Sappy Holidays!

Greetings good citizen, Happy Festivus for those of you that have grown tired of the fakery surrounding the 'church co-opted holidays'. No coincidence that the churches placed their 'holy days' right over the ancient festivals that coincided with the planet's natural rhythms. Today is the Winter Solstice, celebrated since the 'dawn of humanity's arrival' as the actual 'New Year'. Each religion has its own calendar as well as its own agenda but be that as it may, there is no question that after today, the life giving Sun resumes its northward journey through the tropics. The first day of winter marks the halfway point until the return of Summer.

No wonder people celebrated during this dismal time of year. Hope is such a powerful thing.

These celebrations also helped plan how long the stored food would last and helped to gauge what needed attention in the upcoming planting season.

Interesting to note that the churches downplayed the pagan festivals as frivolous, drunken orgies marked with brawls and murders as the peasants sought revenge for the shortages they faced with three more months of hard winter ahead of them.

So, yeah. It was a time of reckoning and humans that relied heavily on each other to do their part didn't like being told the next three months would be lean unless you had a yen for whatever was bountiful, usually something that doubled as animal feed like cabbage or turnips.

While the church painted these Days of judgment as drunken brawls [and most 'acts of revenge' are 'fueled by' alcohol, it was more the result of the drinking rather than being caused by it.]

Most of you fools think the farmers of old grew whatever they wanted and that was NOT the case. Even farmers today are TOLD what the market needs so it's not a 'dictatorship', per se. Not as neat as that because just like ancient times not everybody's land is suitable for the crops the market is short of...as evidenced by f'n cucumbers!

It takes a village and while these guys were farmers, they weren't agronomists. Farming back then was one size fits all. What came up best on a given plot was determined by what kind of dung was used for fertilizer...and you used what you had.

Thus were these acts of vengeance viewed as appeasement of the gods of nature who were obviously displeased with whoever failed the tribe. [Don't discount that 'stupidity' also played a major role.] Selling off your 'extra' livestock for wine or mead in the Spring is likely what produced most shortages come the lean time of the year.

Come Spring, many the tribe would send out emissaries to barter for what they were short on and the idiocy would repeat itself...with more than a few dumb farmers paying the price for their cupidity.

While the church condemned the 'pagan' festivals, they weren't so much 'celebrations' as they were public trials of who did or did not meet their obligations to the community.

Most escaped the harsh judgement of their fickle gods and if the mid-winter tally showed a surplus then there was reason to 'celebrate' and if folks got rowdy, well men will be men.

With the advent of the Industrial Age we have been excluded from the 'accountability process' that the church branded as 'pagan festivals' and the celebration part has been co-opted by the commerce sector solely to boost sales...for no 'greater purpose' beyond the momentary expression of appreciation for the few who have been kind to us in the past weeks and months.

One 'Aw Fuk' is all it takes and you are off the Christmas card list, Buster!

So needless to say, Yule [Festivus] is STILL a time for judgment and retribution.

Christ is King? Big whoop! It's the time of year where you are gonna get what's coming to you...

Have YOU been a 'Good Citizen'?

I sincerely hope so Head, for your sake.

Gegner