Like many children, when I was growing up, my favorite season was Christmas.
Not completely for the presents or the candy (though they were important) but it brought my family home. Everybody on most occasions would go their own way the rest of the year.

Some of my fondest memories were of us, as a family, coming together to decorate our monstrous home. The Christmas tree, over nine feet tall was only part of the story. We always had fresh cut pine tree limbs wired or placed throughout our home. My folks were antique hounds so all our antiques had some hint of Christmas added to them. That certainly was true for all the wood trim in our home downstairs. And there was always candy in bowls.

We didn't learn to do normal things around Christmas like I learned others did. Good deeds for others, caroling as a family, baking pies and the like, were not a part of our Christmas. Instead the metal lifesize jockeys that bordered our circular driveway had there white lights changed to green, the 4 foot wooden statue of child with an outstretched hand held a garland with a martini glass.

What my mom and dad were most proud of were the hundreds (yea literally) of Christmas cards they recieved every year from well wishers (but frankly clients who wanted my stockbroker father to give them another sweet deal).

One year, the Christmas tree was about a foot too tall. My father cut the top off so that it fit snuggly under the ceiling, then nailed the extra 12 inches UPSTAIRS into the hardwood floor. He even touched it up to make it look like a hole was actually drilled through the ceiling. He was the talk of the neighbors over that stunt.

Of course, the cheer gained from having a Christmas tree today is a far cry from its pagan tradition of hanging slaves from trees.

I’m sure there are more. It is true that there are also lots of historically pagan symbols at Christmas- this is what happens when the Church merges its traditions with pagan ones to meet social expectations. But even some of those pagan symbols can be transformed into wonderful symbols of Christ in our homes, or they can just be for fun, or they can be discarded entirely.

The Full Text

This is the executive summary and remains unchanged from its inception.......for those of you who didn't know one existed.

OUR NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR VICTORY IN IRAQ:

Helping the Iraqi People Defeat the Terrorists and Build an Inclusive Democratic State

Victory in Iraq is Defined in Stages

Short term,
Iraq is making steady progress in fighting terrorists, meeting political milestones, building democratic institutions, and standing up security forces.

Medium term,
Iraq is in the lead defeating terrorists and providing its own security, with a fully constitutional government in place, and on its way to achieving its economic potential.

Longer term,
Iraq is peaceful, united, stable, and secure, well integrated into the international community, and a full partner in the global war on terrorism.

Victory in Iraq is a Vital U.S. Interest

Iraq is the central front in the global war on terror. Failure in Iraq will embolden terrorists and expand their reach; success in Iraq will deal them a decisive and crippling blow.

The fate of the greater Middle East -- which will have a profound and lasting impact on American security -- hangs in the balance.

Failure is Not an Option
Iraq would become a safe haven from which terrorists could plan attacks against America, American interests abroad, and our allies.

Middle East reformers would never again fully trust American assurances of support for democracy and human rights in the region --a historic opportunity lost.

The resultant tribal and sectarian chaos would have major consequences for American security and interests in the region.

The Enemy Is Diffuse and Sophisticated
The enemy is a combination of rejectionists, Saddamists, and terrorists affiliated with or inspired by Al Qaida. Distinct but integrated strategies are required to defeat each element.
Each element shares a common short-term objective -- to intimidate, terrorize, and tear down -- but has separate and incompatible long-term goals.

Exploiting these differences within the enemy is a key element of our strategy.

Our Strategy for Victory is Clear

We will help the Iraqi people build a new Iraq with a constitutional, representative government that respects civil rights and has security forces sufficient to maintain domestic order and keep Iraq from becoming a safe haven for terrorists. To achieve this end, we are pursuing an integrated strategy along three broad tracks, which together incorporate the efforts of the Iraqi government, the Coalition, cooperative countries in the region, the international community, and the United Nations.

The Political Track involves working to forge a broadly supported national compact for democratic governance by helping the Iraqi government:
Isolate enemy elements from those who can be won over to the political process by countering false propaganda and demonstrating to all Iraqis that they have a stake in a democratic Iraq;
Engage those outside the political process and invite in those willing to turn away from violence through ever-expanding avenues of participation; and
Build stable, pluralistic, and effective national institutions that can protect the interests of all Iraqis, and facilitate Iraq's full integration into the international community.

The Security Track involves carrying out a campaign to defeat the terrorists and neutralize the insurgency, developing Iraqi security forces, and helping the Iraqi government:

Clear areas of enemy control by remaining on the offensive, killing and capturing enemy fighters and denying them safe-haven;
Hold areas freed from enemy influence by ensuring that they remain under the control of the Iraqi government with an adequate Iraqi security force presence; and

Build Iraqi Security Forces and the capacity of local institutions to deliver services, advance the rule of law, and nurture civil society.

