My favorite Christmas movie,...

for those of you that don't know, is It's a Wonderful Life.

It's the story of George Bailey, his life and how one man can effect so many other lives. Whether he knows it or not.

The story begins in Bedford Falls. All through the town we can hear people praying for a George. The cop, the taxi driver, women, children; everybody who is somebody. The sound travels all the way to heaven where God and St Peter are discussing the influx of prayers. They realize it is Georges crucial night and they send for Clarence.

Clarence is an angel second class who hasn't got his wings and whose turn it is to help a human. George is that human and Peter is non too happy about it. God tolerates Peter's insubordination and Peter and Clarence begin studying Georges life. Clarence can't see the past so Peter has to help him. I must say Peter in this movie is much along the lines of Santa in Rudolph. He's kind of a jerk.

Clarence sees a boy riding down a snow covered hill on a shovel. It's George. He's there with his buddies, Sam, Marty and his little brother Harry. Who is not scared by the way. When Harry shovels down he goes too far on the ice and falls in. George jumps in and saves him but loses his hearing in his left ear because of an infection from the cold.

Next we meet Mr Potter. Mistaken by Clarence as a king, we are told by Peter Mr Potter is the richest, meanest man in Bedford Falls.

George is whistling while he enters Mr Gowers drug store where he works. Visibly disturbed, Mr Gower yells at George for being late and not being a canary. Here we meet the two ladies vying for Georges affection now and in the future, Violet, who likes all the boys, and Mary Hatch. (Sigh.)

George is sent on a home delivery by Gower. Knowing something is wrong, Gower's son has passed away of influenza, George goes and talks to his father after eyeing a Sweet Caporal add about asking father...he knows. Cigars? Is there anything they can't do?

We meet Uncle Billy and George's dad at the office. He is having a tussle with Potter, who is every bit as cantankerous as Peter said.

George goes back to the drug store without delivering the pills and Gower, visibly drunk, goes ballistic. He slaps George and makes his ear bleed and calls him a lazy loafer. George explains he knows Gower is unhappy because of the telegram about his son and he put poison in the pills. Gower tastes the pills, realizes what he has done and gives George a big hug and George says he won't tell anyone.

The next scene George is about 22 I'm guessing. Out of high school and waiting to go to college. He had to work at the Bailey Building & Loan to get enough money to go to school. He is buying a large suitcase so when he travels the world he has a place to put the stickers. He goes home via Ernie the taxi driver and Bert the Cop, yes the Sesame Street characters were named after these two characters, and we meet his mom, Harry his brother and Annie their maid. He tells his pop he is a great guy then goes off to Harry's graduation party where Harry looks like the BMOC because he gets to introduce the big Charleston contest.

Then it happens. We see Mary all grown up. Hubba. Hubba. George steals her form Othello, Alfalfa from the Lil Rascals, and proceeds to fall in the pool built under the floor which saved the school another building when Othello opened the floor because he was jealous.

We are introduced to grownup Sam and Marty as well. Side notes, Marty does a Hee Haw thing and Marty is Mary's brother.

George and Mary are walking home when George finds out his father had a stroke. He rushes home and you can see the genuine look of concern on Mary's face. She loves that boy. Which she told us back in Gowers drug store. She whispered it in his bad ear.

George ends up staying in Bedford Falls to run the Building and Loan and sends Harry to school on his dough. Four years pass and George is waiting for Harry as he comes home from school. When Harry gets back, George is ready to go exploring. It's what he has talked about since he was a boy. Well, Harry got married and George is stuck again. Who gets married and doesn't tell anyone?

That night George expresses his love for Mary and the two are wed. He saves the Building & Loan from the evil clutches of Mr Potter after the bank collapsed by using his own honeymoon money to appease his investors. He proceeds home to Sycamore Street where Mary has prepared their future home. The home is significant in that earlier after the graduation dance as George and Mary walked home, they threw rocks at the house and made wishes. George told his wish about exploring but Mary kept silent. Until now. She wished on that day years ago that she and George would be married and live in that house.

Sly old Mary. Makes us love her all the more.

They raise a family and absent minded Uncle Billy loses $8000. (And on the same day as Harrys homecoming parade. See, he won the Congressional Medal of Honor for saving the lives of every man on a transport in WWII.) George knows he'll be blamed. Potter calls the cops on George for malfeasance. George finds out he is worth more dead than alive. He gets punched in the mouth by an angry teachers husband. George balled out the teacher for sending Zuzu his daughter home with an open coat which caused her to get a cold.

George crashes his car into a tree and wanders over to the bridge. You can see in his eyes he ain't right and he is about to jump. He goes to climb up the railing when Clarence out of nowhere jumps in first. George dives in and saves him. Woohoo!

Clarence gives George a great gift. A chance to see what the world would be like without him. He goes to Martinis. The bar his friend owns but now it is Nicks and he is not so nice. Gower comes in and looks like a bum. He spent 30 years n jail for poisoning a kid. (Remember)

His car is gone, Ernie doesn't know him, his house is old again and Bert doesn't know him. Worse yet, his mother doesn't know him. He goes to the cemetery where...Harry is buried. Died in the ice. (Remember) All the troops died on the transport because George didn't save Harry.

The deepest cut of all is that Mary is an old maid and doesn't recognize George.

At his wits end, he heads back to the bridge after running from Bert the cop. While saying he wants to live again, it begins to snow. Which it was doing the last time he was on the bridge but never did during his "dead time". Bert calls him George, his lip starts bleeding again and...Zuzus petals, Zuzus petals, There they are!

He rushes home to find his children, reporters and cops. He doesn't care. He's alive.

One by one the townspeople come to bail George out. They give without question straight from the heart. Exactly as George did. All because of Mary spreading the word.

The movie ends with Clarence getting his wings and George saying, "Atta boy Clarence!"

If you haven't seen this movie; first, shame on you and second, see it. I left out a bunch of stuff and you probably even have a question or two. All will be answered on your journey through Bedford Falls.

Two days til the big guy gets here...

This season has been filled with singing and shopping and watching movies and specials and baking.

What fun!

Ian had his first Christmas program. He sang with the rest of the kids his age, all 3 of them. Regardless, it was neat to see him up there singing for the first time. Does a Daddy proud.

Madison is an old pro. This is like her third or fourth. She did a great job reading and singing. Reagan is not quite old enough yet but that didn't stop her from going up on the stage when all the other kids did at the end to take a bow.

I heard Mel Torme last night for the first time this Christmas. He will put you in the mood. As I've said before, his rendition of The Christmas Song is my favorite. Even more so than Nat King Cole's. Both are excellent but I give the nod to Mel because after all he wrote the song.

I have Charlie Brown Christmas playing in my truck exclusively. I am watching nothing but Christmas themed shows. I wear nothing but red and green and a Santa hat. It's getting close to zero hour. No holding back now.

This is truly the greatest time of the year. I need to remember that as the festivities continue but especially as they wind down.

Pray that I keep my big yap shut, please.

Tradition...

no big deal, right?

What's one tradition by the wayside? We don't want to offend anyone.

All is right with the world.

Tradition!...

Tradition!

So says Tevia.

I come from a background of tradition. For starters, I am Catholic. I defy you to show me a more traditionalistic Christian sect. Baptism, the Eucharist, confession, holy matrimony, last rites; all traditions or in this case sacraments handed down from generation to generation.

Perhaps the greatest time of the year for tradition is Christmas. Whether it be how you decorate the house and tree or how you open the presents on Christmas morning or what you eat traditionally for Christmas, traditions abound.

Tradition!...Tradition!

What makes a tradition? What is it that defines a tradition? Is it the act of buying a baptism outfit? Is it planning a big extravagant wedding? Is it buying the first suit? Of course not. Whether that baby is donned in gold cloth or naked as the day they were born the act of pouring the water over his or her precious little head is what marks the tradition. Would Kelly and I still be as married if we showed up at the church in shorts and t-shirts and before God vowed to love one another until death do us part? We would.

It's not the amounts spent leading up to the event. It's the event.

One of my favorite traditions in our family is Kris Kringle. Because our family is so big, the adults draw names so we just have one adult to buy for. The kids still get their allotted presents as it should be. Again, because our family is so big we don't buy presents for one another on birthdays, except children, so this is the one time of the year we actually exchange gifts.

