The Christmas Song (commonly subtitled “Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire” or, as it was originally subtitled, “Merry Christmas to You”) is a classic Christmas song written in 1944 by Bob Wells and Mel Tormé.
According to Tormé, the song was written during a blistering hot summer. In an effort to “stay cool by thinking cool”, the most-performed (according to BMI) Christmas song was born.[1] “I saw a spiral pad on his (Wells’) piano with four lines written in pencil”, Tormé recalled. “They started, ‘Chestnuts roasting…, Jack Frost nipping…, Yuletide carols…, Folks dressed up like Eskimos.’ Bob didn’t think he was writing a song lyric. He said he thought if he could immerse himself in winter he could cool off. Forty minutes later that song was written. I wrote all the music and some of the lyrics.”
The Nat King Cole Trio first recorded the song early in 1946. At Cole’s behest – and over the objections of his label, Capitol Records – a second recording was made later the same year utilizing a small string section, this version becoming a massive hit on both the pop and R&B charts.
https://twitter.com/mjamal773/status/650359144218648576
Wow!
Love it!
https://twitter.com/kemrichardson7/status/676567942826295296/photo/1
https://twitter.com/NigeriaNewsdesk/status/675986417630187523/photo/1
This is so sweet…a chipmunk enjoying the fresh bedsheets :)
https://youtu.be/CY447EQT7uw&rel=0
This poem was posted just a half an hour ago and already has many views. It is powerful.
https://youtu.be/MfLdvMxeQWg&rel=0
https://twitter.com/prchovanec/status/674779662250336256?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
https://twitter.com/BrentNYT/status/676043633716551680
MO. state rep wants to take scholarships from striking athletes
2 hours ago
A Missouri state representative has pre-filed a bill that would cause any striking collegiate athlete in his state to lose their scholarship.
Yes, this is a real bill.
The bill comes after Missouri football players in early November decided to forgo football activities in solidarity with campus protesters who called for a change in campus leadership after a series of racially charged on-campus incidents. The players strike last about three days and the team played against BYU the following weekend.
Since this is a pre-file there are few details on this bill, however, as noted by the sports editor of the Columbia Daily Tribune, scholarships aren’t state funded.
http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/ncaaf-dr-saturday/mo–state-rep-wants-to-take-scholarships-from-striking-athletes-190731473.html
https://twitter.com/deray/status/676544433819623424
um……posted without comment….
https://twitter.com/BroHumors/status/676507004190388224?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Aw shit! Lil fellow meant well, but he could have broken that baby’s NECK.
Hmmm…not so sure Ametia…LOL…
Might just be the case of big brother who’s going along to some extent, but isn’t exactly feeling the new kid that’s taken mom, dad and everyone else’s attention from him..
Conservatives furious Serena Williams is Sports Illustrated’s Sportsperson of the Year — instead of a horse
David Ferguson DAVID FERGUSON
14 DEC 2015 AT 10:58 ET
Sport Illustrated has named tennis champion Serena Williams as its 2015 Sportsperson of the Year, but conservatives and others are incensed that the publication chose to honor Williams rather than horse-racing triple crown winner American Pharoah.
American Pharoah won a readers’ poll for the honor, but Sports Illustrated chose instead to crown Williams, who posed on the cover draped over a golden throne.
“She was the most deserving person for the award. She had an amazing year. The way she won her events; the fact that she’s done this for so many years at such a high level,” said Paul Fichtenbaum — editor of the Sports Illustrated Group — to USA Today. “She was a terrific candidate in a year of terrific candidates.”
Not everyone was pleased with the choice, however.
Columnist Brian Zipse at HorseRacingNation.com was outraged that the horse was “denied” the title.
“But…American Pharoah won the Grand Slam, and Serena Williams did not,” Zipse fumed. “Once again, Thoroughbred horse racing has been denied by mainstream sports media.”
“Sports Illustrated, your agenda is showing,” he said.
On Twitter, the publication’s mentions bristled with ire.
http://www.rawstory.com/2015/12/conservatives-furious-serena-williams-is-sports-illustrateds-sportsperson-of-the-year-instead-of-a-horse/
Fuck’em
X’S A GAZILLION!
Bigots go bonkers after Muslim judge swears oath on Koran instead of Bible: ‘She should be arrested!’
