Monday, December 31, 2012

I bid you good morning. Iam @ dialysis & hooked up...

I bid you good morning. Iam @ dialysis & hooked up. I have 4:26 left. I'll comme off by 4:00pm.
Carl Ray Louk

Have a Happy New Year

Have a Happy, have a Happy,
Have a Hap-Hap-Happy New Year!
As the bells ring out, everyone will shout,
"Happy New Year!"

Have a Happy, have a Happy--!
May each day be filled with good cheer
And with nothing less than much happiness
All through the year!
Should old acquaintence be forgot
In the days of auld lang syne?
Then take a cup of kindness,
And you will always feel just fine.
Have a Happy, have a Happy--!
Never have a worry or fear!
Here's my wish to you; hope my wish comes true,
"Happy New Year!"
Have a Happy, Happy New Year!
 
Carl Ray Louk

Not racist, not violent, just not silent anymore

Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.

I am Carl Ray Louk and unlike the President of the United States of America, Barack Hussein Obama, I stand with Israel

FreedomWorks
We are a community of over 2 million grassroots activists We recruit, educate & mobilize across the country Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.
http://www.freedomworks.org/

"Friendship Never Ends" SG-1996

"Let Love Lead The Way" SG-2000

"The Phoenix Shall Rise" Count Carl Ray Louk 2003

"Even A Man Who Is Pure In Heart And Says His Prayer By Nigh, May Become A Wolf When the Wolf bane Blooms And The Autumn Moon Is Bright." LT-1941

"Flesh of my flesh; blood of my blood; kin of my kin when I say come to you, you shall cross land or sea to do my bidding!" CVTD-1895

"From Hell's Heart I stab at thee, for hate sake I spit my last breath at thee" CA-1895

"I have been, and always shall be your friend" Spock

"Trick or Treat, Trick or Treat candy is dandy but murder, oh murder, is so sweet" Count Carl Ray Louk-2003

"Eye of newt, and toe of frog, wool of bat, and tongue of dog adder's fork, blind worm's sting, lizard's leg, and owlet's wing. For a charm of powerful trouble, like Hell broth boils and babble. Double, double, toil and trouble, fire burn, and caldron bubble"
WS

Facebook: www.facebook.com/CarlRayLouk

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Celebrating New Years: When January 1st isn't New Year's Day Globally, people ce

Celebrating New Years:
When January 1st isn't New Year's Day
Globally, people celebrate the coming of a new year with many traditions, customs and activities. However, not all cultures celebrate New Year's Day on January 1st.

 

Japan
 
In Japan, every February 3 or 4, based on the lunar calendar, Setsubun is celebrated. Although not a national holiday, Setsubun ("sectional/seasonal division") has marked the last day of winter since the 13th century and is one day prior to the beginning of Spring, signifying a new year with the return of the warming sun, symbolic rebirth, rejuvenation of spirit and body, and preparing for the planting season. Setsubun traditions have been celebrated in many ways; the most common, however, is throwing beans - Mame Maki - to drive away evil spirits - oni. The Toshi Otoko/Onna - year man/woman - throws mame - beans - inside their home (or, perhaps, at someone dressed as an oni), while shouting, "Oniwa sato, fukuwa uchi!" - "Devils out, good luck/happiness in!" After the beans are thrown, family members pick up and eat the same number of beans as their age, bringing good health, luck and fortune for the new year.

 

Vietnam
 
Vietnamese New Year - Tet Nguyen-Dan; Tet - is also based on the lunar calendar and most often occurs in late January or early/mid February. Tet Nguyen-Dan, literally translated, is "the first morning of the first day of the new period." Believing that the first day and the first week of the new year determines your fortune (or misfortune); weeks of preparations are made including thoroughly cleaning your home (perhaps, even repainting it), buying new clothes, and settling debts and past arguments. Tet is the most important holiday within the Vietnamese culture, with New Year's traditions lasting at least three days, beginning with New Year's Eve - Giao Thua, to give/to receive - acting as the transition between the old and the new. Families gather to wait until midnight, praying together and then congratulating each other, beginning with the eldest members of the family. Traditionally, huge strings of fireworks, attached to houses, shattered midnight, scaring away evil spirits. Now illegal in many countries, community fireworks replace individual displays. Banging pots, ringing bells and making noise in all sorts of manner also adds to the clatter. Family alters are perfumed with incense sticks and offerings of fresh flowers, food and water are made. With the morning of Mong Mot Tet - New Year's Day - new clothes continue to signify new beginnings, as greeting of "Chuc mung nam moi!" - "Congratulations for the New Year!" - are exchanged between family members, friends and business associates.

