Barack Obama does not give birthday presents to children

While businesses have tried to turn Christmas, Birthdays, Weddings, ect., into being all about consumerism, that isn't why you give gifts on Birthdays, or at Christmas time. People who celebrate this way, give people presents to show that they care for the person. Small personal gifts are ussually more effective than big showy gifts. All the haters who love to pile on Americans seem to put a lot of effort in keeping their heads up their rears on these matters. Not all Americans are crass consumers, and that isn't what makes Obama's choice not to give his kids presents on their birthday odd, considering they live in a mansion, and probably have bedrooms stuffed with material possesions.

Muslims make it a point not to give people presents on their birthday. If a present is given, it will be before or after the actual birthday.

Some people have weird hang ups about giving gifts, because it requires a certain amount of effort on the part of the giver. The real point is about people making an effort to make the gesture of giving a gift. The Obama's choice not to buy presents on birthdays and at Christmas time, while holding elaborate expensive sleepovers is extremely strange.

Like too many other things with Obama, his explanation doesn't hold water, and comes from an elitist attitude. It's more holier than thou BS.

I'm gonna have to agree with Solo on this one.
I am not an Obama supporter, but I don't think that the lack of "gift giving" is a valid reason to suspect something. I think it simply means.......well......his kids may learn to value a dollar. How's your debt btw?

Madness. I beginning to believe that you deserved Bush.
What is the big problem with difference. So to you nuts, a candidate should ressemble the typical american ?
Well, that says something about america. Baaaaaaa ! Lets be afraid of things that are different !
And goes far in explaining your country's agressive and intolerant stances toward the rest of this planet.
Patriotism at this degree is pretty ugly. And leads to obvious stupidity. Use your brains people... Put things into perspective.
Birthday presents have nothing to do with politics. But your sold out media have sucessfully brainwashed you into believing so.
Congrats ! If this is a valid sample of how the american people think, then we can't be very far away from another world war. After all, "all those other countries are pretty weird. Most of them don't give birthday presents to their kids. Better nuke'em just to be on the safe side."
Jesus.

reply to post by Ismail

So to you nuts, a candidate should ressemble the typical american ? Well, that says something about america. Baaaaaaa ! Lets be afraid of things that are different !

You should apply this concept to the Middle East. U.S. soldiers should not be in Iraq because they do not resemble the typical Iraqi? Israel should not exist, because it is ran by people with different religious beliefs than the typical Muslim.

reply to post by Ismail

Patriotism at this degree is pretty ugly. And leads to obvious stupidity. Use your brains people... Put things into perspective.

Gee, this also should be applied towards Iraq. The U.S. rescued Iraqis from a brutal dictator at incredible expense, and then extablishes a representative government for the people of Iraq, once again at an incredible expense to the people of the U.S.. Are the people of Iraq grateful? No, because the U.S. is a foriegn country, and the people of the Middle East are so Islamic centrist, so loyal to the faith of Islam, so patriotic in their nationalism, that they can not accept help from a country like the U.S. in ousting a brutal dictator.

Israel is the only country in the Middle East that has developed a level of technology that drives its economy, while all the other Middle Eastern nations economies depend completely on oil, a finite export that they are starting to run out of. If Middle Easterners were not so nationalistic, so patriotic that they must demand an independent Muslim state, then they might be able to learn something from the people of Israel, and learn how to develop the technology necessary to carry their economies once the oil is gone.

reply to post by Shugo


As has been pointed out by many on the thread, if the Obama's are spending thousands on sleepovers as they said they are, they aren't teaching any valuable lessons about how to spend money to their children. Just the opposite, spending money on parties is just throwing the money away, while purchasing goods with money, gives someone something that they can use over and over again.

Let me show you the value of a dollar honey, I'll drop a $1000 on a pajama party. Yeah, great lesson.

Originally posted by drumist69
Okay, I guess I'm the green-skinned alien, then. Seriously, Do you really want a guy you feel comfy hanging at a back-yard BBQ with running things? Is that the criterion?

I don't know if that's a criterion so to speak, at least conciously. I would like to vote for somebody I can at least relate to. Obama strikes me as elitist and arrogant and somebody I would avoid in my day to day life. I'd much rather have an intelligent "common man" run the country.

Originally posted by BlueTriangle
Obama strikes me as elitist and arrogant and somebody I would avoid in my day to day life.

