In northern Europe, many traditions that we now consider part of Christian worship of Christs birth were begun long before the participants had ever heard of Christ. The pagans of northern Europe celebrated the their own winter solstice, known as Yule. Yule was symbolic of the pagan Sun God, being born, and was observed on the shortest day of the year. As the Sun God grew and matured, the days became longer and warmer. It was customary to light candles to encourage the sun to grow and to reappear next year.

Huge Yule logs were burned in honor of the sun. The word Yule itself means “wheel,” the wheel being a pagan symbol for the sun. Mistletoe was considered a sacred plant, and the custom of kissing under the mistletoe began as a fertility ritual. Hollyberries were thought to be a food of the gods.

The tree is the one symbol that unites almost all the northern European winter solstice celebrations. Live evergreen trees were often brought into homes during the harsh winters as a reminder to inhabitants that soon their crops would grow again. Evergreen boughs were sometimes carried as totems of good luck and were often present at weddings, representing fertility. The Druids used the tree as a religious symbol, holding their sacred ceremonies while surrounding and worshipping huge trees. The various traditions of lighting candles and having trees inside were eventually combined and this is why we have colorful lit trees in our homes today. It has nothing at all to do with Christ.

As a foot note on the history of Christmas, In 350, Pope Julius I declared that Christ’s birth would be celebrated on December 25. There is little doubt that he was trying to make it as painless as possible for pagan Romans (who remained a majority at that time) to convert to Christianity. The new religion went down a bit easier for those early Christian converts, knowing that their feasts would not be taken away from them.

By the way Christian; that is a Pentacle on top of your Christmas tree...

Your Taxes go up today

The Federal Minimum Wage goes up today

The U.S. minimum wage will go up today to $7.25, from $6.55 per hour,. Most states have their own minimum wage, and employers are required to pay whichever is higher. That means minimum wage workers will get a raise in 29 states. In the remaining 21 states and Washington, D.C., they'll see no change.

In some states, the increase will be more modest. In New York, the state minimum wage is $7.15 an hour, so workers there will be paid an extra dime an hour, which means another $4 for a 40-hour week. But in states like Georgia, Virginia and Texas, workers are paid the current federal minimum of $6.55, so they'll get the largest raise of 70 cents, which translates into a $28 bump for a full-time week, or more than $1,400 a year.

So just let me put this in perspective, the least educated among us will get a bump of $28 a week in their purchasing power while the rest of us take a $28 a week reduction in our own purchasing power. Make no mistake, the Employers who are required to pay this added increase in parole will not take the hit. Business as a whole will simply raise the prices on goods and services to cover their added expense. What this translates to is no actual increase at all to the “minimum wage” earner and a defacto tax to the rest of us. Let me say this in a simpler way for all the “minimum wage” earners who might be reading this. The Government makes money by taxing the amount you earn on your paycheck. The more you make, the more they make. Your paycheck is now bigger, they get more money. Business raised all the prices to cover the cost of paying you more, so you really can’t buy anymore stuff than you could before and the rest of us who didn’t get a “increase” are left paying higher prices. The only one that gets anything out of this deal is the Government.

So go on all you earners of the “Federal Minimum” kick up your heels and rejoice, you just got a raise!!! Your probably to stupid to understand that all of us just got a tax increase.

People are Animals Too

My wife and I had decided to take a late night drive to escape the boredom of the four walls and to beat the heat so we loaded into our car and headed out to nowhere in particular around about 1230 am. After driving about an hour or so we decided to return home and so we headed down Main Street in Hesperia. Main Street even at night is fairly well lit and while it is empty for the most part it is not deserted. We were just about to our turn off when Susan (my wife) said “that guy and girl were having sex!”

“Where?” I asked

“Right back there at the Rocks Club” she said

Now the Rocks Club is the typical hole in the wall night club that you would expect to find in a small town… We decided to go back and take another look because we both knew we didn’t just see what we thought we just saw. When we got turned around and back up to the spot, sure enough, there was the guy with the girl in front and facing away from him and he had her bent over a small two foot chain link fence. Her shorts, skirt or what ever it was; was around her ankles and he was going to work…. People and cars were around and the two “lovers” didn’t seem to care not one bit. We were just amazed at how brazen these two were, does anyone else have any other stories like this one?? And, do we need to put up signs?

Simon can't believe his ears

So who gets wiz'ed on this week?  None other than Simon Cowell of American Idol fame. We all know Simon, with his rapier wit and empathy free comments. But this week it was Simon who felt a little out of place when 47 year old Susan Boyle walked on stage and sang like an angel. You could just see Simon gearing up for what was sure to be a verbal raking over the coals when Boyle walked on stage, a 47 year old spinster, who has not kept herself up in the least, and wearing a frumpy house coat style dress. Simon look poised for the kill, and he started setting his prey up the way any good hunter wold. Simon asked, "What's the Dream ?" 

her response was simply "trying to be a professional singer" then with all the cold malice we have come to expect from Simon he asked" Why hasn't that worked out for you?" and with simple practicality Susan Boyle answered "No one has given me the chance". All the while the crowd is jeering and laughing because they just know... what is coming next, this woman will open her mouth to sing and fall flat on her face, but that's not what happened, no, not at all in fact the opposite happens. Susan Boyle opens her mouth to sing and the voice of a seasoned pro fills the room. I would be lying if I said that the energy of hearing her sing and the crowd going from laughing at her to cheering for her didn't make a tear well up in my eye. It is real powerful stuff.. Good for you Susan Boyle and WIZ on you Simon.. you don't know every damn thing. The next time a person walks into audition take a few seconds to hear them sing before you judge them.

