Why I Believe In Merry Christmas (Despite loving Hanukkah)

I HATE the term "happy holidays." I HATE it. No, I'm not some overly-obsessed Christian and I do LOVE Hanukkah. I truly believe in tolerance and I believe the lack of it brings horrific outcomes.

Isn't it funny how nobody says "happy holidays" during the rest of the year?

We call every other holiday by its name. Why not Christmas? Some atheists have a problem with the Christian aspect of Christmas because of Christianity's lack of "tolerance," but why do those exact same people get mad at "Merry Christmas" and demand the manger scene in front of a church be taken down? Isn't that intolerant? Just because I don't celebrate Hanukkah, doesn't mean I'm going to be outraged when I see a menorah or dreidel. Just because I don't believe in the necessity of baptism, doesn't mean I'm going to start a protest about it.

Despite the big hype every "happy holidays" person makes, Hanukkah isn't even an important holiday in Judaism! Hanukkah is probably the least-important holiday in Judaism, even though it's the most well-known. So, why does every "tolerant" non-Jew make a HUGE deal about it? I'll tell you why. They simply don't want to say "Merry Christmas." Fortunately for them, Hanukkah and Kwanzaa are near Christmas. Also, isn't it weird how the exact same people who push Santa say "happy holidays" to be tolerant, even though Santa is clearly Christmas-related?

At the same time, I don't think Christians should be obnoxious about it, and they too should be respectful.

True tolerance

One of my family's favorite Christmas songs is "Christmas with a Capital C" by Go Fish. It is just so true.

Jewish actor and lawyer Ben Stein says it best, from a Jewish perspective: 

"I am a Jew, and every single one of my ancestors was Jewish. And it does not bother me even a little bit when people call those beautiful lit up, bejeweled trees, Christmas trees... I don't feel threatened.. I don't feel discriminated against.. That's what they are, Christmas trees. It doesn't bother me a bit when people say, 'Merry Christmas' to me. I don't think they are slighting me or getting ready to put me in a ghetto. In fact, I kind of like it. It shows that we are all brothers and sisters celebrating this happy time of year. It doesn't bother me at all that there is a manger scene on display at a key intersection near my beach house in Malibu . If people want a crèche, it's just as fine with me as is the Menorah a few hundred yards away. I don't like getting pushed around for being a Jew, and I don't think Christians like getting pushed around for being Christians. I think people who believe in God are sick and tired of getting pushed around, period."

Now that's tolerance.

Anyways, to my lovely readers,

Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah!

Quotes on Socialism: Why It Doesn't Work

1. "Pennies don't fall from heaven, they have to be earned here on earth." -Margret Thatcher
2. "The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other peoples' money." -Margret Thatcher
3. "Socialism is the same as Communism, only better English." -George Bernard Shaw
4. "The goal of socialism is Communism." -Vladimir Lenin
5. "All socialism involves slavery." -Herbert Spencer
6. "Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherit virtue is the equal sharing of misery." -Winston Churchill
7. "Socialism never took root in America because the poor there see themselves not as an exploited proletariat but as temporary embarrassed millionaires." -John Steinbeck
8. "Good conservatives always pay their bills. Unlike socialists, who just run up other people's bills." -Margret Thatcher
9. "The welfare state is merely a method for transforming the market economy step-by-step into socialism." -Ludwig von Mises
10. "No society ever thrived because it had a large and growing class of parasites living off those who produce." -Thomas Sowell
11. "Conservatives teach you how to fish. Liberals take your fish and give it to someone unwilling to fish." -Anonymous
12. "You cannot multiply wealth by dividing it." -Adrian Rogers
13. "You are not entitled by what I have earned." -Anonymous
14. "You are not poor because someone else is wealthy." -Anonymous
15. "Socialism will never work because someone is always unwilling to work." -Anonymous
16. "Hard work and education will take you farther than any government program can ever promise." -Mia Love

Does Socialism Work? A classroom experiment. (brilliant.)

http://danieljmitchell.wordpress.com/2011/11/16/does-socialism-work-a-classroom-experiment/

10 WWII Heroes: Sophie Scholl 6/10

Historical photos are not mine. They are used for educational purposes. I own all other photographs. You may use all of my photographs, as long as proper credit is given.

This is the sixth in a ten part series about the heroes of World War II. You can view the introduction and table of contents to this series here.

At the beginning of each story I will give a maturity rating from 1-5. 1 means the story is appropriate for younger ages, and 5 means it is appropriate for teens and up. This story is rated 3.

Hans Scholl, Sophie Scholl, Christopher Probst
Munich, 1942

Nazi hunter Simon Wiesenthal said, "For evil to flourish, the only thing required is for good men to do nothing." In an episode of Little House on the Prairie, Albert's father says, "If you don't speak up to people, bigots, then you're no better than they are. Worse, in fact. Because you know that its wrong and you allow them to think you feel the same things they do."