 

China

 

The 15-day Chinese New Year is celebrated on the second new moon (lunar) after the Winter Solstice (solar) - occurring between January 20-February 20 - culminating with the Lantern Festival. Preparing begins weeks ahead - buying presents, decorations, food and new clothes. Houses are cleaned to sweep away bad luck; and, old debts are settled before the last day of the old year. New Year's Eve and New Year's Day celebrations are primarily family affairs, with members gathering for their meal on New Year's Eve. Traditionally, if a family member couldn't attend this meal, a place was set for them, representing their presence. At midnight, younger family members pay their respect to elders and parents. New Year's Day, children are given "Red Envelopes" - Lai See - red envelopes with good luck money by their parents. Each day - from the 2nd to the 14th - traditional observations are made - such as married daughters visiting their parents, eating specific foods and offering particular prayers. The Lion Dance is particularly common during Chinese New Year, as tradition believes that the loud drums and cymbals, combined with the fierce image of the Lion/dragon evicts evil spirits. On the last day of the Chinese New Year's celebration, lanterns are lit and carried to show spirits the way home.

 

Persia/Iran

 

On the first day of spring, marked by the Vernal Equinox, the two-week celebration of the Persian/Iranian New Year - Nowruz, NoRuz, NoRooz, Noruz - "new day" - begins. Occurring between March 20 to 22, Nowruz activities include symbolic gestures, such as - cleaning your home, confessing wrong-doings, making peace with yourself and your enemies; and, enjoying parties with ceremonial foods. Representing the end of one year and the rebirth of a new year, making or buying new clothes and germinating seeds are signs of renewal. Within Persian homes a special cloth is spread on which to make the sofreh-ye haft-sinn - seven dishes - setting. The number seven is sacred within the Iranian culture and the dishes represent the seven heralds of beauty, happiness, health, joy, life, patience and prosperity. Included on the sofreh there are traditional books- for wisdom, coins - for wealth, painted eggs - for fertility, an orange floating in a bowl of water - representing the earth; and a goldfish in its own bowl - representing life. Branches of olive, fig and pomegranate symbolize time. A mirror, surrounded by a candle for each child in that family - signifying happiness and enlightenment, reflects the Creation that's celebrated on the first day of Spring - Nowruz. On the night of the last Wednesday of Nowruz, bonfires are set and people jump over the fires, shouting, "Give me your red color and take back my pallor!" Jumping through the fire - symbolizing good - the celebrants pass through the end of the year into Spring.

 

Sri Lanka

 

A calculation, based on astrological signs, determines the New Year - Aluth Avurudhu - in mid-April for Sri Lankans. Unique to these celebrations, when the old year ends and the new year begins is, also, astrologically determined - occurring several hours apart. This "in between time" is, appropriately, called nona gathe - neutral period - when refraining from material pursuits is encouraged and participating religious traditions is customary. Rituals include house cleaning, lighting of the hearth, making milk rice - kiri bath, and herbal bathing on the last day of the passing year. Strengthening family relationships - between parents and children - and respecting elders is a foundation of New Year customs. Exchanging gifts of betel and sweets and greetings between families and neighbors shows gratitude for the old year and re-confirms the desire for continued prosperity and peace in the new year.

 

India
 
April 13th or 14th marks the beginning of the solar New Year in Indian and is regionally celebrated in Punjab (Sikh) - Baisakhi; Assam - Rongali Bihu; Bengal - Naba Barsha; Tamil Nadu - Puthandu; Keral - Vishu; and, Bihar - Vaishakha. Ritual baths and visiting temples to give thanks for a good harvest and to prayer for future prosperity are similarly celebrated within each region. Following the customary prayers, traditional dancing is performed by men and women, who are elaborately dressed. Processions, mock duels and fairs are, also, shared customs. However, each region has its special interpretations of their shared celebrations. For example, Tamil New Year's Day is celebrated at the start of the first month of the Tamil calendar year - Chithirai. It is, also, celebrated as the day when the Hindu God of Creation, Lord Brahma, started creation. Auspicious sightings - kanni - is important because to begin a New Year by seeing such things as silver and gold, flowers, fruits, vegetables and rice will ensure happiness and prosperity for the coming year. All regions share wearing new clothes, the preparations particular feast foods and long and joyous gatherings to bid farewell to the old and welcome the new.

 

Maori

 

In the southern hemisphere, late May to early June is mid-winter. The Maori New Year,
Matariki - the Maori name for the star cluster Pleiades - celebrates this as a time of remembrance for those who have died and, since the harvest is done and food has been collected, it is, also, a time for celebration. Rising only once during the year, Matariki - literally "eyes of god" - is a period of feasting and new beginnings. Traditionally, kites - pakau - were flown, because they were closer to the stars. How bright or hazy the stars are, also, foretold if a warmer or colder planting season; and, therefore, a better harvest yield.

