Tag: Hugh Hewitt

Hugh Hewitt has an amusing rant about Target’s decision to stop allowing Salvation Army bellringers at its store during the holidays. Hewitt tries to tie his objections to Target’s decision into the “roots” of Christmas, which he doesn’t seem to know the first thing about,

Now that you are back, you may be wondering what Wretchard’s wonderful writing has to do with Target’s decision to exile the Salvation Army. Everything, of course, because the roots of my dismay with Target have to do with the roots of Christmas.

. . .

Target has flourished because some 2,000 years ago a humble family that needed assistance was given aid by strangers, and soon thereafter gifts from princes. That’s the root of Target’s commercial success. So, until 2004, Target and much of retail America has honored that beginning by allowing a very well-run group of dedicated servants to take the kindnesses of millions of strangers and direct them to other humble people in need –out of a desire to serve the child whose birth is celebrated on the culminating day of the season. The kettle giving benefits every giver, just as Target’s past permissions really did benefit Target, both commercially and spiritually.

The more I have thought on this, the more I am convinced that Target is much more damaged than the Salvation Army by this decision, and not just in the year-to-year sales numbers. The folks sending e-mails and deciding not to but there but at the Salvation Army-friendly WalMart are asking Target to rethink, and hopefully Robert Ulrich, Target’s CEO is doing just that. It was the wrong decision, and those within Target who celebrate the season of Christmas for its original meaning already know that, and those who are complete and thorough-going secularists will even figure it out upon reflection. It isn’t just another charity asking for help, and it isn’t just another season.

Another example of just how little many mainstream Christians know about their own faith. Christmas — just like Easter — is pagan in origin.

December 25 was set as the date to celebrate Christ’s birth in the 4th century CE in order to coincide with the pagan Saturn festivals. The New Testament, of course, doesn’t mention Jesus’ birthday, and the early church apparently focused on celebrating only the resurrection. Most of the traditions surrounding Dec. 25, including gift giving, Christmas trees, yule logs and other things commonly associated with Christmas, long precede their adoption by Christians.

For this reason, the Puritans refused to celebrate Christmas, viewing it as an example of what they saw as the perverse mixing of Christian and pagan traditions by the much-hated Roman Catholic Church. In England, the Puritans actually managed to briefly ban the celebration of Christmas during Cromwell’s reign as Lord Protector.

Hugh Hewitt claims,

Kerry’s problem is that he is simply the worst major party candidate of my lifetime, period running against a likeable incumbent backed by a growing economy and a record of bold action in the global war on terrorism.

I agree. Kerry is the worst candidate of my life time as well.

Well, except for Walter Mondale, Michael Dukakis, and Bob Dole.

I mean, come on — Kerry hasn’t done anything has stupid as Walter Mondale’s “Mr. Reagan will raise taxes, and so will I. He won’t tell you. I just did” speech. That would have been dumb enough at a campaign stop, but Mondale said it in prime time as part of his acceptance speech. By far the dumbest thing I’ve seen during a presidential campaign in my lifetime, because it was intentional. Dukakis and Dole’s problems tended to be inadvertent, off-the-cuff problems. But Mondale actually sat with advisers and calculated that the best way to run against Reagan was to promise a tax increase. What a maroon!