Weed is for dummys

I have heard over the past years a number of arguments for the legalization of marijuana. Everything from "We could tax it and erase the national debt" to " Use of weed doesn't lead to heavier drugs" I have also heard " weed don't make you dumb." I actually had some on tell me that exact phrase. I don't know about the first two reasons.. (the tax idea might even work.. for a while, until everyone looses their jobs because they're stoned all the time and then can't afford to pay for legal weed anymore and then turn to crime to pay for their Government enabled habit..but I digress) but as far as the last reason goes [weed don't make you dumb] I humbly submit the three following true police blotter stories,

Failed to Keep a Low Profile:

If a motorist is carrying $18,000 worth of marijuana, he might try to avoid attracting attention (and not go the wrong way on a one-way street, as Samuel Randall, 27, did in Chicago in January). [WBBM Radio (Chicago), 1-4-09]

Or if carrying a duffel bag full of marijuana, not driving around in a car that lacked license plates, like the four women arrested in San Antonio in November. [San Antonio Express-News, 11-11-08]

Or if there are 78 marijuana plants in the back seat, making sure that her car had a valid state inspection sticker, unlike Tracy Pioggia, in Hampden, Mass., in October. [The Republican (Springfield), 10-16-08]

I say 'ol chap..... Weed DOES make you dumb!

Leave This Girl Alone!

 So we all get it! Nadia Suleman has a lot of kids! We also understand that it was her choice to have so many kids. But here's the thing... even if her reasoning was wrong... the kids are here now and they didn't ask to be in this situation! It's all in the news now that Nadia has announced she will join the WIC program. What she announced? That's right she announced it. I don't believe she announced it to get back on the news either, she announced it to mitigate the back lash that was sure to follow! It's really sad to think that a new mom has to fear what others think about the decisions she makes regarding her new babies. I say that she has 14 kids, give her a break! I myself have 3 kids and they can be a bit much at time, but 14? WOW! This girl is "paying" for what she did, trust me! So she has to get help from WIC to feed them, SO WHAT! Millions of mothers are on that program and no one seems to care. No one cares unless you get stuck behind a WIC mother at the grocery store, but that is another thing altogether. All I'm saying is that she has enough to deal with, and having to worry about how people percieve her is just unfair. How else do you think she could feed 8 new babies? She obviously can't breast feed that many, so formula are the only other choice, and that stuff is very expensive! Ok I get it some will argue that she is trying to "cash in" on her fame, wouldn't you if you suddenly found yourself single with 14 kids? I mean it's the only way she has to make money. The same people who yell and scream that she is exploiting her kids for money are the same people who complain the loudest when she seeks public assistance. HUH? That's just dumb! If you don't want her using the kids to make a few bucks and you don't want her on public assistance and you’re not willing to donate to her yourself... what options does that leave her? Just having to deal with 14 kids 8 of which are new born babies on a day in and day out basis is plenty punishment enough.

Dog found Alive After 4 Months!!

 SYDNEY (AFP) – A pet dog that fell overboard in rough seas offAustralia has been reunited with its owners after surviving alone on an island for four months, reports said.

Sophie Tucker, apparently named after a late US entertainer, fell overboard as Jan Griffith and her family sailed through choppy waters off the northeast Queensland coast in November.

The dog was believed to have drowned and Griffith said the family was devastated.

But out of sight of the family, Sophie Tucker was swimming doggedly and finally made it to St Bees Island, five nautical miles away, and began the sort of life popularised by the TV reality show "Survivor."

She was returned to her family last week when Griffith contacted rangers who had captured a dog that had been living off feral goats on the largely uninhabited island, in the faint hope it might be their long-lost pet.

When the Griffiths met the rangers' boat bringing the dog to the mainland they found that it was indeed Sophie Tucker on board.

"We called the dog and she started whimpering and banging the cage and they let her out and she just about flattened us," Griffith told the national AAP news agency.

"She wriggled around like a mad thing."

Griffith said that when the dog was first spotted on the island she had been in poor condition.

"And then all of a sudden she started to look good and it was when the rangers had found baby goat carcasses so she'd started eating baby goats," she said.

Sophie Tucker, a member of the Australian cattle dog breed, had been quick to readjust to the comforts of home, complete with airconditioning, Griffiths said.

"She surprised us all. She was a house dog and look what she's done, she's swum over five nautical miles, she's managed to live off the land all on her own," Griffiths said.

"We wish she could talk, we truly do."  

I bet the Goats are glad to have her back with her Family too! 

Iron Man

 - Stronger, faster and harder is the promise of a new exoskeleton developed by Lockheed Martin for U.S. soldiers. Dubbed the Human Universal Load Carrier, or HULC, the device helps a soldier carry up to 200 pounds at a top speed of 10 mph.

"The soldier has the feeling of maybe an extra five to 10 pounds," said Doug Medcalf, Business Development Manager at Lockheed Martin. Today some soldiers are carrying loads of up to 130 pounds into combat.

Unlike most exoskeletons built to boost human ability, the HULC, which Medcalf says does not owe its name to the popular green comic book character, isn't limited to the length of its power cable.

The titanium HULC instead runs on a four lithium ion batteries nestled into the small of a soldier's back. Eight batteries can power the HULC on missions up to 96 hours.

This is all fine and good, but what happens after 97 hours? how much does it weigh then? Didn,t they just make a movie like this called Iron Man?