 

Globally, people celebrate the coming of a new year with many traditions, customs and activities. However, not all cultures and religions celebrate New Year's Day on January 1st.

 

Baha'i

 

Known as Naw Ruz or "New Day", the first day of the Baha'i new year occurs on the Vernal Equinox (the first day of Spring). Baha'is fast for nineteen days leading up to the holiday. The fast is broken on the morning of Naw Ruz with Baha'is taking part in a great feast. Many with tables are decorated with Haft Sin; fruits, cakes and colored eggs. The celebration corresponds with the Persian/Iranian New Year, also known as Nowruz, NoRuz, NoRooz, or Noruz.

 

Hindu

 

Traditions celebrating the Hindu Deepawali/Diwali in mid-October to mid-November, (according to the position of the moon) vary from region to region. However, the universal theme of the triumph of Good/Light over Evil/Darkness is the foundation for all observances. Before Deepawali, people decorate and light their homes with diyas - lamps, prepare sweets and buy new clothes. Literally meaning "rows of diyas," Diwali - Festival of Lights - symbolizes victory of righteousness and the lifting of spiritual darkness. Homes are spruced up and cleaned and decorative designs are painted on walls and floors. Relatives gather, offering prayers and giving sweets. Celebrated over five days, each day is dedicated to a special philosophy or ideal.

 

Islam

 

The Islamic New Year begins on the first day of the first month (Muharram) of the Islamic calendar and is known as 1 Muharram. It is generally observed with quiet reflection and prayers.

 

Jewish

 

Rosh Hashanah, New Years Day on the Jewish calendar, begins a 10 day period known as the High Holy Days - a time of penitence and prayer that ends with Yom Kippur. The holiday is observed the first and second day of the month of Tishri, usually falling during September. It is believed that on Rosh Hashanah the destiny of all mankind is recorded by G-d in the Book of Life. On Yom Kippur the Book is closed and sealed. Those that have repented for their sins are granted a good and happy New Year.
The centuries of customs and traditions, prayers, offerings and joyful celebrations that have marked the ending of one year and the beginning of a new year encircles the earth throughout the calendar. Good fortune! Great prosperity! Happy New Year!

 
Carl Ray Louk

Not racist, not violent, just not silent anymore

Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.

I am Carl Ray Louk and unlike the President of the United States of America, Barack Hussein Obama, I stand with Israel

FreedomWorks
We are a community of over 2 million grassroots activists We recruit, educate & mobilize across the country Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.
http://www.freedomworks.org/

"Friendship Never Ends" SG-1996

"Let Love Lead The Way" SG-2000

"The Phoenix Shall Rise" Count Carl Ray Louk 2003

"Even A Man Who Is Pure In Heart And Says His Prayer By Nigh, May Become A Wolf When the Wolf bane Blooms And The Autumn Moon Is Bright." LT-1941

"Flesh of my flesh; blood of my blood; kin of my kin when I say come to you, you shall cross land or sea to do my bidding!" CVTD-1895

"From Hell's Heart I stab at thee, for hate sake I spit my last breath at thee" CA-1895

"I have been, and always shall be your friend" Spock

"Trick or Treat, Trick or Treat candy is dandy but murder, oh murder, is so sweet" Count Carl Ray Louk-2003

"Eye of newt, and toe of frog, wool of bat, and tongue of dog adder's fork, blind worm's sting, lizard's leg, and owlet's wing. For a charm of powerful trouble, like Hell broth boils and babble. Double, double, toil and trouble, fire burn, and caldron bubble"
WS

Facebook: www.facebook.com/CarlRayLouk

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Celebrating New Year's Eve What would New Year's Eve be like without the firewor

Celebrating New Year's Eve What would New Year's Eve be like without the fireworks, the Ball dropping in Times Square, singing Auld Lang Syne and rockin' out with Dick Clark?

 

Prior to 1904, New Year's Eve was celebrated in Herald Square with much less pomp and partying. However, several innovations transformed New York that year: the invention of neon lights, the opening of New York's first subway line; and the first celebration of New Year's Eve in Times Square.

 

The New York Times had just completed building the Times Tower on an isolated triangle of land at the intersection of 7th Avenue, Broadway and 42nd Street - dubbed the "Crossroads of the World" - where commerce and culture collided. The newspaper's owner, Alfred Ochs, had successfully convinced the city to rename Longacre Square, the district surrounding the paper's new home, in honor of the his publication. On December 31, 1904, Ochs' new building was the focus of an unparalleled New Year's Eve celebration. An all-day festival concluded in a fireworks display ignited from the base of the tower. At midnight the raucous sound of cheering from over 200,000 merry makers was the genesis of a new tradition.

