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Here’s How Bad San Francisco’s Poop Problem Got in 2019

San Francisco residents reported more than 30,000 cases of poop to authorities in 2019, city records show.

As of Monday afternoon, the city’s Department of Public Works responded to 30,136 cases of “human or animal waste” this year, easily topping the 28,353 cases the agency handled in 2018 with a week still to go, according to a Daily Caller News Foundation analysis of publicly available city records. The liberal city is averaging more than 84 poop reports every day, The Daily Caller News Foundation’s analysis found.

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Pictures showed a man defecating in a San Francisco grocery store earlier in December. Pictures from the scene showed a man doing the deed in a Safeway aisle and then opening up a store package of toilet paper to wipe himself.

San Francisco Supervisor Matt Haney said in November the city’s poop problem is “not funny” and an embarrassment.

“This is a national embarrassment,” Haney said. “It is also [in] many communities a disgusting, public health crisis, no one should be able to walk about and see poop smeared all over the place, no one should live in these conditions. It is not funny.”

San Francisco poop reports by month are pictured. (Screenshot: https://data.sfgov.org)

The city launched a $750,000 “poop patrol” in September 2018 to combat the poop plague, though that hasn’t stopped this year’s numbers from topping last year’s numbers.

The city’s incoming district attorney, left-winger Chesa Boudin, pledged during his campaign not to prosecute quality-of-life crimes such as public urination.

“We will not prosecute cases involving quality-of-life crimes. Crimes such as public camping, offering or soliciting sex, public urination, blocking a sidewalk, etc., should not and will not be prosecuted,” Boudin said in response to an American Civil Liberties Union questionnaire, adding that “we have a long way to go to decriminalize poverty and homelessness.”

San Francisco Mayor London Breed, a Democrat, described in a July 2018 interview how the city is drowning in poop. “There is more feces on the sidewalks than I’ve ever seen growing up here,” she said. “That is a huge problem and we are not just talking about from dogs—we’re talking about from humans.” Her office did not return The Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment for this article.

Content created by The Daily Caller News Foundation is available without charge to any eligible news publisher that can provide a large audience. For licensing opportunities of this original content, email licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.

The post Here’s How Bad San Francisco’s Poop Problem Got in 2019 appeared first on The Daily Signal.

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Pelosi’s Impeachment Gamble Is Unconstitutional

One of the Constitution’s clearest provisions is also one of its least-used: the process for removing the president for serious misconduct. Some politicians and lawyers, however, are trying to complicate this straightforward constitutional process, inventing things that simply aren’t there.

The Constitution’s impeachment process has two steps: Article 1, Section 2 gives the House of Representatives the “sole power of impeachment” and Section 3 gives the Senate the “sole power to try all impeachments.”

The House did its part on Dec. 18, adopting two articles of impeachment. All that’s left is for the House to appoint a few members to act as the prosecutors and, as the Senate’s trial rules put it, notify the Senate that these impeachment “managers” are “directed to carry articles of impeachment to the Senate.”

If this sounds a little familiar, it’s not really different from the indictment and trial you might have watched on any episode of “Law & Order.” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi , D-Calif., however, appears to be making up a process of her own. She says she won’t appoint impeachment managers or send the articles to the Senate until the Senate agrees to conduct its trial the way she dictates.

In other words, Pelosi is holding the impeachment for ransom, keeping the county in impeachment limbo.

The House has impeached, but the Senate cannot conduct a trial unless it agrees to Pelosi’s demands or is able to change its impeachment trial rules (which requires a two-thirds vote) so it can at least start a trial on its own.

In response, Harvard law professor Noah Feldman, who argued strongly for impeachment as one of House Democrats’ hearing witnesses, wrote an article objecting to Pelosi’s gambit. President Donald Trump, Feldman insists, is not actually impeached until the House sends formal notice to the  Senate.

Feldman is wrong. He claims that, in the past, “‘impeachment’ occurred—and occurs—when the articles of impeachment are presented to the Senate for trial.” But asserting this is all he does. He offers nothing to suggest that America’s Founders designed impeachment this way. His claim actually contradicts the language of the Constitution. While the House has the “sole” power of impeachment, Feldman says that impeachment cannot occur without the Senate.

