[NeedKarma]

Christmas is about Santa Claus, c'mon!

[speechlesstx]

Please accept with no obligation, implied or explicit, my best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low-stress, non-addictive, gender-neutral celebration of the winter solstice holiday, practiced within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice, or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasion and/or traditions of others, or their choice not to practice religious or secular traditions at all.

I also wish you a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling and medically uncomplicated recognition of the onset of the generally accepted calendar year 2010, but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures whose contributions to society have helped make America great. Not to imply that America is necessarily greater than any other country nor the only America in the Western Hemisphere.

Also, this wish is made without regard to the race, creed, color, age, physical ability, religious faith or sexual preference of the wishee.

Merry Christmas, tom.

[NeedKarma]

Christmas isn't "the happy holiday season," it's about Jesus and it's a federal holiday,

Many couldn't care less about this Jesus fellow.

[tomder55]

Merry Christmas Steve

[NeedKarma]

Merry Christmas to all!

[speechlesstx]

many couldn't care less about this jesus fellow.

OK.

[Synnen]

Happy Yule to all!

The man told the Taunton Daily Gazette his second-grader made the drawing after his teacher asked children to sketch something that reminded them of Christmas. He said the teacher at Maxham Elementary School thought the drawing was too violent.

That says to me that she asked them to sketch something that reminded them of Christmas--but hey, maybe I misinterpreted the word "Christmas". I guess it COULD have meant some other holiday too. And while Christmas is a federal holiday---separation of church and state to me says that either you have NO religious stuff in schools, or you cover it ALL. So hopefully the teacher DID ask them to sketch something that reminds them of the holidays and not just Christmas.

Either way--sketching Christ DEAD for Christmas is a weird thing. Christmas is the Christian celebration of his BIRTH. EASTER is the Christian celebration of his death.

Either way--it showed a dead guy being killed in a horrible way for a holiday that is supposedly about celebrating His birth. If the drawing had been about witches burned at the stake, or the death of the Horned God at Beltane, I'd be JUST as worried.

[speechlesstx]

He said he thought it was a joke when told his son needed an evaluation, and thinks the school overreacted.

The boy was cleared to return to school on Dec. 7 after the evaluation found nothing to indicate that he posed a threat to himself or others. But his father said the boy was traumatized by the incident and the school district has approved the family's request to have the child transferred to another school.

The father said in the days before the incident the family had gone to the National Shrine of Our Lady of La Salette in Attleboro where there are crucifixion statues (one of those statues is pictured below).

Perhaps this moronic teacher had never seen a church before, never knew anything of Jesus in art over the millennia, never been to Sunday School, knew nothing of the connection between Jesus and Christmas, doesn't believe in freedom of expression or just plain shouldn't be anywhere near 8-year-olds.

[NeedKarma]

... or just plain shouldn't be anywhere near 8-year-olds.

No, you are confusing him with the priests.

[Synnen]

PS--the ONLY reason Christmas is celebrated when it is, is because of the pagan celebrations of Yule and Saturnalia. It's actually been shown over and over that Christ couldn't have been born on December 25th. So... since Christians STOLE the holiday, maybe THAT should be part of the Christmas education programs at school?

"Hey kids! While many of you celebrate the birth of Jesus, let's talk about the history of the holiday! Did you know that the Romans? used to allow the slaves to be in charge for this one day called Saturnalia? This is also where the tradition of gift giving comes in, even though they tell you that it's because of the Three Wise Men. This is also the reason that Christmas is celebrated on December 25th. And the early Germanic peoples celebrated Yule, which involved feasting and fertility rituals and sacrifices. Traditionally, it was a day to venerate ancestors, but was also a wild revelry that called for many toasts of alcoholic beverages. They brought to the equation the Yule log, the custom of carols, and the Christmas ham, which dates to celebrate a goddess of fertility and harvest! Isn't that interesting?"

[speechlesstx]

PS--the ONLY reason Christmas is celebrated when it is, is because of the pagan celebrations of Yule and Saturnalia. It's actually been shown over and over that Christ couldn't have been born on December 25th.

This is about an idiot teacher traumatizing an 8-year-old special needs boy for drawing a stick figure.