I am only human so I love to receive presents but it is also fun to give them too. I seemed to get my dad about 10 years in a row. I have given him a wall hanging of UCLA buildings, it looks cooler than it sounds. I gave my brother a cigar lighter. I gave my sister in law a Mickey Mouse sweatshirt. All in separate years of course.

Tradition is the tie that binds. Whether it be a church a civilization or a family.

Tradition! Tradition!

We must strive to keep our balance.

Tradition! Tradition!

We are all Fiddlers on the Roof!

A repost but I like this one...Top 10 minor characters in Christmas Movies...

10. Santa Claus - Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer.

I hesitated to put him on this list. But I kept coming back to him. Why? He had to be the biggest jerk in any of the Christmas movies sans Mr. Potter. Telling a father he should be ashamed of himself because his son has a glowing red nose? Dissing the elves song. I mean, what's up with that? He is skinny and grumpy. Everything we came not to expect form Santa. I got to hand it to Rudolph's writers, they knew how to throw a wrinkle into a claymation show. By the way, I found this clip after I wrote this description. Classic.

9./8. Heat and Snow Meiser - The Year Without a Santa Claus

The Year Without a Santa Claus was not that great of a special but these tow guys stole the show. I sing these songs to this day. (along with the rest of my siblings)

7. BurgerMeister MeisterBurger - Santa Claus is Coming to Town

How many of you can recite the exact inflection in the Burgermeisters voice when you see the line, "A yoyo?". That's why he is on this list. A classic villain. He doesn't turn good in the end. He remains true to his nasty ways to the end. One of my favorite lines of his is "...and I am certainly not going." Great comedic timing by a claymation figure.

6. Randy - The Christmas Story

Randy played the full emotional gammet. Disgust: "Meatloaf, beatloaf, double meatloaf. I hate meatloaf." Despair: "I can't put my arms down!" Empathy: "Daddy's gonna kill Ralphie!" He had it all. Randy and Ralphie had the textbook brother relationship. They fought, like when Randy tried to sneak in front of Ralph when they were getting dressed and all Randy got for his troubles was a swift kick in the tukus. But Randy was there for Ralph when he needed him. He was the one who picked up Ralphs glasses after the Scott Farkus affair. In this original movie trailer, check out Randy's face when he throws the socks. That innate comedic timing cannot be taught, my friends.

5. Winter Warlock - Santa Claus is Coming to Town.

Here is one villain who changed his stripes. "I am not such a loser after all!" This guy was a big blowhard meanie on the surface, but underneath he was an insecure little child just wanting to be accepted. Besides when he says,"...a chance to be reborn" it still cracks me up.

4. Snoopy - A Charlie Brown Christmas

He can play all the barnyard animals. Even a penguin. What more do you want? When he kisses Lucy and she says she needs some disifectant and iodine and he goes, "Bleah"; Katy and I love that. Madison does now too. I love how he laughs at Charlie Brown or when he boos him when he is announced as the director, "Man's best friend!". Or when he's embarrased after dancing on Schroeders piano and he stops playing. He's got it all.

3. Yukon Cornelius - Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer.

"Nothin'." Need I say more. He was the ultimate friend and protector, "...douse your nose and run like crazy." He was wise in the ways of the wild and it served Hermie and Rudolph well. If they had not run into him, well let's just say the special would have been about 20 minutes long and the Abominable Snowman would have had one good meal. We know he liked Peanut Butter hamhocks and played the guitar. He knew the bumbles weaknesses. And his ultimate quest was for gold...then silver.

2. Clarence - It's a Wonderful Life.

I admit I have a special place in my heart for Clarence. He elped the greatest character in Christmas movie history realize what he had. He did it with class, grace and comedy. Clarence was a man among angels. He has the IQ of a rabbit but the faith of a child. Clarence did God's work right here on earth. Clarence even earned his wings.

1. Linus - A Charlie Brown Christmas.

A Christmas Story...

One of the funnist movies ever produced. It is in my top 2 at least. The quotes from this movie are endless. Proof below.

The story is about Ralphie who wants a BB gun for Christmas and his trials and tribulations in going about getting one. Hilarity ensues.

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Old Man: They go all over.

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Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] My little brother had not eaten voluntarily in over three years.

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Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] Only one thing in the world could've dragged me away from the soft glow of electric sex gleaming in the window.

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[Ralphie is visiting Santa at the department store, only he can't remember what he wanted]
Santa Claus: How about a nice football?
Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] Football? Football? What's a football? With unconscious will my voice squeaked out 'football'.
Santa Claus: Okay, get him out of here.
Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] A football? Oh no, what was I doing? Wake up, Stupid! Wake up!
Ralphie: [Ralphie is shoved down the slide, but he stops himself and climbs back up] No! No! I want an Official Red Ryder Carbine-Action Two-Hundred-Shot Range Model Air Rifle!
Santa Claus: You'll shoot your eye out, kid.

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Ralphie as Adult: [narrating, after BB gun shot bounces off target and hits his face] Oh my god, I shot my eye out!

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Ralphie: [narrating, after stepping on his glasses] Pulverized!

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Ralphie: I don't think a football is a very good Christmas present. Man that's great.

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Randy: Hey a zeppelin. Hey that's mine.

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Boy in School: [Firemen come to pull Flick off pole] Holy cow, it's the fire department!
Ralphie: Oh no...
Boy in School: [policemen come] Wow, it's the cops!

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Ralphie: I want an official Red Ryder, carbine action, two-hundred shot range model air rifle!
Mrs. Parker: No, you'll shoot your eye out.

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Mr. Parker: Get the glue.
Mother: We're out of glue.
Mr. Parker: You used up all the glue on purpose!

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Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] I have since heard of people under extreme duress speaking in strange tongues. I became conscious that a steady torrent of obscenities and swearing of all kinds was pouring out of me as I screamed.

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Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] They looked at me as if I had lobsters crawling out of my ears.

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Ralphie: Oooh fuuudge!
Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] Only I didn't say "Fudge." I said THE word, the big one, the queen-mother of dirty words, the "F-dash-dash-dash" word!
Mr. Parker: [stunned] *What* did you say?
Ralphie: Uh, um...
Mr. Parker: That's... what I thought you said. Get in the car. Go on!
Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] It was all over - I was dead. What would it be? The guillotine? Hanging? The chair? The rack? The Chinese water torture? Hmmph. Mere child's play compared to what surely awaited me.

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Ralphie as Adult: [narrating about diving with his brother into the gifts under the Christmas tree] We plunged into the cornucopia quivering with desire and the ecstasy of unbridled avarice.

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Ralphie: [While scratching his eye under his glasses] Whoooo should I start with?

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Mr. Parker: It's a Major Award!
Swede: Shucks, I wouldn't know that. It looks like a lamp.
Mr. Parker: What is a lamp, you nincompoop? It's a Major Award. I won it!
Swede: Damn, hell, you say won it?
Mr. Parker: Yeah, mind power, Swede; mind power.

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[after cracking a secret code]
Ralphie: [Reading it] Be sure to drink your Ovaltine. Ovaltine? A crummy commercial? Son of a bitch!

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Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] Some men are Baptists, others Catholics; my father was an Oldsmobile man.
Mr. Parker: That son of a bitch would freeze up in the middle of summer on the equator!
Mother: Little pitchers!
Mr. Parker: Thanks... hold it!
[the furnace conks out]
Mr. Parker: It's a clinker! That blasted stupid furnace dadgummit!
[he walks down a few stairs and falls the rest of the way down]
Mr. Parker: Damn skates!
[coughing]
Mr. Parker: Oh, for cripes sake, open up the damper will ya? Who the hell turned it all the way down? AGAIN! Oh, blast it!
Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] In the heat of battle my father wove a tapestry of obscenities that as far as we know is still hanging in space over Lake Michigan.

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Ralphie: Heh, I was just kidding, even though Schwartz is getting one. I guess I'd just like some Tinker Toys.
Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] I couldn't believe my own ears. Tinker Toys? She'd never buy it.

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Mother: All right. Now, are you ready to tell me where you heard that word?
Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] Now, I had heard that word at least ten times a day from my old man. He worked in profanity the way other artists might work in oils or clay. It was his true medium; a master. But, I chickened out and said the first name that came to mind.
Ralphie: Schwartz!

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Head Elf: COME ON, KID!
[pulls Ralphie]
Head Elf: COME ON!
Santa Claus: HO! HO HO!
[spins Ralphie around]
Santa Claus: HOOOO... HOOO... HOO... And what's your name little boy?
Male Elf: Hey, kid! HURRY UP! THE STORE'S CLOSING!
Head Elf: Listen little boy, we have A LOT of people waiting here, so GET GOING!