Feldman tries to blur the lines by saying that “impeachment is a process,” but that’s not really true either. Just like there is a process that results in an indictment, there is a process for producing an impeachment, a process that occurs entirely within the House of Representatives.

But an impeachment itself, like an indictment, is a thing. The Constitution, after all, gives the Senate the power to “try all impeachments.” The Senate’s impeachment trial rules refer to “managers of an impeachment” and their first trial responsibility as “exhibit[ing] articles of impeachment.” In other words, the articles of impeachment adopted by the House are the impeachment.

The House itself agrees. Its website includes a list of “individuals impeached by the House of Representatives.” The first name on the list is Sen. William Blount of Tennessee. The Senate literally refused to recognize the impeachment as valid, choosing instead to expel him. The House still says he was impeached.

The list also includes U.S. District Judge Mark Delahay, who is listed as being impeached even though the House appointed no impeachment managers and the Senate conducted no trial at all.

Feldman’s claim is like saying that, though a grand jury has voted to indict, a criminal defendant is not really indicted until that action is presented to the trial jury.

To his credit, Feldman is correct that an indefinite delay in appointing managers and sending notice that they are ready to participate in the impeachment trial “would pose a serious problem.” 

The House impeachment process, and the impeachment itself, were purely partisan. Now that the impeachment is finished, however, trying to manipulate how the Senate conducts its trial would only taint this whole drama even more and further distort the Constitution’s impeachment framework.

Since Feldman is such a strong Trump critic, he likely came up with this novel theory to push the process ahead toward, he hopes, Senate conviction and Trump’s removal from office. His ends, however, do not justify his means.

The House has done its part by impeaching Trump. The House must appoint managers and notify the Senate not because doing so is necessary to complete the impeachment, but because it’s the House’s clear obligation under the Constitution.

Originally published by Fox News

The post Pelosi’s Impeachment Gamble Is Unconstitutional appeared first on The Daily Signal.

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Baltimore Dem Mayor Says He’s Not Responsible For City’s Homicide Rate Because ‘I Am Not Committing the Murders’

Wow.

YOUNG: “I’m not committing the murders and that’s what people need to understand. I’m not committing the murders, the police commissioner is not committing it, the council is not committing it, so how can you fault leadership?”

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After Biden Claims He’s in Debt and Unemployed, Court Finds His $2.5 Mil Hollywood Home

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After Biden Claims He’s in Debt and Unemployed, Court Finds His $2.5 Mil Hollywood Home

World Food Program USA Board Chairman Hunter Biden speaks at the World Food Program USA's Annual McGovern-Dole Leadership Award Ceremony at Organization of American States on April 12, 2016, in Washington, D.C.Paul Morigi / Getty Images for World Food Program USAWorld Food Program USA Board Chairman Hunter Biden speaks at the World Food Program USA’s Annual McGovern-Dole Leadership Award Ceremony at Organization of American States on April 12, 2016, in Washington, D.C. (Paul Morigi / Getty Images for World Food Program USA)

Despite Hunter Biden’s claim that he is in debt and unemployed, documents handed over to an Arkansas court revealed that the son of former Vice President Joe Biden shares a ZIP code with some famous Hollywood elites.

Biden owns a California home valued at a whopping $2.5 million, according to the New York Post.

The revelation came Monday as part of the paternity case revolving around Biden’s Arkansas love child.

Although Biden’s multimillion-dollar home is one that most Americans can only dream of owning, the politician’s son has insisted that he is financially destitute.

While it’s clear that Biden isn’t exactly slumming it around the poverty line, his claim of being in dire financial straits could be an attempt to avoid a hefty child support payment to his Arkansas child.

TRENDING: Gold Star Mom Teaches Kaepernick a Lesson on Sacrifice: ‘My Son Died for $14,000 a Year’

This discovery of Biden’s Hollywood holding may not help his image of a person who struggles with money. According to the Post, the house features a pool and a private gated driveway.

With these luxurious additions and superstars like Ben Affleck and Halle Berry sharing the same ZIP code, it may be fair to say Biden isn’t exactly as lacking in funds as he claims.

It’s unclear how Biden was able to afford such a ritzy home, but it may have something to do with his five-figure monthly paychecks from Ukrainian energy giant Burisma, where he served on the board.

