Pardon my French, but what the fuck business is it of yours? Not only do you recommend that people restructure their lives to accommodate your religion, you then turn around and tell people of completely different religions how they should and should not be spending their time? The unmitigated gall!! If anyone here is being selfish, it’s you.
Cry me a frigging river. Crunchy Frog, if you’re reading, this is the sanctimonious bullshit that nonbelievers hate–the implication that not only should nonbelievers bend over backwards to make sure Thea is in church on Christmas Eve, but that (partly on the basis of their skin tone, as she treads dangerously close to racism) others should all practice the dominant religions of their country of ancestry in the most devout manner so that Thea can be in church on Christmas Eve. Thank your deity for me that you aren’t like that.
“Common human decency”? Puh-leeze. Casinos aren’t in the business of promoting religious observance, in case you hadn’t noticed.
Can I assume we’ll hear you back here in 23 days complaining about all the people who didn’t get to take MLK Day off?
Oh, and by the way, I’m more alarmed by the fact that people can only find one lousy fuckin’ day a year to get together with their families than I am by anything else. Maybe if you made the effort sometime during the other 364, Christmas wouldn’t have to be such a big frigging deal.
No, I’m dropping a big old kopros on churches whose congregations are so huge that nobody knows or cares who anybody else is. Which is fairly typical of most Latin Rite churches. My Byzantine Catholic congregation small, and we all know each other. It’s a family. You know, people who care about each other. I’ve gone to Latin Rite churches in a pinch, when my work schedule kept me from going to my own church, and it was depressing. Nobody even says “hi, welcome to Our Lady of Perpetual Responsibility”. My congregation is growing fairly quickly because a lot of people who are Latin Rite Catholics come to our church as guests of another parishoner, and keep coming back because the people are so warm and friendly. Father Francis has stated that he’s not going to let the parish get any bigger than two or three hundred families because he doesn’t want to lose that sense of the parish being a family. If we get any bigger than that, we’ll have to spin off a mission…
You obviously haven’t read my previous posts, Maeglin. If you had, you would know that I *am *Catholic. Oh, wait, you did read my posts, but only enough that you could find something to quote out of context.
I am alarmed that so many people find SuperBowl a big deal. Why care so much? It’s just this stupid thing where overpaid thugs kick a ball around a field. Why do people get so worked up over it? But you know what? They do. So I don’t try to rain on their parade, and imply that something is wrong with them. If a co-worker asked me to work on Superbowl so they could have the day off, to spend with their family/friends, I’d help them out.
I find football to be the biggest, stupidest waste of time ever. And I find some football fans to be amazing geeks. But bottom line is, they enjoy it. As long as they don’t expect me to join in, let 'em have their fun. And if Superbowl ever became the major event that Christmas is, I think I’d cope. I’d roll my eyes, but cope. It’s just ONCE a year, and it obviously is very important to many people. So who am I to rain on their parade?
See, that’s the kind of bullshit that’s upsetting me. It’s like saying, “oops, I forgot, there are a few citizens of Belfast who don’t plant car bombs.” I know it’s not quite as incendiary a generalization, but it’s a generalization nonetheless. Just because somebody has Middle Eastern ancestry doesn’t make him/her a Muslim. And even if they are Muslim, who’s to say they’re strict adherents to all the religion’s tenets? There are certainly quite a few peopel who consider themselves “Christian” who haven’t even stepped inside a church for decades. Or are all Muslims fanatical fundamentalists? That’s sure the impression we get from the news, right? Give me a break. And as pldennison points out, who the hell are you to question the way others practice their religion anyway? Get over yourself.
quote:
Religion and/or tradition are not requirements for leading a decent life. Happy fucking new year.
No one said that, as far as I can tell.
yosemitebabe, I wasn’t referring to anything you said. I was referring specifically to thea’s assetion (which I quoted earlier) that people’s abandonment of tradition is part of the reason the world is going to hell in a cheap handbasket. The implication seems to be that those of us who don’t follow tradition (and, by implication, religion) are causing the downfall of society, as we have no pre-fabricated belief system to instill moral values in us. Sorry if I read too much into it, but given the OP’s general tone I don’t think I was making unnecessary assumptions about the meaning.
It kind of depends on what kind of family gathering you’re talking about.I can easily get together with my parents and siblings all year long. If I want to have my family’s traditional holiday gathering, which includes far more people, we’re basically restricted to Christmas. Why? Because that’s the only day everyone is off. People who work in retail,restaurants,etc can only count on being off when the establishment is closed, just like I can only count on being off when my office is closed. The difference is my office is closed every night after 5pm, every weekend and every legal holiday. We used to be able to do it on Thankgiving, but now the stores are open then. If they open on Christmas too, we’ll never get everyone together
No, they’re not. They could, however,make it their business to treat their employees well, and close on a day that is significant (religiously or otherwise) to many of them. After all, if there were enough employees who didn’t want the day off to meet the casino’s staffing needs, Thea wouldn’t have had to work, would she?
