Can we have a positive thread

[Amb3096]

I will also add this.I have spent Christmas in Vietnam during the war twice in 1965 and 1967 and also celebrated TET with my South Vietnamese brothers in arms ;I have spent Christmas in Iraq and celebrated Ramadan with my fellow Iraqi brothers in arms;I have spent Christmas in Antarctica and celebrated Christmas with all who wanted such celebrations from McMurdo Station to Byrd Station to South Pole Station;I have spent Christmas in Germany and celebrated Christmas with my German friends;I have celebrated Christmas in New Zealand and celebrated Christmas with my Kiwi friends;by the way in all those instances I was serving in the Army and working on Christmas day often under fire.I have fought for people to have the right for " inclusion " whatever that means to you .I have also fought for the right to celebrate Christmas without others casting aspersions on Christ and Christmas .I have every respect for other religions and religious Holidays.If I have offended you in any way I apologize but in no way will I apologize for the meaning of Christmas. So here's to you and your family .....Merry Christmas.

I'm not the least bit offended, Alex, because I share the same viewpoint.

When parents b!tch about schools celebrating Christmas and simultaneously complain about their children being "forced" to participate and being excluded, then that's on them. Perhaps they can attempt to be more open minded with regards to Christianity. The same is also true in reverse if schools with large Jewish, Hindu, Muslim, etc... populations have their celebrations and how parents of the other children react to these celebrations.

I can't imagine why a non-Christian would be offended at being greeted with "Merry Christmas". I had an American co-worker who made homemade Christmas cookies and delivered a plate to every department in the office when I worked in the Middle East, and everyone was thankful at the kind gesture. Since when did "Merry Christmas" become the equivalent of a giant middle finger?

My contribution to the "positive thread" on this topic is that people should lighten up and accept a season's greeting...whatever season it may be...for what it is: a gesture of goodwill. It will probably help reduce a lot of blood pressure readings if people aren't on edge looking for something to be offended by.

 

[alexvol]

I'm not the least bit offended, Alex, because I share the same viewpoint.

When parents b!tch about schools celebrating Christmas and simultaneously complain about their children being "forced" to participate and being excluded, then that's on them. Perhaps they can attempt to be more open minded with regards to Christianity. The same is also true in reverse if schools with large Jewish, Hindu, Muslim, etc... populations have their celebrations and how parents of the other children react to these celebrations.

I can't imagine why a non-Christian would be offended at being greeted with "Merry Christmas". I had an American co-worker who made homemade Christmas cookies and delivered a plate to every department in the office when I worked in the Middle East, and everyone was thankful at the kind gesture. Since when did "Merry Christmas" become the equivalent of a giant middle finger?

My contribution to the "positive thread" on this topic is that people should lighten up and accept a season's greeting...whatever season it may be...for what it is: a gesture of goodwill. It will probably help reduce a lot of blood pressure readings if people aren't on edge looking for something to be offended by.

Whole heartedly agree !!

 

[LVJeff]

Instead of a war on Christmas, perhaps it's an effort to make money.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, nee Lew Alcindor, wrote in his autobiography that in his college days he was convinced the NCAA was a racist organization that saw only one color - white. As in white people. Jabbar later said he found to his shock he was partially correct. The NCAA did see only one color. But the color was green. As in money. The NCAA was trying make as much money as possible for it's member institutions.

I see the same thing in the commercialization of Christmas. Instead of a war to get rid of a Christian holiday, it's a war to make as much money as possible from both Christians and non-Christians.

 

[madtownvol]

Instead of a war on Christmas, perhaps it's an effort to make money.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, nee Lew Alcindor, wrote in his autobiography that in his college days he was convinced the NCAA was a racist organization that saw only one color - white. As in white people. Jabbar later said he found to his shock he was partially correct. The NCAA did see only one color. But the color was green. As in money. The NCAA was trying make as much money as possible for it's member institutions.

I see the same thing in the commercialization of Christmas. Instead of a war to get rid of a Christian holiday, it's a war to make as much money as possible from both Christians and non-Christians.

$ as they say is the root of all evil. So, you and Kareem have a point. What this discussion and all the Fox news stoking of it, forget, is that the cases where someone says merry christmas to someone and faces a law suit or some such are incredibly rare. The real battles happen over that sticky little point in the constitution about separation of church and state and the US govt. not sanctioning a state religion. So, the original war on christmas had to do with things like nativity scenes in state capitals and observance of Christmas rituals in public schools. Those conflicts have been translated into an urban myth about hordes of angry atheists policing poor christians who just want to wish people merry christmas. It is absolute crap and hence my (futile) objections to it. However, some christians need to feel sanctimonious and victimized at the same time.

Happy holidays to them and everyone else. GO LVs, please shock us all and whip the Cardinal.

