Washington, DC—October 3, 1863

The year that is drawing toward its close has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added which are of so extraordinary a nature that they can not fail to penetrate and soften even the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever-watchful providence of Almighty God.

In the midst of a civil war of unequaled magnitude and severity, which has sometimes seemed to foreign states to invite and to provoke their aggression, peace has been preserved with all nations, order has been maintained, the laws have been respected and obeyed, and harmony has prevailed everywhere, except in the theater of military conflict, while that theater has been greatly contracted by the advancing armies and navies of the Union.

Needful diversions of wealth and of strength from the fields of peaceful industry to the national defense have not arrested the plow, the shuttle, or the ship; the ax has enlarged the borders of our settlements, and the mines, as well as the iron and coal as of our precious metals, have yielded even more abundantly than heretofore. Population has steadily increased notwithstanding the waste that has been made in the camp, the siege, and the battlefield, and the country, rejoicing in the consciousness of augmented strength and vigor, is permitted to expect continuance of years with large increase of freedom.

No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy.

It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently, and gratefully acknowledged, as with one heart and one voice, by the whole American people. I do therefore invite my fellow-citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next as a day of thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the heavens. And I recommend to them that while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliverances and blessings they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to His tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners, or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the imposition of the Almighty hand to heal the wounds of the nation and to restore it, as soon as may be consistent with the divine purpose, to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquillity, and union.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.

Abraham Lincoln

The chorus of Pete’s latest tune stresses that “God’s counting on me … God’s counting on you”.  But I will let the great protest singer’s music speak for itself.  It’s a toe-tapping song that will make you want to sing along ….

Most Americans will likely respond with a puzzled look caused by lack of understanding of the governmental structure of our northern neighbor.

The Governor General is the Head of State and representative of the Queen.  This is a mostly ceremonial position that has no policy role.

There is a Facebook  page set up to promote Shatner for Governor General which is quoted as saying:

“It’s time for Canada to boldly go where no country has gone before,” notes a nearly 10,000-strong Facebook fan page that supports the idea.

“Imagine Mr. Shatner reading the speech from the throne in that classic Captain Kirk style we have all come to know and love.” http://www.torontosun.com/entertainment/celebrities/2010/04/21/13663616.html

Speculation about who will fill the shoes of Michaelle Jean has been intensifying across Canada since it was reported Prime Minister Stephen Harper would not be extending her term as governor general.  Viewers of the Vancouver BC Olympics might recall Jean’s ceremonial role in the opening and closing events.

While some insiders believe the new appointment might not happen until the fall, others believe a new governor general could be appointed as early as July 1. This would allow the Queen herself to swear in the new governor general during her nine-day tour of Canada, slated to start June 28.

What does Shatner himself have to say about this proposed career move?  Is he interested — or too busy being the “Price Line Negotiator”?

Shatner took to social-networking site Twitter on recently to address the idea.

“I’m being drafted by various groups to run for Governor General. Would they accept me if I campaign for salmons’ rights? My best, Bill,” he wrote to nearly 250,000 followers.

But only a year ago, Shatner dismissed the idea out of hand, arguing he never liked the idea of symbolic power, opting instead for the real thing: Shatner for prime minister.

In a February 2009 post on YouTube, Shatner said that while prime minister was an attractive position, he simply didn’t have the time.

“Governor general is a ceremonial role. I didn’t want to be ceremonial, I wanted to be active.” he says in the video. “I’m part of Canada.”

“But no time to be prime minister.”

However, Canadians polled about the possibility were definitely receptive to the idea.

Canadian news site TheMarkNews.com ran an unofficial poll gauging support for 13 would-be governors general.  Shatner led the race with a commanding 43% of the vote.  Rick Hansen trailed a distant second at 11%, with Leonard Cohen in third at 10%.

The Dance of the Snowflakes …

The Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy …

And some of the most lushly romantic music Tchaikovsky ever wrote ….

And just what would these songs be that are so…oooo very “important” that every student in the US of A should give voice or ear to?   Not what you would think.

Anyone assuming that these preferred songs would be “America the Beautiful”, “God Bless America,” “The Star Spangled Banner” or even “This Land Is My Land” would be totally wrong. After all, one or the other of these tunes is heard already at every professional sports game and NASCAR event, and usually at every political rally, too. So it is not overtly patriotic songs that these so-called patriots are concerned about.

What, then, could be so important that a law is needed to make sure they are part of the educational experience of every American school child?

Why that would be CHRISTMAS CAROLS!!! The folks who say they are in favor of limited government want to make sure that every American school child has Christmas carols! Not solstice songs, not Hanukkah songs, not Kwanzaa songs, not Divali songs, not Eid songs, not Wiccan songs, not Native American winter songs – nothing from the seasonal traditions of many (non-Christian) Americans – no, it has to be Christmas carols.

In a stunning display of ignorance of winter traditions other than her own, one California Tea Party “leader” publicly embraced the idea of legally mandating Christmas carols for public school students. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/12/10/merry-hyatt-tea-party-pat_n_387408.html

“Bottom line is Christmas is about Christmas,” said Erin Ryan, president of the Redding Tea Party Patriots. “That’s why we have it. It’s not about winter solstice or Kwanzaa. It’s like, ‘Wow you guys, it’s called Christmas for a reason.’ “

The proposed California law is the brainchild of Tea Party activist and substitute teacher Merry Hyatt and is called “Freedom to Present Christmas Music in Public School Classrooms or Assemblies” initiative.

