Somebody remembered what Christmas is supposed to be about.

as i get older, i start to realise that more people think/are conditioned into believing that the more they spend on a person, the more they love them. At the end of the day, I have a 4 year old son, Im at university and own my own home, i cant afford much, but what i get him and the rest of the family is not the point, its about being together.

Just think of all the homeless, poor, starving people of the world. Then go and blow 500 bucks on someones Christmas because the media says we should. Its like the more we spend represents how much we love someone. Its total backwards!!

Christmas and bithdays should be about being there for people. Hell, that shouldnt just be confined to those 2 days, it should mean about being there everyday.

I split with my ex 2 years ago and i still get her something for Christmas, shes the mother of my child and my current girlfriend understands that

I have to contribute one thing about this post; I refuse be another brainwashed minion to the corporate Christmas machine any longer. I'm spending time with my family, which is something this @%$ western society no longer allows unless you have vacation time. So @$^% those corporate, greedy ba$tards... I'm spending time with my family.

little annoyed that just when I think I have mankind figured out to be selfish and uncaring, someone comes along and ruins my theory

I second that, every year, it seems to me that people get more and more greedy and selfish, then I go and read articles like this.
Merry Christmas to all of you!

reply to post by FortAnthem


santa lives .
in the und3rgr0und .

reply to post by FortAnthem


I'm not sure what this holiday is supposed to be about anymore. It seems like it's just a holiday created to pump money into the economy and help stores get out of the red. That's it. Add in the stolen/hidden pagan meanings and again, I'm not sure what to celebrate.

A child does not need tons of useless toys. A child needs love, food, clothing and shelter.

I fail to see how this places any meaning into this holiday. The people who had the toys on layaway should have used that money to buy their kids things that they really need. They could have easy have purchased gift cards that would allow a child to buy something they really want or need, providing that the gift card is high enough.

Just a few thoughts.

reply to post by RightWingAvenger


I'm not sure why "god" was dragged into this consumerist holiday but I agree with half of what you said.

If the truth about this holiday came out, most people would either be outraged, feel lost or they'd go right back to being the sheep they are.

reply to post by ThrowCatsAtCacti


It just seems that way with each passing year.

The fact that stores had to move back black Friday proves that they're all in it for the $$$ and nothing more. They don't care about the rest of us as long as we're doing our duty and buying tons of useless crap, driving up consumer debt and making the 1% richer.

reply to post by ldyserenity


True that it is off topic but I get a chuckle out of people who complain about the "War on Christmas" and other silly things.

We can buy cheap, useless # any time of the year. Why complain about Christmas? Why even bother with it?

reply to post by The Sword


you may thank the media manipulation , all the advertising people are subject to .
if you believe in subliminal messages and live in a big city where you see 329492348923s of ad's everyday it's really not farfetched to see certain intentions ...

reply to post by ldyserenity


The average American child spends most of their life going through the motions. They're taught the same lies as their parents. They're raised by the TV when their parents are too "busy" or irresponsible to care for them.

At some point, where does it go from being a holiday of charity to being a holiday where people expect nothing less than wrapped consumer goods under the tree?

I'm trying to re-define Christmas for myself by staying away from the wrapping paper and switching to gift cards. I would rather people buy food if they need it or buy clothes than buy toys.

reply to post by ObservingTheWorld


If Jesus were real, I think he'd be ashamed both of those associating this day as his "birthday" and those placing the importance of consumer goods over the well-being of their neighbors.

I could go on and on but I will stop here.

reply to post by FortAnthem


Good people do this every day. They don't have to be from any particualr political party, or from any particular religion.

There is good people in all walks of life, as there are bad people.

When I could I used to buy toys for children in need in Christmas, I know what it is to have no toys during the Holiday Season, and when I was able I would buy toys, including educational toys, and recreational toys for children of all ages, and I would walk to where there were children in need and hand out the toys. I did this a lot in Casper, Wyoming.

I know that many people do similar things.