So... since Christians STOLE the holiday, maybe THAT should be part of the Christmas education programs at school?

Yule and Saturnalia are not federal holidays.

Isn't that interesting?"

Not really.

[excon]

Hello:

Fortunatly, there's Festivus for the rest of us.

excon

[NeedKarma]

Not really.

[speechlesstx]

Hello:

Fortunatly, there's Festivus for the rest of us.

Absolutely, you can buy your Festivus pole here. Please enjoy and tell us all about your "Feats of Strength" ritual.

[Synnen]

It's not about a teacher traumatizing an 8 year old at all.

It's about a teacher bringing up an inappropriate topic for 8 year olds in a PUBLIC school to begin with, and then feeling worried that the child drew a picture of a dead man--PLEASE tell me how Christ on the Cross is related to Christmas rather than Easter. Pretty please.

Any kid drawing dead people SHOULD be psychologically evaluated.

And while Christmas is a federal holiday---the FEDERAL side of that is SECULAR. Santa and Reindeer and presents, please. Keep Christ out of it. He has NOTHING to do with the FEDERAL holiday.

(PS--it was only MADE a federal holiday because so many people called into work that day anyway--just like Thanksgiving)

[speechlesstx]

[QUOTE=Synnen;2131413]

It's not about a teacher traumatizing an 8 year old at all.

It's about a teacher bringing up an inappropriate topic for 8 year olds in a PUBLIC school to begin with

Get real Synnen, when in God's name did Christmas become an inappropriate topic for children? That is pathetic nonsense.

and then feeling worried that the child drew a picture of a dead man--

Not a dead man, a man, a historical figure considered by millions to be the Savior of mankind. A man children have been taught about for centuries from birth to death and beyond. I've seen hundreds if not thousands of children come through church and don't know of a single one traumatized by the story because it's a story of love and hope. Children tend to LOVE Jesus.

PLEASE tell me how Christ on the Cross is related to Christmas rather than Easter. Pretty please.

Any kid drawing dead people SHOULD be psychologically evaluated.

What difference does it make? The kid is 8 years old, he had just visited a church with depictions of Jesus on the cross and it's obvious he knows there's a connection between Jesus and Christmas, and you guys think he's a little psycho? Get a grip!

And while Christmas is a federal holiday---the FEDERAL side of that is SECULAR. Santa and Reindeer and presents, please. Keep Christ out of it. He has NOTHING to do with the FEDERAL holiday.

Um, you really believe that Christmas was entirely secular when Congress established it as a federal holiday? It was upheld as constitutional "because it has a valid secular purpose," but it did not and cannot remove the basis for the holiday. Teachers may indeed teach Christmas from a secular viewpoint including its religious significance, but they cannot control how the children express themselves unless it poses a threat of a significant disruption. If this idiot teacher didn't want to deal with how 2nd graders might express themselves on her assignment she should have chosen another assignment.

(PS--it was only MADE a federal holiday because so many people called into work that day anyway--just like Thanksgiving)

Uh, no. But if that works for you I'm OK with that.

[paraclete]

Please accept with no obligation, implied or explicit, my best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low-stress, non-addictive, gender-neutral celebration of the winter solstice holiday, practiced within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice, or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasion and/or traditions of others, or their choice not to practice religious or secular traditions at all.

I also wish you a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling and medically uncomplicated recognition of the onset of the generally accepted calendar year 2010, but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures whose contributions to society have helped make America great. Not to imply that America is necessarily greater than any other country nor the only America in the Western Hemisphere.

Also, this wish is made without regard to the race, creed, color, age, physical ability, religious faith or sexual preference of the wishee.

To quote a perhaps not so well known line

You have the ability to complicate the obvious and travialise the important
We all tremble before the searing logic of your fiery intellect

.

[NeedKarma]

to quote a perhaps not so well known line

you have the ability to complicate the obvious and travialise the important
we all tremble before the searing logic of your fiery intellect.

Lol!

[inthebox]

So this special needs child "broke the school's code of violence."

??

Catalyst Notebook :: Violence on the rise inside Chicago high schools


Meanwhile, real violence is escalting. Hey wasn't the POTUS from Chicago?


G&P

[speechlesstx]

You mean this?