The Economic Track involves setting the foundation for a sound and self-sustaining economy by helping the Iraqi government:
Restore Iraq's infrastructure to meet increasing demand and the needs of a growing economy;
Reform Iraq's economy, which in the past has been shaped by war, dictatorship, and sanctions, so that it can be self-sustaining in the future; and
Build the capacity of Iraqi institutions to maintain infrastructure, rejoin the international economic community, and improve the general welfare of all Iraqis.

This Strategy is Integrated and its Elements are Mutually Reinforcing Progress in each of the political, security, and economic tracks reinforces progress in the other tracks.
For instance, as the political process has moved forward, terrorists have become more isolated, leading to more intelligence on security threats from Iraqi citizens, which has led to better security in previously violent areas, a more stable infrastructure, the prospect of economic progress, and expanding political participation.

Victory Will Take Time

Our strategy is working: Much has been accomplished in Iraq, including the removal of Saddam's tyranny, negotiation of an interim constitution, restoration of full sovereignty, holding of free national elections, formation of an elected government, drafting of a permanent constitution, ratification of that constitution, introduction of a sound currency, gradual restoration of neglected infrastructure, the ongoing training and equipping of Iraqi security forces, and the increasing capability of those forces to take on the terrorists and secure their nation.

Yet many challenges remain: Iraq is overcoming decades of a vicious tyranny, where governmental authority stemmed solely from fear, terror, and brutality.

It is not realistic to expect a fully functioning democracy, able to defeat its enemies and peacefully reconcile generational grievances, to be in place less than three years after Saddam was finally removed from power.

Our comprehensive strategy will help Iraqis overcome remaining challenges, but defeating the multi-headed enemy in Iraq -- and ensuring that it cannot threaten Iraq's democratic gains once we leave -- requires persistent effort across many fronts.
Our Victory Strategy Is (and Must Be) Conditions Based
With resolve, victory will be achieved, although not by a date certain.

No war has ever been won on a timetable and neither will this one.

But lack of a timetable does not mean our posture in Iraq (both military and civilian) will remain static over time. As conditions change, our posture will change.
We expect, but cannot guarantee, that our force posture will change over the next year, as the political process advances and Iraqi security forces grow and gain experience.
While our military presence may become less visible, it will remain lethal and decisive, able to confront the enemy wherever it may organize.

Our mission in Iraq is to win the war. Our troops will return home when that mission is complete.

News Item: Genetic Map of Dog found nearly identical to the human
By Karen Kaplan, Times Staff Writer



Scientists have decoded the complete genome of the domestic dog, Tasha. a milestone announced Wednesday that provides a biological roadmap for unraveling human diseases and probing the mysterious bond between man and his best friend. What they found was an exceptional correlation between the DNA of Canis familiaris and Homo sapiens, according to a study published today in the journal Nature.

Tasha, a stout purebred female with a brown-and-white coat and drooping jowls, was selected from 120 dogs screened by the National Human Genome Research Institute in Bethesda, Md., because her genes showed the least amount of variation. Only female dogs were considered because they have two X chromosomes, which researchers wanted to map in detail.

Her stoical photo, however, now hangs prominently on the Mammalian Wall of Fame at the Broad Institute in Cambridge, Mass., where the sequencing work was completed.

Dozens of researchers worked for two years deciphering and analyzing the 19,300 genes belonging to a 12-year-old named Tasha.

"Humans and dogs have essentially the same genes," said lead author Kerstin Lindblad-Toh, co-director of the genome sequencing and analysis program at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard University. "Every gene has a gene with the same function in the other genome."

In comparing Tasha's genome with genetic data from 10 other breeds, the researchers cataloged about 2.5 million specific genetic differences among dogs, which dictate differing sizes, proportions, temperaments and propensity for disease.

http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/europe/12/07/rice.interrogations.ap/index.html

News Item KIEV, Ukraine (AP) -- U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice sought Wednesday to clarify U.S. policy on harsh interrogation methods, saying no U.S. personnel may use cruel or degrading practices at home or abroad.

Condoleezza, you should bring this incessant wimpering from the Democratic left to a full cry of anguish. Given the most recent video on the web from the thugs of the middle east (They call for the destruction of the oil industry so we can't get any of it and so current middle east governments are overthrown), this is what I suggest......In today's clarification of the interrogation policy, consider the following addendum:

"In some cases, in deep respect for the Geneva Convention, we feel it is in the best interests of all parties to let certain prisoners go. That is, for their protection, each specially selected former prisoner will be lead back to the field of battle escorted by armed guard and released with a rifle to fend for themselves. It appears to be a small gesture but we hope the program can be expanded if the enemy is not inclined to provide us needed intelligence."

Folks, the Geneva Convention was written and agreed upon prior to the time of the Islamic, faceless worldwide terrorist came upon the scene, before threats of destruction to the entire free world has been taken this far.

With certain regrets......