Although some of this may have gone to finance Biden’s alleged substance abuse problem, there was apparently enough left over to grab the Hollywood Hills mansion.

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Biden’s decision to purchase the home came at an unfortunate time.

The paternity case against him in Arkansas was filed only one day after the swanky residence sold. Biden originally denied that the child in question was his son.

The Western Journal first broke the bombshell news of a DNA test confirming Biden was the child’s father in November.

Unfortunately for Hunter’s father, the revelations made in the court battle over his new grandson and the scandal surrounding Hunter’s activities in Ukraine have shadowed the former vice president’s 2020 campaign.

One major takeaway for many is that Biden apparently didn’t see a problem with his son working for a Ukrainian company that had a reputation for corruption at a time when the then-vice president had enough power to unseat the country’s top prosecutor.

RELATED: Supposedly Brilliant Elizabeth Warren Plagiarized One of Her Best Lines in Thursday’s Debate

With the Democratic primaries rapidly approaching, Hunter Biden appears to be a force of destruction against his dad’s continuing political career.

This court case has a ways to go, and it’s likely that this won’t be the last embarrassing discovery that’s going to made before its conclusion.

We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Read our editorial standards.

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Tenn. Bill Would Finally Protect Girls Sports Teams from Boys Identifying as Female

Over the past few years, as the LGBT advocacy crowd has incessantly pushed transgender acceptance on the broader American populace, a rather disheartening result of that movement has come into focus.

“Transgender females” — boys or men who identify as female — have been engaging in and dominating girls’ and women’s sports.

That is a problem that threatens to undermine the very idea of women’s athletics, despite protests to the contrary from LGBT advocates or pandering progressive politicians — and now somebody is seeking to do something to address it.

TRENDING: Americans Send Resounding Rebuke to Gun-Grabbing Democrats in Virginia

The Tennessee Star reported that a bill has been proposed in the Tennessee General Assembly that would require student-athletes at elementary and secondary schools to compete in sports against competitors of their own sex at birth, not whatever gender they claim.

That bill is HB 1572, and it was submitted by state Rep. Bruce Griffey. Notably, the legislation places the onus for compliance on the schools and school officials and wields public funding and fines for officials as punishment for non-compliance with the requirement.

The measure reads: “Each elementary and secondary school in this state that receives any type of public funding from this state or a local government, or both, shall require, for an official or unofficial school-sanctioned athletic or sporting event, that each athlete participating in the athletic or sporting event participates with and competes against other athletes based on the athlete’s biological sex as indicated on the athlete’s original birth certificate issued at the time of birth.”

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Violations of that requirement would result in the loss of public funding for the school from state and local government, which could be restored only after an investigation determined the school was fully in compliance.

Furthermore, school officials found to have “willfully and intentionally” violated or worked to circumnavigate the requirement would be subject to a civil lawsuit and a fine of up to $10,000, and be barred from holding public office or working in a school’s administration for five years.

HB1572 by The Western Journal on Scribd

In a statement provided to The Star about his bill, Griffey noted that vast differences in how boys’ and girls’ bodies develop are a fundamental biological truth that can’t be changed, and how that disparity places biological females at a great disadvantage to biological males competing against them.

“We are seeing more and more transgender athletes competing and posting victories in traditionally gendered sports competitions, and doing so to the detriment of girls and women biologically born female,” Griffey said.

RELATED: Merriam-Webster Advances LGBT Cause, Declares ‘They’ Word of the Year

“Boys and men, due to testosterone levels, bigger bone structure, greater lung capacity, and larger heart size, have physical advantages in sports relative to girls and women,” he rightly noted.

The state legislator added that it was “fundamentally unfair” to force girls to compete against, and consistently lose to, boys claiming to be female.

Griffey said his bill was in direct response to a federal measure put forward by the Democrat-controlled U.S. House, the so-called Equality Act, that would add gender identity and sexual orientation as protected statuses under the 1964 Civil Rights Act.

In theory, that proposed federal law would force schools to allow boys claiming to be female to compete in girls’ sports, lest the schools be charged with discrimination and punished accordingly.

“With House Speaker Nancy Pelosi pushing through passage in the U.S. House of Representative HR 5 — the Equality Act — that, among other things, creates a civil right for male athletes to self-identify as females in sports competitions, I believe it is important for states to take a stand,” Griffey told The Star. “This is what I seek to do through the filing of House Bill 1572.”

