingly gone mad, retired entertainer John Oakes says he was fired from his job at Myer for his rendition of Santa’s famous laugh. His employer, Westaff, last month sparked national outrage when it ordered its Santas to say "ha, ha, ha" instead of "ho, ho, ho" because it could be derogatory to women but denied the words were a factor in Mr Oakes’s case. The word "ho" is also...

School bans Santa from wearing red - because it reminds pupils of Coca-ColaLast updated at 16:37pm on 21st November 2007Santa Claus is being forced to wear a green suit when visiting a school this year, after teachers decided the traditional red outfit would remind pupils of Coca-Cola.  Education chiefs have also banned the annual Christmas grotto - favouring an eastern European version of the festive season instead. Staff at the Steiner School in Brighton, East Sussex, claim the red-suited Santa is a symbol of "modern commercialism" and reminds children of Coca-Cola adverts. Scroll down for more... Father Christmas and...

When kids hear Santa Claus bellow, "Ho, ho, ho," is their first thought prostitution? That concern has prompted an attempt to gag the traditional greeting, and many Santas are now fighting back. According to the Sydney Daily Telegraph, Santas across Australia are rebelling against attempts to change their saying to a more politically correct, "ha, ha, ha." It all started when the recruitment firm Westaff – which has offices both in the United States and Australia – told its Christmas trainees that the "ho, ho, ho" phrase could frighten children and possibly be derogatory to women.

Let's be real, folks. Many of us knew "Santa Claus" was really Mom and Dad by age six, but it was always fun to play along as we knew we'd get something out of it on December 25th. But there are some out there who are so easily "offended", that they could give a damn if they spoil Christmas, a FEDERAL HOLIDAY, for everyone else. And there are more than enough people out there that acquiesce to the "sensitivities" of those who seek to make all of us as miserable as they are.... School ho-ho-hoists Santa Principal cancels trip to...

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Stage and screen actor Harry Frazier, whose full white beard helped him land Santa Claus roles in movies and commercials, has died. He was 77. Frazier died May 26 of complications from diabetes at the Motion Picture and Television Hospital in Woodland Hills. He started on Broadway appearing in various plays during the 1960s. He performed regularly in Shakespeare plays in Southern California and had leading roles in "The Tempest," "A Midsummer Night's Dream," and "Henry IV." Among his TV credits included "Night Court," "Cheers" and "Hill Street Blues." He also played King Neptune on three...

Follow along with NORAD as they track the magical journey of Santa Claus (Father Christmas/Sinterklaas/Pere Noel/De Kerstman/Julenisse etc.) around the world tonight! CLICK HERE TO BEGIN

Watch it here > http://video.google.com/googleplayer.swf?docid=-7709281390847700281 Santa Claus Conquers the Martians (1964) is considered to be one of the worst movies ever made. It is so bad, that it is actually fun to watch. The filmmakers were probably too embarrassed to renew the copyright, so it’s now in the public domain. The story shows how Santa Claus is kidnapped by Martians to cheer up the Martian children. The rumor is that the movie was shot in abandoned aircraft hangars in New Jersey. It is clear that the movie had an extremely low budget, it even has spelling errors in the opening...

Canadian NORAD fighter pilots flying the CF-18 Hornet jet fighter will escort Santa Claus throughout Canada. And meeting Santa Claus in United States of America airspace will be United States NORAD fighter pilots flying F/A-18 Hornet and/or the F-15 Eagle fighter jets. This year, sadly, the F-14 Tomcat is unable to provide protection for Santa's super-secret, high-tech, marvel-of-aviation sleigh; after long decades of noble service the fighter jet is now retired. Based on what we see in the photo below (released by the United States Navy) retirement is far from Santa's mind. He's looking quite comfortable, and physically fit, as...

OPERATION ORDER 12-06 FOR: OFFICIAL VISIT OF LTG SANTA CLAUS 1. An official staff visit by LTG Claus is expected at this post on 25 Dec. The following directives govern activities of all Army personnel during the visit. a. Not a creature will stir without permission. This includes warrant officers and mice. Soldiers may obtain special stirring permits for necessary administrative action through the Battalion S-1. Officer stirring permits must be obtained through the Deputy, Post Plans and Policy Office. b. All personnel will settle their brains for a long winter nap NLT 2200 hours, 24 December. Uniform for the...