I’m trying to find the post where I said that all Arabs were Muslims, and that all Muslims are wild-eyed fundamentalists. Woodstockbirdybird is now reading things into my posts that aren’t there. Probably had Thanksgiving Dinner with pleddinson…
Well, at least eating dinner with pldennison (I know, it’s hard to look up the spelling of a username from a couple posts back, it’s OK) I’d be able to carry on an intelligent conversation.
No, of course you never said all these things about Arabs. What you said was: And I did mention that the other two major Middle Eastern religions are having holy times at this time of year (Haunukka and Ramadan). So they are not observing their own religions. The Muslims are supposed to be fasting and doing penance, and there were a lot of Arabs at the tables, dodging the fast. (Yes, I know that there are Christian Arabs, some of them are in my church, and I’ve worked with others, but they are in the minority. And Arab Christians make the most devout of European Christians look like total heathens. They’re definitely not going to be out gambling.)
Nope, no generalizations there. Whatever was I thinking?
Oh, and in case you didn’t see it in my last post, you also replied to my remark that all Arabs weren’t Muslims with: Originally posted by Thea Logica oops, I forgot, there are a few Manicheans in Iraq. How could I have been so inconsiderate…
Yeah, I must’ve been ascribing qualities to you based on nothing but the air whistling through my pwetty wittle head! Come on, do you really not see how somebody could gather that you’re implying what I accused you of implying? Sweet mother of a Hubbard.
No, Thea, I can damn near GUARANTEE that pldennison (and would it kill you to spell the name right?) doesn’t eat Thanksgiving dinner in a restaurant and doesn’t tip.
So you don’t have any time off. Boo fucking hoo. Neither do I. In my case, it’s my own damn fault, since I needed to take a week’s worth of vacation because I had strep. So I’m at work. shrug My job sure as HELL isn’t life-altering. But I do it. So did half the frigging company.
Not all Christians give a damn, not all Muslims do, not all Jewish people do. You had to work. Deal. Next year, trade with someone. And you implied that all those Arabs who were at your casino should have been home celebrating Ramadan, so yes, you DID imply they were all Muslims. So shut up.
yosemite…I apologize for saying it’s rude. Not quite what I meant.
FYI, two years ago, Leigh-Anne and I went out for breakfast on Thanksgiving Day, to a very small family-run local restaurant with a devoted clientele. We left a $20 tip on a $14 bill.
This year, we went out to breakfast on 12/23, before doing some last minute shopping. I left an $18 tip on a $13 bill.
Don’t presume to lecture me, missy. I’ve worked in retail and broadcasting, the two biggest getting-reamed-on-the-holidays jobs there are aside from police and emergency services. You ever been the only person in a broadcast studio on a holiday, trying to east the boredom between changing reels of “best-of” tapes and running local spot breaks? I have. So you don’t have any seniority or sick/vacation time? Suck it up and take it like an adult, or change jobs.
No. Vacation time is only good if all the people with more seniority don’t want to use their vacation time for Christmas. Newsflash: They all want to use their vacation for Christmas. Christmas is booked. No more vacations are going to be allowed on those days. And - switch days? With who? As many of us have been repeating, everyone else wants Christmas off too. If this weren’t the case, Thea wouldn’t have to work Christmas, would she?
In my case, I do have a “life sustaining” job. So I don’t expect to get these holidays off. But even if I wanted to, it isn’t going to happen. Not until all the people with seniority quit, anyway.
1
After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi [1] from the east came to Jerusalem
2
and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east [2] and have come to worship him.”
3
When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him.
4
When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Christ [3] was to be born.
5
“In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, "for this is what the prophet has written:
6
“`But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will be the shepherd of my people Israel.’ [4] "
7
Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared.
8
He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and make a careful search for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.”
9
After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen in the east [5] went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was.
10
When they saw the star, they were overjoyed.
11
On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and Mary said, ’ Heeeeeeeeerrreeeesss Jesus!”
As to the rest, Thea, stop whining. Get another job if you don’t like this one. I am the type of person who you might see in a casino on Christmas( not being traditionally religious), and I absolutely guaran-fucking-tee you that I would tip generously- I always do. Even if my server is weepy cuz she can’t get out and observer the rites of whatever sect she belongs to.
The way I see it, this isn’t just about someone “sucking it up” because they have to work the holidays. I didn’t work this Christmas (because it came on my day off) but I usually do. And I worked Thanksgiving, and most other holidays. I suck it up fine. Because I know I have to be there. But people who work in casinos, retail stores, etc., know that NO ONE has to friggin be there. And they wish they didn’t have to. God forbid someone bitch about having a special day screwed up because of something that (in their view) was far from necessary.
As someone else mentioned, it used to be that no one would work Thanksgiving, but no more. Now all’s that’s left is Christmas. Now that’s the only real holiday that (most) people can count on getting off, and gathering with family. And it sounds like as far as many of you are concerned, screw that too. What’s next? Are no holidays going to be left? Or is the general apathy of some people going to override everything? How about no holidays at all? No “special” days? No family festivals/gatherings/traditions? Because, God Forbid, with a holiday, comes the expectation that many people will want the day off. And that might hamper your gambling plans. Might have to do without fresh fruit for that one day. Can’t have that.