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[Mr. Parker reads a side of the box with the prize that he won]
Mr. Parker: Fra-gee-lay. That must be Italian.
Mrs. Parker: Uh, I think that says FRAGILE, dear.
Mr. Parker: Oh, yeah.

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The Old Man: Sons of bitches! Bumpuses!

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Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] Over the years I got to be quite a connoisseur of soap. My personal preference was for Lux, but I found Palmolive had a nice, piquant after-dinner flavor - heady, but with just a touch of mellow smoothness. Life Buoy, on the other hand...
Ralphie: YECCHH!

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Miss Shields: Now I know that some of you put Flick up to this, but he has refused to say who. But those who did it know their blame, and I'm sure that the guilt you feel is far worse than any punishment you might receive. Now, don't you feel terrible? Don't you feel remorse for what you have done? Well, that's all I'm going to say about poor Flick.
Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] Adults loved to say things like that but kids knew better. We knew darn well it was always better not to get caught.

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[overdressed for winter]
Randy: I can't put my arms down!
Mother: Well... put your arms down when you get to school.

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Goggles: I like The Wizard of Oz. I like the Tin Man.

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Ralph: Don't bother me I'm...thinking.

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[Describing a "reaction" to an encounter with the bullies]
Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] Randy lay there like a slug! It was his only defense!

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Ralphie: Scut Farkus!
Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] Scut Farkus! What a rotten name! We were trapped. There he stood, between us and the alley. Scut Farkus staring out at us with his yellow eyes. He had yellow eyes! So, help me, God! Yellow eyes!

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[in a Chinese restaurant]
Waiter #1, Waiter #2, Waiter #3: [singing] Deck the harrs with boughs of horry, fa ra ra ra ra, ra ra ra ra.
Chop Suey Palace Owner: No, no, not 'ra ra ra ra', 'la la la la'! Try again.
Waiter #1, Waiter #2, Waiter #3: Deck the harrs with boughs of horry, fa ra ra ra ra, ra ra ra ra.
Chop Suey Palace Owner: No, no! Sing something else.
Waiter #1, Waiter #2, Waiter #3: Jingre bers, jingre bers, jingre arr the way. Oh what fun it is to ride in a one-horse open sreigh!

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Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] Schwartz created a slight breach of etiquette by skipping the triple dare and going right for the throat!

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Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] My father could replace fuses faster than a jack rabbit on a date.

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[marveling at a Christmas gift he just opened]
Mr. Parker: A can of Simonize!

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Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] My kid brother looked like a tick about to pop!

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Randy: Daddy's gonna kill Ralphie!

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Randy: Meatloaf, smeatloaf, double-beatloaf. I hate meatloaf.

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Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] The old man stood there, quivering with fury, stammering as he tried to come up with a real crusher. All he got out was...
The Old Man: Naddafinga!

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Goggles: I like Santa.
Ralphie: Yeah.
Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] Let's face it, most of us are scoffers. But moments before zero hour, it did not pay to take chances.

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Ralphie: Mom, this is just the same dumb old parade as last year.
Mother: Ralphie, will you please calm down?
Ralphie: Mom!
Mother: Hush!
Mr. Parker: SHUT UP, Ralphie!

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Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] Never had the words flowed from my penny pencil with such feverish fluidity.

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Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] Strange. Even something as momentous as the Scut Farkus affair, which it came to be known, was pushed out of my mind as I struggled to come up with a way out of the impenetrable BB gun web, in which my mother had me trapped.

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Santa Claus: Oh, I hate the smell of tapioca.

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Mom: [Playing Santa] And this is for daddy...
[Picks up a gift-wrapped bowling ball and drops it in The Old Man's Lap]
Mom: Here, from me to you.
The Old Man: [high-pitched] Thanks a lot!

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Miss Shields: Where's Flick? Has anyone seen Flick?
Ralphie as an Adult: [narrating as Ralphie feigns ignorance] Flick? Flick who?

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Mr. Parker: [Reading Telegram and doing a little jig] Tonight! Tonight! It's coming Tonight! Tonight! Tonight! Tonight! Hot Damn, Tonight!

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Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] My father worked in profanity the way other artists might work in oils or clay. It was his true medium, a master.

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Randy: Aw, gee.

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Mr. Parker: Dadgummit! Blow out!
[on the highway, the car has gotten a flat tire]
Mr. Parker: Ah ha!
[excitedly gets out of the car]
Mother: Not again.
Mr. Parker: Four minutes. Time me.
Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] Actually the Old Man loved it. He had always pictured himself in the pits of the Indianapolis Speedway in the 500. My old man's spare tires were actually only tires in the academic sense. They were round, they had once been made of rubber.

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Ralphie as Adult: [narrating, after Mother breaks the Old Man's Major Award, and he is unsuccessful at repairing it] With as much dignity as he could muster, the Old Man gathered up the sad remains of his shattered major award. Later that night, alone in the backyard, he buried it next to the garage. Now I could never be sure, but I thought that I heard the sound of "Taps" being played, gently.

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Mr. Parker: [after Mother "accidentally" breaks the Old Man's leg lamp] Don't you touch that! You were always jealous of this lamp.
Mother: Jealous of a plastic...
Mr. Parker: Jealous! Jealous because I WON.
Mother: That's ridiculous. Jealous. Jealous of WHAT? That is... the ugliest lamp I have ever seen in my entire LIFE!
Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] Now it was out.

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Mother: This isn't one of those trees where all the needles falls off, is it?
Tree Man: No, that's them balsams.

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Mr. Parker: [to Mother] You know, Zudock just bought one of those brand new green, plastic trees.
Tree Man: Oh no!
Mr. Parker: Darn thing looked like it was made of green pipe cleaners. Hee hee hee hee.
Mother: It's a very nice tree.
Tree Man: [quickly] I'll thrown in some rope and tie it to your car for you.
Mr. Parker: You got a deal.
Tree Man: Deal.

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Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] The heavenly aroma still hung in the house. But it was gone, all gone! No turkey! No turkey sandwiches! No turkey salad! No turkey gravy! Turkey Hash! Turkey a la King! Or gallons of turkey soup! Gone, ALL GONE!

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Ralphie: Hey Dad! I'll bet you'll never guess what I got you for Christmas.
The Old Man: A new furnace.
Ralphie: Ha ha! That's a good one, Dad!
[Randy laughs]

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Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] Oh, life is like that. Sometimes, at the height of our revelries, when our joy is at it's zenith, when all is most right with the world, the most unthinkable disasters decend upon us.

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Mr. Parker: Holy smokes. Do... Do you know what this is? This is... A lamp!
Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] It was indeed a lamp.
Mr. Parker: Isn't that great? What a great lamp.
Mother: I don't know...
Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] The old man's eyes boggled...
Mr. Parker: Oh WOW!
Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] ... Overcome by art.

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Mr. Parker: Get in the car. Get in the car.
[Mother runs back inside]
Mr. Parker: If we don't hurry, we're gonna miss all the good trees!
Mr. Parker: [to the kids] Go on, go on.
Ralphie as Adult: [narrating, as Mother switches off the leg lamp] My mother was about to make another brilliant maneuver in the legendary battle of the lamp. The epic struggle which follows lives in the folklore of Cleveland Street to this very day.
Mother: Don't want to waste electricity.
Mr. Parker: [mockingly] "Don't want to waste electricity."

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[last lines]
Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] Next to me in the blackness lay my oiled blue steel beauty. The greatest Christmas gift I had ever received, or would ever receive. Gradually, I drifted off to sleep, pringing ducks on the wing and getting off spectacular hip shots.

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Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] There has never been a kid who didn't believe vaguely but insistently that he would be stricken blind before he reached 21, and then they'd be sorry.

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Ralphie: [in his fantasy, Ralphie explains the cause of his blindness] It... It 'twas... soap poisoning!

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Narrator: Was there no end to the conspiracy of irrational prejudice against Red Ryder and his peacemaker?

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Ralphie: [Giving his teacher a fruit basket instead of just an apple] I thought you might like something different.
Ralphie as Adult: Yes, clearly, a little bribe never hurts.

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Ralphie as Adult: I slowly began to realize that i was not going to be destroyed.

