Christmas

Blue Xmas: A Christmas Carol For Cynics, Skeptics, And Other Swingin’ Realists

Posted by on December 25, 2016 at 12:46 pm. 1 Comments :

In this alleged season of joy, Christians around the world celebrate the birth of their savior. In his honor they profess to engage in selfless acts of compassion and generosity. It’s a spiritual doctrine that would be even more beautiful if it was actually carried out by all of those who purport to believe in it. Sadly, some of the most vocal vicars of faith actually do more to obstruct these hallowed principles.

Blue Xmas

For example, there are radical Christianist Republicans who sow hatred and mistrust of anyone who they deem unfit to enjoy America’s gift of freedom. This year the unfortunates included Syrian refugees, Mexican immigrants, and a broad array of liberals and Democrats. And the apostates at Fox News continued to wage their annual “War on Christmas.” It’s their call to arms against the recognition of an inclusive holiday season.

America also elected Donald Trump, a greedy, lustful, gluttonous, wrath-filled, narcissist who insists that he has never had to seek God’s forgiveness because he’s never done anything to necessitate it. As long as you don’t count his three marriages, serial infidelity, fraudulent businesses, and incessant self-aggrandizement. And his devotion to the holidays is evident in the promise he makes to the disciples at his rallies. He says that “If I become president, we’re all going to be saying ‘Merry Christmas’ again.” It’s that 1930’s style totalitarianism that makes him think he can decide what we are ALL going to say.

So in the spirit of the season, we present a musical gift for the forsaken and forlorn. This is for all of those who are not huddled around a dead tree today, buried in colorfully wrapped packages. It’s for the cynics who won’t accept the notion that the birth of an alleged savior is an excuse to exchange material goods or fruitcakes that nobody likes. It is for outcasts and rebels and nonbelievers who are puzzled by the greed and commercialism that permeates the season. And yes, it’s for those who still believe that peace and goodwill are morally superior to profit and oppression. Here is Miles Davis and Bob Dorough performing the heartwarming traditional Christmas ballad Blue Xmas:

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

Blue Xmas: A Christmas Carol For Cynics, Skeptics, And Other Swingin’ Realists

Posted by on December 25, 2015 at 10:57 am. 2 Comments :

Christmas is celebrated all over the world as a season that embodies the hopes for peace and the desires of people to share their compassion and generosity with all of humanity. It’s a beautiful concept that, unfortunately, is not carried out by all of those who purport to believe in it. And some of the most vocal vicars of faith actually do more to obstruct these principles by fomenting wars, both literal and figurative.

For instance, the radical Christianist Republicans who sow hatred and mistrust of anyone who they deem unfit to enjoy America’s gift of freedom (i.e. Syrians, Mexicans, Democrats). And, of course, the apostates at Fox News whose annual “War on Christmas” is a call to arms against the celebration of an inclusive holiday season.

Fox News Scary Christmas

So for all of those who are not huddled around a dead tree today or digging through piles of colorfully wrapped packages looking for the ones addressed to you; for the cynics who won’t accept the notion that the birth of an alleged savior is an excuse to exchange material goods or fruitcakes that nobody likes; for outcasts and rebels and nonbelievers who are puzzled by the greed and commercialism of a season that is sold as one of peace and goodwill — Here is Miles Davis and Bob Dorough performing the heartwarming traditional Christmas ballad Blue Xmas:

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

* * * H A P P Y * H O L I D A Y S * * *

Merry (War On) Christmas From A World Without Rupert Murdoch

Posted by on December 24, 2015 at 4:20 pm. NO Comments :

The classic film, “It’s A Wonderful Life,” has become a tradition in the holiday season. And despite the attempts by Fox News to wage a divisive and exclusionary war that pits Americans against one another for merely offering different versions of the season’s greetings, the movie’s message continues to uplift each new generation of viewers.

Wonderful Life

But the film was not always so well received. In fact, during the “Red Scare” in the late 1940’s the notorious anti-communist persecution conducted by that era’s Tea Party Congress had labeled the film as commie propaganda. A 1947 FBI memorandum alleged that…

“…the film represented a rather obvious attempt to discredit bankers by casting Lionel Barrymore as a ‘scrooge-type’ so that he would be the most hated man in the picture. This, according to these sources, is a common trick used by Communists.”

It seems like satire now, but they were deadly serious (unlike Jimmy Kimmel’s Mr. Potter and the Commies of Bedford Falls). What these pathetically inept film reviewers apparently failed to notice was that the film’s hero, George Bailey, was also a banker (as head of Bailey Bros. Building and Loan) – just not a greedy, insensitive, and criminally corrupt one like the villainous Mr. Potter. And the lesson he learned in the course of the story was that he had made a difference in the lives of those he touched, and that they reciprocated in kind.