So, by all means. Let’s just have all days the same as every other day. Every day a “blah” day. No special days that much of the population can get excited about, and look forward to as a whole. Not even Super Bowl. (Oh! But maybe Super Bowl should be an exception! Whaddya say?)
I’ve been following this thread for a while, and there seems to be a misperception. yosemitebabe, the casino didn’t open because people demanded that it open; people came because it was open, not the other way around. The supply was there, and therefore so was the demand. If Thea’s casino had closed, you can bet your sweet bippy that all the customers would have gone down the road to the casino that wasopen. “If you’re open, they will come”, not “If they come, you must open.”
As for the Jewish fellow who closes his store early on Friday night and on Saturday - I’m free to take my business elsewhere, assuming that there is a competing business available to me. If there is, the Jewish proprietor runs the risk that I will like his competition better and so will transfer my loyalties. (You’re also assuming that he can’t find a “Shabbos goy” to run the store on Saturday.) He’s made his decision - his religious beliefs over his business, if it comes down to that. Thea could have made that decision too - her religious beliefs over her need to pay the rent, etc. She didn’t, and now chooses to bitch and moan about the people who took advantage of that decision. Too fucking bad.
There are several days when nearly everyone has off - New Year’s Day, Memorial Day, 4th of July, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day. Make one of those a “family” day. Or how about Easter Sunday, when it’s fucking SUNDAY fercryinoutloud, and everything’s closed anyway? As DITWD I think pointed out, that’s much more of a religious celebration anyway. Not that I want to tell someone of another faith how to celebrate her holidays.
Good god, maybe because Xmas is a special day to us, not to you. What the fuck do you care?
Oh boo fucking hoo, I couldn’t go gambling my life savings away or buy my smokes on one day! Booo hoo!
Cry me a river, build me a bridge, and get the FUCK over it.
All right? Like it would kill you to stay home one fucking day? Why can’t you just let people relax on the ONE day of the year when most everything should be closed. (Xmas is a National Holiday-don’t like it? Bitch to the pres, not to me.)
You don’t need to be shopping on Xmas day, all right? The day after, there are plenty of sales and fucking assholes out there. Heaven forbid I should be allowed to practice my fucking religion. Oh, I can’t…some people have to GAMBLE…aw, fuck it.
I’ve worked Xmas eve and had to deal with assholes. Go to hell. Petition the government to have a day off of YOUR choosing. And please-the big bosses who want these places to be open-where are they? At home, with their families!
Fuck you. If you’re so desparate to gamble that you will get all fucking hissy if you can’t do it on Xmas, then maybe you have a serious addiction.
Fuck it all.
(sick of dealing with retail assholes at this time of year…why don’t you make a day of it with your families? Not a religious thing-a FAMILY thing. Which is what Xmas means to me-families, peace on earth, goodwill towards everyone, everywhere.)
You know what really bites my ass, though? Working on LABOR DAY. It’s LABOR day, as in letting the workers have a day off…so why are we fucking working?
Sure, I understand that. But the result is the same. A lot of people miss an important holiday.
And, I hasten to add, a few of you on this thread “whined” about not being able to find stores open on Christmas. So this whining thing goes both ways. I could just as easily say to some of you - “Suck it up, miss your fresh fruit for one damned day.”
I think it could be said that Thea is complaining because she is FORCED to make that decision. Why can’t some employers respect that there are just a few days a year that their employees would like off? Why can’t employers treat their staff with a little more consideration? Why are more and more people apathetic about holidays, and why do they think “too fucking bad” when the people who do still care about holidays are screwed over?
And, a slight hijack here - employers can go out of their way to NOT respect their employees’ religious sensibilities. I was hired at a retail job with the specific understanding that I would NOT work Sunday. This was (relatively) respected for a few years, but New Boss decided I was full of shit, and not entitled to not work Sundays. Even though those were the terms in which I was hired, and I had been a good employee (working holidays and shit hours) otherwise. New Boss pressed me to work Sundays, I guess just to see if I would buckle under. (And also because I don’t think it was within her realm of understanding that someone would actually want a day off for religious reasons.) So, I quit. Pardon me if I have little faith in employers respecting their staff’s individual sensibilities.
What cloud have you been living in? When I worked retail, I worked all of these days (with the exception of Thanksgiving and Christmas) - and this was a few years ago. We see now that the tides are changing with Thanksgiving and Christmas. And when I worked in the Photo lab, we worked some holidays as well. As far as getting Sunday off - see my little hijack above.
It’s all fine when you have a “nice” job that offers things like holidays, benefits, and some modicum of respect to their employees. But some of us have “dead end” or “shit” jobs. Some of us are working our way through college, or for whatever reason do not have an ideal job. So we settle, to pay the bills. Does this mean that we are shit out of luck for the holidays? ALL the time?
Sure! And that is my point as well! It doesn’t HAVE to be a religious holiday. It can just a special day in which the family gathers. IF they can get the friggin’ day off…
