Recent Gaza

I truly hate discussing anything about Israel/Palestinian relations because, quite frankly, there is absolutely no way in which the situation can be discussed without emotional blindness. Even if you have no interest in the region, somehow it affects you emotionally. Truly, this must be a war which is being waged by God versus Satan, with every human (on both sides) just caught in the middle.

That said, what I was interested on commenting upon today is the news (both radio and paper) - the articles that I have heard and read seem to take on a subtle yet noticeable anti-Israeli stance, in that they decry the loss of innocent lives (women and children) committed by Israel in its response to Hamas launching rockets into Israel.

OK, so - Hamas strikes first. Israel strikes back. Everyone says Israel bad. Hm.

Let me put this another way: I hate my next door neighbour. I mean I really hate the guy. I want him dead. He stinks and he shouldn't have been allowed to move in, because my grandfathers were forced out of that house and he lived for awhile in my house but we finally got him out, but right now I'm in my house and he's in his and I still hate him.

Now, three days ago, I threw a rock through his window, hoping to crack his skull. I mean, I really hate the guy.

The guy comes back immediately and shoots up my house. Did I forget to tell you? He has guns, real guns, and isn't afraid to use them. He kills my daughter and my wife.

See what a jerk he is?

Don't you think I'm just a little responsible? Just a little? I mean, I KNEW that he had more powerful weaponry. I KNEW he wasn't afraid to use them. I KNEW he WOULD use them - on me AND my family . . . so, why did I go ahead and throw that rock through the window?

Because hatred, my friends, blinds us. Hatred blinds us to the consequences of our actions, and what's worse - our hatred means we never have to accept responsibility for causing those consqeuences.

Lay off Israel. If everybody wants Israel to stop killing women and children, make all the others stop launching rockets into their dirt.

And now I'll post a picture. But instead of the ubiquitous pics of death and destruction, I found one today that's a little different - Gaza, on the coast, kids playing on the beach, from 2007 if I read it right. I figured everyone's seen enough of burned out cars and people running for their lives.

Christmas CD's

I don't like "best of" lists or "Top whatever number" lists . . . well, not much anyway. I suppose I do like them, only in so much as I can contest them. But I've been wanting to post a list of "personal favourite" Christmas CD's for some time - but I want to state that I don't consider this a "top" or "best" or anything like that - these are just some Christmas CDs that I have loved for years, they've stood the test of time, and even though there are certain versions of Christmas carols that I may like better, or individual Christmas songs that just melt my icy heart, these are overall ALBUMS that are strong all the way through.

So here goes:

Mannheim Steamroller - Christmas (1984) - this was the first one that they did (and I've lost count how many they've done since) but this is by far my favourite - it's just like Fresh Aire III, in that it's the perfect balance of synthesizers and lutes, synth drums and tambors, postmodern and renaissance styles.

John Doan - Wrapped in White. This man plays a harp/guitar, and is probably the best practitioner of the instrument - in that he makes it sound like a legitimate instrument instead of just being a harp with a guitar stuck on the bottom of it. But what's great about this album is that he has some interesting arrangements of the songs (like a calliope if I remember right), and to wax poetic, each plucked note is as perfect as any individual snowflake falling gently on a clear crisp winter's evening.

Eric Tingstad and Nancy Rumbel - The Gift. Another damfine guitarist with his oboe playing partner, offering up more mellow acoustic merriment for that fireplace warmth. I've always liked this album.

Big Iron's Honkey Tonk Holidays: Christmas in Deep Noellum. Just so you don't think I'm an old fuddy-duddy with his "acooooooostic" Christmas music, this album is fantastic. I just found out that it's out of print, which is a shame, because I think everybody truly needs a copy of this CD. Every song is a gem, and some standouts are the Mutineers' Halloween version of "Santa Claus is Coming to Town," The Sutcliffs' "Alcoholidays" and Old '97's "Holly Jolly Christmas"
Truly, this is a CD for barflies, and if I must say, it goes down like a smooth malt liquor, with just the right amount of kick.

The Chieftains - The Bells of Dublin (1991) - my wife begrudgingly likes this one, even though she admits that it has the feeling of a bunch of people celebrating Christmas in a pub. But that's the whole point! I told her. Truly it does, this one offers up some Christmas carols that may not be that widely known this side of the pond, but it's an essential for rounding out my Christmas festivities.

New American Guitar Ensemble - Christmas Carols. I found this one on cassette tape many years ago and wore it plumb out! I finally found a CD version of it last year and I feel completedd again. This one is, yet, more acoustic instruments, but it truly has some of the best arrangements of carols that I've ever heard. A must have for any stocking stuffer! (now I'm starting to sound like an infomercial!)

Boston Camerata - A Renaissance Christmas. They've done several, like a Medieval Christmas and I think some early American pioneer Christmas songs, and they are good in locking down some of the songs from those time periods that might otherwise be lost to the ages. My favourite of this canon is the Renaissance, particularly for the Middle English reading of the
"Booke" of Luke - nicely done, as it transports you back 500 years to a dark Cathedral in a cold midwinter, with the resonant tone of the parish priest reciting the beautiful story of the angels proclaiming to the shepherds the birth of the Saviour . . . .wow! (give it a listen, you might like it - but there are no guarantees)

And lastly, if more "cool" is your particular Christmas music bent, then the Ultra Lounge has some good CDs. I've heard the first and the second, liked them both. There's a third out, but I haven't listened to it yet. These certainly go down like those rum-filled chocolate candies that are an integral part of every Christmas family gathering!!