Thus far, the Republican-controlled Senate has declined to take up the Democrat-passed HR 5, and it seems unlikely that it will ever receive a vote.

Regardless, it is good that Tennessee is stepping up to proactively guard against such a measure.

Hopefully, other states will follow suit and put an end to the unfair transgender nonsense before it destroys girls’ and women’s sports.

We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Read our editorial standards.

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IG Report Reveals Steele Funneled Claims Through John McCain After FBI Dropped Him

Late Senator John McCain provided disgraced former FBI chief James Comey with five separate reports from Christopher Steele that the FBI didn’t previously possess related to unsubstantiated allegations of collusion between Russia and President Trump’s 2016 campaign, the Justice Department’s recent Inspector General report revealed.

There have long been questions about why it was necessary for McCain to pass Steele’s anti-Trump dossier to Comey on December 9, 2016, several weeks after the November 2016 presidential election. By then, Steele had already met numerous times with FBI agents to provide them with his controversial reports. Steele, however, was terminated as an FBI source in the fall of 2016 because he spoke to the news media.

The IG report discloses that McCain gave five new Steele reports to Comey that the FBI did not previously possess, showing that McCain served as a conduit for Steele’s information to reach the FBI even after the British ex-spy was formally cut off as an FBI source.

It is not clear whether McCain knew at the time that Steele had previously been terminated as an FBI source.

The IG report also verifies that a McCain aid obtained the Steele reports directly from Fusion GPS co-founder Glenn Simpson, meaning that when McCain transferred the anti-Trump charges to Comey he had to have known that the material originated with a firm that specializes in controversial opposition tactics.

Fusion GPS was paid for its anti-Trump work by Trump’s primary political opponents, namely Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign and the Democratic National Committee (DNC) via the Perkins Coie law firm.

States the IG report:

Several weeks later, on December 9, 2016, Senator John McCain provided Corney with a collection of 16 Steele election reports, 5 of which Steele had not given the FBI. McCain had obtained these reports from a staff member at the McCain Institute. The McCain Institute staff member had met with Steele and later acquired the reports from Simpson.

The unnamed McCain staff member is known to be David J. Kramer, who also infamously provided BuzzFeed with the Steele dossier.

BuzzFeed published Steele’s full dossier on January 10, 2017 setting off a firestorm of news media coverage about the document.

Prior to his death, McCain admitted to personally handing the dossier to Comey but he refused repeated requests for comment about whether he had a role in providing the dossier to BuzzFeed, including numerous inquiries sent to his office by this reporter.

In his book published last year, McCain maintained he had an “obligation” to pass the dossier charges against Trump to Comey and he would even do it again. “Anyone who doesn’t like it can go to hell,” McCain exclaimed.

Aaron Klein is Breitbart’s Jerusalem bureau chief and senior investigative reporter. He is a New York Times bestselling author and hosts the popular weekend talk radio program, “Aaron Klein Investigative Radio.” Follow him on Twitter @AaronKleinShow. Follow him on Facebook.

Written with research by Joshua Klein.

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The Rightful King Has Landed

We must never forget that at this time of year, we celebrate much more than a birthday. As the great Christian apologist C.S. Lewis put it, Christmas is the story of how “the rightful King has landed.” When Jesus stood before the Roman governor Pilate, just prior to going to His execution, Pilate asked Him, “Are you the king of the Jews?” After some discussion Pilate concluded to Jesus, “You are a king, then!” Jesus answered him, saying, “You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world…”

Of course, Jesus was not just any king; He was a king with a holy mission. He was a king who was born to die. “Amazing love, how can it be, that you my king would die for me.” Jesus was, and is, our Savior King. As author Charles Sell put it,

If our greatest need had been information, God would have sent us an educator. If our greatest need had been technology, God would have sent us a scientist. If our greatest need had been money, God would have sent us an economist. If our greatest need had been pleasure, God would have sent us an entertainer. But our greatest need was forgiveness, so God sent us a Savior.

The “good news of great joy” that no less than the angel of the Lord reported to the shepherds was that, “today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you…” The late-great Charles Schultz was right. The heart and soul of the Christmas story is, as Linus perfectly recited, “[B]ehold, I bring you tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.”