There are some, including in these forums, who think that only "certain people of a particular political view are the only ones with compassion, and the only ones who care about the poor". But that is nothing more than BS, pardon my french.

reply to post by The Sword


Toys are very important for children during the Holiday Seasons. It gives them hope, and brings them happiness. Toys don't have to be the most expensive things out there to bring happiness and hope to children.

Yes food is important, but hope and happiness in children are important as well.

Originally posted by The Sword

If Jesus were real, I think he'd be ashamed both of those associating this day as his "birthday" and those placing the importance of consumer goods over the well-being of their neighbors.

I could go on and on but I will stop here.

That's not true. As a carpenter he would have made toys for children in need and give those toys to children.

People and children don't live just to survive. Where would there be any happiness, joy and hope in a world where people are only preocupied for food?... Even animals play, including with their own made up toys.

Christmas is just an opportunity for capitalism to pull down its pants and fart in your face. You can't escape it, you have to breathe some of it in.

reply to post by phishyblankwaters

Originally posted by phishyblankwaters
reply to post by BrokenCircles

 

[color=FFFB8A]Didn't bother to even read the quoted text from the story did you?

She asked to see the tickets to ensure she was paying the bill for tickets with [color=B18AFF]TOYS on layaway. She wanted to ensure that her act of kindness would benefit [color=B18AFF]CHILDREN.

[color=FFFB8A]For clarification: Are you referring to this↓ 'quoted text from the story'??

Secret Santa picks up 3 layaway bills

"This lady came up randomly and said, 'Can I, you know, pay off some people's layaway?'" said Dannell Goddard. Goddard works at Kmart in the layaway department. She told 24 Hour News 8 that when she first heard the request, she was a bit confused.

"I was like, 'Well, are you trying to pick them up? 'Cause you can't pick them up if you don't have an ID," Goddard said. "And [the mystery woman] replied, 'Nope, I just want to help people.'"

The woman looked through several of the about 800 layaway contract tickets at the store. She randomly picked and paid the bill on three of them. She paid about $500 between all three of them and left a $10 balance on each of the accounts

‘Tis the Season: Secret Santas Pay Off Needy Families’ Layaway Bills at Local Kmart

But the story doesn’t end there. Just days after News 8 aired its report on the anonymous Secret Santa and “copycat” Samaritan also paid a visit to the Plainfield Kmart and settled 14 layaway bills totaling around $2,000.

The man, who also says he wishes to remain unidentified says he hopes that his copycatting will inspire other to copycat him.

Word-Search Time:
Go back and try to locate the words '[color=B18AFF]TOYS' & '[color=B18AFF]CHILDREN' in the aforementioned quoted text.



I was merely asking some questions, which were answered by Idyserenity.

I thought I was quite clear on that, hence the 8 question marks that I used.

For future reference: Before getting all high and mighty, pointing out the flaws of others, you may want to double-check, and make sure that those flaws are not your own.

reply to post by woodwardjnr


very nicely put man , you just put a grin on my face thanks

Originally posted by BrokenCircles

Yeah, it's a nice thought and all...... but was this↓ really necessary?

The woman [color=DDFFBA]looked through several of the about 800 layaway contract tickets at the store. She randomly picked and paid the bill on three of them.

Do those tickets not have personal information on them?
[color=858585](Maybe they don't... I've never done it, but I assume that they would)

If the plan was to pay off random items for random people, then why would she need to see the tickets?

...item being bought? ....purchaser's name?....address? ...phone number? ...credit card info?

I think it's quite relevant to look at the purchases, by looking at types of purchase I think you could evaluate/educated guess at which were genuinely in need of financial assistance and those that are just out to spoil. Think along the lines of a carpenter’s wooden cup, or a diamond encrusted goblet.
The toys and children selection was also relevent, as already mentioned.
p.s great catch OP, inspired me to do something magical also

Sorry but that is not what Christmas is about, it's not about buying things.


This is why I DON'T celebrate Christmas, people expect "things." That isn't what it's about. It's about family and spending time with them, not what they will buy you. People shouldnt go broke to buy other people gifts and others shouldn't have to feel the need to go in and pay someone elses layaway.....


I think what this person did was really nice but Christmas isn't about presents.

Christmas shouldn't be about buying but it is now.