The best Christmas movie is? A- It’s a Wonderful Life B- A Christmas Story C- A Christmas Carol (Alastair Sim) D- Scrooged E- Miracle On 34th Street F- White Christmas G- Santa Claus Conquers The Martians H- Elf

Santa Claus always creeped me out when I was small.

Eight-year-old Virginia O'Hanlon wrote a letter to the editor of New York's Sun, and the quick response was printed as an unsigned editorial Sept. 21, 1897. The work of veteran newsman Francis Pharcellus Church has since become history's most reprinted newspaper editorial, appearing in part or whole in dozens of languages in books, movies, and other editorials, and on posters and stamps. "DEAR EDITOR: I am 8 years old. "Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus. "Papa says, 'If you see it in THE SUN it's so.' "Please tell me the truth; is there a Santa...

A Christmas-themed event to raise money at a public elementary school in Warwick, N.Y., has been altered to accommodate a parent's complaints that the program would illegally spotlight a "religious" figure - Santa Claus. "Breakfast With Santa" has since been changed to "Winter Wonderland Breakfast," and -- in an effort to be inclusive of all beliefs -- the bearded one will now be joined at the Dec. 9 event by Frosty the Snowman. Organizers made the changes after one parent charged that she and others in the community were offended that the Parent Teacher Association at the Sanfordville Elementary School...

A suburban mall suspended all visits with its Santa Claus Tuesday after learning a photographer taking pictures of children on St. Nick's lap was a registered sex offender, police said. "Knowing that a registered sex offender was potentially working with children at the Santa Claus display we quickly wanted to check into it," ... Yeoman was listed as a "lifetime notification" offender on the Indiana Sheriffs' Sex Offender Registry for a 1992 conviction of child molestation. He served six years of his 10 year sentence...

BERLIN, Germany -- "A German chain of shops has removed miniature wooden Santa Claus figures from its shelves and destroyed them after customers complained it looked like they were giving the stiff-armed Hitler salute that is outlawed." "Josef Lange, a spokesman for the Rossmann chain that has 1,200 outlets, told Reuters on Friday the figures depicting Father Christmas with his right arm stiffly upright towards the sky and holding a sack in his left hand upset some customers." "We were astonished by the reaction," Lange said.

A German chain of shops has removed miniature wooden Santa Claus figures from its shelves and destroyed them after customers complained it looked like they were giving the stiff-armed Hitler salute that is outlawed. Josef Lange, a spokesman for the Rossmann chain that has 1,200 outlets, told Reuters on Friday the figures depicting Father Christmas with his right arm stiffly upright towards the sky and holding a sack in his left hand upset some customers. "We were astonished by the reaction," Lange said. "It looks like he's just pointing up to the sky and we were surprised that anyone saw...

BERLIN (Reuters) - A German chain of shops has removed miniature wooden Santa Claus figures from its shelves and destroyed them after customers complained it looked like they were giving the stiff-armed Hitler salute that is outlawed. Josef Lange, a spokesman for the Rossmann chain that has 1,200 outlets, told Reuters Friday the figures depicting Father Christmas with his right arm stiffly upright toward the sky and holding a sack in his left hand upset some customers. "We were astonished by the reaction," Lange said. "It looks like he's just pointing up to the sky and we were surprised that...

Will the Broncos get an early Christmas present from Santa Claus Indiana?, QB Jay Cutler You can imagine what the sports media storm is like here in Colorado right now after the lackluster performance by the Denver Broncos offense last night in their 19 - 10 loss vs. the Kansas City Chiefs. An interesting fact about the Broncos first round draft choice from earlier this year, QB Jay Cutler is from Santa Claus, Indiana. 6 Jay Cutler, Quarterback Height: 6' 3" Weight: 233 lbs. College: Vanderbilt Born: in Santa Claus, Ind. Acquired: Draft #1 (11th overall), 2006 Pro Year: R...

WASHINGTON, Nov. 3, 2006 – The Alaska National Guard will join Santa and Mrs. Claus tomorrow as they visit St. Mary’s, Alaska, to commemorate the 50th anniversary flight of Operation Santa Claus. About 100 Army and Air National Guard members and other volunteers will fly to the remote village in two Air Guard C-130 Hercules aircraft to deliver toys, clothing, books, school supplies, water and holiday spirit to about 350 children, Kalei Brooks from Alaska’s Department of Military and Veterans Affairs told American Forces Press Service. In addition, a representative of Tastee-Freez will bring ice cream sundaes for as many...

