There is unfortunately no truth to the report that George Wanker Bush was trampled to death during a stampede by fanatical shoppers as the Wal-Mart in Dallas opened for business just before dawn yesterday. Sorry.

It becomes more apparent every year that our entire economy is based on shopping and spending. We all remember President Bush's effort to get the nation back to normalcy after September 11 2001 was based on suggestions to travel and keep spending money. Not that people weren't plenty willing anyway.

What ever happened to saving? When the government needs money it has to be borrowed from overseas, we no longer encourage saving, our tax codes don't promote saving, parents don't encourage their children to save and a big debt seems to mean nothing.

The spirit of Christmas now apparently means it's OK to trample and kill people in a legitimate rush for a bargain, don't offer help, just keep spending and keep the economy going.

I wonder if President elect Obama will make a statement on how he feels about the level to which we have allowed our capitalistic society to take us?

50 million rushing to buy more crap is 1/6 of all Americans, but more like just over 1/3 of potential real customers (130M taxpayers, plus a few million non-taxpayers, minus a few million too broke to buy, minus the incapable.)

The fact that one-third of us can't shake out of the brainwashing and the denial at this point is truly pathetic. Materialism still reigns, in spite of massive job losses, huge drops in average salaries, negative savings, an average credit card debt of over $5,000, etc.

Apparently, nothing short of full spectrum collapse can convince "us" to alter our "lifestyles" even an iota. And even then, there will surely be millions loading up on stuff they don't need and can't afford... what a sick culture...

"President-elect Obama has said for two years the planet is in peril. That originally only referred to global warming. But Americans keep thinking we can pilfer the planet at no peril. SUV sales are already picking up again now that gasoline is back under $2 a gallon, at the very same time we whine like the Wicked Witch of the West, shrinking to our knees screaming that our wallets are "melting! melting!" ... The Associated Press, in getting the reaction of motorists to the price of gasoline falling to an average of $1.79 in Columbus, Ohio, quoted one woman as saying, "It's awesome. With this gas guzzler, there was no way I could afford to keep paying, the way we're going.""

Now that gas is too cheap to be true, the traffic jams out here in Washington are even more hellish than ever before. Unless you go to work at 5AM, expect a 1-2 hour wait just to get 15 miles to work ! And the metro rail system in Washington isn't doing much better. Peak Oil isn't very far off though so maybe there'll be another kick in the pants. Besides, it's just election season so the prices will shoot right back up in January and after.

I'm still hearing people on tv saying "We need to find a way to get the customers out there buying - it's the only way we're going to get the economy going again!"

Our tax dollars are being handed to the Wall Street fat cats with no strings, and being spent on expensive trips and big bonuses, and they're yelling for more. It's time to pull the plug. Show them how we can manage just fine on all the junk we've been buying, and piling up in our garages and spare rooms for years.

Meanwhile, as the millions of non-Christians dutifully stampeded a man to death in order to enter their houses of worship and do due reverence to their god, there were a few who , as true believers in the Christ, kept on working to end the illegal and immoral war in Iraq, who went into the inner city to feed the poor, who held a pregnant teen with aid so that she would not abort her child, who visited the sick in hospitals and those in jail.

Imagine what a fine world it would be if all the people in our country would take to heed the words of the Christ and live accordingly. Of course, that would be a miserable existence for corporate fat cats as we spent our money on people and not things. Terrible existence for military armaments manufacturers as we refused by the millions to send our children off to yet another war fabricated by lies. Horrible existence for those who believe that the greatest happiness in life is the acquisition of things.

But..............wouldn't it be a wonderful country?

Whatever Americans give is going to be a drop in the bucket. We give more to charity than any other nation on Earth. It's up to our gov't to start giving to the people instead of corporations and to the military/industrial complex.

Agreeing with JaneM.

Here is an idea: http://www.thoughts.com/RedNeckPossie/blog/a-way-to-give-power-back-to-the-people-184665/

This event demonstrates the truth of our idolatry. Getting a good deal is more important than a person's life. Having more stuff is more important than a beautiful environment. Getting it now is more important than our grandchildren's future. They may call themselves "Christian," but they are not. They have exchanged the transcendent teachings of Christ for the materialistic hope of false gods that are destroying the world and this nation.

America may give the largest amount to charity than any other nation in the world (a statistic that I would like to verify), but it is only because we have the greatest GNP in the world to draw it from. Indian Christians sponsor one missionary for every 80 Christians, while American Christians sponsor one for ever 240. Americans give on average 1.75 percent of our income to charity. We have a long ways to go before we live up to our image of ourselves.