Sophie Scholl was born in 1921, the fourth of six children. Her family was Lutheran, and her father was vocally anti-Nazi. Despite her fathers protests, in the early 30s, Sophie willingly joined the Hitler Youth. She loved the games and excitement it brought, along with being with her friends. However, Sophie hated injustice. When the Nuremberg Laws came in 1935 and stripped the rights of all the Jews, Sophie was infuriated. She entered the University of Munich in 1942 where she studied biology and philosophy. That year, Sophie's father was imprisoned for making anti-Hitler comments.

In 1942, an anonymous essay entitled "The White Rose" floated around the University of Munich. Hans Scholl, medical student and brother of Sophie, read this anonymous anti-Nazi essay. Inspired by the audacity the author of the letter had, he began spreading the essay wherever they went - and thus, The White Rose was born. (It was known in German as Die Weiße Rose.) The original members were Hans Scholl, Willi Graf, and Christoph Probst. Originally, Hans tried to hide his involvement from Sophie but when Sophie found it, she joined. 

There were six leaflets published in total. Four leaflets were under the title "The White Rose" and two were under the title "Leaflets of the Resistance." The leaflets were made and distributed from 1942 to 1943. The anonymous leaflets urged the population to speak up. Leaflet 4 bluntly stated, "We will not be silent. We are your bad conscience. The White Rose will not leave you in peace." You can see more excerpts from The White Rose leaflets here.

On February 18, 1943, Hans and Sophie spread the sixth leaflet around the University of Munich as usual. Right before the class break, Sophie noticed a huge stack of pamphlets still in their suitcase. At the top floor, she grabbed a handful of leaflets and flung them over the balcony, just as students were about to fill the atrium. A university janitor had seen them, and immediately turned them in.

Hans, Sophie, and Christoph Probst were arrested, tried, and sentenced to death. Christoph's wife was in the hospital with their third child.

During the middle of the trial, both of Sophie's parents came. Her mother was upset. Her father was proud of his children and wanted to defend them, but neither was allowed to come in. Before being executed, Hans and Sophie were allowed to have one last visit with their parents.

The court could not understand how three Germans, raised in German families, German schools and Hitler Youth, could rebel. Sophie boldly replied, "Somebody, after all, had to make a start. What we wrote and said is also believed by many others. They just don't dare to express themselves as we did.”

memorial at University of Munich
Wikipedia, public domain

While in prison, the Scholl's were most notable for their courage; they refused to show fear. Sophie walked to her death unflinching. Hans' last words were "Long live freedom!" The execution date was February 22, 1943. Soon after the Scholl's death, The White Rose's sixth leaflet was smuggled to the Allies. The Allies copied millions and air-dropped the leaflets all over Germany.

The White Rose's legacy still stands - today nearly all of German knows who these heroes are. Streets and places are named after the Scholl's and The White Rose. Pamphlets surround the University of Munich in commemoration. (You can see pictures here.) In 2005, a German movie entitled Sophie Scholl: The Final Days depicts The White Rose. You can view this movie on YouTube here. (It is in German with English subtitles. It is not graphic.)

The White Rose has been featured in other documentaries, movies, and books.

Although this quote comes from an unknown source, it is quoted in a 2008 book as Sophie and has a very fruitful message. "The real damage is done by those millions who want to survive. The honest men who just want to be left in peace. Those who don’t want their little lives disturbed by anything bigger than themselves. Those with no sides and no causes. Those who won’t take measure of their own strength, for fear of antagonizing their own weakness. Those who don’t like to make waves—or enemies. Those for whom freedom, honour, truth, and principles are only literature."

Members of The White Rose

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In memory of Sophie Scholl, Hans Scholl, and the other members of the White Rose.

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10 WWII Heroes: Helmuth Hübener 4/10

1 Timothy 4:12 NIV

Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, and in purity.

Historical photos are not mine. They are used for educational purposes. I own all other photographs. You may use all of my photographs, as long as proper credit is given.

This is the fourth in a ten part series about the heroes of World War II. You can view the introduction and table of contents to this series here.

At the beginning of each story I will give a maturity rating from 1-5. 1 means the story is appropriate for younger ages, and 5 means it is appropriate for teens and up. This story is rated 3 and it's message is best for middle schoolers and up.

Helmuth Hübener

Speaking the truth is not an easy thing, especially since most people don't want to hear it. Our young heroes recognizing the truth amidst the lies and propaganda is praiseworthy in itself. The fact they did the right thing and spoke out when so many wanted to ignore it is both inspiring and incredible.