Tom Boggioni TOM BOGGIONI
14 DEC 2015 AT 13:04 ET
Reacting to news that a New York judge — who is a practicing Muslim — took her oath of office using the Koran, commenters flooded a Facebook announcement, calling it an “abomination” and saying she should be arrested.
Following her election last month, Carolyn Walker-Diallo was sworn in as a civil judge for the 7th Municipal District in a Brooklyn Borough hall last Thursday. She chose to take her oath using a Koran instead of a Bible.
http://www.rawstory.com/2015/12/bigots-go-bonkers-after-muslim-judge-swears-oath-on-koran-instead-of-bible-she-should-be-arrested/
WATCH: Ohio gun nut oozes white privilege as he explains his ‘right’ to terrorize black neighborhood
Travis Gettys TRAVIS GETTYS
13 DEC 2015 AT 22:53 ET
A White gun owner and a black barbershop owner sat down to discuss their differences after an angry confrontation that was captured last week in a viral video.
Daniel Kovacevic said he was just exercising his legs and his rights by strolling around a black neighborhood with a rifle strapped to his back and a pistol holstered to his belt — but Deone Slater said the armed man made him nervous.
“He could have turned around and run loose like Rambo on the building,” said Slater, who owns Kangaroo Kutz in Akron.
Ohio allows for the open carry of firearms, and both Kovacevic and legal experts said he broke no laws because he did not point either of his weapons at Slater or verbally threaten him.
“I walk up and down the street for exercise — it just happens that I have guns with me,” Kovacevic said.
The 25-year-old Kovacevic has been stopped by police multiple times — including a recent incident near the University of Akron — after alarmed residents called authorities and posted photos of him walking around their mostly black neighborhood.
http://www.rawstory.com/2015/12/watch-ohio-gun-nut-oozes-white-privilege-as-he-explains-his-right-to-terrorize-black-neighborhood/
WHAT.DA.PHUQ????
https://twitter.com/washingtonpost/status/676486650810224640?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Sure, he gets this from adults. How do we know that he couldn’t also find some adult’s gun in his house and bring it to school and make good on what he threatened? For every murdering monster out there, there is a parent or two who raised a murdering monster.
a@nonbinarynegro
missouri state legislature has proposed a bill to stop college athletes from boycotting injustice by threatening their scholarships.
Didn’t Jesse Jackson, Jr. just finish a stint in the federal pen..
FOR DOING THE SAME THING??!?!
……………..
Ed O’Keefe ✔ @edatpost
Sen. @BobCorker failed to properly disclose about $2M in income since 2007 – until @wsj’s Brody Mullins called: http://on.wsj.com/1O3T2WE
Yes, but Corker is white THO!
I just paid more yesterday for a gallon of milk and a carton of eggs than I did a gallon of gas.
Everytime it happens, I still shake my head.
https://twitter.com/anders_aslund/status/676407959468023808?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Latest GOP Poll Nationally.
Done AFTER Trump’s ‘ close the country to Muslim’ comments.
The newly released Monmouth poll on the state of the GOP race nationally.
1. Donald Trump: 41% (up from 28% in a Monmouth poll in October)
2. Ted Cruz: 14% (up from 10%)
3. Marco Rubio: 10% (up from 6%)
4. Ben Carson: 9% (down from 18%)
The rest of the Republican field is at 3% or lower.
https://twitter.com/ObamaFoodorama/status/675070097254440962?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Ella Nilsen @ella_nilsen 4h4 hours ago
Here’s a stat: Trump has gotten an est $23.4 million in free media coverage this year on ABC, NBC & CBS alone http://www.bloomberg.com/polit… …
https://twitter.com/VICESports/status/676474677951389696/photo/1
Heads exploding in 3-2-1 …
Is this the true face of Jesus? Scientists use forensics to discover what Christ may have looked like
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/true-face-jesus-scientists-use-7008460
A forensic expert has recreated the face of Jesus Christ using state-of-the art science.
The resulting face is a far cry from the tall, Caucasian man with light blonde hair that is usually show in bibles and stained glass windows throughout the world.
The features of the ‘real’ Jesus are typical of Middle Eastern Jews in the Galilee area of northern Israel.
The striking image was created by Richard Neave, a retired medical artist from the University of Manchester, who used forensic anthropology usually used to solve crimes to build the portrait.