The heartwarming notion that the world would be worse off without the likes of George Bailey still makes eyes moist and brings families together in appreciation of their good fortune. However, in a re-telling of the “Wonderful Life” by comedians Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie, the fate is very different for the arch-conservative media baron, Rupert Murdoch. So, in what is becoming a Christmas tradition for News Corpse, here is Fry & Laurie’s profound and hilarious production of “It’s A Soaraway Life,” which looks at what the world would be like if Rupert Murdoch had never been born.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

The Bestest, Most Honest Christmas Carol Ever

Posted by on December 24, 2014 at 7:26 pm. NO Comments :

For all of those who are not huddled around a dead tree this evening or digging through piles of colorfully wrapped packages looking for the ones addressed to you; for the cynics who won’t accept the notion that the birth of an alleged savior is an excuse to exchange material goods or fruitcakes that nobody likes; for outcasts and rebels and nonbelievers who are puzzled by the greed and commercialism of a season that is sold as one of peace and goodwill…Here is snippet from the classic Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens:

Christmas Carol

And here is Miles Davis and Bob Dorough performing the heartwarming traditional Christmas ballad Blue Xmas:

* * * H A P P Y * H O L I D A Y S * * *

A News Corpse Christmas Carol

Posted by on December 24, 2011 at 3:21 pm. 2 Comments :

Here’s something to think about on this holiday from the Ghost of Christmas Past, Jacob Marley, who learned too late that there were more important things than business:

“Mankind was my business. The common welfare was my business; charity, mercy, forbearance, and benevolence, were, all, my business. The dealings of my trade were but a drop of water in the comprehensive ocean of my business!”

Jacob Marley

Happy Holidays,
News Corpse

Media Matters: Bill O’Reilly Covers The War On Christmas More Than Actual Wars

Posted by on December 22, 2011 at 4:49 pm. 3 Comments :

Media Matters reviewed the content of Bill O’Reilly’s December programming and discovered something that reveals the truth about his long-standing “War on Christmas.”

“Every year, ‘Culture Warrior’ Bill O’Reilly devotes considerable time on his Fox News show to the ‘War on Christmas.’ This December, O’Reilly has covered the imaginary ‘War on Christmas’ more than three times as much as the actual wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.“

Bill O'Reilly's Christmas

That should tell you something about O’Reilly’s priorities. But it’s not really a revelation about his sanctimonious persona and fixation on pretending that Christmas is under attack.

If Christmas actually was at risk from clandestine secular-progressives bent on deposing Santa, O’Reilly would be amongst those responsible. His own concept of Christmas is a perverse vision of greed and consumerism. This is how he expresses the meaning of Christmas:

“Every company in America should be on its knees thanking Jesus for being born. Without Christmas, most American businesses would be far less profitable.”

Heartwarming isn’t it? It’s a sentiment that just oozes with the season’s warmth, joy, and humanity. He seems to believe that Christ died on the cross for your net receipts and a favorable business environment. That’s a far cry from the guy who threw the moneychangers out of the temple.

O’Reilly is not much of an advocate of the values that Christmas represents to so many Americans. Neither is he much of an advocate for those who are burdened with fighting real wars. His idea of supporting the troops is sending them free copies of his unreadable books.

The Annual Fox News Tradition Of Bashing The Obama’s Holiday Greeting

Posted by on December 19, 2011 at 4:07 pm. 7 Comments :

It’s that time of year again. The time when winter’s chill nips at your nose and poinsettia blooms abound. The time when children’s laughter echos through the streets and families come together for joyous feasts. And the time when Fox News lambastes the President and his family for not celebrating the holiday in the manner that they think good American, Christian, patriots ought to.

Fox Nation Christmas

What would the season be without Fox News dredging up this absurd and insulting story as they do every year? It is a tradition that really makes the holiday complete. And this year it is extra special because they brighten it with the cheerful words of Sarah Palin who calls the Obama’s holiday greeting “odd” and “strange,” and, in the spirit of the season, she complains that it doesn’t reflect the…

“…American foundational values illustrated and displayed on Christmas cards and on a Christmas tree. […] It’s just a different way of thinking coming out of the White House.”

Indeed, the current residents of the White House are so “different” than the rest of us. They look different and think different and pray different, but mostly look different. And they express their warm wishes to the nation differently than other “normal” presidents like, for instance, George W. Bush, whose Holiday greetings also didn’t mention Christmas:

Click to enlarge:

Along with the Bush family, Rupert Murdoch declined to mention Christmas in his greeting to the tens of thousands of people who work for him. And Fox News itself aired “Holiday” greetings to their television viewers.

But the cherished holiday tradition of bashing a family for choosing to include people of all faiths (or none) in their hopes for joy and peace and well being, is reserved only for the Obamas. It’s that special treatment Fox saves for those they hate during this season of love.

[Addendum] To complete the hypocrisy, Fox has unveiled their own Christmas card that Palin might also consider lacking the “American foundational values.” In fact, it is downright mean-spirited as it delivers a message of competition and acrimony.