 

[LVJeff]

$ as they say is the root of all evil. So, you and Kareem have a point. What this discussion and all the Fox news stoking of it, forget, is that the cases where someone says merry christmas to someone and faces a law suit or some such are incredibly rare. The real battles happen over that sticky little point in the constitution about separation of church and state and the US govt. not sanctioning a state religion. So, the original war on christmas had to do with things like nativity scenes in state capitals and observance of Christmas rituals in public schools. Those conflicts have been translated into an urban myth about hordes of angry atheists policing poor christians who just want to wish people merry christmas. It is absolute crap and hence my (futile) objections to it. However, some christians need to feel sanctimonious and victimized at the same time.

Happy holidays to them and everyone else. GO LVs, please shock us all and whip the Cardinal.

Folks I know are fine with any of sort of seasonal salutation and find them all to be perfectly pleasant. I assume when somebody says Merry Christmas or Happy Holiday or Happy Hanukkah that they're simply being nice. Why can't people say what they want to say? I always thought having to say Merry Christmas was a reverse form of PC.

All this reminds me of a good joke: Why was the nativity scene discontinued? They couldn't find three wise men anywhere.

 

[Amb3096]

$ as they say is the root of all evil. So, you and Kareem have a point. What this discussion and all the Fox news stoking of it, forget, is that the cases where someone says merry christmas to someone and faces a law suit or some such are incredibly rare. The real battles happen over that sticky little point in the constitution about separation of church and state and the US govt. not sanctioning a state religion. So, the original war on christmas had to do with things like nativity scenes in state capitals and observance of Christmas rituals in public schools. Those conflicts have been translated into an urban myth about hordes of angry atheists policing poor christians who just want to wish people merry christmas. It is absolute crap and hence my (futile) objections to it. However, some christians need to feel sanctimonious and victimized at the same time.

Happy holidays to them and everyone. GO LVs, please shock us all and whip the Cardinal.

Commercialization of religious holidays is fairly common and not limited to Christianity. There is no shortage of advertisement of that special Hanukkah gift. In the Middle East, Ramadan is characterized by who can hold the most extravagant Iftar feast, and the month is characterized by ridiculous food wastage in what is considered a fasting month. But let's go ahead and pretend that it's those evil Christians who are the ones disrespecting their religion with commercialization.

Should a public school choose to be festive during Christmas, who really cares? Why is that hurting anyone? Yet Muslims in Jersey City weren't happy with being given time off for Eid, but instead demanding that it be recognized as a public school holiday. But I suppose it's ok, because it's not those evil Christians, damn them.

As I mentioned, I have no problem with extending or receiving greetings from other religions. When you speak of sanctimonious, it's not the atheists that bother me, but rather condescending and smug liberals who want to show how trendy and hip they are by denouncing Christian customs and embracing the liberal "flavor of the month" cause.

 

[LVJeff]

Commercialization of religious holidays is fairly common and not limited to Christianity. There is no shortage of advertisement of that special Hanukkah gift. In the Middle East, Ramadan is characterized by who can hold the most extravagant Iftar feast, and the month is characterized by ridiculous food wastage in what is considered a fasting month. But let's go ahead and pretend that it's those evil Christians who are the ones disrespecting their religion with commercialization.

Should a public school choose to be festive during Christmas, who really cares? Why is that hurting anyone? Yet Muslims in Jersey City weren't happy with being given time off for Eid, but instead demanding that it be recognized as a public school holiday. But I suppose it's ok, because it's not those evil Christians, damn them.

As I mentioned, I have no problem with extending or receiving greetings from other religions. When you speak of sanctimonious, it's not the atheists that bother me, but rather condescending and smug liberals who want to show how trendy and hip they are by denouncing Christian customs and embracing the liberal "flavor of the month" cause.

Do condescending and smug conservatives bother you?

 

[Amb3096]

Folks I know are fine with any of sort of seasonal salutation and find them all to be perfectly pleasant. I assume when somebody says Merry Christmas or Happy Holiday or Happy Hanukkah that they're simply being nice. Why can't people say what they want to say? I always thought having to say Merry Christmas was a reverse form of PC.

All this reminds me of a good joke: Why was the nativity scene discontinued? They couldn't find three wise men anywhere.

I don't think it's a matter of having to say Merry Christmas, but accepting such greeting for what it is...a seasonal salutation.

When I was in HS working a retail job at a Department Store, we had a customer complain about cashiers saying, "Merry Christmas", and were asked to instead say "Happy Holidays". Sad that people don't have more important things to worry about.

 

[Amb3096]

Do condescending and smug conservatives bother you?

They actually do. As I mentioned, I lived in the Middle East for a long time, and the notion from some of my more conservative friends that Islam was a false religion often led to choice words on my part. Same with the selective choosing of passages from the Quran to justify their belief of Islam as a violent religion.