WASHINGTON, Feb. 8 (UPI) -- A group of 86 evangelical Christian leaders are reportedly supporting a major initiative to fight global warming. Warning "millions of people could die in this century because of climate change," the leaders include the presidents of 39 evangelical colleges, aid groups and churches, such as the Salvation Army, and pastors of megachurches, including Rick Warren, author of the best seller "The Purpose-Driven Life," The New York Times reported Wednesday. "For most of us, until recently this has not been treated as a pressing issue or major priority," the Christian leaders said in a statement to...

The institution of Santa Claus has its roots in stories about St Nicholas's generosity and love toward children. But St Nicholas, 4th-century bishop of Myra, had another side. While attending the Council of Nicea in AD 325, he defended orthodox Christology in particularly vigorous fashion:During the Council of Nicea, jolly old St. Nicholas got so fed up with Arius, who taught that Jesus was just a man, that he walked up and slapped him! That unbishoplike behavior got him in trouble. The council almost stripped him of his office, but Nicholas said he was sorry, so he was forgiven.Maybe Santa...

BETHEL — While controversy swirls over a substitute teacher who told first-graders that Santa Claus doesn’t exist, a local dairy farmer and church deacon has put the same message in a very public place. By erecting a sign along the eastbound side of I-78, between the Bethel and Grimes exits, Leonard H. Martin has taken it upon himself to shatter the myth of Santa Claus for any youngster able to read the message from the back seat of a car as their parents drive by. It marks the second consecutive year that Martin has posted what he termed a spiritual...

Since we have been on a Thomas Nast tear lately, it is only right and fitting that we should return to him at Christmas, as he is more or less the inventor of our Santa Claus.Surprisingly, Nast's very first depiction of Santa Claus was a piece of political propaganda, done at the request of President Lincoln himself. Lincoln thought a drawing showing Santa Claus in the Union camp would boost the North's morale and demoralize the South. It is reported to have accomplished both of these goals.Shocking, isn't it? Our one party media's delicate sensibilities would not stand for such...

Grinchy remark sends kids home in tears By RORY SCHULER Staff Writer Lebanon Daily News LICKDALE — Jamey Schaeffer stretched her mouth open wide, showing off a pair of twin gaps in her smile. With a mouthful of fingers, she said she has no interest in two front teeth for Christmas. Instead, she’d like a Barbie doll from Santa Claus — and Santa Claus only. But a substitute music teacher almost came between the 6-year-old and a Christmas Eve spent dancing cheek to cheek with sugar plums. Theresa Farrisi stood in for Schaeffer’s regular music teacher one day last week....

Santa Claus Shot Down by SA-15 Missile over Northern Iran Santa sled fireball TEHRAN (Dec 24)-The Iranian News Agency is claiming that the Doshan Tapeh Air Base commander has reported one of it's newly aquired Russian SA-15 anti-aircraft missile defense batteries engaged and shot down the Santa Claus reindeer propelled flying sled over Northern Iran today. The target was tracked on radar for 10 minutes before the order to fire was given by the regional air defense commander Witnesses report seeing the SA-15 streak skyward erupting in a brilliant flash and then a giant fireball plummeting to the earth. The...

Grinchy remark sends kids home in tears By RORY SCHULER Staff Writer Lebanon Daily News LICKDALE — Jamey Schaeffer stretched her mouth open wide, showing off a pair of twin gaps in her smile. With a mouthful of fingers, she said she has no interest in two front teeth for Christmas. Instead, she’d like a Barbie doll from Santa Claus — and Santa Claus only. But a substitute music teacher almost came between the 6-year-old and a Christmas Eve spent dancing cheek to cheek with sugar plums. Theresa Farrisi stood in for Schaeffer’s regular music teacher one day last week....

Bishop Nicholas of Myra: Legends and sources The Legend of Bishop Nicholas of Myra: A telling by Eldrbarry: Lots of people think that St. Nicholas is just another name for Santa Claus. After all, Santa is also called Father Christmas, and Kris Kringle, and other names. Actually, Santa Claus is itself a mispronunciation of the Dutch SinterKlass which was their way of saying St. Nicholas. But behind all these name is a boy who actually lived in what is now Western Turkey and what was then Lycia in the Fourth Century, about seventeen hundred years ago. His name was...