As the co-author of Making Faces: Using Forensic And Archaeological Evidence, Neave has reconstructed dozens of famous faces, including Philip II of Macedonia, the father of Alexander the Great, and King Midas of Phrygia
He used the fact that before the Crucifixion, Judas Iscariot had to tell the soldiers who Jesus was because they could not tell him apart from his disciples.
Neave and his research team were provided with Semite skulls from Israeli archaeologists.
They created X-ray “slices” of the skulls and used computers to establish the muscles and skin on a typical Semite skull, reports Esquire.
The team also said Jesus would be bearded and have short hair – likely with tight curls – in keeping with Jewish tradition.
Using the average build of a Semite male at the time, they theorised Jesus would likely have been just over 5ft, and since he worked outdoors as a carpenter until he was about 30, the scientists reasoned he would be stronger and more weather-beaten than usually depicted.
Two Popes praying to a Black Madonna
http://d39ya49a1fwv14.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/Popes-praying-to-Black-Madonna-e1411033389644-600×567.png
Verily, verily, Jesus was not from Europe and, thus, could not have had European facial characteristic.
https://twitter.com/BennettHipp/status/676407899862749184?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
https://twitter.com/rezamarashi/status/676122201964347393?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Obama’s success at climate summit puts world on a new path
12/14/15 08:00 AM—UPDATED 12/14/15 08:11 AM
2
By Steve Benen
Success at the international climate talks in Paris – the COP21 conference – was by no means assured. Indeed, the negotiations began with the largest gathering of international heads of state in the history of the world, each with their own priorities and interests, which was followed by intensive negotiations, years in the making.
On Saturday, negotiators announced the good news: a global climate pact is complete.
The first-ever international accord, agreed to by nearly 200 nations, requires all countries to take steps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Leaders burst into cheers after it was passed, many hugging each other with tears in their eyes.
The “Paris agreement” also aims to keep the rise in global temperatures “well below” 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) from pre-industrial times to the end of this century and “endeavor to limit” them even further, to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
To achieve that goal, the world has to stop emitting greenhouse gases altogether in the next half-century, according to scientists. And they must commit to limiting the amount of greenhouse gas pollution from human activity to the same levels that trees, soil and oceans are naturally able to absorb before then.
Secretary of State John Kerry cheered the agreement, calling the deal a “smart, responsible path forward,” and the “strongest, most ambitious global climate agreement ever negotiated.” President Obama touted the successful negotiations in a brief national address on Saturday night.
http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/obamas-success-climate-summit-puts-world-new-path
https://twitter.com/conradhackett/status/665733883393155073/photo/1
Obamacare Foe Marco Rubio Insured Under Affordable Care Act
Updated: DEC 12 2015
Florida Sen. Marco Rubio boasts of being the only Republican presidential candidate to have dealt a blow to Obamacare — but he’s also insured under the law.
Rubio’s campaign confirmed to NBC News that the GOP presidential candidate and his family remain insured under the law, through the D.C. exchange. He first signed up in 2013, at which point spokeswoman Brooke Sammon told the Tampa Bay Times that Rubio “spent time looking at all the options and decided to enroll through the D.C. exchange for coverage for him and his family.”
He’s not alone — Sen. Rand Paul signed up for health insurance under the law in 2013, as did all of congressional leadership at the time. Sen. Ted Cruz received insurance at the time from his wife’s employer, Goldman Sachs, and now has private insurance.
http://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2016-election/obamacare-foe-marco-rubio-insured-under-affordable-care-act-n478156
The Anatomy of Donald Trump’s South Carolina Supporters: Fed Up And Fearful
Dec 14, 2015, 7:17 AM ET
Meet John Wood.
He lives in Aiken, South Carolina, and says Americans should be scared about who is coming into the country. So that’s why he’s for voting for Donald Trump.
“I know I’m afraid,” said Wood, who was laid off from his construction job in 2011 and has since settled into retirement. “We need to know who these people are, and I don’t think they should be able to just come into this country illegally and shoot up people.”
In a series of interviews conducted at Trump’s town hall last weekend in South Carolina, many supporters of the billionaire real estate mogul expressed outright fear — and others a general unease — about the security of the United States.
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/anatomy-donald-trumps-south-carolina-supporters-fed-fearful/story?id=35751538
Latest polling points to new Republican top tier
12/14/15 08:42 AM
By Steve Benen
Ted Cruz has spent the last several months executing a plan that, he and his team believed, would propel him into the top tier of the race for the Republican presidential nomination. Right about now, that plan is working out quite nicely.