Since moving back to the US, I've found it ironic that I find more intolerance towards my religion in my home country where it is the majority religion as opposed to the big, bad Middle East. Go figure.

 

[alexvol]

Commercialization of religious holidays is fairly common and not limited to Christianity. There is no shortage of advertisement of that special Hanukkah gift. In the Middle East, Ramadan is characterized by who can hold the most extravagant Iftar feast, and the month is characterized by ridiculous food wastage in what is considered a fasting month. But let's go ahead and pretend that it's those evil Christians who are the ones disrespecting their religion with commercialization.

Should a public school choose to be festive during Christmas, who really cares? Why is that hurting anyone? Yet Muslims in Jersey City weren't happy with being given time off for Eid, but instead demanding that it be recognized as a public school holiday. But I suppose it's ok, because it's not those evil Christians, damn them.

As I mentioned, I have no problem with extending or receiving greetings from other religions. When you speak of sanctimonious, it's not the atheists that bother me, but rather condescending and smug liberals who want to show how trendy and hip they are by denouncing Christian customs and embracing the liberal "flavor of the month" cause.

Right on point here.^^^^

 

[LVJeff]

They actually do. As I mentioned, I lived in the Middle East for a long time, and the notion from some of my more conservative friends that Islam was a false religion often led to choice words on my part. Same with the selective choosing of passages from the Quran to justify their belief of Islam as a violent religion.

Since moving back to the US, I've found it ironic that I find more intolerance towards my religion in my home country where it is the majority religion as opposed to the big, bad Middle East. Go figure.

I have spent the last several years in Montana, Wyoming, and Idaho. Redder states you will not find. You're not really accepted out here unless you're a member of what I call WAVE. (Whites Against Virtually Everything). My wife is Oriental. At times it's been tough.

I have enjoyed the conservation. Merry Christmas.

 

[Amb3096]

I have spent the last several years in Montana, Wyoming, and Idaho. Redder states you will not find. You're not really excepted out here unless you're a member of what I call WAVE. (Whites Against Virtually Everything). My wife is Oriental. At times it's been tough.

I have enjoyed the conservation. Merry Christmas.

I'll admit that my experiences are shaped by the fact that I live in a major metropolitan city on the East coast. I've been fortunate not to encounter your stereotypical, bible thumping, judging Christians...but I'm not so naïve as to think that they don't exist. It would be nice if people on the extreme left or right would be more tolerant of other people's differences.

Happy Holidays to you as well.

 

[mike099]

I am positive we will get whipped Sunday by at least 15.

Seriously, I think they will improve going into the SEC games. Most of the SEC games will be tight, with no gimmies like in the old days.

Hanging my head. The wife told me I must come on here and eat crow for my prediction.

 

[alexvol]

Hanging my head. The wife told me I must come on here and eat crow for my prediction.

That is positive.

 

[sccshortstop]

That is positive.

Save me a little of that crow as well because I said the same thing!! Lets not eat it all though because I also predicted we will lose to ND as well. Hope to share it with you again my friend!!:loco::thud::rock::hi:

 

[1CHATTVOL]

of our last five games. I think that constitutes not being good. We were not good last year, though we played a couple of good games in the tournament before losing badly to louisville, and we are not good this year.

In basketball, it's really all about the finish. And we lost to Syracuse not Louisville...but don't be bothered by details. Just sling mud however you like, and some of it will stick. 😉

 

[1CHATTVOL]

Save me a little of that crow as well because I said the same thing!! Lets not eat it all though because I also predicted we will lose to ND as well. Hope to share it with you again my friend!!:loco::thud::rock::hi:

Well, I sure wouldn't broadcast how you're predicting the team you support to lose. But I'm glad you're enjoying the crow. Go Lady Vols!

P.S., I'm glad we can all enjoy the great win over Stanford together. Appreciate you guys!

 

[alexvol]

Well, I sure wouldn't broadcast how you're predicting the team you support to lose. But I'm glad you're enjoying the crow. Go Lady Vols!

P.S., I'm glad we can all enjoy the great win over Stanford together. Appreciate you guys!

Lets reverse that position and ask you how many times have you predicted wins this year when they lost ? If you are honest you would be eating as much crow as the two who have fessed up in this thread that they predicted a loss.

 

[1CHATTVOL]

Actually, I don't see the reverse holding true. I never go into a game thinking we're going to lose. I might have to eat crow if I were predicting a win and bragging to an opposing fan.

Imagine for a moment that you had a daughter in a beauty pageant... Would you predict to everyone around you that you knew she was going to lose? Hey, maybe because she's just not that talented or not really that pretty or kinda dumb or had a really bad coach. Who knows why you didn't think enough of her to stand behind her. Maybe you're just being realistic. But hey, you're willing to eat crow if she wins. No problem there, right. *caw* *caw* lol

 

[LVJeff]

Actually, I don't see the reverse holding true. I never go into a game thinking we're going to lose. I might have to eat crow if I were predicting a win and bragging to an opposing fan.