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Ralphie: Well, what have we got here, folks?
Mr. Parker: Well, we figure it's Black Bart, uh, Ralph.
Ralphie: Well, it's just me and my trusty old Red Ryder carbine-action, 200-shot, range model air rifle. Lucky I got a compass in the stock.

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Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] Honors and benefits already at the age of nine!

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Ralphie: Hey Dad! I bet you never guess what I got you for Christmas!
The Old Man: [staring blissfully into space] A new furnace?
Ralphie: [chuckling] He he, that's a good one Dad!
Randy: [lauging] He he he!
Ralphie as Adult: My old man was one of the most feared furnace fighters in Northern Indiana.

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Ralphie as Adult: My father's spare tires were only tires on the academic sense. They were round,and had once been made of rubber.

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Ralphie as Adult: Immediately, my feet began to sweat as those two fluffy little bunnies with a blue button eye stared supply up at me.
Mother: Come down so I can see you better.
Ralphie as Adult: I just hope Flick would never spot them as a word of this humiliation could make life at Warren G. Harding Elementary School a variatable Hell.

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And possibly the greatest moment in this movie was not a line at all but a gesture:

Went to the Myerson last night...

and watched my wife conduct in front of a packed house. (Barney Fife moment)

She was fantastic as usual. The sound she gets from her choir is a step above. Because she knows what to look for and what pleases the ear, she is able to get the most out of her singers.

I am one proud husband.

Christmas is in full swing. The Polar Express is making the rounds at least every half hour. The blu-ray player is being used to within an inch of its life and the smells, Rosemary, and sights, lights galore, and sounds, those wonderful Christmas tunes, abound. Not only that they are all over the place.

I hope all is well with you and the true meaning of this season is at the forefront of your festivities.

Christ is born!

I am not quite sure how to segway into this next bit so...here goes...I am reposting an old post from a few years back. I re-read it and cracked myself up as I often do.

Hold it!

HOOOOOOOLD IT!

I did not do a review of all of my favorite Christmas movies. I did two but not the most important one. That will be tomorrow and Wednesday.

I will leave you with two quotes to tide you over...

"Pulverized!"

and

"Here's your hat. What's your hurry?"

Official put up Christmas day...

we postponed a day because we had Kellys family over for Thanksgiving yesterday. I made my first turkey and dressing. Both came out very well if I do say so myself. I also made a sour cream orange pumpkin pie. Also quite delish.

Today we got the boxes down out of the attic and had at it. We set the train up for Ian. The Polar Express is up and running. Put up the Christmas lights. Started to put out the 15 boxes full of Christmas knick-knacks.

Put up the tree. All the kids helped with ornaments. The majority of the ornaments are on the bottom quarter of the tree and on one side. Oh well. It still is cool they are all old enough to do it...and want to.

Watched many movies; Santa Clause, The Polar Express, Frosty the Snowman, Elf, Santa Claus is Coming to Town, Barbie Nutcracker, Merry Christmas Charlie Brown, White Christmas and the Granddaddy of them all It's a Wonderful Life. Madison actually sat and watched most of it. I'm so proud.

Went and bought what I dub the allergic mans Christmas tree, a Rosemary bush. 3 of them to be exact. They smell so darn good. Like having a tree without the runny nose. I'm not allergic but my wife is.

Have they made any TV Christmas shows in the past 20 years that are a must see? The Transformers Christmas? A very blue Smurf Holiday? I can't think-of-a-one. What a pity. I wonder if my kids will be showing Charlie Brown and Rudolph and Frosty to their kids while using phrases like, "They don't make 'em like this anymore?"

Christmastime...

is here!

All through the year we've waited.
Waited through spring and fall.
To hear silver bells ringing see winter time bringing
the happiest season of all.

Love and Joy come to you!
And to you your Christmas too!
And God bless you and send you
A Happy New Year!
And God send you a Happy New Year!

This year I hope to update daily. I will reuse some old posts as they still ring true.

I will leave you today with my wifes favorite Christmas song. From Mr Christmas himself; Andy Williams sings "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!"

Can't you just see the people skating, having snowball fights, skiing, sledding, tobogganing, making snow angels, decorating houses, trees, the whole nine yards, singing carols, roasting chestnuts (which we actually did this year already), drinking hot totties. You know, just being...

happy!

The cornucopia...

The horn a' plenty!

The cornucopia (Latin: Cornu Copiae) is a symbol of food and abundance dating back to the 5th century BC, also referred to as the food of worship and holiness, Horn of Amalthea, harvest cone, and horn of plenty.

See!

In these days of haste and speed,
Know the difference between want and need.
Anything replaceable doesn't fall in the latter.
Anything in the former doesn't really matter.
Can you replace a touch, a feeling, a smile?
The warmth of love stretched across the miles?
Today we take the time to say,
Something we should everyday.
Thank You God for your gifts to me.
My happiness, health and my life-affirming family.

Hello there...

long time no see...or read...or blog. Whatever.

Much ado since I last blogged. I had a birthday. The big 4...3. 43 is just one of those birthdays, you know? It's as close to another day as a birthday can get. 40 was fun. Kelly threw me a surprise party. Since then, meh.

To this day I search the internet for those born on my day, October 28. Most of them are known to me; Jonas Salk, Bruce Jenner, Charlie Daniels. Then you get the ones who become famous and are new; Bill Gates, Jami Gertz and the best one of all Sipowitz himself, Dennis Franz. That makes up for Julia Roberts, blech.

My youngest daughter, Reagan, also had a birthday. She's 3 now. What a joy she is...sometimes. Willful! Holy cow! Does everything her older siblings do. Won't take no for an answer and won't take help for anything.

But we love her.

I seem to recall there was also an election of some sort. Booyaw! Cleaned their clocks!

I love watching the MSM and liberal pundits try to explain it away. They have absolutely no clue as to why this happened. They think it's because Obama didn't tout his message enough when in reality he did just the opposite. The people heard the message and didn't like it. I hope the left continues on this path because they will nationalize themselves into oblivion.

Unless of course the new congress spends like the Repubs did under W. Then I believe that will be the end of the Republican party and an amalgam of the libertarians and tea partiers will emerge. Focusing mainly on fiscal issues and being socially moderate. If they are pro-life, count me in.

Getting ready for Thanksgiving and then the most wonderful time of the year. I was a little lax last year in my duties regarding this site and Christmas. Rest assured it won't happen again.

I have more faith this year because when I switched over to the one station in town playing Christmas music the first song I heard was Little Saint Nick by The Beach Boys and I am still in the Christmas spirit. If hearing that piece of drivel and possibly the worst Christmas song ever written, didn't dampen my spirits, nothing can!

My son cracks me up...

The other day I was watching a movie and he came into the room and asked:

Does this movie have a robot?
No.
(Looks at the the tv then back at me) A monster?
Nope.
A gorilla?
Not that either.
(He raises his arms with palms up) What's going on here?
(He starts to walk out of the room turns at the doorway points his finger in the air) A talking tree?
Nope.
(He shrugs his shoulders and goes on his merry way.)

And last night he came into the kitchen, where Kelly and I were talking, with a blanket on his head. He told us he was Jesus. He then asked if we knew where our son was. We said no as he ripped the blanket off his head revealing our son. He was very proud. He did the same thing as Yoda.

It's not often you hear yourself say, "Ian, Jesus and Yoda were just here looking for you."

From the WSJ editorials...

This should frighten the heck out of all of us...

If at first you don't succeed, get some friends in high places to shut your opponents up. That's the latest Washington power play, as Democrats and liberals attack the Chamber of Commerce and independent spending groups in an attempt to stop businesses from participating in politics.

Since the Supreme Court's January decision in Citizens United v. FEC, Democrats in Congress have been trying to pass legislation to repeal the First Amendment for business, though not for unions. Having failed on that score, they're now turning to legal and political threats. Funny how all of this outrage never surfaced when the likes of Peter Lewis of Progressive insurance and George Soros helped to make Democrats financially dominant in 2006 and 2008.

Chairman Max Baucus of the powerful Senate Finance Committee got the threats going last month when he asked Internal Revenue Service Commissioner Douglas Shulman to investigate if certain tax exempt 501(c) groups had violated the law by engaging in too much political campaign activity. Lest there be any confusion about his targets, the Montana Democrat flagged articles focused on GOP-leaning groups, including Americans for Job Security and American Crossroads.