Of course, as did the CBS executives during Schultz’s time, those fearful of the true meaning of Christmas go to great lengths to hide the truth. Today children (and adults) are bombarded with deceptive (but alluring) messages about “Christmas Spirit” and how Christmas is about “spreading joy throughout the world” and “a time for warmth and brotherly love” (as a recent TV cartoon declared). Even Dickens’ iconic A Christmas Carol is bereft of the complete message of Christmas.

One author I encountered a few years ago foolishly described the “hidden meaning” of Christmas as a:

…festival of the human heart. It is a time of year when all the universe conspires to raise the vibratory level of consciousness on earth to one of peace and love toward ourselves and one another. This season resonates to the sweet, childlike innocence that resides in all of us; A time when the heavenly forces inspire us to shift our focus away from fear and toward one of joy, and healing.

Of course, peace, brotherly love, and spreading joy are not bad things, but they are far from the “heart and soul” of Christmas. “Hark! The herald angels sing; glory to the newborn King!” So Christmas is a celebration of the birth of our Savior King. This is the reason for the conflict and contention that we sometimes encounter at Christmas time. This is why so many fear a Nativity scene, a Christmas tree, or even a meek “Merry Christmas.”

The Birth of Jesus depicted by Pietro Cavallini in 1291

Who wants to be confronted with the idea that maybe they are ignoring the most significant event in human history? Who wants to be reminded that perhaps Jesus Christ really was (and is) our Savior King? Of course, God sending His Son as a Savior implies that we need “saving.” The most quoted verse in the Bible, John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” Less well known, but just as important, is the very next verse. John 3:17 says, “For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.” This raises the question, “From what or whom do we need to be saved?”

In John chapter 8, Jesus says, “I told you that you would die in your sins; if you do not believe that I am the one I claim to be, you will indeed die in your sins.” What does it mean to “die in your sins?” Romans chapter 6 says, “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” In other words, we need to be “saved” from the eternal consequences of our sin. There is eternal life with Jesus, and apart from Him, death and eternal separation from God.

This is why so many Christians are so celebratory at Christmas time. Yes, there are presents and parties and time off from work, but for Christians who truly understand what was done for them on that first Christmas day, nothing compares to the gift of eternal life through Jesus. Christmas is a celebration of God’s greatest gift meeting humanity’s most desperate need. Those who reject the need for salvation, or reject the miracle of Jesus, or reject their sin for what it really is, are “offended” by Christmas.

Such people don’t want to hear that Jesus came to die for their sins. They don’t want to hear of the many miracles that surround the birth of the Savior. They don’t want to hear that their greed, lust, or pride is sin. They want to go their own way; thus, they display perverse “Festivus Poles.” And again, we’ve all been there. May God empower those of us who see Christmas for what it truly is, who see Jesus for who He really is, to spread His message of hope, love, peace, and salvation to all we encounter, all year-round. Merry Christmas!

Trevor Grant Thomas; At the Intersection of Politics, Science, Faith, and Reason. www.trevorgrantthomas.com; Trevor is the author of the The Miracle and Magnificence of America

tthomas@trevorgrantthomas.com

We must never forget that at this time of year, we celebrate much more than a birthday. As the great Christian apologist C.S. Lewis put it, Christmas is the story of how “the rightful King has landed.” When Jesus stood before the Roman governor Pilate, just prior to going to His execution, Pilate asked Him, “Are you the king of the Jews?” After some discussion Pilate concluded to Jesus, “You are a king, then!” Jesus answered him, saying, “You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world…”

Of course, Jesus was not just any king; He was a king with a holy mission. He was a king who was born to die. “Amazing love, how can it be, that you my king would die for me.” Jesus was, and is, our Savior King. As author Charles Sell put it,

If our greatest need had been information, God would have sent us an educator. If our greatest need had been technology, God would have sent us a scientist. If our greatest need had been money, God would have sent us an economist. If our greatest need had been pleasure, God would have sent us an entertainer. But our greatest need was forgiveness, so God sent us a Savior.

The “good news of great joy” that no less than the angel of the Lord reported to the shepherds was that, “today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you…” The late-great Charles Schultz was right. The heart and soul of the Christmas story is, as Linus perfectly recited, “[B]ehold, I bring you tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.”

