Christmas 2011

            Christmas 1914 found much of the world at war. 

            Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungry and his wife were assassinated in Sarajevo, Bosnia by a Serbian Nationalist in protest to Austria-Hungry having control of the region.  Serbia wanted to take control of Bosnia and Herzegovina.  The assassination was an attempt at what we now call “regime change.”  The “collateral damage” would run to about 15 million killed and 20 million wounded.

            Because of various alliances and treaties in effect at the time, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia, Russia got involved to defend Serbia. Germany seeing Russia mobilizing, declared war on Russia. France was then drawn in against Germany and Austria-Hungary. Germany attacked France through Belgium pulling Britain into war. Then Japan entered the war. Later, Italy and the United States would enter on the side of the allies. (About.com American History)

            It was a pretty good war by all accounts.  Millions killed.  Irreplaceable historic treasures blown to bits.  New and amazing uses of modern technology to slaughter more and more people faster and faster.  Tanks.  Machine guns.  Gas. 

            So it’s fair to say these folks were serious about the business of war.

            And yet on Christmas day 1914 some German soldiers, and some British soldiers and some French soldiers took time out to celebrate Christmas.  You can look it up; the famous Christmas Truce of 1914.  Buried some of the mangled remains in No Man’s Land; exchange presents of cigarettes and candy.  Laughed even, perhaps, laughed with relief and resignation and powerlessness and fatigue.  The powers that be, the high command were of course horrified that such a thing would occur, and instituted measures to ensure it wouldn’t happen again.  But there was this time out, a reflection from the side of humanity from which we derive the work ‘humane.’  There is that side.  Most people in power do not want to highlight that aspect of who we are, because it defeats political agendas and thwarts the thirst for power at all cost. 

            Christmas is ostensibly a day to celebrate Christ’s birth, and he was by all accounts a peaceable guy.  He lost his temper only one time, at business men making as dam good profit changing money.  He had his limits, it would seem.  His birthday has traditionally been a time for family, and perhaps for a little reflection on the larger themes of life.  I would like to think He would have smiled a little, perhaps a sad smile, seeing those muddied, bloodied warriors shaking hands in No-Man’s-Land.

            And I admire and appreciate those who work on this day to provide necessary services.  As I write this, a fire truck screamed by, lights ablaze, sirens wailing.  I appreciate those working on Christmas day, serving in fire departments, in the military, in hospitals, in police forces and traffic control.  There are jobs that require that kind of commitment.

             But McDonald’s?  Starbucks?  Open for business. 

            The sign on McDonald’s proclaimed the birth of indigestion “Open Christmas Day…Celebrate Season’s Cravings.”  Celebrate season’s cravings?  From Webster… “craving…and intense, urgent or abnormal desire or longing.”  I would so like to think of McDonalds being open on Christmas day as abnormal, and in a sense it was.  Most of Jupiter Florida was quiet today.  Most stores were closed.  Local businesses, family owned.  Some larger chains.

            But the corporate giants, they are open to feed the intense, urgent, and abnormal desire or longing for mediocre food and five dollar cups of coffee.  Ka-ching!  No break for the rank-and-file laboring in those trenches.  No Christmas Truce.

Comments

[randy]

I swear it's been 4 years ago that I lost your blog address. Glad to have found it in an sweeping hard drive search. Sure wish I could have picked a few old songs with you when you were passing through. Sounds strange to say you're passing through Lincoln, but things change. Next time Ill teach you that F#m chord and we can practice the B major as well. ha ha. Take care of yourself Rg. Rn

[dkg]

There is another side to those "corporate giants" besides the ka-ching - the shoppers. I had been thinking of that since reading your blog & then I read this story! And, you men out there, you know you wait for the last minute & the women checking you out "late", need to get home to get ready for their Christmases AND Starbucks may be where these late minute shoppers go to kill some time before going home & "helping" with last minute chores! :)

Read on - I cut & pasted the article. :)

Caught on Vid: Shoppers Launch Tirade at Walmart Manager Who ‘Closes’ Early on Christmas Eve
Posted on December 27, 2011 at 8:41am by Jonathon M. Seidl
If you’ve ever worked retail, you might side with the manager in this video. If you’ve ever had to do some very last-minute Christmas shopping, you might sympathize with the shoppers.

Either way, here’s what we know. On Christmas Eve, a few shoppers tried to get some last-minute shopping done at a local Walmart. They arrived at the store about 20 minutes until closing. However, instead of dashing down the aisles, the shoppers were greeted at the doors by a defiant assistant manager who said he would not allow them to enter the store because it was too late. That didn’t sit well with the would-be patrons:

Shopper: Can I come in?

Manager: No.

Shopper: It’s 7:40, I can’t come in? So you‘re telling me you’re closed, right?

Manager: Right.

Shopper: Posted hours are 8 o’clock, right?

Manager: Yeah.

[...]

Shopper: Why can’t I come in? Why can’t I come in? There’s people in there shopping right now.

Manager: Because they got her before 7:30.

Shopper: Where does it say that? Where does it say that you got to be in before 7:30?

The argument goes back-and-forth, and the manager eventually admits that the 7:30 mandate isn’t posted anywhere. It then turns nasty when one of the angry shoppers asks, “Did you not have enough Mexicans working for you, you gotta pay white people more money or something?”

A video, which has a few curious edits and jumps, ends with one shopper trying to enter but being blocked and one man threatening the manager’s job (note: there may be cause for a language warning in the video, but it’s hard to tell what exactly some of the shoppers are saying in the background):

The video showing the episode has sparked a lot of dissenting opinions, not only in the comments on YouTube, but also where it has been posted.

“I don’t know what the circumstances are for these people since it’s not explained, but they decided to shop at the very last minute on Christmas eve,” MPViral.com writes. “In my personal opinion, you can’t blame either side…the assistant manager or the people trying to shop. My only hope is that someone learned something for next year so this doesn’t happen again.”

“Nobody’s right, here,” writes another blogger. “It’s just fun to watch a Christmas Grinch take on some irate procrastinators who suddenly fancy themselves legal scholars.”

(H/T: Buzzfeed)