Oh! Good talking points!

Hey, guess what! Birthday celebrations and gift-giving have their origins in Pagan roots and cult worship of other gods in Iran!

Shame on Obama for not worshiping the ancient Persian god of Mithras with his poor little girls! That makes baby Mithras cry!

The History of Birthday Celebration

It is thought the large-scale celebration of birthdays in Europe began with the non-Christian cult of Mithras, which originated in Persia, and was spread by soldiers throughout the Roman Empire. Such celebrations were uncommon previously

What's "Mithras"?

The Mithraic Mysteries or Mysteries of Mithras (also Mithraism) was a mystery religion based on the worship of Mithra, the Persian god of the sun, justice, contract, and war in pre-Zoroastrian Iran

The History of Birthday Gifts

Beginning perhaps as early as Roman times, traditions were taken from other, often pagan, celebrations and applied to celebrating an individual’s birthday. But, like other holidays, religion influenced these traditions, and Christianity introduced the calendar of saints, which associated each day with a saint or martyr. This calendar led to the custom of individuals taking for his or her baptismal or confirmation name the name of the saint honored on his or her day of birth. Thus, even today, some Catholics celebrate the saint on his or her “name day” rather than celebrating a “birth day” and some Jehovah’s Witnesses do not celebrate birthdays because of the pagan origin of the birthday tradition.

Another theory on the history of birthday gifts states that years ago in Europe, people believed that evil spirits would seek out and haunt someone on his or her birthday, most importantly the king. Therefore, on one’s birthday, people would gather to protect that person and would bring with them good wishes. Not ironically, these gatherings became our modern day birthday parties, and over time, people brought more than just good wishes to ward off evil spirits; they brought presents too.

reply to post by poet1b


If you truly believe that american soldiers went to Irak "to free Irak from a dictator", then I don't think there is any point debating any further.
I used to believe as you do. Then I opened my eyes.
Irak converted to the euro for it's petrol exports six months before the invasion. Iran is doing he same thing now.
But america will go and kick those terrorist arsses, just because america is bent on allowing a people to be free. Nothing to do with money... Yeah. Right.
Wake up Alice....

Nota bene : If you think that america is model of freedom, just check out your new "freedom legislation". Courtesy of Dubya, the only president in the world who's decisions are solely based on making the world a free, better place, without any financial considerations whatsoever.
You too live in country that needs liberating mate...

reply to post by poet1b


This is off topic, but maybe Iraqkis would be more gratefull if america hadn't taken over all of their resources, financed their central bank, making them forever dependant on the dollar, and killed on average at least one family member for each iraqki family.
There are many forms of serfdom, friend, and if you think one vote will blindfold people into the worship of our great western values (IE invade, rob them stupid, leave them to die), then i'm afraid that you, like mr Bush, are terribly wrong.
But on the other hand, these exploiters, these vultures, these warmongers you support so vehemently do celebrate birthdays. So they can't really be that bad, can they ?

reply to post by Ismail


Do you really believe the average U.S. soldier, and I am talking the guy on the ground doing the job, went to Iraq to force Iraq to use the dollar for the sale of oil? If you do, then you must think that the people of the U.S. are very bad people. The reality is that the average U.S. soldier doesn't think about what currency is being used in the trade of oil.

Maybe you consider it to be unrealistic to see Americans as people who want to do good things in this world, but I think that is exactly how a vast majority of Americans think. Being that we lead the world in charity donations, seems pretty logical.

The job of U.S. soldiers in Iraq is to stablize the country and stop the violence so that a representative government can be established. What the upper muckity mucks on the food chain have in mind might be as bad as you think, but that is not the way the average U.S. soldier putting his life on the line in Iraq thinks.

By the way, it is Iraqi terrorists who have killed most of the Iraqis who have been killed. Religious extremists, who must hate the U.S. for doing what they wished they could have done long ago (get rid of Saddam Hussain), are now busy killing anyone and everyone who dares to desire peace and are willing to cooperate with U.S. soldiers in order to achieve that peace. I think maybe you should re-consider who you think the bad guys are.

