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Christmas downgraded?


CliveH

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This from ITN via Yahoo News

 

 

"Christmas should be downgraded unless other religious festivals are marked on an even footing, a Government think-tank has said.

 

The Institute of Public Policy Research has suggested various ideas to make the UK more multicultural.

 

It also wants "national culture" barriers to be torn down to help immigrants settle into the UK.

 

In a report due to be published in coming weeks, the organisation said: "If we are going to continue to mark Christmas - and it would be very hard to expunge it from our national life even if we wanted to - then public organisations should mark other major religious festivals too.

 

"Even-handedness dictates that we provide public recognition to minority cultures and traditions." A spokesperson said.

 

It emerged in 2006 that three out of four employers were not putting up Christmas decorations in the workplace for fear of offending staff of other cultures."

 

 

 

 

Can we really afford to have these politicaly correct numpties, paid for by us, the Taxpayer, saying such utter sperical objects?

 

 

 

>:-) >:-) >:-) >:-)

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I wholeheartedly agree with this proposal.

 

The concept of Christmas is so old-hat, so repetitive; it's really run it's course.

 

Instead, to liven things up a bit, the UK Government will be re-naming it

"Frankmas" - to ensure that celebrating it offends people of every creed and religious conviction in equal measure.

 

 

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BGD - 2007-11-01 2:59 PM

I wholeheartedly agree with this proposal.

The concept of Christmas is so old-hat, so repetitive; it's really run it's course.

Instead, to liven things up a bit, the UK Government will be re-naming it

"Frankmas" - to ensure that celebrating it offends people of every creed and religious conviction in equal measure.

 

Damn.... shall I take you off my pressie list then BGD?

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Soddes law being what is it I bet they will make national holidays for every religion practised in in the UK.

 

After all if you do it for one where do you stop?

 

Why could they not have done that before I retired as I could have had even more holidays?

 

Maybe it's time we took a stand to keep Britain British by welcoming incomers and inviting them to join with us in becoming British, but whilst not discouraging their rights to their own imported culture we should not be actively diluting our own for theirs.

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BGD - 2007-11-01 3:04 PM

By the way - welcome to the madhouse Sparkle!

 

What pretty eyes, if I may make so bold.......

 

B-)

 

Why thank you so much - I must say, a mad house it certainly does seem to be.... but that compliment won't get you back on the pressie list!

 

 

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Sparkle - 2007-11-01 2:07 PM

 

BGD - 2007-11-01 3:04 PM

By the way - welcome to the madhouse Sparkle!

 

What pretty eyes, if I may make so bold.......

 

B-)

 

Why thank you so much - I must say, a mad house it certainly does seem to be.... but that compliment won't get you back on the pressie list!

 

 

So what will then??????????????????????????

 

Careful Bruce - it could be you know who in disguise?

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Seriously - (only for a couple of minutes before I return to normality)

 

I don't think there should be national holidays for any religion.

 

Christmas Day isn't British, neither is it celebrated at the date that Jesus was (or was not, depending upon your views) born.

 

December 25th was an existing Roman celebration day in honour of one of their Gods - (can't remember which one off-hand and I'm just SOOOO lazy I can't be arsed to Google for the gods name). It was nothing to do with Christianity AT ALL, until a later Roman Emperor decided to re-name it as he'd become a christian follower.

Then we have the continuing adherance to many pre-existing non-christian rituals/icons such as holly, mistletoe etc etc.

 

Then, as most people already know, the number for years that we count since the alledged birth happend is also wrong, because of a maths cock-up by some Fransiscan monks who were reorganising the calendar in about 12th (?) century - Christ was actually born about 8 BC

- Maybe they were Frankiscan monks?

 

And then we have the fact that Christ wasn't born in December at all; he was born in late spring - the time of year in the middle east when lambing occurs.

 

In the end, it's such a buggers-muddle of mixed up incorrect assumptions and non-chritian rituals; with all the other commercial bits that now make it a simply a day-off to bloat on food and slump in front of the TV, that almost no-one thinks carefully about it, it's origins etc at all.

 

We're way over time for getting the religion out of the State.

 

So scrap it.

Just have a Public Holiday.

Then anyone, of any mumbo-jumbo religious delusion can then privately celebrate their own rituals in their own church/mosque/bar.

 

 

 

 

 

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I would rather celebrate the Celtic Festival of Midwinter. It is much more relevant to us, I think.

 

What do you think of this:

 

Winterval: Secular name for winter festivities coined by Birmingham City Council to encompass all holidays being recognized from October to January

 

I'm sure other countries wouldn't change their culture and religious festivals to please us if we went to live in there. *-)

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Christmas was a way of hijacking the midwinter festivals practised by most peoples.

Easter hijacked the Spring festivals - of rebirth and fertility - again practiced widely - and the super big candles used at easter [pascal candles] are phallic symbols

May - feast of Beltane

Halloween or Feast of All Souls ???

given our locale - the Celtic or Viking festivals would be more appropriate

would hopefully be a lot cheaper

and make more sense than snow on a manger in the middle east

 

>:-) >:-) and all brought in by immigrants >:-) >:-)

 

well, that's my tuppennworth [showing my age again] anyway :->

 

B-)

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We celebrate the birth of our own special angel on Christmas Day, for it is the day our middle granddaughter was born and she will be FIVE this year! I do not know what you other grandparents think but I find they grow up far too quickly (especially once they start school).

Regards Mike

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My wife was born on Christmas day, she absolutely loves Christmas.

I think she had a hard time of it when a child with no money in the family and is now making up for it re living her childhood. She becomes very excited just like a little girl would.

So we go over the top at Christmas time.

 

I have ABSOLUTELY no religion in me but for her I play the game.

 

On the front of out house

We do the whole outside of the house decoration thing and the local children just love it.

 

We have a olde worlde type "shop bay window" made up and fill it with almost life size carol singers, a nativity scene, fibre optic tree etc etc. There is of course carols being played .

 

We have like display cabinets made up and one is full of "santa's workshop" figures, miniture lady with sewing machine, joiner and Santa all making toys there are 100s of small wrapped presant boxes and unwrapped toys lying around plus some other seasonal figures.

A second cabinet is made into a snow village with about 25 fibre optic village houses, churches, rail station, ice skating pond, carousel and of course Santa with sleigh and reindeers. all lit up.

A third cabinet has a smaller nativity scene etc etc.

 

There is a Santa letter for every child who wants one with its special Santa headed paper, we reply to every letter that has an address on it and, while not last year due to my mother in laws death just before christmas, there is a small gift from Santa for all the children that we write to, 230 last year

There is a Special Santa Letter box for their replies to Santa.

 

There are three quiet large reindeer pulling a red sleigh with a Santa sitting in the front and it is full of shoe boxes wrapped up like presants.

There is a Santa standing next to a lamp post welcoming every one up on a wall pillar and another one similar on another pillar. There is also a singing Santa and Snowman plus a 6ft fibreglass Santa

 

In the back garden we have loads of similar decorations plus in our summerhouse wh have a Santa's grotto where the children can come and meet Santa on certain days.

 

Our house doesn't belong to us at Christmas as hundreds of people come to look and sit and reflect, talk about childhood and so on.

If anyoneone is sufficiently interested and would tell me how to do it, I would post a couple of pictures here

 

 

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J9withdogs - 2007-11-04 5:26 PM

 

That sounds wonderful Syd, please can we see some photos?

 

Will hunt the pictures out if someone will tell me how to post them.

 

Jan is the driving force behind all of this, the chief planner sort of thing, I just do as I am told and will be making a start tomorrow she says.

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