 

However, two years later, the city banned the fireworks because they were too dangerous. Ochs was not deterred. He arranged to have an illuminated seven-hundred-pound iron and wood ball to be lowered from the tower flagpole (77 feet, 23 meters) precisely at midnight to signal the end of 1907. In 1914, The New York Times outgrew Times Tower and relocated to West 43rd Street. By then, however, New Year's Eve in Times Square had become part of our tradition.

 

The use of a "time ball" by Ochs wasn't arbitrary and dates to 1829, when the first was erected in Portsmouth, England, as a way for sailors to synchronize their marine chronometers and, thereby, determining their marine position. Ochs, simply, converted that daily convention to signal the passage of time to be part of his annual tradition - and it stuck! The Ball drop has become a kind of metaphor for marking our own "positions" - where were we last year; where will we be next year?

 

In 1942 and 1943, the Ball - as it's become known - was temporarily eliminated due to the World War II "lights out" in New York. Celebrants who continued to gather in Times Square during those years greeted the New Year with a moment of silence followed by the chimes from Times Tower.

 

Today's Time Square New Year's Eve Ball was designed by Waterford Crystal and has been used since the ringing in of 2000. The Ball is a geodesic sphere, six feet in diameter, weighing 1,070 pounds. Covered with a total of 504 Waterford crystal triangles, ranging from 4.75" to 5.75", the outside of the Ball includes 90 computer-controlled rotating pyramid mirrors, able to reflect light across Times Square.

 

Today, New Year's Eve in Times Square is a phenomenon, with hundreds of thousands of people continuing to gather at the Time Tower, now known as One Times Square, waiting in the New York winter. Thanks to satellite technology, a global audience, estimated at over one billion people, watches this ceremony each year.

 
Carl Ray Louk

Not racist, not violent, just not silent anymore

Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.

I am Carl Ray Louk and unlike the President of the United States of America, Barack Hussein Obama, I stand with Israel

FreedomWorks
We are a community of over 2 million grassroots activists We recruit, educate & mobilize across the country Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.
http://www.freedomworks.org/

"Friendship Never Ends" SG-1996

"Let Love Lead The Way" SG-2000

"The Phoenix Shall Rise" Count Carl Ray Louk 2003

"Even A Man Who Is Pure In Heart And Says His Prayer By Nigh, May Become A Wolf When the Wolf bane Blooms And The Autumn Moon Is Bright." LT-1941

"Flesh of my flesh; blood of my blood; kin of my kin when I say come to you, you shall cross land or sea to do my bidding!" CVTD-1895

"From Hell's Heart I stab at thee, for hate sake I spit my last breath at thee" CA-1895

"I have been, and always shall be your friend" Spock

"Trick or Treat, Trick or Treat candy is dandy but murder, oh murder, is so sweet" Count Carl Ray Louk-2003

"Eye of newt, and toe of frog, wool of bat, and tongue of dog adder's fork, blind worm's sting, lizard's leg, and owlet's wing. For a charm of powerful trouble, like Hell broth boils and babble. Double, double, toil and trouble, fire burn, and caldron bubble"
WS

Facebook: www.facebook.com/CarlRayLouk

Twitter: www.twitter.com/CarlRayLouk

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Yahoo Group: Yahoo! Groups : LouksHauntedGraveyardhttp://groups.yahoo.com/group/LouksHauntedGraveyard/

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Celebrating January 1st as New Year's Day......but not always

Celebrating January 1st as New Year's Day......but not always

 

While most of the world now celebrates New Year's Day on January 1st, it was not always that way. If you had lived in Mesopotamia and Babylon 4,000 years ago (c. 2000 B.C.), you probably would have celebrated the new year in mid-March, at the time of the Vernal (Spring) Equinox. If, however, you were an Egyptian, your new year began with the Autumnal Equinox and the flooding of the Nile. If you were Greek, the Winter Solstice began your new year celebrations. All these seasons reflected a time of renewal, re-birth and regeneration. However, it was secular, civic and religious influences that eventually changed most "new year" celebrations to January 1st.

 

Measuring time was, historically, determined by the easily observed cycles of the sun (solar), the moon (lunar) and of the regular occurrences of seasonal events that influenced agriculture. However, since solar, lunar and seasonal events were not consistent, formulating a reliable calendar evolved over eons.