The people of the U.S. have spent far more money building a representative government in Iraq than they can ever expect to get back from Iraq, or get out of Iraqi oil reserves which are controlled by the Iraqi government. You don't hear the people of the U.S. clamoring for Iraq to pay back the U.S. for getting rid of Saddam do you? The people of the U.S. have not robbed the people of Iraq stupid and left them to die, they have stayed and helped them to re-build their country at tremendous expense in time, money, and lives.

Sounds to me like someone pulled the wool over your eyes and sold you a bill of goods.

Most of our customs have pagan origins, what is wrong with that? They offend your religious beliefs? I think the expression, "when in Rome, do as the Romans do" is a pretty good rule to follow. All the other kids get birthday presents and Chrismas presents, why treat your children differently? Giving your kids Christmas and Birthday gifts does not mean that you are spoiling them. Makes no sense to me, unless viewed from a religious beliefs perspective.

reply to post by poet1b


The average US soldier just does his job. Sometimes he gets jumpy and opens up on crowd. Or tortures someone in a prison to make them "submisive".
Understand that people who have lost family members in the invasion don't feel all warm and fuzzy inside when they think of america.

I think we have gone way off topic. But for the sake of it, no I don't think americans are bad people. People are just people. Your average citizen should pick up a book more often, but hey, the same can be said anywhere else.
On the other hand, I do consider your leaders to be bad people, who don't hesitate in slaughtering innocent people to get rich(er). And you buy their tearfull explanations of "why". No one blinded me, i've got a brain, and think for myself. Try it out sometime, you might jump to some innovating conclusions. For example, war is NEVER waged for humanitarian reasons, because war kills people, and because war is expensive.

Back to the topic. Obama is probably no better than Bush. Hand picked by the same people. Like Mc Cain. I just don't believe that whether or not he gives presents to his kids is politicaly relevent. In fact, I know it isn't. It's a load of crap designed to keep people off the main issues. Full stop.

(edited because I can't spell)

[edit on 1-8-2008 by Ismail]

[edit on 1-8-2008 by Ismail]

This would make a nice little Christmas gift this year.

reply to post by Alxandro


Send one to WhatTheory and Poet1b... Just for kicks...

I do not celebrate a fake holiday or imaginary measurements based on silly, made up dates, does that make me a terrorist? Could you pick me out of a crowd?

Because someone chooses not to participate in archaic, religious based tradition does not mean anything except that they have their eyes open.

Originally posted by Ismail
reply to post by Alxandro

 

Send one to WhatTheory and Poet1b... Just for kicks...

I think I will but I think these are only sold in Germany and they are 139 Euros
I think I'll wait for the bobble-head version instead.
Maybe they'll come up with a flip version too.
...but then again you gotta flip before you flop, something Obama will never do because he doesn't stand for anything yet.

reply to post by TheOracle Every Thing That Obama Does Is A Front . This Guy Is Hiding His Real Identity And His True Religion ! The Guy Is A MUSLIM . And America Will Not Tolerate A MUSLIM As A President . Plain And Simple ! Everything About This Clown Is Suspect And The Morons That Swoon At His Feet Are Nothing More Than Fools . America Deserves Better Than Who And What Is Being Shoved Down Our Throats ! Wake The Hell Up !

I hate to say it, but there's something very "Un-American" about that. That's pretty cold-hearted to me, and I'm an Obama supporter.

I'm not trying to hurt Obama in anyway...I really support him because he reminds me of me a bit...But him saying that he does not believe in Christmas or Birthday presents is like a person telling you that they don't believe in giving tips to waiters or servants...

It's hard to warm up to a person who says such things.

It's just a sign of his way of thinking. One may expect that he would not be charitable to other people who are not his family, if he is not to his own.

I tell you, I try to give gifts to my family on birthdays, but many times I don't get gifts, and I regret it. It's a very cold feeling, not to be given a gift for your birthday.

Gift-giving in America is so important, that it is expected. My mother makes a point to call me before Mother's and Father's Day and each of my family member's birthdays to remind me to send a gift or at least a card...If I didn't, she would think I was a scoundrel.

And this isn't about racism. I'm black american.

Weve been duped into thinking consumerism equals capitalism equals the American way. It's just not true. Capitalism works best when the consumers act as intelligent agents, or the fingers an intelligent, invisible hand, and they invest their money carefully and wisely. It doesn't bother me a bit that he doesn't blow his money on spoiling the kids with crappy little mind-numbing plastic nick nacks. If that's un-American, then I think America is in pretty big trouble.