Fox News Christmas Card

The card mockingly depicts the Fox sled (drawn appropriately by sheep) as winning the race against ABC, NBC, and CBS. What a heartwarming tribute to the birth of their savior, a man of peace and acceptance, who beseeched his followers to love their enemies. And in addition to being self-serving and tasteless, the card is also a barefaced lie. The highest rated program on Fox News (The O’Reilly Factor) has about half the audience of the the lowest rated network news program (CBS Evening News). So the Fox sled should be in the rear, if they cared about telling the truth.

What If Rupert Murdoch Had Never Been Born?

Posted by on July 13, 2011 at 10:42 am. 1 Comments :

Inspired by the classic film “It’s A Wonderful Life,” British comics Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie take a look at the world if Rupert Murdoch had never been born:

Click here to call on Congress to investigate News Corp’s hacking practices and whether they are doing it in the U.S.

Click here to call on the Justice Department to investigate whether Rupert Murdoch is violating the law.

To Fox News, Christmas Is Just Another Day to Make Money

Posted by on December 25, 2010 at 3:03 pm. 6 Comments :

If you visit the Fox News web site today (Christmas) you will find a featured editorial by regular Fox contributor Cal Thomas titled: To the NBA, Christmas Is Just Another Day to Make Money. Thomas leads off his article by saying…

“This Christmas the NBA has seen fit to schedule five, count them, five games on Christmas Day.”

Thomas’ outrage needs to be tempered with a little reality. The NBA has been scheduling games on Christmas day for more than fifty years. And if broadcasting on Christmas is some sort of affront to Jesus, is Thomas just as offended by his own network, Fox News, which has not gone dark for the holiday? Nor has Fox Entertainment, FX, Fox Sports, or the Fox Nation online that also faulted the NBA’s scheduling:


As if that weren’t bad enough, Thomas went on to advocate for the reinstatement of “blue laws,” a repressive legal relic that prohibited most forms of commerce on Sundays and religious holidays. Thomas would have us return to the days of prohibition, scarlet letters, and witch burnings.

Thomas ought to put a little more thought behind his screeds. If he is going to object to the NBA conducting its business on Christmas, he is either going to have to include himself and Fox News or shut his hypocritical, judgmental mouth.

Fox News Escalates The War On Christmas

Posted by on December 15, 2010 at 2:48 pm. 6 Comments :

For the past several years at this time, Fox News has made certain that Christmas was the time of year that all good Americans shun everyone who isn’t Christian. From Sarah Palin to Glenn Beck to Neil Cavuto, the call to reject such inclusive greetings as “Happy Holidays” is heard throughout the Fox News village. Bill O’Reilly, as usual, is at the forefront of the battle. And you know that he understands the meaning of Christmas because he articulates it so well:

“Every company in America should be on its knees thanking Jesus for being born. Without Christmas, most American businesses would be far less profitable.”

Heartwarming, isn’t it? O’Reilly’s gratitude for the birth of his savior isn’t due to the gift of eternal life. It’s for the prospect of higher profits. His Jesus would have invited the moneychangers into the temple.

I’m sure that O’Reilly’s wrath will be suitably deployed when he hears that Fox News has joined the Pagan hordes who insult Jesus by taking Christ out of Christmas. During today’s broadcast of Fox & Friends they brazenly wished their viewers a happy holiday.


It was just last week that Fox & Friends hostess Gretchen Carlson berated the city of Tulsa, Oklahoma for changing the name of their Christmas parade to the Holiday Parade of Lights. And Fox & Friends recently featured a story about Grinch Alert, a web site from the First Baptist Church of Dallas that tracks businesses who say “Holiday” instead of “Christmas.” You can go to the Grinch Alert site now and enter Fox News as “Naughty” for perpetuating the evil of a “holiday” celebration.

For the record, Fox doesn’t get credit for initiating the war on Christmas. In 1921 Henry Ford published a virulently anti-Semitic tract titled “The International Jew” in which he wrote…

“The whole record of the Jewish opposition to Christmas, Easter and other Christian festivals, and their opposition to certain patriotic songs, shows the venom and directness of [their] attack…And it has become pretty general. Last Christmas most people had a hard time finding Christmas cards that indicated in any way that Christmas commemorated Someone’s Birth.”

Sound familiar? And the right-wingers on Fox and elsewhere owe a debt to the John Birch Society for waging this seasonal war and injecting the scent of red-baiting into it for good measure. Their 1959 pamphlet titled “There Goes Christmas?!” warned that…

“One of the techniques now being applied by the Reds to weaken the pillar of religion in our country is the drive to take Christ out of Christmas – to denude the event of its religious meaning.”

And if that doesn’t bring the warmth of the season home, I don’t know what to say. Except Happy Holidays.



[Update:] Once again Rupert Murdoch sent a memo to all employees wishing them a happy “holiday.” Why does he hate Jesus?