 

The earliest known Roman calendar designated March as the beginning of the new year, on the Vernal Equinox - the beginning of spring and a time when warring could begin, again. Depending upon whether one focuses on Mars or Martius as the derivation of that month's name, either interpretation is acceptable, as the return of spring begins a new crop season; and, with the winter ending, the weather was favorable for moving troops. Their calendar had ten named months, reflected in the historic, numerical names of six of the months. The origin of the names of the months were:

 

March - Mars, Roman god of war; or, Martius - Roman god of fertility and vegetation

 

April - perhaps derived from aperire - Latin from open; or, from Aphrodite, goddess of love and beauty
 
May - Maia, Roman goddess of spring

 

June - Juno, principle Roman goddess of marriage and the well-being of women

 

July - originally Quintilis, Latin for 5th month, renamed for Julius Caesar in 44 B.C.

 

August - originally, Sextilis, Latin for 6th month, renamed for Augustus Caesar in 8 B.C.

 

September - septem, Latin for 7
 
October - octo, Latin for 8

 

November - novem, Latin for 9

 

December - decem, Latin for 10

 

Before 700 B.C. the calendar year began with the month of March, until the second king of Rome, Numa Pontilius, added the month of January and February. The month of January was named to honor Janus, a Roman god with two faces - one looking back and the other looking forward, signifying the old and the new. February is derived from Februa, the Roman festival of purification.

 

The new year was, eventually, moved from March to January because it was the start of the civil year, when elected consuls, the highest officials in the Roman republic, began their tenure.

 

Nevertheless, this new year date was not always observed, and in many places within the Roman empire, the new year continued to be celebrated on March 1.

 

In 46 B.C. Julius Caesar introduced a new, solar-based calendar that was an improvement on the ancient Roman calendar, which was lunar-based and had become inaccurate over the years. A lunar-based calendar is founded on the cycles of the moon - the synodic period. However, there is variation in the precise time for a specific lunation - the time between successive new moons - from 29 days, 6 hours, 35 minutes to 29 days, 19 hours, 55 minutes. Therefore, cumulatively, any lunar-based calendar will be "adding" time over any prolonged period. The Julian calendar, named for Julius Caesar, decreed that the new year would occur on January 1st. Julius wanted the year to begin in January since it celebrated the beginning of the civil year and the festival of the god of gates and, eventually, the god of all beginnings, Janus, after whom it was named. Combining these two celebrations joined the civil and the religious/pagan fetis, the genesis of the word festival.

 

Romans traditionally exchanged gifts - strenae - of good omen on January 1, the Kalends (root of the word calendar) of January. These gifts included sweet dates, honey and coins. In addition, it was the beginning of the one year term for the consuls, who had a procession on January 1 and, also, wanted a good omen for their tenure.
With Constantine (274-337 A.D.), the first Christian Roman emperor, New Year's evolved into a day of fasting rather than feasting, as had become the custom to celebrate Janus.
In medieval Europe, however, the celebrations accompanying the new year were considered to have become pagan and unChristian. In 567, the Roman Catholic church, at the Second Council of Tours in France, abolished January 1 as the beginning of the year. Thereafter, at different times and in various places throughout medieval Christian Europe, the new year was celebrated on Dec. 25, the birth of Jesus; March 1; March 25, the Feast of the Annunciation; and Easter, which continues to be based on the lunar calendar.
In 1582, Pope Gregory XIII re-established January 1 as new year's day with calendar reform. Today the Gregorian calendar has become the international standard for civil use. Although most Catholic countries adopted the Gregorian calendar, it was only gradually adopted among Protestant countries, who didn't recognize the Pope as their ecclesiastical leader. The British, for example, did not adopt the reformed calendar until 1752. Until then, the British Empire, and its' colonies, continued to celebrate the new year in March. In the beginning years of British America, Puritans disavowed any new year observances at all. Still associating any celebrations with pagan traditions, Puritans wouldn't speak the word "January," calling it "The First Month" because of the association with the pagan god, Janus.

 

Given the various measures of time and the influence of power and the persistence of belief, the history of new year has been determined by shifts in liturgical, civic, religious, lunar, solar and seasonal variations. However, by all accounts, celebrating New Year's has been, and continues to be, a time of rejuvenation and renewal, whether reflected upon quietly, with piousness or with days of feasting and frivolity.

 
Carl Ray Louk

Not racist, not violent, just not silent anymore

Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.

