Christmas

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Two Bad Santas Rob Supermarket
Two Bad Santas
Rob Supermarket
Dec 23, 2010 1:56 PM CST

Two Bad Santas Rob Supermarket

They spoke not a word—except to demand cash from the register

(Newser) - This is not how the Christmas story's supposed to go: Two men in Santa costumes robbed a supermarket in Berlin, reports Reuters . The men showed up with red coats and beards, and, when asked to remove their costumes, produced pistols and demanded all the cash from the register. They got...

Let's Stop Lecturing Once-a-Year Churchgoers
Let's Stop Lecturing
Once-a-Year Churchgoers
OPINION
Dec 23, 2010 10:05 AM CST

Let's Stop Lecturing Once-a-Year Churchgoers

Reverend: Instead, we should celebrate they're still coming

(Newser) - The Rev. Scott Black Johnston knows his church will be packed tomorrow night with people who attend only once a year at Christmastime. But he's not bemoaning the fact—he's celebrating it, especially in an age where more young people than ever claim no faith. "Instead of wagging our...

Iraqi Christians Cancel Christmas
Iraqi Christians
Cancel Christmas
Dec 23, 2010 7:49 AM CST

Iraqi Christians Cancel Christmas

Al-Qaeda threatens more violence against the beleaguered minority

(Newser) - Iraq's Christian leaders have canceled Christmas services and urged worshippers not to decorate their homes this year after they received fresh threats from al-Qaeda in Iraq on Tuesday. Even an appearance by Santa Claus was called off, reports the AP . "Nobody can ignore the threats of al-Qaeda against Iraqi...

Dear Santa: I Want a Diarrhea to Write in, Happy Terrorists
Dear Santa: I Want Happy Terrorists, Dad to Come Home
kids' christmas wishes
Dec 23, 2010 2:22 AM CST

Dear Santa: I Want Happy Terrorists, Dad to Come Home

Veteran Claus reveals kids' secret desires

(Newser) - A 28-year veteran of the Santa Claus role has finally revealed in a blog what we already knew: Kids can be hilarious and heartbreaking. But he's got some perfect tales to illustrate it. Beyond the expected requests for the latest Barbie and video game, kids have whispered into Santa Carl...

Antoine Debuts 'Chimney Intruder'
Antoine Debuts
'Chimney Intruder'
Dec 22, 2010 2:04 AM CST

Antoine Debuts 'Chimney Intruder'

He's snatchin' up yo cookies

(Newser) - There's another intruder in Antoine Dodson's neighborhood and this time he's after the eggnog. Dodson—whose "Bed Intruder" song was YouTube's biggest hit of the year —debuted his "Chimney Intruder" song on Lopez Tonight, Gawker reports. "Hide your gifts, hide your trees," advises Dodson, who...

Lady Gaga Stomps Santa Claus
Lady Gaga Stomps
Santa Claus
Dec 20, 2010 2:05 AM CST

Lady Gaga Stomps Santa Claus

'I hate the holidays,' says concert shock mistress

(Newser) - Is nothing sacred, Lady Gaga? Apparently not. Poor Santa Claus took a stiletto heel to the head at the singer's Monsterball London concert, reports the Telegraph . Someone tossed the small stuffed Santa onto the stage and Gaga first tried to bite its head off, à la Ozzy Osbourne. But the...

Senate's Fight Over Christmas Schedule Still Going

'Sacrilegious,' says Jim DeMint; 'Sanctimonious,' says Harry Reid

(Newser) - The Senate may be too busy to get done everything it needs to get done by Christmas, but senators aren't too busy to argue about working the holiday. Today's latest, from Politico :
  • Jim DeMint: “We shouldn’t be jamming a major arms control treaty up against Christmas; it’s
...

How We Got 10 Bizarre Christmas Traditions

There wasn't always a Rudolph

(Newser) - Why do we kiss under the mistletoe? Hang stockings? Christmas is a time of tradition, but where did it all start? Here is a list of 10 strange beginnings to common Christmas traditions.
  1. Decorating Christmas trees—Most people credit Martin Luther with starting the tradition. Inspired by the sight of
...

Reid: Senate Can Work Past Christmas

GOP accuses Reid of dissing holiday

(Newser) - Senators dreaming of Christmas turkey should be thinking more about lame duck, Harry Reid warns. The majority leader says that after the tax cut deal is passed, he wants to address the START treaty, the DREAM Act, health care for 9/11 first responders, and the Don't Ask Don't Tell repeal,...