Mr. Baucus was seconded last week by the ostensibly nonpartisan campaign reform groups Democracy 21 and the Campaign Legal Center, which asked the IRS to investigate whether Crossroads is spending too much money on campaigns. Those two outfits swallowed their referee whistle in the last two campaign cycles, but they're all worked up now that Republicans might win more seats. Crossroads GPS, a 501(c)(4) affiliate of American Crossroads supported by Karl Rove, is a target because it has spent millions already in this election cycle.

Last Tuesday, the liberal blog ThinkProgress, run by the Center for American Progress Action Fund, reported that the U.S. Chamber of Commerce had collected some $300,000 in annual dues from foreign companies. Since the money went into the Chamber's general fund, the allegation is that it could have been used to pay for political ads, which would violate a ban on foreign companies participating in American elections. The Chamber says it uses no foreign money for its political activities and goes to great lengths to raise separate funds for political purposes.

That didn't stop President Obama from raising the issue in a Maryland speech last week, saying that "groups that receive foreign money are spending huge sums to influence American elections." Within hours of the ThinkProgress report, the bully boys at MoveOn.org asked the Department of Justice to launch a criminal investigation of the Chamber. In a letter to the Federal Election Commission, Minnesota Senator Al Franken expressed his profound concern that "foreign corporations are indirectly spending significant sums to influence American elections through third-party groups." From the man who stole his Senate election in a dubious recount, this is rich.

Even Mr. Franken admits in his letter that the Chamber's commingling of funds in its general accounts is not "per se illegal," but apparently he thinks it's fine to unleash federal investigators because the Chamber cash might contribute to the defeat of fellow Democrats.

The outrage over the Chamber is especially amusing considering the role of foreigners in U.S. labor unions. According to the Center for Competitive Politics, close to half of the unions that are members of the AFL-CIO are international. One man's corporate commingling is another's union dues.

Unions and liberal groups are hardly cash poor this year in any case. The Campaign Media Analysis Group looked at the combined spending of candidates, their parties and outside groups and found that Democrats outspent Republicans $47.3 million to $40.8 million in a recent 60-day period.

Democrats claim only to favor "disclosure" of donors, but their legal intimidation attempts are the best argument against disclosure. Liberals want the names of business donors made public so they can become targets of vilification with the goal of intimidating them into silence. A CEO or corporate board is likely to think twice about contributing to a campaign fund if the IRS or prosecutors might come calling. If Democrats can reduce business donations in the next three weeks, they can limit the number of GOP challengers with a chance to win and reduce Democratic Congressional losses.

The strategy got a test drive in Minnesota earlier this year after Target Corporation donated $100,000 cash and $50,000 of in-kind contributions to an independent group that ran ads supporting the primary candidacy of Republican gubernatorial candidate Tom Emmer. MoveOn.org accused the company of being anti-gay, organized a petition, and crafted a TV ad urging shoppers to boycott Target stores. Target made no further donations, and other companies that once showed an interest have since declined to contribute.

***
Then there's the curious reference to the tax status of Koch Industries by White House chief economist Austan Goolsbee. In a late August conference call with reporters, Mr. Goolsbee cited the closely-held Koch as an example of "really giant firms" that pay no corporate income tax because they file under other tax rules. But how in the world would Mr. Goolsbee know Koch's tax status? Could his knowledge be related to the White House-liberal campaign against Koch for contributing to Americans for Prosperity, a group that is supporting free-market candidates for Congress this year?

In an August 9 speech, Mr. Obama personally trashed Americans for Prosperity, hinting that it was funded by "a big oil company." He had to mean Koch, which makes no secret of its support for Americans for Prosperity.

The White House didn't respond to queries about Mr. Goolsbee's remark for weeks until GOP Senators requested an investigation. The Treasury's inspector general for tax matters has since announced such a probe, and last week White House spokesman Robert Gibbs finally got around to explaining that Mr. Goolsbee's statement "was not in any way based on any review of tax filings" and that he won't use the example again.

We're glad to hear it, but pardon our skepticism given the ferocity of this White House-led campaign against businesses that donate to political campaigns. Faced with electoral repudiation as the public turns against their agenda, Democrats are unleashing government power to silence their political opponents. Instead of piling on, the press corps ought to blow the whistle on this attempt to stifle political speech. This is one more liberal abuse of power that voters should consider as they head to the polls.

Don't let it be said...

I don't bring culture to this blog.

I think I've blogged about this before...

but it bears repeating.

Because of my illness, for those of you that don't know I had pneumonia, I was out of sorts for a long while. Almost two months.

Well, I finally made it back to church the past couple of weeks and I gotta tell ya, it feels good.

When I was in college I went a long time without attending a mass...a long time. Never missed it that much. Probably because I was in college and thought I knew better. Luckily I wised up.

It brings me peace and serenity to hear the word of God. To know that He will always be there no matter what I do or where I go is a pretty humbling concept.

I am human and I do things I shouldn't do...often...and repeatedly. Yet despite those frailties, He is there. Sometimes waiting. Sometimes embracing.

But always there.

Kelly gets on to me about how much I tell the kids about politics. For instance, they all know we don't like liberals. Why? Because they think they know better how to spend our money than we do.

But contrary to popular belief I know when to draw the line.

Last night we went to On the Border and they are partnering with the Susan G Komen foundation on the big walk for the cure. You can buy shirts and bracelets and knick knacks all to help the cause. We politely declined.

Madison asked why she couldn't have a shirt and why we wouldn't give money to that organization. I didn't tell her it was because Susan G Komen gives to Planned Pernthood the leading abortion provider in the US. No. I told her because we just didn't have enough money.

She doesn't need to be thinking about those things at her age. Too much.

But you're never too young to be weary of liberals.

I have been derelict in my duties...

what with all the political postings, I have been remiss on regaling you with stories of what's going on with my family and me.

So...what's going on?

Nothin'

Except for Madison's birthday party a few weeks ago. She is 8 years old. She told us she wanted a book party. Apropos because she is a voracious reader. She reads all the time.

Kelly, as she tends to do, took this idea, ran with it and made it the best darn book party you could have imagined. She went to many Barnes and Nobles and asked if they had any children's book displays left over she could have for her daughter's birthday. We got tons of stuff. We also got tons of stuff from Madison's Aunt Kim.

On top of that, she asked that everyone come dressed as their favorite book character. All 24 guests came dressed up. That was really cool. They all dressed up.

We played pin the hat on the life size cat. Had a treasure hunt and played book bingo.

Madison was Junie B Jones.

It was a great party! Great idea! Great execution! Just Great!

Now if we travel further back in time, we can see, through the mist that always seems to accompany a travel back in time, our trip to Corpus Christi/San Antonio.

We had a wonderful time. Stayed at a Condo right on the beach. Weather was good. Except for the 101 degree temperature I was running, it was a grand trip.

This one's for you, dad. Aboard the USS Lexington.

This one even has me speechless...

Sort of.

What makes this fascinating is that the people who produce this dreck have no clue as to just how far removed they have become from normal human sensibilities, or at least they didn’t until the video began provoking the fully-predictable reaction. They have become so wrapped up in Gaia that they seem to have little connection to humanity.

The other, mainly unrelated point that comes to mind is that this represents a reductio ad absurdum of the view from the hard Left about how dissent gets treated by the mainstream American populace, vis-a-vis the Iraq war especially. Can you imagine the reaction had an organization like Move America Forward produced a video like this, where those who didn’t support a robust strategy for the war on terror were blown up by a button-pushing advocate for the strategy? Especially children in a classroom being terrorized by their teacher into compliance with the groupthink?

Very disturbing images follow

Just so you know...

I'm not all doom and gloom. This video brought a tear to my eye. The boy running the ball is 17 year old junior Ike Ditzenberger of Snohomish High in Washington.

He has Downs syndrome.

The 51 yard run for the touchdown proved to be the only points for Snohomish that night. They went down to Lake Stevens 35-6. I don't think that is what this game will be remembered for.

The best thing about this video is the opposing players making diving efforts to stop him but to no avail. Ike proved just too fast.

I don't care what the score was. All the players and coaches on both sides of the ball won that night.

Why don't you watch the Family Guy?...

I have been asked this by more than a few people and family members to boot. This is why:

Appearing as a guest on Friday’s Real Time with Bill Maher on HBO, Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane made a crack about his willingness to have sex with Delaware Republican Senate nominee Christine O’Donnell after host Maher showed a clip of O’Donnell from a Politically Incorrect episode from 1998. After a clip of the GOP candidate in which denied believing in the theory of evolution, MacFarlane declared, "I would, I would wreck that chick."