Imagine for a moment that you had a daughter in a beauty pageant... Would you predict to everyone around you that you knew she was going to lose? Hey, maybe because she's just not that talented or not really that pretty or kinda dumb or had a really bad coach. Who knows why you didn't think enough of her to stand behind her. Maybe you're just being realistic. But hey, you're willing to eat crow if she wins. No problem there, right. *caw* *caw* lol

You confuse honest assessment with not standing behind someone. By your definition Holly doesn't stand behind the players on the bench. If she did, why for sure she'd start them and expect a win.

It's just the opposite - you stand behind someone when you realize they need help because their performance needs improving. You stand behind them and demand improvement. You stand behind them and demand they work at it. You stand behind them and teach them what they need to know when the going is tough.

Anybody can stand behind somebody that wins all the time. It's tougher to stand behind somebody that struggles.

This board has almost 200 threads, almost 2 million views, and several thousand posters.

I think they stand behind the team. They keep showing up.

 

[1CHATTVOL]

You confuse honest assessment with not standing behind someone. By your definition Holly doesn't stand behind the players on the bench. If she did, why for sure she'd start them and expect a win.

It's just the opposite - you stand behind someone when you realize they need help because their performance needs improving. You stand behind them and demand improvement. You stand behind them and demand they work at it. You stand behind them and teach them what they need to know when the going is tough.

Anybody can stand behind somebody that wins all the time. It's tougher to stand behind somebody that struggles.

This board has almost 200 threads, almost 2 million views, and several thousand posters.

I think they stand behind the team. They keep showing up.

They keep showing up and saying negative things. Not really sure why you think that's standing behind the team. Newsflash, the team doesn't want that "support" from "fans" and I don't either. Heck, the whole team is banned from social media to avoid seeing just the kind of comments folks make on here.


I'm sorry if my metaphor was unclear. My point was that the problem isn't whose game prediction was right. My point was why would a fan brag about making a NEGATIVE prediction about someone or something that you care about?

In my mind, they shouldn't.

 

[1CHATTVOL]

You confuse honest assessment with not standing behind someone. By your definition Holly doesn't stand behind the players on the bench. If she did, why for sure she'd start them and expect a win.

It's just the opposite - you stand behind someone when you realize they need help because their performance needs improving. You stand behind them and demand improvement. You stand behind them and demand they work at it. You stand behind them and teach them what they need to know when the going is tough.

Anybody can stand behind somebody that wins all the time. It's tougher to stand behind somebody that struggles.

This board has almost 200 threads, almost 2 million views, and several thousand posters.

I think they stand behind the team. They keep showing up.

Jeff, there is certainly analysis on this forum. But it is from a very few posters. The vast majority I've seen over the last few years are not an assessment. And you don't hear HW saying, this team's going to lose to Stanford by 25. And it's because this player is not D1 ready, and that player is a ball hog, and that player is just slow, and that one is lazy, and my assistants are clueless. No, she is positive, takes it on herself, and says we'll work on it and get better.

And go ahead and send me your honest assessment of the next game and how we're really gonna lose big time to Notre Dame. I'll get it to HW, and the team won't bother having to suit up. Hey, they said it first over on Volnation!

 

[teacherdean]

I do not know if the Lady Vols have won the game that will elevate them to play lights out, or not, but today they played a hell of a game. Since we castigate Holly and the team when they lose, it is only fair that we praise them when they win. This was a very good game loaded with more positives then negatives. The ladies played quicker and with confidence. There was not the same old offense of throw it around 50 times trying to get it inside. We pressured the defense by dribble driving in the gaps of the Stanford defense. We played like we had a brain after the first 5 minutes of the game. What we need to see is, will this carryover through the rest of the season.

 

[LVJeff]

They keep showing up and saying negative things...]

I quit counting at over 50 congratulatory posts at today's win. But you didn't miss those. You just refuse to acknowledge they exist. And the ones that are negative by whatever definition you use can be easily ignored by the use of the ignore button. I suggest you use it. And then you could read only the posts of those that are true lady vol fans standing behind the team.

 

[LVJeff]

Jeff, there is certainly analysis on this forum. But it is from a very few posters. The vast majority I've seen over the last few years are not an assessment. And you don't hear HW saying, this team's going to lose to Stanford by 25. And it's because this player is not D1 ready, and that player is a ball hog, and that player is just slow, and that one is lazy, and my assistants are clueless...

I have no idea what HW says behind closed doors. But since you do, that makes you either one of the players or one of the staff. Maybe that explains the 4 losses - you're depressed over the comments and figure what's the use why play hard.