A Dorchester man named Santa gave his conflicted family the yuletide gift of contrition yesterday by ’fessing up to killing his cousin at a Christmas party two years ago. Torn between anguish and fidelity, Benjamin Santa’s tearful mother would speak no evil of her son, even as he was spirited away in chains from a Boston courtroom. “I couldn’t even hug or kiss him,” Luz Caban said of Santa, 24, the oldest of her four children. “There’s no Christmas for us.” Santa, wearing sunglasses, his braided hair pulled back in a ponytail, pleaded guilty to manslaughter and was sentenced to...

Pope Benedict XVI, wearing the white fur-trimmed red bonnet known as a camauro reserved for Popes, arrives to celebrate his general audience in St. Peter's square at the Vatican December 21, 2005. REUTERS/Alessia Pierdomenico

Jeremy Seal on an Epic History BATH, England, DEC. 20, 2005 (Zenit.org).- The modern persona of Santa Claus is a far cry from its origins: St. Nicholas, bishop of Myra. So how did he go from a charitable saint to an icon of Christmas consumerism? Travel writer Jeremy Seal embarked on an international search to answer that question and recorded his findings in "Nicholas: The Epic Journey from Saint to Santa Claus" (Bloomsbury". Seal told ZENIT what he discovered tracking the cult of Santa Claus across the globe and why he thinks St. Nicholas and his charism of charity still...

Inside a South Florida Wal-Mart last Thursday, union-sponsored protesters handed out empty, gift-wrapped boxes to children and made them cry, according to multiple witnesses -- and it appears that the arrests of two of the protesters may have been part of a grand strategy designed by Big Labor-backed WakeUpWalMart.com. Yetdespiteinternal WakeUpWalMart.com communication -- obtained exclusively by this columnist -- indicating that the union-funded front instructed its protesters to test police patience, the organization is now playing the race card since the two protesters arrested (out of 15 total) are both black. Late in the afternoon last Thursday, two people dressed...

by Gretchen Passantino Copyright 1986 by Gretchen Passantino. Musty pine smell, glittering balls, and smooth, softly faded creche figures: Christmas packed in an old yellow trunk at the back of the children's closet. Outside the sun is bright, the children's voices are raised in a boisterous game of tag through the lawn sprinklers. But just smelling the pine and gently fingering the familiar plaster figure of the Christ Child awakens a sense of awe and anticipation for another season of special praise in honor of the birth of my Lord. Over the years we have learned and adapted many Christmas...

Santa Claus had his origins in St. Nicholas, the fourth-century bishop of Myra in present-day Turkey. Known for his generosity and his love of children, Nicholas is said to have saved a poor family's daughters from slavery by tossing into their window enough gold for a rich dowry, a present that landed in some shoes or, in some accounts, stockings that were hung up to dry. Thus arose the custom of hanging up stockings for St. Nicholas to fill. And somehow he transmogrified into Santa Claus, who has become for many people the secular Christmas alternative to Jesus Christ. But...

Newburgh - A Wal-Mart Santa Claus was arrested Monday for allegedly exposing himself to a 15-year-old boy and attempting to have the boy engage in oral sex with him at his home on Dec. 9, according to a City of Newburgh police press release. Ransford George Perry, 57, of Newburgh, has acted as an advocate for numerous children around Newburgh through a business called the Association Against Biased Educators. He is also a promoter for "talented children," and a Santa Claus at the Wal-Mart on Route 300 in the Town of Newburgh, police said. Perry was acting as an advocate...

Yes, Virginia, There is a Santa Claus Editorial Page, New York Sun, 1897 We take pleasure in answering thus prominently the communication below, expressing at the same time our great gratification that its faithful author is numbered among the friends of The Sun: I am 8 years old. Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus. Papa says, "If you see it in The Sun, it's so." Please tell me the truth, is there a Santa Claus? Virginia O'Hanlon Virginia, your little friends are wrong. They have been affected by the skepticism of a sceptical age. They...