As Joni Mitchell says:

I pulled up behind a Cadillac
We were waiting for the light
And I took a look at his license plate
It said "Just Ice"
Is justice just ice?
Governed by greed and lust?
Just the strong doing what they can
And the weak suffering what they must?
And the gas leaks
And the oil spills
And sex sells everything
And sex kills
Sex kills

Doctors' pills give you brand new ills
And the bills bury you like an avalanche
And lawyers haven't been this popular
Since Robespierre slaughtered half of France!
And Indian chiefs with their old beliefs know
The balance is undone crazy ions
You can feel it out in traffic
Everyone hates everyone!
And the gas leaks
And the oil spills
And sex sells everything
And sex kills
Sex kills

All these jackoffs at the office
The rapist in the pool
Oh and the tragedies in the nurseries
Little kids packin' guns to school
The ulcerated ozone
These tumors of the skin
This hostile sun beating down on
This massive mess we're in!
And the gas leaks
And the oil spills
And sex sells everything
And sex kills
Sex kills
Sex kills
Sex kills
Sex kills

These are the true "reasons for the season".

Poet

Obama may be our first environmental president. Take care of our environment and the rest doesn't matter.

My family has agreed to try a "Green Christmas" this year, with gifts being not the color green but environmentally green. Something from a thrift or antique store, something you already have but don't need or would like to pass on, or something like a flashlight with rechargeable batteries would all be good.

Also a donation to the recipient's favorite cause/charity would work, as well as an "activity", such as a good cleaning of the recipient's bathroom/bedroom/kitchen etc. or perhaps a monthly home-cooked dinner.

It will be interesting to see what the family comes up with, and I love the idea of not being part of the "forced march to the mall".

Even the kids seemed to be on board with the idea and they're the ones it is really going to benefit in the future. I'm looking forward to Christmas in a different way now.

Anyone have any more green gift suggestions?

Great thoughts, Derrick. Thanks for sharing. I'm not buying presents this year. I'm giving to charity in the names of those on my holiday giving list.

I am buying ammo and survival food for Christmas. How about you?

Could we please stop saying "Americans" when we mean Usanians or North Americans? (the latter term is correct when Canadians are included) We've got to get used to the idea that we are not the only people who live in the American continent. The combined population of the North American subcontinent - i.e. Canada and Usania - is a little over 300 million. The population of America is nearly a billion. More Americans speak Spanish than speak English.

Mark Marshall
Toronto

Sioux Rose

Perhaps not more than 100 years from now, survivors of the next "great flood" who learn to sustain their breath long enough, or make use of old high tech items salvaged from the ecological wreckage, will uncover the vast fortunes that Mother Nature once again buries.

Do you ever think about it? That even a lower-middle class individual has in their possession the wealth of a royal family from an earlier time? The devices of convenience (duly mocked in the films: Brazil & Time Bandits) we take for granted, the jewelry most of us have (our wedding rings, college rings, the birthday gifts over the years, anniversary presents, etc), the furniture... I almost never buy anything new, and try to make it a daily practice to give thanks and TRULY appreciate what I do have... Americans in large part have lost the capacity to be gracious or to demonstrate gratitude.

The tragedy of the Wal-Mart stampede says it all about a collective consciousness turned schizoid from all the lies it has consumed and been poisoned by.

Having long ago joined what was til recently, the fringe culture of simple living and conservative consumption, initially due to my personal values and then more fully out of necessity and learning, I can vouch that holidays celebrated in alternative ways tend to be very special and free of a lot of the usual stress. It is important to get everyone more or less on the same page, so that expectations and follow through match up, especially for children. Turning off the TV well ahead of the holiday helps. Turning it off permanently helps even more. Getting rid of it is the final solution.

For some families, a new way of celebrating may require a consciousness change, thus might be tough if it isn't implemented in a sensitive and step-wise manner with a lot of discussion and consensus.

Food: planned potlucks, sharing with strangers, and community meals can set the tone.

Gifts: Santa Claus was supposed to know what to bring you because you sent him a list of what you most wanted. Somewhere along the way, probably in marketing departments, that list of what you most wanted became a list of material things. Friends and family are supposed to know what others want because they make the effort to listen, observe, and think creatively about each other. So really great gifts come from the sense of connection and understanding between the various members of your extended tribe. The extended tribe may include a yet to be known person or family who will not have any celebration without the help of strangers. The fact that a gift might be small, regifted, non-material, or in some cases, predetermined has nothing to do with the magnitude of the giving and receiving. The gift is a psychological connecting device along with the gratitude and acknowledgment of that connection. That becomes easy with practice. No mall necessary.

Shared activities: slow down, pay attention, connect, and have fun. Outdoors, community service, participatory games, shared tasks like cooking, and allowance for solitude. The idea is to decompress, regenerate, and connect while giving others a chance to do the same, perhaps together. This isn't so hard.