According to its definition at urbandictionary.com, the term "wreck" was apparently first used in a sexual sense in an episode of MacFarlane’s crude Family Guy show on Fox. Maher laughed while there was only mild laughter from the audience.

I'm not going to watch a show made by a guy who thinks raping conservative women is a punch line. No. What I'd like to do is pound this douches face in.

And where are the "feminists" on this. Not a peep.

Seems to be a trend here.

I touched on this a little earlier...

This might explain a little better how big of a story this should be. From the Washington Times:

Assistant Attorney General Thomas E. Perez has an obligation to clean house at the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division. That's clear after explosive new whistle-blower testimony under oath Friday in the New Black Panther Party voter-intimidation case, which triggers a pledge Mr. Perez made under oath on May 14. Failure to fire some officials and to radically revamp practices in the Civil Rights Division would represent clear dereliction of duty by Mr. Perez.

Friday's testimony to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights came from much-decorated Justice Department veteran Christopher Coates, a hero of the civil rights legal community when he was a lawyer for the American Civil Liberties Union. "The election of President Obama," he said, "brought to positions of influence and power with the Civil Rights Division many of the very people who had demonstrated hostility to the concept of equal enforcement of the Voting Rights Act."

Mr. Coates named names and gave numerous examples of how the division and its political supervisors refuse to enforce civil rights laws to protect white victims against black perpetrators. He said his supervisor, Loretta King, then serving in a political position as acting assistant attorney general, specifically forbade him from asking prospective employees if they would be willing to enforce civil rights laws in a race-neutral manner. Additionally, he testified that the department under Mr. Perez has refused to enforce federal law that requires states to remove ineligible voters - including dead people and incarcerated felons - from their voting rolls. Mr. Coates officially recommended a full year ago that the department enforce the law against at least eight states that were flagrantly noncompliant, but Mr. Perez and the Obama team ignored the issue.

All of this puts Mr. Perez, among others, in a bind. Not only is some of Mr. Perez's sworn testimony misleading, but his pledge to crack down against employees who act in a race-biased manner is being put to the test. On May 14, under questioning from Civil Rights Commissioner Todd Gaziano about employees making racialist nonenforcement statements and decisions, Mr. Perez said four different times that he would not put up with what he called "people of that ilk." Mr. Perez indignantly challenged Mr. Gaziano, "If you have such a statement, bring such a statement to our attention."

Mr. Coates now has confirmed sworn testimony from other witnesses that Mr. Perez's team did and continues to act in a race-biased manner. Mr. Coates swore that he told the same thing to Mr. Perez before Mr. Perez testified in May. Even before that, multiple press reports dating back to last September indicated this allegation of racialist nonenforcement of voting rights laws was a serious concern. Yet Mr. Perez seems to have questioned nobody about it, disciplined nobody over it or raised a finger to address the problem.

This broad issue of deliberately unequal enforcement of the law is the main point of the Black Panther investigation. The evidence points to racially unequal enforcement - and a dangerous abrogation of justice.

4000 holes in Blackburn, Lancashire indeed...

A Roman Catholic primary school could become the first in the country to be run by a mosque after a dramatic rise in the number of Muslim pupils, it emerged today

Church bosses want to close Sacred Heart RC Primary School, in Blackburn, Lancashire, because the number of Catholic students has plummeted from 91 per cent to just three per cent in a decade.

In what would be the first case of its kind in Britain, the primary would be handed over to another organisation to run - most likely the local Tauheedul mosque - and re-opened with a new name.

Around 95 per cent of the school's 200 pupils are of Asian origin. Many do not speak English as their first language and the majority follow the Islamic faith.

The Diocese of Salford has told Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council that it no longer believes it is “appropriate” for the church to be in charge.

Hope and Change, Baby!...

Christopher Coates testimony to the Civil Rights Commission contains at least one bombshell, which is that Obama appointee Loretta King ordered Coates to stop asking applicants whether they supported race-neutral enforcement of the Voting Rights Act. The question became necessary because of resistance in the Civil Rights division from career attorneys to enforce the law when it resulted in African-American defendants rather than victims, an attitude that Coates first encountered in the Bush era:

Opposition within the Voting Section was widespread to taking actions under the VRA on behalf of white voters in Noxubee County, MS, the jurisdiction in which Ike Brown was and is the Chairman of the local Democratic Executive Committee. In 2003, white voters and candidates complained to the Voting Section that elections had been administered in a racially discriminatory manner and asked that federal observers be sent to the primary run-off elections. Career attorneys in the Voting Section recommended that we not even go to Noxubee County for the primary run-off to do election coverage, but that opposition to going to Noxubee was overridden by the Bush Administration’s CRD Front Office. I went on the coverage and while traveling to Mississippi, the Deputy Chief who was leading that election coverage asked me, “can you believe that we are going to Mississippi to protect white voters?” What I observed on that election coverage was some of the most outrageous and blatant racially discriminatory behavior at the polls committed by Ike Brown and his allies that I have seen or had reported to me in my thirty-three plus years as a voting rights litigator.

Eventually, a judge agreed with Coates’ assessment after the Department of Justice won an injunction against Brown and the Democratic Executive Committee, which was held up on appeal. That was the first time that the DoJ had pursued prosecution under the VRA against African-American defendants, and it rankled many within the CRD. When Coates took over the division, he began asking in job interviews whether applicants could work on similar cases in the future, but got slapped down for it:

In the spring of 2009, Ms. King, who had by then been appointed Acting AAG for Civil Rights by the Obama Administration, called me to her office and specifically instructed me that I was not to ask any other applicants whether they would be willing to, in effect, race-neutrally enforce the VRA. Ms. King took offense that I was asking such a question of job applicants and directed me not to ask it because she does not support equal enforcement of the provisions of the VRA and had been highly critical of the filing and prosecution of the Ike Brown case.

The American view of the rule of law is clear: laws are to be enforced equally on all people, and prosecutions should not be predicated on ethnicity or other biases. The court ruled that Ike Brown broke the law. If so, why wouldn’t Justice prosecute and enforce the VRA for all American citizens?

Please watch both videos...

The first one is an eyewitness to a robbery who is funny enough but someone remixed that video and hilarity ensues. Excellent remix and editing. Absolutely hilarious.

"Global Warming"..well...

"Climate Change"...not so fast...

"Global Climate Disruption"...yea! That's the ticket!

Gag me with a spoon.

Tell me you couldn't see this coming? Global warming was far too constricting especially when the science behind it was proven as worthless as the paper it was written on. Climate Change was a little broader and could be used to scare a little more but the phrase made the act sound too natural. Like it was something that happened regardless if a man used spray on deodorant. Nope that just wouldn't do.

"Global Climate Disruption"

Now that says it all. "Global" is a powerful all-encompassing term. The word itself conjures up images of the four corners of the blue planet and all who inhabit it.

"Climate" at least they didn;t feel the need to enhance that aspect of it.

"Disruption" Now here's the piece de resistance. A disruption is a break in the natural flow of things. A disruption is never a peaceful process. It can be violent but always obtrusive. With this one word, they have injected man into the fray again. Man. Bad bad man. Unthinking neanderthal man. Put away that aerosol can and save the planet. Buy a Prius and feel good about yourself!

Let us redistribute the wealth to combat this disruption in the global climate.

Don't you believe for a second that the whole Globalclimatechangewarmingdisruption is not about that last sentence. It has nothing to do with the climate and its natural cycles. It has to do with radical 60's hippies and their hatred for capitalism.

I may sound like a conspiracy theorist but before you judge me go Google "Cap and Trade" and see what pops up.

It's unconstitutional to commemorate the constitution or something...

Local officials in Ohio’s Andover Township have denied the use of their public square for a celebration of Constitution Day because of the “political affiliation” of its organizers.

Several residents of the small central Ohio town formed The Andover Tea Party in May 2010, and in that same month, they asked to use the square for a rally to commemorate Constitution Day, which celebrates the anniversary of the signing of the U.S. Constitution on September 17, 1787.

But on July 19, a trustee informed one of the tea party organizers, Margaret Slingluff, that they would not be allowed to hold the event, which would have included singers performing patriotic songs and public policy-related speakers, in the square. In an official letter dated Aug. 25, the trustee said the reason was “due to your group’s political affiliation.”