So, I hope some of these suit your fancy, and if anybody out there has some suggestions for me, please let me know. I'm always on the lookout for some good music!

That said, have a MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!!!!!!!


VG

from Religulous

Saw Religulous with my oldest teenage son a few months ago, and I should have blogged it in myblogs about movies by now (if I haven't already - I can never remember these things - at the age of 103 thigns tend to slip your mind!) but I remember one thing that the narrator (what's his name again?) that comes back to me at this Christmas season - he

was torqued that not all four gospels mentioned the virgin birth - that only two of them did - he thought that would be a pretty important point that would have merited mention in ALL the gospels.

His argument would be true, on human terms, if the things written down were what the humans wanted to write, irrespective and independent of Divine inspiration. The point of the Bible being

"God-breathed"

is that God inspired ("inspired" means "breathed-into" by the way!) these writings. The Virgin Birth IS important, but he didn't need to hammer the point home - so he mentioned it enough to be noticed and then the other gospels covered other aspects.

The point is - all the Gospels cover the story, but at slightly different angles - some have the same situations in them, some have situations that aren't in others, some have details that are in some but not others - all together they give the full picture.

So, to the narrator it might be silly not to have it in all four, but to others of us, it is just right!!

Dr Who

I'm just putting this picture here because my last post totally wore me out emotionally, and I just need to upload something cool to bring back my "mellow" as the kids call it these days.

This is Dr Who, but truly the coolest things in the picture are the sonic screwdriver, the Tardis, and the Christmas tree. I hope that this picture means that there is a Dr Who Christmas special might be forthcoming on the telly!

Jee Whiz people!

Cut the man some slack! Dang, ever since he got elected there's been nothing but kvetching about every decision he's made, and he doesn't even have the job yet.

I swear, the very first decision he made (what was it now? Oh yeah, Chief of Staff!) met with terrible guffaws and derision! the guy's too Clintonian! the guy's too mean! I thought Obama wanted something new, different, kind!

One decision he amde about the Treasury position got the market to go up for a day. Which is actually a sad commentary on our economy - that billions of dollars can be made or lost depending on what name is dropped. That's like making a decision on which house to buy by seeing how the chicken bones drop.

Then we get scathes from NC of La Raza, suggesting that Bill Richardson was a consolation prize for Hispanics! My goodness, as much as I've railed against the unfair treatment of Hispanics in this country (and I'll say it again - Hispanics are much more mistreated in this century than African-Americans in this same timeframe) (Note how I mentioned TIME), I have to say that this is a bit of a stretch.

He hired these individuals based on how well he thinks they'll get the job done. anything else would be irrevocably stupid. do we seriously believe that Barack Obama really wants to fail? If you think so, then you are irrevocably stupid. Of course he wants this to work. If he thought Richardson would have made a better Sec of State than Hillary Clinton then he would have hired him!

any kvetching about racism is ludicrous, and is actually counter productive to our cause, in that white America will see us as a bunch of complainers. Back off La Raza, please!

Now, there was a hate radio jock out there who was whining like a little sissybully that the podium of Office of the President-Elect was arrogant, and that there was nothing in his (the hate radio jock's) Constitution about the office of the President-elect.

Let me take this in two points:
One, I agree that's it's not in the Constitution, but this is a time in which the American people are looking for leadership. Obama is giving that to them. Obama was building his cabinet and Bush is going to Peru. The stock market goes up and down daily based on Obama's decisions about that tie to wear that day. I think the podium is simply giving the people the reassurance that they need that, frankly, President Bush has never given.

Two, don't any of you rightwing neo-fascist scumbags out there EVER mention the Constitution again - any person who supports President Bush can NOT be a supporter of the Constitution, in that the Constitution was written to create a TRI-partate government and was specifically designed not to allow one branch to become greater than another. The list of the Bushian tactics to make the Executive branch more powerful than the others is legendary. The warrantless wiretapping is the most egregious example; the history of refusing to answer Congressional questioning is another. The examples are endless. Suffice it to say, a supporter of President Bush is not a supporter of the Constitution, because he himself is not.

(By the way, everything I'm writing here IS protected under the Constitution . . . at least I still hope it is anyway)

Lastly, this birth certificate thing - that one kind of throws me, because wouldn't you think that they would have found this out a long time ago, if it truly was a problem? And I also think it's a bit late in the game to be coming up with this anyway.

And plus, just to throw in my own red herring . . . I doubt sincerely that Abe Lincoln could have come up with a birth certificate. And at least Barack Obama was born on American soil, not some canal that we were renting from the Panamanians for 97 years!

(or WAS he? some people are trying to say that he was born in Kenya!)

Jee Whiz, this gets to be too much . . . I'm going for a snack.

Where's my Post Toasties!?



VG