DLA For Sunday 121910

For showing TRUE Christmas Spirit.

Hey folks,

Jack "the Bike Man" Hairston gave away between 500 and 600 bikes to needy children Saturday morning, December 18, 2010. Here, some people still wait in lines while other children take their bikes for a spin despite the sudden downpour.

That's right folks, 600 Bikes. FREE. Jack "the Bike Man" Hairston has had his Bike Yard broken into numerous times, and just recovered from being beaten less than a year ago. But according to the Palm Beach Post - Rain doesn't deter kids from bike giveaway By Laura Green Palm Beach Post Staff Writer Updated: 12:45 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 18, 2010

Less than a year after he was beaten outside his bike shop, left with a broken wrist and nose and a moment's thought of giving up his charity work, Jack "the Bike Man" Hairston is back.

This morning, Hairston and volunteers began giving away more than 500 used bikes to children from a warehouse off Australian Avenue in West Palm Beach.

After he was attacked, Hairston left the country, fled to Guatemala to "get my head screwed back on."

But he returned after only 10 days, committing to continue collecting donated bikes and repairing them for his annual giveaway.

"I knew I was coming back because as much as it angered me and frustrated me, the kids they scream at me, they need help," Hairston said. "You have to look at them and help them."

Hairston started the giveaway in the 1990s.

On Saturday, wearing a Santa hat, he watched the children choose their bikes, a smile plastered across his face.

Some children stood in line for more than two hours to get their chance to select from the messy rows of bikes laying atop one another. They waited as the rain began to fall. Some fled to cars when it began to pour.

Twins Victor and Erick Hernandez said they didn't mind standing two hours in line.

"It was worth it because we have bikes and they're old," Victor said. "We want new ones."

There were Dora, Barbie, Disney princess and plenty of girlie looking pink and purple bikes with pom poms hanging from the handle bars.

Boys has plenty of sporting looking options, with flames and tough designs on the metal. Victor chose one painted with the word Rocket. Erick picked a silver bike.

~ laura_green@pbpost.coms

Now THAT is the Christmas Spirit. Congratulations Jack "the Bike Man" Hairston, you ARE the Winner of the Display of Logic Award. You are the epitome of "better to give than receive." A clear example of what this Season should be all about. Giving unto others, and the rewards you receive from doing so. Keep up the good works. You truly ARE an inspiration.
Peter

Sources:
Palm Beach Post - Rain doesn't deter kids from bike giveaway

Christmas Coming Back

Hey folks,

I just posted the Presidential Radio address from yesterday. President Bush gave an extremely inspirational message. It was great. It was also one hundred percent true. One of the things that stood out to me was this.

"At this time of year, we acknowledge that love and sacrifice can transform our world. The miracle of Christmas reminds us that God's grace is revealed in the humblest places. Two thousand years ago, the fullness of that grace was found in a tiny manger, and the life born that day changed our world forever. As Christmas approaches, Laura and I extend to all Americans our best wishes, and we hope every family is brought closer together during this season of reflection and rejoicing."

If it were not for Jesus, there would be NO Christmas. It really is, just that simple. No Christ, no Christmas. I have been arguing with people for years that this country, and places around the world celebrate Christmas for the right reasons. They know what it is all about. However, there are small, yet loud groups, here and there that want to make Christmas all inclusive. Or eliminate it all together. No displays in public, ETC.

For years, some have bowed down to these Idiotic, self important, and irrelevant groups and removed displays from public property. Only a couple of problems with that. One, there is NO Separation of church and state. Two, over 90 percent of this country, CLAIM to be Christian. It seems that Christmas may actually be coming back.

Get this, from USA Today - Goodwill lacking in Yule disputes, By Wendy Koch, USA TODAY

Christmas fervor is prompting more communities this year to buck secular efforts to take down Christmas trees or Nativity scenes.

Some removed the symbols from public property because of complaints about legality, then later put them back. Missouri State University in Springfield re-erected a Christmas tree after a public outcry about its removal, and Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland ordered two state parks to restore Nativity scenes.

Both sides of the issue say conflict has intensified.

"It's more abrasive this year," says Barry Lynn, executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State. He says the religious right has pushed for more government displays of religious symbols.

Too bad for you. Talk about an Idiotic, self important, and irrelevant group.

"More and more people are feeling empowered" to protest the absence of Christian symbols, says Bill Donohue, president of the Catholic League, an advocacy group. "There's a change in attitude." He says more than 95% of Americans celebrate Christmas.

Among the flash points:

•In Green Bay, Wis., Mayor Jim Schmitt cast a tie-breaking vote in the City Council on Wednesday to keep a Nativity scene along with a Santa Claus, reindeer and two Christmas trees on the roof of City Hall. The council put on hold requests for other symbols, including an unadorned, aluminum pole associated with Festivus, a non-denominational holiday that originated on the TV sitcom Seinfeld.

The Wisconsin Legislature voted to rename the balsam fir in the Capitol a "Christmas tree." It had become a "holiday tree" in 1985. "Call it what it is," Rep. Marlin Schneider says, the measure's sponsor. "It's like calling the menorah the 'holiday candlestick holder.' " The state Senate has not voted.

•In Fort Collins, Colo., the City Council rejected a task force's suggestion that holiday decorations be secular only. "People just went nuts about that," Larimer County Manager Frank Lancaster says.

•In Columbiana, Ala., Mayor Allan Lowe countered a complaint about the city's Nativity scene with a new policy that allows seasonal displays on public property. He has asked lawyers to review it.

"I've had nothing but positive support," he says. "We want to celebrate Christmas."

•In Hyde Park, N.Y., a Jewish group rescinded its request to remove a Nativity scene after residents complained, says Pompey Delafield, a town supervisor. "Few things are as emotional as that." He welcomed a Jewish menorah and a Muslim crescent moon and star to the display on the Town Hall lawn.

"There's a terrible disrespect for the separation of church and state," says Annie Laurie Gaylor, co-president of the Freedom From Religion Foundation, which has opposed crèches on government property.

"The state shouldn't have a Christmas anything," Gaylor says. "It's not supposed to observe religious holidays."

The Supreme Court has ruled that a Nativity scene cannot stand by itself on public property.

Gaylor says she has received e-mails calling her "horrible" names. She adds: " 'Grinch' would be mild.' "

How about Idiot? Folks, Christmas is what it is. Trees are NOT Christian. Santa, is not Christian, and neither are Reindeer. So to say someone is promoting Religion because the have a tree displayed is idiotic on it's face. But to say that we can not celebrate Christmas in public, complete with the TRUE meaning of Christmas, is absurd.

I for one, am glad that more and more people are starting to realize, they do not have to entertain these, and I repeat, Idiotic, self important, and irrelevant groups. They speak for a VERY SMALL minority of like minded folks. They want to change everything around to suit them. THAT is not America.
Peter.