Of course, as did the CBS executives during Schultz’s time, those fearful of the true meaning of Christmas go to great lengths to hide the truth. Today children (and adults) are bombarded with deceptive (but alluring) messages about “Christmas Spirit” and how Christmas is about “spreading joy throughout the world” and “a time for warmth and brotherly love” (as a recent TV cartoon declared). Even Dickens’ iconic A Christmas Carol is bereft of the complete message of Christmas.

One author I encountered a few years ago foolishly described the “hidden meaning” of Christmas as a:

…festival of the human heart. It is a time of year when all the universe conspires to raise the vibratory level of consciousness on earth to one of peace and love toward ourselves and one another. This season resonates to the sweet, childlike innocence that resides in all of us; A time when the heavenly forces inspire us to shift our focus away from fear and toward one of joy, and healing.

Of course, peace, brotherly love, and spreading joy are not bad things, but they are far from the “heart and soul” of Christmas. “Hark! The herald angels sing; glory to the newborn King!” So Christmas is a celebration of the birth of our Savior King. This is the reason for the conflict and contention that we sometimes encounter at Christmas time. This is why so many fear a Nativity scene, a Christmas tree, or even a meek “Merry Christmas.”

The Birth of Jesus depicted by Pietro Cavallini in 1291

Who wants to be confronted with the idea that maybe they are ignoring the most significant event in human history? Who wants to be reminded that perhaps Jesus Christ really was (and is) our Savior King? Of course, God sending His Son as a Savior implies that we need “saving.” The most quoted verse in the Bible, John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” Less well known, but just as important, is the very next verse. John 3:17 says, “For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.” This raises the question, “From what or whom do we need to be saved?”

In John chapter 8, Jesus says, “I told you that you would die in your sins; if you do not believe that I am the one I claim to be, you will indeed die in your sins.” What does it mean to “die in your sins?” Romans chapter 6 says, “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” In other words, we need to be “saved” from the eternal consequences of our sin. There is eternal life with Jesus, and apart from Him, death and eternal separation from God.

This is why so many Christians are so celebratory at Christmas time. Yes, there are presents and parties and time off from work, but for Christians who truly understand what was done for them on that first Christmas day, nothing compares to the gift of eternal life through Jesus. Christmas is a celebration of God’s greatest gift meeting humanity’s most desperate need. Those who reject the need for salvation, or reject the miracle of Jesus, or reject their sin for what it really is, are “offended” by Christmas.

Such people don’t want to hear that Jesus came to die for their sins. They don’t want to hear of the many miracles that surround the birth of the Savior. They don’t want to hear that their greed, lust, or pride is sin. They want to go their own way; thus, they display perverse “Festivus Poles.” And again, we’ve all been there. May God empower those of us who see Christmas for what it truly is, who see Jesus for who He really is, to spread His message of hope, love, peace, and salvation to all we encounter, all year-round. Merry Christmas!

Trevor Grant Thomas; At the Intersection of Politics, Science, Faith, and Reason. www.trevorgrantthomas.com; Trevor is the author of the The Miracle and Magnificence of America

tthomas@trevorgrantthomas.com

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This Christmas, We Need a Visit from the Real Saint Nicholas

Saint Nicholas was born in the third century, to an affluent family in Patara, a Greek city in the Roman province of Lycia, in modern-day Turkey.

Nicholas was a priest during the reign of Diocletian (reigned 286-305), an emperor who embarked upon a vigorous persecution of Christians in 305. Diocletian was succeeded in the eastern half of the Empire by Galerius (r. 305-311), who continued the persecution, although he issued an edict of toleration before he died.

It was in this era that Nicholas became bishop of Myra. His name, Nikolaos, is Greek for “Victor of the People,” apt for a time when Christians triumphed over the militantly secular authorities of the Roman state.

Being a man of no little wealth but of far from little charity, it was said that on one occasion, Nicholas tossed three bags of gold coins into the home of a man whose three daughters needed dowries if they were not to be forced into prostitution. It is said that this is the origin of the three gold balls that traditionally were hung over the doors to pawnshops. Another trinity-related story connected to Nicholas was that a butcher, wanting to profit from a famine, killed three men (or boys), then pickled and barreled them for sale. Nicholas saw through the crime, prayed, and the three were returned to life.