One factor that these Tea Party “patriots” seem to have overlooked is the U.S. Constitution: in particular, the First Amendment in the Bill of Rights, which reads:

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof….”

Using taxpayer money to support a particular religious view is prohibited under the First Amendment establishment clause. Any proposal to spend taxpayer dollars to foist Christmas carols on American school children would therefore be clearly unconstitutional.

Have any of these so-called Tea Party “patriots” actually read the U.S. Constitution? Do they even know what’s actually in it? Did they sleep through high school Civics class?

In addition, it would be a good idea for them to bone up on the origins of the Christmas tree, wreaths and other holiday paraphernalia that are rooted pagan (pre-Christian) traditions. Skeeter Sanders does an excellent analysis of the 5,000-year-old traditions that have become associated with Christmas in the U.S. http://seminal.firedoglake.com/diary/20043

Christmas has never been — and will never be — a Christian-only celebration and the time has come for Christian conservatives to stop denying the holiday’s true origins, for it didn’t start with the birth of Jesus in a Bethlehem stable. The truth is, the holiday the world celebrates each year on the 25th of December pre-dates the birth of Jesus by tens of thousands of years.

Indeed, it is the most ancient holiday on the planet.

What we now call Christmas is actually the Christian adaptation of the many millennia-old Pagan celebrations of the winter solstice. With the notable exception of the Nativity creche, all of the symbols and decorations that we associate today with Christmas — the tree, the wreath, the holly and the ivy, the lights, the mistletoe, the eggnog, the Yule log, the caroling and even Santa Claus — are of Pagan origin and have nothing to do with the birth of Jesus.

Sanders also points out one fact that the Tea Partyers would probably find most disturbing: the name of the holiday they call “Christmas” varies around the world:

Indeed, the very word “Christmas,” with its direct reference to Jesus as “The Christ” — which is derived from the Greek word kristos, or “savior” — is almost exclusive to English-speakers. In only nine other languages — Dutch (Kerstfeest), Farsi (Cristmas-e-shoma), French (Noel), Greek (Kristouyenna), Indonesian (Natal), Italian (Natale), Portuguese (Natal), Spanish (Navidad) and Ukranian(Khrystouvym) — does the name of this holiday come even close to referring to the birth of the Christ child.

I suppose “War on Noel” or “War on  Navidad” just doesn’t have the same ring to it for the Tea Party crowd. Plus they would then have to insist on people saying “Joyeux Noel” or “Feliz Navidad” – just like those darn “furriners” do.

A Blessing for the New Year
BEANNACHT

On the day when
The weight deadens
On your shoulders
And you stumble
May the clay dance
To balance you

And when your eyes
Freeze behind
The gray window
And the ghost of loss
Gets into you,
May a flock of colors,
Indigo, red, green
And azure blue,
Come to awaken in you
A meadow of delight.

When the canvas frays
In the curragh of thought
And a stain of ocean
Blackens beneath you,
May there come across the waters
A path of yellow moonlight
To bring you safely home.

May the nourishment of the earth be yours,
May the clarity of light be yours,
May the protection of the ancestors be yours.

And may a slow
Wind work these words
Of love around you,
An invisible cloak
To mind your life.

…from To Bless the Space Between Us: A Book of Blessings, Doubleday, 2008 by John O’Donohue
If you would like to hear the words of this blessing spoken with a lovely Irish accent by the poet himself, here is a link to a youtube recording:

Ed. Note:  Curragh is a small Irish sailing ship

Boyle’s CD sales were the largest number sold in 2009, beating out the record-holder Eminem and other artists such as U2. She also has the largest ever sales debut for a female artist, a feat which is remarkable considering where Boyle came from and the fact that almost all of her sales were actual CDs. Only 40,000 digital downloads of her album were purchased on iTunes last week, in contrast to the previous week’s number one, John Mayer’s Battle Studies, in which almost half of his sales were digital.

In contrast Sarah Palin’s  Going Rogue sold 469,000 books right out of the gate, aided by massive bulk purchases by the NewsMax website, where it is offered for just $4.97 as a premium with a 3-month subscription.  This is despite all the advance promotion by Harper Collins and the glitzy “bus” tour featuring the former Alaskan Governor and her entourage.      http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20091125/FREE/911259991

Going Rogue, the memoir by the 2008 Republican vice presidential candidate, topped the list of Nielsen BookScan’s best selling books for the week of Nov. 16. But while its first-week sales figure of 469,000 copies beat out the sales numbers for James Patterson and Stephen King, it couldn’t topple the top dog.

Former President Clinton’s 2004 memoir My Life sold 606,000 copies its first week on sale.

So it appears that Susan comes out the winner here.  And I predict that Susan’s CD will have more “shelf life” than Sarah’s book — bringing aural delight to fans around the world long after Going Rogue is a dusty curiosity in the bargain bin.