Megachurch Targets 'Grinch Stores' That Ignore Christmas

Baptist pastor won't tolerate 'minority voices'

(Newser) - A Dallas megachurch is getting downright Black Peter and landing like a ton of coal on stores that aren't celebrating Christmas. "Politically correct" establishments shying away from the Christian holiday get no peace and goodwill from the First Baptist Church . Instead, Pastor Robert Jeffress has launched a " Grinch...

Macy's Santa Claus Canned for Naughty Joke

Union Square Santa was legendary in San Francisco, had gig for 20 years

(Newser) - John Toomey has been telling the same mischievous joke to his adult visitors for the 20 years he's been playing Santa Claus at a San Francisco Macy's—but this year, it got him fired. "When I ask the older people who sit on my lap if they've been good...

Facebook May Kill Christmas Letters
 Facebook May Kill 
 Christmas Letters 
OPINION
Dec 5, 2010 11:54 AM CST

Facebook May Kill Christmas Letters

... but there's a way to save them

(Newser) - As Francine Kiefer sat down to write her annual Christmas letter this year, it struck her that friends and family already knew all the stuff she was putting down on paper—courtesy of Facebook. Looks like the days of this annual rite might be numbered, she laments in the Christian ...

Christmas Caroling: Quaint Tradition Begun By Drunks

Also, Santa? Didn't start out being so jolly

(Newser) - Cheerful church groups love Christmas caroling, but the tradition was actually started by a bunch of lushes. Back when "Christmas" was actually a celebration of the winter solstice, poor carolers would go from house to house singing ... and also threatening to break windows if they were not plied with...

Merry Christmas! Jersey Billboard Takes on God

Atheists battle Catholics in ad war

(Newser) - Just in time for Christmas ... a giant New Jersey billboard is challenging the existence of God. "You know it's a myth," says the atheist ad that appears over the entrance to the Lincoln Tunnel, featuring an image of the Magi traveling to a nativity scene. "This season,...

'12 Days of Christmas' Gifts Will Cost You $97K

Gold prices push the cost of 5 rings to $650

(Newser) - If your true love gives you everything from 12 drummers drumming to a partridge in a pear tree this year, he or she will have shelled out $96,824. That’s up 10.8% from last year, the AP reports. High gold prices pushed the cost of five gold rings...

Christmas Is Here... Way Too Early

Six signs that the holiday season has gotten too impatient

(Newser) - It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas ... even though we're not yet past Thanksgiving. The Week pores through local papers to find six tales of Christmas coming too early this year:
  • It's never too early for eggnog lattes: In Seattle , at least one Starbucks started selling seasonal drinks right
...

'Christmas' Saviors: We're Winning the War

This year, Dick's Sporting Goods is target of boycott

(Newser) - Dick's Sporting Goods gets the unlucky honor of being this year's villain in the “War on Christmas” campaign. The American Family Association has singled it out for a boycott this holiday season because the chain is “against” the holiday, reports Advertising Age . One of its offenses is having...

Town Wants All 145K Residents in Holiday Card

Naperville, Illinois, hoping to squeeze everyone into a photo

(Newser) - The town of Naperville, Ill., has some pretty grand plans for this year's holiday card: It wants every single resident—that's 145,000 people—to appear on it. The town's mayor has invited the Chicago suburb's residents to pose for a photo next Friday at a time very convenient for...

Psst, Santa, Kids Want Tech, Not Toys

iPhones, iPads trump traditional wishes

(Newser) - Forget Barbie and GI Joe—Christmas lists these days are much more likely to be topped by an iPhone or iPad, the Telegraph reports. The iPhone 4, iPod Touch, and iPad were the top three most desired toys, according to the latest Duracell Toy Report. The report, ironically enough, features...

Abortion Storm Erupts Over 'Ultrasound' Jesus Ad

Fetus with halo is 'pro-life,' charge critics

(Newser) - With 197 days left until Christmas, a planned holiday ad showing Jesus in the womb has triggered a new abortion controversy in Britain. The "Ultrasound Jesus" ad, set to appear on billboards in December, shows a fetus with a halo and announces: "He's on his way: Christmas starts...

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