I am Carl Ray Louk and unlike the President of the United States of America, Barack Hussein Obama, I stand with Israel

FreedomWorks
We are a community of over 2 million grassroots activists We recruit, educate & mobilize across the country Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.
http://www.freedomworks.org/

"Friendship Never Ends" SG-1996

"Let Love Lead The Way" SG-2000

"The Phoenix Shall Rise" Count Carl Ray Louk 2003

"Even A Man Who Is Pure In Heart And Says His Prayer By Nigh, May Become A Wolf When the Wolf bane Blooms And The Autumn Moon Is Bright." LT-1941

"Flesh of my flesh; blood of my blood; kin of my kin when I say come to you, you shall cross land or sea to do my bidding!" CVTD-1895

"From Hell's Heart I stab at thee, for hate sake I spit my last breath at thee" CA-1895

"I have been, and always shall be your friend" Spock

"Trick or Treat, Trick or Treat candy is dandy but murder, oh murder, is so sweet" Count Carl Ray Louk-2003

"Eye of newt, and toe of frog, wool of bat, and tongue of dog adder's fork, blind worm's sting, lizard's leg, and owlet's wing. For a charm of powerful trouble, like Hell broth boils and babble. Double, double, toil and trouble, fire burn, and caldron bubble"
WS

Facebook: www.facebook.com/CarlRayLouk

Twitter: www.twitter.com/CarlRayLouk

MySpace:
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Yahoo Group: Yahoo! Groups : LouksHauntedGraveyardhttp://groups.yahoo.com/group/LouksHauntedGraveyard/

Yahoo Group: Yahoo! Groups : TheWorldAccordingtoCarlRayLouk http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TheWorldAccordingtoCarlRayLouk/

Auld Lang Syne

Auld Lang Syne What would New Year's Eve be like without the fireworks, the Ball dropping in Times Square and singing Auld Lang Syne?
 
Another contemporary tradition, playing Auld Lang Syne (literally "old long since"), as the first song after the Ball falls, goes back to when it was first published in 1796, by Robert Burns, in Scotland, as a song of remembrance and reflection. It's the most commonly sung song for English-speakers on New Year's Eve. Guy Lombardo, who popularized this piece with his band Guy Lombardo and His Royal Canadians, first heard the song in his hometown of London, Ontario, sung by Scottish immigrants. From 1929-1959 his band played every New Year's at the Roosevelt Hotel in New York, with the first radio broadcast in 1929. The first televised New Year's celebration with Lombardo's band was in 1954 and continued until 1976, when they were, then, playing at the Waldorf-Astoria. Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve televised broadcast began on December 31, 1972 to bring in a "younger crowd", but, kept Lombardo's rendition of Auld Lang Syne to be the first song played in the new year. For many, not hearing it would make their New Year celebration seem "unofficial," somehow.
(Lyrics below)
Lyrics to Auld Lang Syne

 

Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
and never brought to mind ?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
and auld lang syne ?
CHORUS:
For auld lang syne, my dear,
for auld lang syne,
we'll take a cup o' kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.
And surely ye'll be your pint-stoup !
And surely I'll be mine !
And we'll take a cup o' kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.
CHORUS
We twa hae run about the braes,
and pou'd the gowans fine ;
But we've wander'd mony a weary fit,
sin' auld lang syne.
CHORUS
We twa hae paidl'd in the burn,
frae morning sun till dine ;
But seas between us braid hae roar'd
sin' auld lang syne.
CHORUS
And there's a hand, my trusty fiere !
And gies a hand o' thine !
And we'll tak a right gude-willie-waught,
for auld lang syne.
CHORUS
Lyric source: Wikipedia - Auld Lang Syne

 
Carl Ray Louk

Not racist, not violent, just not silent anymore

Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.

I am Carl Ray Louk and unlike the President of the United States of America, Barack Hussein Obama, I stand with Israel

FreedomWorks
We are a community of over 2 million grassroots activists We recruit, educate & mobilize across the country Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.
http://www.freedomworks.org/

"Friendship Never Ends" SG-1996

"Let Love Lead The Way" SG-2000

"The Phoenix Shall Rise" Count Carl Ray Louk 2003

"Even A Man Who Is Pure In Heart And Says His Prayer By Nigh, May Become A Wolf When the Wolf bane Blooms And The Autumn Moon Is Bright." LT-1941

"Flesh of my flesh; blood of my blood; kin of my kin when I say come to you, you shall cross land or sea to do my bidding!" CVTD-1895

"From Hell's Heart I stab at thee, for hate sake I spit my last breath at thee" CA-1895

"I have been, and always shall be your friend" Spock

"Trick or Treat, Trick or Treat candy is dandy but murder, oh murder, is so sweet" Count Carl Ray Louk-2003