<p>RICHARDSON - Guess what, kids? There's no such thing as Santa Claus!</p> <p>That was a Richardson music teacher's holiday message to first-graders Monday - a remark that angered parents and prompted the school district to issue a pro-Santa statement.</p> <p>"When you take a 6-year-old and tell him, you've got to spend how much time to get him to believe again? The damage is done," parent Michael Millett said.</p>

President Bush's approval rating is low, gas prices are high, scandal and mistrust of authority figures are on the rise, but there is one thing Americans still believe in -- Santa Claus. Especially now that Forbes magazine just named Santa Claus (age: 1,651) the richest "fictional" philanthropist in the world. "You're never too old for Santa," said 20-year-old Kelly Carnes, a student at George Washington University who was standing in line at the Pentagon City mall Sunday afternoon, waiting to see her red-suited idol. Doubters and cynics are few, even among those who may accuse Santa Claus of elf exploitation....

A Santa Claus is facing the sack from a Dutch shopping centre after he smacked a young boy for pulling his beard.

Foreign Ministry proposed putting back the Santa Claus statue to its original place in Demre town of southern Antalya city in respect of maintaining good relations with Russia. The bronze statue which stood in front of St. Nicholas church in Demre was removed last February by Demre municipality. Gregory Pototsky, the Russian artist who sculpted the statue and a group of Russian intellectuals, had called President Ahmet Necdet Sezer by publishing an open letter in a Russian newspaper to take action on the issue. President Sezer had informed Foreign Ministry about the issue. Upon this development, Foreign Ministry Deputy Undersecretary...

DEMRE, Turkey -- In the 4th century, a bishop named Nicholas was a local hero in this seaside town, living the kind of life that eventually led to sainthood. For most of the 16 centuries that followed, Saint Nicholas was known chiefly as the patron of sailors, barrel-makers, small children and Russians. And though it's not entirely clear just when the historical Saint Nicholas began to meld into the image of the jolly man in the red suit, historians can now say precisely when the transformation was complete. On Feb. 3, the Demre City Council voted unanimously to erect a...

From the moment a child is born there is probably no greater “universal truth” pounded into their head by society and culture than of the existence of a fat jolly man dressed in red who brings good little boys and girls presents each year and is rarely complete without his eight tiny reindeer. It is the one great myth that is inescapable. Stores, malls, songs, programs, teachers, relatives, as well as friends and neighbors rigorously propagate and enforce this little piece of fiction. While mostly harmless and enjoyable, the story of Santa Claus is unknowingly used and abused by many...

After watching the original 'Miracle on 34th Street for the fourth time in the past 24 hours I must say, I never tire of that wonderful movie. With the incredibly funny lines at times and a number of very important life messages, seeing that movie never gets old.Each time I see that cane resting beside the fireplace at the end of the movie it seems to remind me that we may want to hold closely to our faith in so many things.Merry Christmas to everyone.

Here's something to put on the 'puter as you open presents. It's an offshoot of a Net animation called Badger! Badger! which had dancing badgers to a danceable tune. That, in turn, spurred "Bananaphone", a similar animation set to the tune of a sped-up Raffi song. This one does seem to accent "Presents!" but it does show baby Jesus though! (And speaking of Web animation I guess yahoo had a "Santa" one from the makers of that Jib Jab animation. Haven't seen it yet though.) Link to the Santa! Badger! http://www.ebaumsworld.com/santabadger.html

HAMPTON - A parent of a Hampton Academy Junior High School student says the principal of the school told his son to leave the school’s holiday dance on Friday night because the boy was dressed in a Santa Claus costume, which was politically incorrect. Michael Lafond said his son, Bryan, went to the dance dressed as Santa because it was a holiday party. "He asked if he could dress like Santa and we said yes," said Lafond. "We went to Brooks and purchased the outfit and everything." Lafond said his wife dropped off Bryan at the school. "I went to...

What place could be sadder at Christmas than a hospice? Or so one might think. But my high-school-aged daughter discovered otherwise. She visited a hospice with her choir to sing Christmas carols. The residents were in the final months or weeks of their lives. Most were elderly, their faces gaunt, their eyes lusterless. But as my daughter's choir filed from room to room, filling the halls with strains of "Silent Night" and "Joy to the World," the patients seemed transformed. They became animated. Most struggled to sit up, raising their voices to join in and sometimes weeping as they did...