I greatly hope this article is an encouragement to you.

Helmuth Hübener was born in Hamburg, Germany on January 8 1925. Like his mother and grandparents, Helmuth was a proud LDS (Mormon). Although his step-father was a Nazi and Helmuth willingly joined Hitler Youth after Boy Scouts was banned, Helmuth soon began questioning Nazism after Kristallnacht, the Night of Broken Glass. On those two days in November 1938, he was horrified as members of Hitler Youth, along with others, smashed Jewish houses and stores, and synagogues. Soon after, when the Mormon church stated they would not allow Jews to come and worship anymore, Helmuth was livid. He had a Jewish friend who enjoyed worshiping there, and this was something so unlike the Mormon church.

Rudi, Helmuth, Karl

In the spring of 1941, Helmuth's brother Gerhard, a soldier, came home with a broken French radio. Unlike German radios, this radio could pick up the BBC. Since Gerhard was about to be inducted into the army again, he locked the radio in a cabinet in his grandma's house. The night Gerhard left, for the first time, Helmuth began listening to the BBC. At the time, listening to the BBC radio was a crime punishable by execution. The Germans only allowed citizens to listen to three stations - and they were all Nazi propaganda. He soon encouraged his two best friends, Rudolf "Rudi" Wobbe and Karl-Heinz Schnibbe, to begin listening to the radio. The oldest and most outspoken, Karl was expelled from Hitler Youth for "insubordination" after speaking out against a Jewish family's brutal arrest. Rudi regularly skipped Hitler Youth meetings. Helmuth began comparing the Nazi propaganda radio to the BBC and was amazed at the difference. Then an idea came to him - why not share the news with others?

With the help of Rudi and Karl, Helmuth struck the idea of writing leaflets proclaiming the truth about Nazi Germany. Helmuth had access to a church typewriter and began writing notes in short hand. He then used carbon paper to make multiple copies. Complete with an official Nazi stamp to make his post-card sized notes look "Nazi official", the leaflets were left in and on everything from phone booths, bulletin boards, mailboxes, and even hanging coat pockets. After about eight months and overwhelming success, Helmuth wanted to expand his operation.
After telling several young Mormon friends, one reluctantly gave away Helmuth's name to the Gestapo. Helmuth's house was searched, and the hidden radio, typewriter, and pamphlets were found.

February 1942, Gestapo photos of Helmuth 

Helmuth was tortured mercilessly, and he gave away Rudi and Karl's name - but he took full responsibility. In the beginning, they all agreed if one was caught, the captured one would take 100% blame, leaving the other two out of it. Because of the writing in the pamphlets, his general and political knowledge, and his behavior in court, Helmuth was tried as an adult. This was extremely rare. The trial was in August 1942. Karl was given a sentence of five years and Rudi of ten - although both sentences were cut short.

Seventeen year-old Helmuth was sentenced to death and permanent loss of civil rights, which meant he could (and would) be mistreated before his execution. Although he was not told his execution date, Helmuth was allowed to write three letters in prison. He wrote one to his mother, one to his grandparents, and one to a family from church - the latter letter survived. The most notable portion of the letter was Helmuth's bold words: "I know that God lives and He will be the just judge on this matter. I look forward to seeing you in a better world!"
On October 27, 1942 at 8:13 PM, Helmuth Hübener was beheaded. At seventeen years old, he was the youngest person executed by the Volksgerichtshof (People's Court).

Rudi died in 1992 from cancer and Karl died in 2010. Both men wrote memoirs about their resistance work. Helmuth has been featured on numerous documentaries, Internet articles, and books. The most notable is a fictional biography of his life, The Boy Who Dared by Susan Campbell Bartoletti. You can read Focus on the Family's review on it here. The Newbery Honor book Hitler Youth by Susan Campbell Bartoletti also features Helmuth.
Helmuth is my political hero and inspiration and I have learned a lot from him. Although a mere child, he took a political stand that most adults were too scared to take. He did it through words, not guns, and he proved you can make a difference no matter what your age is.

Karl (left) and Rudi (right) - a memorial service for Helmuth
Hamburg, Germany 1985

"German boys! Do you know the country without freedom, the country of terror and tyranny? Yes, you know it well, but are afraid to talk about it. They have intimidated you to such an extent that you don't dare talk for fear of reprisals. Yes you are right; it is Germany - Hitler's Germany!" 

from one of Helmuth's pamphlets

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In memory of Helmuth Hübener, Karl-Heinz Schnibbe, Rudolf Wobbe; who changed the world using words, and gave their life fighting for truth and justice. Helmuth Hübener is my political hero and inspiration.  

If you enjoyed this post, please comment and share this post! It means a lot. 

Thank you so much!