"Eye of newt, and toe of frog, wool of bat, and tongue of dog adder's fork, blind worm's sting, lizard's leg, and owlet's wing. For a charm of powerful trouble, like Hell broth boils and babble. Double, double, toil and trouble, fire burn, and caldron bubble"
WS

Facebook: www.facebook.com/CarlRayLouk

Twitter: www.twitter.com/CarlRayLouk

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Saturday, December 29, 2012

Happy New Year 2013 Oliver North Dec 28, 2012

Happy New Year 2013

WASHINGTON -- It's "Auld Lang Syne" time again. Robert Burns is credited with "collecting" the lyrics for the old Scottish drinking and dancing ballad that's become a traditional part of New Year's festivities. The most memorable verses -- "should old acquaintance be forgot and never brought to mind" and the chorus, "for auld lang syne, my dear, for auld lang syne, we'll take a cup o' kindness yet for auld lang syne" -- are often described as reminders of "the good old times" amid new beginnings. That's a tough task this year. Saying goodbye to 2012 won't be hard. But looking forward with hope for a better year in 2013 is a real challenge.

Peering into a chasm from the edge of the "fiscal cliff" isn't the way most of us wanted to end the first dozen years of the 21st century. We all know it's the nature of government to grow in size, power and expense. But how many of us really expected that the fools in Washington would drown our progeny in a sea of deficits, debt and ever-higher taxes? Nobody I know expected the Internal Revenue Service to become the dominant fixture in our lives.

As 2012 began, did anyone anticipate it would become "The Year of the Cover-up"? Who believed the year would end with more emphasis on banning personally owned firearms than deterring our adversaries from acquiring nuclear weapons? Did anyone anticipate that our constitutionally protected freedoms would fall under the purview of the United Nations? A year ago, who among us expected we still would face the prospect of prolonged global recession, radical Islamic chaos in the Middle East, and endless genocide in Syria?

But as we ring out 2012 and welcome 2013, that's where we are. So as we "take a cup o' kindness yet for auld lang syne," what should we expect in the new year ahead -- apprehension or anticipation? Frequent readers of this column know I suffer from a severe case of chronic optimism. Clip and save this column until next year so you can rate my powers of prognostication:

--Fiscal cliff. The potentates of pork on the Potomac will kick the can down the road without breaking their toes. Taxes will go up for all of us, and Warren Buffett will pronounce it to be a good thing. The incredibly selfish baby boomers will demand that their "entitlements" and "benefits" not be cut -- but they will be anyway. Small businesses, the engine of our economy, will sputter -- and find new ways to survive but not prosper. Washington's political class will be glad 2013 is not an election year. Many will regret not following Sen. Jim DeMint into more productive endeavors.

--The cover-ups. Hillary Clinton will recover from her concussion, but she won't recall what she did or didn't know about abysmal security at the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya. John Kerry, the most anti-U.S. military secretary of state in history will try to sweep the mess under the rug while promising reforms -- and dreaming up new ways to punish Israel. Attorney General Eric Holder will continue to cover up White House complicity in his "Fast and Furious" gunrunning operation.

--U.S. military. Personnel reductions, cuts in benefits and delays in replacing worn-out weapons and equipment will degrade the finest fighting force in the history of the world. Many combat-experienced troops who defended us and offered others the hope of freedom will join private companies to "backfill" current commitments in Afghanistan and Africa. Thanks to organizations such as Freedom Alliance, the American people will be reminded to keep our commitments to the men and women of our armed forces and their families and honor their service and sacrifice.

--The ayatollahs. A failing Iranian economy and the collapse of Bashar Assad's sanguinary regime in Syria will put increasing pressure on the hagiocracy ruling in Tehran. Though the Obama administration lacks the will to support a second "Green Revolution" in Iran, others will do so. It will be the last chance to prevent the ayatollahs from acquiring -- and using -- nuclear weapons.

--The Second Amendment. Vice President Joe Biden's "task force" will ignore the National Rifle Association's advice to protect our children with armed security guards in our schools. Instead, the B-Team will recommend banning certain firearms based on cosmetics. America's parents will respond with a dramatic increase in families opting to home-school.

As we sing "Auld Lang Syne" this year, I will recall 2012 as the year the good Lord blessed Betsy and me with our 13th and 14th grandchildren. I'll remember being welcomed home from difficult and dangerous places by loving family members who prayed for my safe return. I will be reminded of friends from Vietnam to Somalia to Iraq and Afghanistan -- some departed, others still here -- and be grateful for knowing them.

For me, "Auld Lang Syne" isn't about the "good old times"; it's about good people. The lyrics are a reminiscence about not past events but relationships. It's people who help us weather the tough times of life -- and enjoy pleasant events. As we face an uncertain tomorrow, "Auld Lang Syne" is a reminder to stay close to those we love and who love us in return.