A nonpartisan law center in the state, the 1851 Center for Constitutional Law, has now filed a lawsuit in federal court on behalf of the Tea Party group, claiming their First Amendment rights are being violated.

“The first thing that you note is the extreme irony of the unconstitutional prohibition of the commemoration of the Constitution,” Executive Director Maurice Thompson, the lawyer of record on the case, told CNSNews.com of the incident.

“[A]nd the second thing that’s notable is either the extreme arrogance or ignorance of many local government officials. There’s so much focus on federal government, yet some of the worst actors are at the ground level,” Thompson said.

“The government’s action in this case, ironically, demonstrates the need for greater public understanding of Constitutional rights,” Thompson added in a written statement. “One way to do that is through commemoration of Constitution Day.”

According to their suit filed in U.S. District Court in northern Ohio, the group is seeking a temporary restraining order against the action of the Andover Township trustees.

In the complaint, Thompson writes, “It cannot be contested or doubted that the speech in which Plaintiffs seek to engage—honoring and discussing the fundamental law of this nation, i.e., the Constitution—is at the core of the speech protected by the First Amendment. And no venue could further reinforce such message as doing so in the center and heart of the community.

“In this case, the communicative nature of Plaintiffs’ proposed activities, as well as the selection of the venue for such speech, is indisputably protected by the First Amendment.”

Elaborating to CNSNews.com, Thompson explained that the trustees were citing a local resolution, Andover Township Resolution 06-104, that simply “prohibit[ed] any for-profit advertising or political signs on the Andover Square” and stated that “permission to use the square is made by the trustees on a case-by-case basis.

Based on that, Thompson said the problem was not so much that the group was conservative, but that the trustees believed celebrating the signing of the Constitution was a political event.

“It wasn’t necessarily that this group was disqualified because they’re a Tea Party group that may be considered of a particular political persuasion, but it really was more that the celebration of Constitution Day was considered by the trustees to be less like Memorial Day or Veterans’ Day or 4th of July and more like a political event for whatever reason,” he told CNSNews.com.

“The Constitution Day is a commemoration of the day the Constitution was implemented, and the 4th of July is simply the day the Declaration of Independence was authored—similarly it’s a legal document. So we consider it analogous and not really worthy of a legitimate sanction,” Thompson added.

Of course, the Constitution has a political philosophy and overtones, but it’s kind of a given that you subscribe to that.”

The judge on the case, Judge Donald Nugent, is expected to make a decision in time for the holiday on Sept. 17.

“We expect to get a restraining order before the 17th so that these citizens can have their commemoration and engage in this speech. It’s pretty—it’s a pretty straightforward First Amendment question. You can’t ban speech upon its content.

We feel pretty good about our chances here,” he said, “and we had a quick call with the judge this morning, and they—the judge told the township, ‘Look, you’re not in a very strong position here, so it’ll be in your interest to try to settle this matter,’ and they gave us 24 hours to do that. So, we expect the township to capitulate perhaps by (Wednesday) morning and enter into an agreement with us.”

Just in the past year, the township has allowed events on the public square including a Memorial Day Parade, “Christmas on the Square,” an Easter Egg Hunt, a charitable school supplies drive, and an annual Fall festival.

The trustees did not immediately return calls from CNSNews.com seeking to find out why they believed a Constitution Day rally did not belong among those.

“You know, the First Amendment is something that everybody knows enough about to make this an easy issue,” Thompson said. “These people again are either ill-intentioned or thoughtless, and we really don’t know which. Either is bad government.”

I'm not shocked anymore...

just pissed.

Justice Stephen Breyer told George Stephanopoulus on Sunday he didn't know if Koran burning was covered under the first ammendment. Never mind that flag burning was covered twice:

In both Texas v Johnson and US v Eichman, the court ruled that free speech trumped any offense and/or concerns about public safety raised by burning the American flag.

This is key. Breyer is afraid of the Religion of Peace and what they might do so he concludes burning a Koran is not covered under the first ammendment. However, I guess Justice Breyer is not familiar with the rulings of Johnson or Eichman which state:

The State’s position … amounts to a claim that an audience that takes serious offense at particular expression is necessarily likely to disturb the peace and that the expression may be prohibited on this basis. Our precedents do not countenance such a presumption. On the contrary, they recognize that a principal “function of free speech under our system of government is to invite dispute. It may indeed best serve its high purpose when it induces a condition of unrest, creates dissatisfaction with conditions as they are, or … even stirs people to anger.”

That just about covers it.

Under Breyers thinking would talk of a war in Pakistan be forboden? After all it may cause riots and killing in Pakistan or New York.

Is Breyer trying to put the Koran in its own category? Which, if so, would pretty much obliterate the other restriction in the first ammendment, the establishment clause regarding religion.

I don't believe Breyer could have been more wrong in this statement. But when you are delaing with the liberal mind there is no telling what they can justify to reach their ends.

I just wonder how many people we have to kill to make flag burning illegal?

Happy Birthday, Little One!...

Madison is 8 years old today. Time sure flies.

She is a voracious reader about abook a day. And not "Cat in the Hat" either. I'm talking "Diary of a Wimpy Kid", "The Babysitter Club" books. I couldn't do that.

I'm glad that is the first thought in my head today and not the other thought most people have today. Perhaps because what happened today 9 years ago and what happened today 8 years ago are so intrinsically linked in my head is the reason I still have the resolve I do to see this through. I don't know.

I do know I view the following presentation on this date every year and I stiil cry.

I remember.

If above doesn't work, try this.

Catchy tune...

This is a training video for Wendy's on serving hot drinks. It's got a Bobby Brown/R. Kelly vibe going on. It's a catchy tune. I would love to see the video for how they make the Frosty.

I'm getting there...

I new I was almost back to normal when I started yelling at other drivers again.

Felt good.

We had a fraternity reunion a few weeks ago. I was wracked with pneumonia but went anyway. I had a good time. It was great to see some faces I hadn't seen in years. There are some very good men who are fellow Texas Kappa alums and I am quite proud to call them my brothers. None more so than my two blood and fraternity brothers, Mike and Steve. I don't say it often enough gents but I love you guys and I was very proud to have the three of us there representing the Pfaffenberger name. It meant quite a bit to me.

The worst part of the evening was actually getting to the ballroom. It was on a hill in the back of the hotel property. You had to walk outside, around the pool, up some stairs and finally up to the top of a hill on what seemdd like a 45 degree walkway.

I don't know if I've ever felt so bad in my whole life. By the time we were halfway up the hill, I could hardly breathe. I was gasping for air and could not catch my breath. It was scary I tells ya. I either had to stop and go sit or start walking faster to make it to the air conditioning.

I chose the latter which might not have been the best decision but I made it. I walked right by everyone saying hi to me and found an empty table inside. I later made my way around and apologized to everyone I had snubbed. Luckily, word had gotten out that I was sick and everyone understood.

I enjoyed my college time, probably a little too much, and most of it was because of the guys in that room.

Vive Sigma Phi Epsilon!

I would like to take the time to say I have the greatest wife in the history of mankind. She took care of the kids and I with complete and utter care and love. I can't begin to express how lucky I am to have a wife who is so adept at being selfless it makes you feel as if you've done something right to deserve her.

She always goes above and beyond. For the first UCLA game she bought football plates and napkins, laid out my UCLA helmet, a UCLA football, my UCLA chip and dip plate, my UCLA pom-pom and had a football crock pot to keep the cheese dip warm. Oh yea, she had a blue table cloth as well. She also made signs for Madison's lemonade stand. Had two kinds of lemonade and rice kripy squares for the patrons. Above and beyond indeed.

I don't get sick that often but when I do I am a wimp. So, she basically took care of four children for a month. It's almost over honey. I am feeling like my old self again.

UCLA football is upon us!!

First game was last week. We lost to Kansas State. I was pretty bummed. Still am. We have better talent and should have won. It comes down to coaching. Stanford this week. We probably won't win this game either but if we show improvement I'll be happier.

I plan on posting some political stuff again. Just had to get my strength back. the Man-Child hasn't disappointed.

Pneumonia sucks...

that is the summary since I last posted.

We went on vacation to the beach. Had a fraternity reunion shindig. First day of school. All happened while I had pneumonia.