Over the weekend, a new Des Moines Register/Bloomberg Politics Iowa Poll was released, and it’s fair to say the Hawkeye State has a new frontrunner.
1. Ted Cruz: 31% (up from 10% in the same poll in mid-October)
2. Donald Trump: 21% (up from 19%)
3. Ben Carson: 13% (down from 28%)
4. Marco Rubio: 10% (up from 9%)
5. Jeb Bush: 6% (up from 5%)
J. Ann Selzer, who conducted the survey, described the results as a “big shakeup,” adding, “This is a sudden move into a commanding position for Cruz.”
There are some other recent polls that show Trump still ahead in the state, but Selzer’s DMR/Bloomberg poll is generally considered the gold standard in Iowa polling.
The results are largely in line with the results of a Fox News poll in Iowa released yesterday. (This is the first Fox poll of Iowa Republicans, so there is no trend line.)
1. Ted Cruz: 28%
2. Donald Trump: 26%
3. Marco Rubio: 13%
4. Ben Carson: 10%
Note, that this is the third consecutive poll out of Iowa that shows the Texas senator leading in the state, suggesting he’s now the favorite to win the first caucuses on Feb. 1, now just 48 days away.
At the national level, a new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll was released yesterday, and it found the Republican race shaping up this way:
1. Donald Trump: 27% (up from 23% in the same poll in late October)
2. Ted Cruz: 22% (up from 10%)
3. Marco Rubio: 15% (up from 11%)
4. Ben Carson: 11% (down from 29%)
5. Jeb Bush: 7% (down from 8%)
At this point, Carson’s support is collapsing just about everywhere, and the bulk of his supporters are, as expected, gravitating to Cruz.
As for the overall frontrunner, while Trump appears to have lost his advantage in Iowa, let’s not mistake this for some kind of backlash against his recent extremism. Each of the polls noted above have something important in common: they show Trump gaining, not losing, support.
http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/latest-polling-points-new-republican-top-tier
This is who they’ve always been.
………………
GOP: A Neo-Fascist White-Identity Party?
It started 20 years ago, with pandering to racist and xenophobic movements. But today, in Trump’s GOP, it’s not so fringe anymore.I’ve been reading recently about Bill Clinton’s presidency for a project I’m working on, and I just got to the part about the Oklahoma City bombing. What stood out to me, reading over this material in the Era of Trump, is the way a number of congressional Republicans at the time played footsie with the then-burgeoning far-right militia movements in the run-up to the bombing itself.
If you have no memory of that time, here’s what happened in a nutshell. Right-wing militia movements started growing in the late 1980s. In August 1992, federal agents shot and killed a survivalist in Idaho named Randy Weaver, and his wife and son, after a months-long standoff after Weaver had missed a court date (it was on a weapons charge, but the government really wanted him to flip and become an informant on Aryan Nations, and he said no). It became an iconic moment in those circles.
………………..
What’s relevant to us today is the way Republicans and the mainstream conservative movement pandered to these militant far-right groups. Many didn’t merely criticize the ATF and the FBI, which was entirely reasonable under the circumstances, but went beyond that to stoke these peoples’ paranoia about government and suggest/not suggest, in that same way we’re familiar with on those non-answer/answers about Obama’s citizenship, that armed resistance was acceptable. Texas Senator Phil Gramm, who was prominent and respected and at one point a plausible presidential candidate, was probably the highest-profile pol to use such rhetoric, arguably aside from Newt Gingrich himself. And of course Republican and conservative movement stoking of fears about immigrants has been constant.
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/12/14/gop-a-neo-fascist-white-identity-party.html
I hope that he takes the entire First Family.
https://twitter.com/metaquest/status/676394817035702272?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
https://twitter.com/TheDailyEdge/status/676117978547638272?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
https://twitter.com/SInow/status/676390610618687488?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
She is truly gorgeous! She is also classy!
Good Morning, Everyone :)
Happy Monday! My favorite Christmas song.
Good Morning :)
I love this song, too, with its coziness of home and its good wishes for a wonderful Christmas and
http://www.gopennsvalley.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/il_340x270.532709842_dhbl.jpg
Good morning, everyone! I love this song too. It makes me feel happy.