Wednesday, December 23, 2015
![General Washington resigning his commission before Continental Congress](pix/washington-resigns-commission.jpg)
[1783 - George Washington resigns his commission in the Continental Army before the Congress]
![Mormon Founder Joseph Smith](pix/smith-joseph-jr2.jpg)
[1805 - Joseph Smith, Jr., founder of the Mormon church, born in Sharon, Vermont]
![Hansom Cab](pix/hansom-cab.jpg)
[1834 - Joseph Aloysius Hansom patents his Safety Cab]
![Poetry Magazine Founder Harriet Monroe](pix/monroe-harriet2.jpg)
[1860 - Harriet Monroe, poet, editor and founder Poetry Magazine, born in Chicago]
![Federal Reserve Building](pix/federal-reserve.jpg)
[1913 - President Woodrow Wilson signs an Act creating the Federal Reserve System]
![Dancer Jose Greco](pix/greco-jose.jpg)
[1918 - Jose Greco (Costanzo Greco Bucci), flamenco dancer, born in Montorio nei Frentani, Italy]
![USS Relief (AH-1)](pix/uss-relief-ah-1.jpg)
[1919 - USS Relief (AH-1), first ship designed from the keel up as a hospital ship, is launched]
![Actor Harry Guardino](pix/guardino-harry.jpg)
[1925 - Harold Vincent 'Harry' Guardino, actor, born in Brooklyn]
![Senior Bowler Dick Weber](pix/weber-dick_port.jpg)
[1929 - Dick Weber, professional bowler, PBA founder, born in Indianapolis, Indiana]
[1947 - John Bardeen, Walter H. Brattain, William Shockley invent the transistor]
![Earth as seen by Appolo 8 Crew from Moon orbit](pix/earth-appolo-8.jpg)
[1968 - Astronauts Frank Borman, James A. Lovell Jr. & William A. Anders are the first men to orbit the Moon]
Human Sacrifice
Here on the brink of the holiday that celebrates the birth of one who rejected the material life, pursued not financial gain, and drove the early financial services industry out of the temple, we see at last the true religion of our society: Consumerism. As good Americans we celebrate Christmas with an orgy of consumer activity that revolves around a spirit of 'shop till you drop.' It might work for me if all that shopping had not turned deadly on Black Friday, the traditional beginning of the Christmas shopping season in 2008.
Somehow, the image of that poor fellow who was trampled to death by a herd of crazed shoppers at a Long Island Wal-Mart still hangs like a huge question mark over this holiday season. I suppose no one really knows how many shoppers stepped over his body in the rush to seize their precious bargains before the store ran out. I can't think of any material thing in my life that I wanted that badly or needed that much. I guess it isn't so much a question mark as it is an exclamation point at the end of the answer to the question: "What is the underlying cause of the economic meltdown that marked that fateful Christmas of 2008?"