Nicholas became the patron saint of sailors. One story has him rescuing a sailor who fell from the rigging when he was on a voyage home from studies in Alexandria. Another has him praying for sailors on a vessel in shoal waters, saving them from being wrecked on the rocks.

Fast forward a dozen centuries and the Dutch were the leading seafaring nation of Europe. Despite their militant Calvinism, they seem to have retained a reverence for the patron saint of seamen. He was brought to New Netherland by colonists who continued to celebrate his feast day of December 6, the anniversary of his death.

The Dutch settlers and their English neighbors had an uneasy coexistence, one problem being communication.  The former, it seems, regarded their New England neighbors as being excessively cheap; they would charge a customer for anything, even cheese in a Bay Colony overstocked with cattle when the English Civil War slowed the migration on which farmers relied for profits. The Dutch nickname for the Puritans came across as something like John (Jan) Cheese, which became “Yankees.” And the Dutch name for St. Nicholas came across to the English as Sant Niklas, to become Santa Claus.

The Puritans may have had little inclination to celebrate the saint, but migrants to the later English province of New York were not similarly disposed. It was there that the gift-giving aspect of Santa took root. In Washington Irving’s partially accurate History of New York (1809), Santa arrives on horseback on the evening of December 6. The image proved popular, leaving Clement Clark Moore, a professor of Greek and Hebrew, to write “A Visit from St. Nicholas” for his family at Christmas, 1822. It was published anonymously shortly afterwards. Moore did not acknowledge his authorship until 1837.

The illustrator Thomas Nast, whose caricatures of drunken Irishmen and Boss Tweed appeared in the pages of Harper’s Weekly between the 1860s and 1880s, has Santa giving out presents to Union Army troops at Christmas, 1862. Nast’s pen produced several dozen images of Santa in this time, in the course of which Santa was given a shop for making toys which seems to have become located at the North Pole.

Fifty years after Nast, 1931 color magazine ads for Coca Cola gave us the image of Santa that we have today. In 1939, Rudolph, the Red-Nosed reindeer was given life by ads for Montgomery Ward.

Through a millennium and a half, then, Saint Nicholas has been transformed from a saintly priest of unknown stature, a charitable man who performed miracles. He has become a bearded, jolly old man in a red coat whose seasonal occupation is to seat little kids on his lap in shopping malls, there to encourage the parents to buy more toys than the little ones could ever need. The only known instance of defiance of this job requirement is that by the character portrayed by Edmund Gwenn in Miracle on 34th Street (1947).

Santa is said to make the toys at a shop that must lie atop Arctic Ocean ice at the location where all meridians converge, and the miracle that he performs is to somehow deliver all the toys to good little girls and boys all over the planet at Midnight on Christmas Eve.

Kids eventually discover that there is no Santa Claus, but it seems that recent generations of them retain the belief that, simply by existing, they will have goodies given to them. Their new benefactor is a different bearded old man, Uncle Sam in this instance.

Over the centuries, the Saint Nicholas who led the faithful when a belligerent, anti-Christian government that punished believers has been forgotten. Perhaps now is time for that aspect of his story to receive renewed attention.

Saint Nicholas was born in the third century, to an affluent family in Patara, a Greek city in the Roman province of Lycia, in modern-day Turkey.

Nicholas was a priest during the reign of Diocletian (reigned 286-305), an emperor who embarked upon a vigorous persecution of Christians in 305. Diocletian was succeeded in the eastern half of the Empire by Galerius (r. 305-311), who continued the persecution, although he issued an edict of toleration before he died.

It was in this era that Nicholas became bishop of Myra. His name, Nikolaos, is Greek for “Victor of the People,” apt for a time when Christians triumphed over the militantly secular authorities of the Roman state.

Being a man of no little wealth but of far from little charity, it was said that on one occasion, Nicholas tossed three bags of gold coins into the home of a man whose three daughters needed dowries if they were not to be forced into prostitution. It is said that this is the origin of the three gold balls that traditionally were hung over the doors to pawnshops. Another trinity-related story connected to Nicholas was that a butcher, wanting to profit from a famine, killed three men (or boys), then pickled and barreled them for sale. Nicholas saw through the crime, prayed, and the three were returned to life.