It all started on the first day of our vacation, Sunday. We drove down to San Antonio and spent the night in a hotel on the river. 16th floor. I love being high up in a hotel. It is one of my favorite things. Kids loved it too. As we got settled, I felt a little warm. I brushed it off as being in the car for 5 hours in the sun blah blah blah.

We rested for a while before dinner but I seemed to be getting warmer. Kelly, who is the greatest packer in the world, broght the thermometer so I took it. 101.1.

D'OH!

The kids and Kelly went on to dinner and called me when they were seated so I didn't have to sit in the heat.

We had a nice meal albeit the service was slow, which became somewhat of a theme for the week. We headed back upstairs and watched a movie or somesuch and all went to sleep. I took two aleve and was prepared to be my old self by morning.

Woke up, went and had breakfast at a place not too far from the hotel. Good stuff. Then went on the river boat. Hot. Not too crowded though which was nice.

Madison and Kelly went to the Alamo and I took the little ones back to the hotel so I could rest. Starting to feel a litte fatigued but no great shakes.

We drove down to the beach and found our condo. Nice place. I again had a fever of 100 but Kelly had to go get groceries and the kids wanted to go to the beach. So off we went. I found a shaded chair and the kids played in the surf for about an hour.

We went back upstairs and Kelly got home and we ate. I took two more aleve to squelch the fever, a ritual that took place every day for the next 10 days, and we eventually fell asleep.

The week was a flurry of beach, pool, aleve, aquarium, aleve, the USS Lexington, seafood and aleve.

Everybody had fun but I could feel myself losing energy as the week progressed. I am glad I was able to do most things. The only thing I didn't do was the last swim in the pool before we left.

One thing I am glad I did was the Lexington. The history of the ship and what it had done. Makes you proud to be an American.

We made it home safe and sound. I just wish healthy was part of that.

Pneumonia saps you of every ounce of energy you ever thought you could possibly have. And then some. The hacking cough. The old lady 40 year smoker voice. It's not good.

I will regail you all later with the fraternity reunion and back to school stories. Right now though I'm beat.

Take some time...

and look at these pictures. They are from the 30's and 40's. Color. Beautiful.

Here you go.

Do you remember...

the first time you saw it snow?
rotary phones?
the first time you saw your significant other?
riding bikes all day...with no supervision?
your first kiss?
your first car?
the first time you saw your favorite movie?
your first love?
barrel full o' monkeys?
how your spouse looked on your wedding day?
why you fell in love?
Asteroids?
talking all night?
baseball cards in the spokes?
your first date?
bomb pops?
push ups?
your first job?
being unselfish?
Chuck Cunningham? (long lost brother on Happy Days)
Happy Days for that matter?
Atari?
turning the channels by hand?
the last time you prayed?
reading your favorite book?
full serve gas stations?
laughing so hard you cried?


Well?...

Great question...

In watching this video two things strike me: Nancy Pelosi is not a smart woman and she is not a Catholic.

Right to Word?

I knew it I knew it...

I said to Kelly "Doesn't it seem like they are giving a lot more coverage to Chelsae Clinton's weeding than they did Jenna Bush's?" In typical wifey fashion, she says "No it seems about the same."

Steam out of ears.

Well, now I have the proof...

Did you hear Chelsea Clinton got married over the weekend? If it seems like that's all the media talked about, you're not alone.

The broadcast networks - ABC, CBS and NBC - aired 87 stories about Clinton's July 31 nuptials between July 25 and August 1. Four major newspapers - The Washington Post, The New York Times, the Los Angeles Times and USA Today - printed 21 stories during the same time period.

Coverage of Clinton's wedding was decidedly enthusiastic. The "CBS Evening News" July 31 reported it at the top of the broadcast, ahead of the oil spill. Anchor Jeff Glor announced the "wedding of the century" that "has clearly captured the nation's attention."

NBC's "Saturday Today" show brought in "celebrity wedding planner" Colin Cowie and US Weekly Editor Lindsay Powers to dish on all the gossip surrounding the event. The show mentioned Clinton's wedding in seven stories on July 31.

"Saturday Today" even brought in sometime correspondent Jenna Bush Hager - daughter of former President George W. Bush - to report on the public's supposed fascination with first children's weddings.

NBC led all coverage of Clinton's wedding with 59 stories during the period examined, almost as many as all three networks combined reported on the wedding of former first daughter Jenna Bush in 2008. ABC, CBS and NBC aired a total of 59 stories about Bush's wedding during the same time period surrounding the May 11, 2008, event.

The 48-percent increase in coverage on the networks was similar to the 52-percent increase in coverage of Clinton's wedding over Bush's in the four major newspapers. The publications ran 21 stories about Bush's wedding compared to 32 about Clinton's.

Don't tell me I'm crazy. I may very well be...just don't tell me.

What they think...

For a little background, Stark, the guy in the video, once told a constituent that he, Stark, wouldn't waste his urine on him, the constituent.

Here's a situation for you...

a new neighbor moved in next door. Nice family. Two kids about the same ages as Ian and Reagan. Could be a really good thing.

Here's the situation, their back yard butts up against our front yard. They face a street that my street T's into. If I were standing at my front door looking at the street, their house is to my right. He wants to build a fence which would hinder some of my view to the right. At least he doesn't want to build an 8 ft wood fence. It's simply a 4 ft iron fence.

He does want to build it 12 ft closer to the street than allowed. He went to the city council and asked for a permit to be able to do that. He did ask me about my feelings about this and if I had any objections. I said it was his property and he could do what he wanted. I didn't want to be a jerk.

Should I have told the city council I didn't want this fence built? At least the 12 feet closer to the street part? I didn't know how to do that without being a bad neighbor.

I don't mind him building a fence I just wish he would have done it within the guidelines put down by the city.

I don't know. I am far too concerned with what people think. I want people to like me so I don't rock the boat....believe it or not. It's true.

I write this as I hear him taking down his chain link fence.

From the "Let them eat cake" dept...

After Obama declared in a July 27, 2010 interview with ABC's Elizabeth Leamy, “We’re not that far removed from what most Americans are going through," we find out that Michelle Obama has booked a very expensive vacation to Spain accompanied by "long-time family friends". The liberal media that did decide to cover it calls it a "private" vacation, but since when have the Obama's used their own money?

The hotel in which she is staying is a 5 star $2895 dollar a night establishment. Let's say she spends 5 nights. A week? Sounds reasonable. That would be $14475. Not bad I suppose. She is a first lady after all. Wouldn't want her staying at the Motel 6 Barcelona.

Did I forget to mention she rented 30 rooms per night for the family, friends and entourage?

That bill comes out to $434250.

That's just for the rooms. Doesn't include travel, food, knick-knacks for the kid, she is only taking one of them and the Man-Child is staying home too.

I'm going on vacation in a few weeks too. Mustang Island. I'm driving. Staying in a $300 a night condo. All 5 of us will be in there.

I'd call that even.

A week of firsts...

at the Pfaffenberger household.

Kids use chop-a-stick for first time. Madison had actually used them once before so she was an old pro. Ian did very well. He scooped up the noodles with his sticks and actually was full by the end of the meal.Reagan used them mostly as drumsticks but they were used nonetheless.

We also went and saw our friends new baby, Sarah Beth. She is 6 weeks old.

I remember those days. Not being 6 weeks old but having a 6 week old baby of course. Never knowing exactly what to do. Just giving it your best guess with the oodles of literature you had read on rearing children. And still feeling as if you aren't doing it right.

Also, this week our oldest daughter Madison went off to girl scout camp where she is sleeping over for two whole nights. Her first sleep over camp. She has slept over at a friends house but that was a block away and could come home if need be. We, Kelly and I, dropped her off on Sunday afternoon up near Paris about 1 1/2 hours away. It was a picturesque camp complete with pine trees, cabins, mess hall, firepits and a lake for canoeing and swimming.

She was a rock. Wish her old man could say the same. I had to pull her back to give me a hug and a kiss. She was ready to run right off and go do the crafts.

I have thought about her a lot since yesterday. And will a lot until tomorrow I'm sure. It's strange not to know where she is or what she is doing. Knowing that if she really needed you it would take some time to get there. That is not what I am dwelling on but it has crossed my mind once or twice.

She could meet a girl she is friends with for the rest of her life at this camp. She will learn new things. Hear different points of view. She is a wonderful person and I know it will be the experience of a life time for her.

I still won't rest easy until she is home safe and sound.