Nicholas became the patron saint of sailors. One story has him rescuing a sailor who fell from the rigging when he was on a voyage home from studies in Alexandria. Another has him praying for sailors on a vessel in shoal waters, saving them from being wrecked on the rocks.

Fast forward a dozen centuries and the Dutch were the leading seafaring nation of Europe. Despite their militant Calvinism, they seem to have retained a reverence for the patron saint of seamen. He was brought to New Netherland by colonists who continued to celebrate his feast day of December 6, the anniversary of his death.

The Dutch settlers and their English neighbors had an uneasy coexistence, one problem being communication.  The former, it seems, regarded their New England neighbors as being excessively cheap; they would charge a customer for anything, even cheese in a Bay Colony overstocked with cattle when the English Civil War slowed the migration on which farmers relied for profits. The Dutch nickname for the Puritans came across as something like John (Jan) Cheese, which became “Yankees.” And the Dutch name for St. Nicholas came across to the English as Sant Niklas, to become Santa Claus.

The Puritans may have had little inclination to celebrate the saint, but migrants to the later English province of New York were not similarly disposed. It was there that the gift-giving aspect of Santa took root. In Washington Irving’s partially accurate History of New York (1809), Santa arrives on horseback on the evening of December 6. The image proved popular, leaving Clement Clark Moore, a professor of Greek and Hebrew, to write “A Visit from St. Nicholas” for his family at Christmas, 1822. It was published anonymously shortly afterwards. Moore did not acknowledge his authorship until 1837.

The illustrator Thomas Nast, whose caricatures of drunken Irishmen and Boss Tweed appeared in the pages of Harper’s Weekly between the 1860s and 1880s, has Santa giving out presents to Union Army troops at Christmas, 1862. Nast’s pen produced several dozen images of Santa in this time, in the course of which Santa was given a shop for making toys which seems to have become located at the North Pole.

Fifty years after Nast, 1931 color magazine ads for Coca Cola gave us the image of Santa that we have today. In 1939, Rudolph, the Red-Nosed reindeer was given life by ads for Montgomery Ward.

Through a millennium and a half, then, Saint Nicholas has been transformed from a saintly priest of unknown stature, a charitable man who performed miracles. He has become a bearded, jolly old man in a red coat whose seasonal occupation is to seat little kids on his lap in shopping malls, there to encourage the parents to buy more toys than the little ones could ever need. The only known instance of defiance of this job requirement is that by the character portrayed by Edmund Gwenn in Miracle on 34th Street (1947).

Santa is said to make the toys at a shop that must lie atop Arctic Ocean ice at the location where all meridians converge, and the miracle that he performs is to somehow deliver all the toys to good little girls and boys all over the planet at Midnight on Christmas Eve.

Kids eventually discover that there is no Santa Claus, but it seems that recent generations of them retain the belief that, simply by existing, they will have goodies given to them. Their new benefactor is a different bearded old man, Uncle Sam in this instance.

Over the centuries, the Saint Nicholas who led the faithful when a belligerent, anti-Christian government that punished believers has been forgotten. Perhaps now is time for that aspect of his story to receive renewed attention.

via American Thinker

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Good Grief. Liberals Outraged After Customs and Border Protection Posts Playful Tweet About Santa Passing Through Border Legally

Customs and Border Protection outraged sensitive liberals on Christmas Eve with a playful tweet about Santa Claus passing through the US border legally.

The agency tagged NORAD, who tracks Santa for kids to follow on his journey delivering presents around the world.

“Santa, his reindeer and all of the presents have been cleared by CBP for entry into the United States!” CBP’s tweet read, along with a photo of Father Christmas at the border.

Naturally, the backlash from the joyless left was swift and fierce.

Thousands of people tweeted their disdain at the agency, despite it being Christmas Eve.

Anarchist Teen Vogue columnist Kim Kelly wrote “holiday-themed fascism is still fascism.”

Many of the hostile responses came from current or former BuzzFeed staff.

If CBP was intending to troll the heck out of the left, they did a masterful job.

The post Good Grief. Liberals Outraged After Customs and Border Protection Posts Playful Tweet About Santa Passing Through Border Legally appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

via The Gateway Pundit

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