Oliver North is the host of "War Stories" on Fox News Channel and the author of the New York Times best-seller "Heroes Proved." To find out more about Oliver North and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.

COPYRIGHT 2012 CREATORS.COM

Oliver North

Oliver North

Oliver North is a nationally syndicated columnist, the host of War Stories on the Fox News Channel, the author of the new novel Heroes Proved and the co-founder of Freedom Alliance, an organization that provides college scholarships to the children of U.S. military personnel killed or permanently disabled in the line of duty. Join Oliver North in Israel by going to www.olivernorthisrael.com.

 
Carl Ray Louk

Not racist, not violent, just not silent anymore

Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.

I am Carl Ray Louk and unlike the President of the United States of America, Barack Hussein Obama, I stand with Israel

FreedomWorks
We are a community of over 2 million grassroots activists We recruit, educate & mobilize across the country Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.
http://www.freedomworks.org/

"Friendship Never Ends" SG-1996

"Let Love Lead The Way" SG-2000

"The Phoenix Shall Rise" Count Carl Ray Louk 2003

"Even A Man Who Is Pure In Heart And Says His Prayer By Nigh, May Become A Wolf When the Wolf bane Blooms And The Autumn Moon Is Bright." LT-1941

"Flesh of my flesh; blood of my blood; kin of my kin when I say come to you, you shall cross land or sea to do my bidding!" CVTD-1895

"From Hell's Heart I stab at thee, for hate sake I spit my last breath at thee" CA-1895

"I have been, and always shall be your friend" Spock

"Trick or Treat, Trick or Treat candy is dandy but murder, oh murder, is so sweet" Count Carl Ray Louk-2003

"Eye of newt, and toe of frog, wool of bat, and tongue of dog adder's fork, blind worm's sting, lizard's leg, and owlet's wing. For a charm of powerful trouble, like Hell broth boils and babble. Double, double, toil and trouble, fire burn, and caldron bubble"
WS

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mper Fi, Unless It's Not Convenient Bill O'Reilly Dec 29, 2012

mper Fi, Unless It's Not Convenient

 

Jon Hammar saw combat in Iraq and Afghanistan, but his most brutal foreign experience was in Mexico. Last August, the 27-year-old former Marine corporal was incarcerated by Mexican authorities in Matamoros for trying to register an antique shotgun with customs agents. Foolishly, Cpl. Hammar followed instructions given to him by U.S. Border Patrol agents in Brownsville, Texas. He registered the gun with them and brought the paperwork to the Mexicans to get their stamp of approval in order to carry the gun through the country. Hammar and a friend were driving a Winnebago, hoping to have a nice surfing vacation with some hunting on the side.

Even though the Mexican authorities clearly saw that Hammar was trying to follow the rules, they seized the Winnebago and locked the corporal up in the notoriously corrupt CEDES prison anyway. There he was threatened by other inmates and told by guards that he could buy his way out of the hellhole by paying money to the "right people."

Hammar's parents, who live in South Florida, immediately contacted the State Department and were told to be patient. And so they were. Three months later, Hammar was still incarcerated and had not even seen a judge, and things were becoming increasingly desperate.

That's when his parents gave up on the State Department and contacted the media.

When the story crossed my desk, I found it hard to believe. Cpl. Hammar had served his country honorably, returned to the USA with post-traumatic stress disorder, been treated for nine months in California and simply wanted a vacation after his ordeal. It was obvious that he was being held on bogus charges, and the State Department seemed impotent. When we asked Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for a comment, she refused to say anything about the case. A few of her deputies visited Hammar in prison, but the official line was that State could do nothing more.

Sen. Bill Nelson and Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen raised some hell about the situation, but things continued to deteriorate. Mexican authorities actually chained Hammar to his bed. Another inmate sent a picture of that out to the press.

In mid-December, the Fox News White House correspondent asked press secretary Jay Carney about the case. President Barack Obama's spokesman looked perplexed and said he did not know anything about it. As unbelievable as that sounds, I believe that Carney was telling the truth. And by telling one truth, Carney indicated another truth: Neither Obama nor Secretary of State Clinton had come to the aid of an American combat veteran who was being abused by Mexican authorities.

Disgusted by our apathetic government, I took the case directly to the government of Mexico. On national television, I bluntly told the new Mexican presidente, Enrique Pena Nieto, that if he did not release Hammar by Christmas, I would lead a boycott of Mexican tourism and products. The next day, Hammar was released after a Mexican judge ruled there had been no intent to commit a crime.

The ordeal cost the Hammar family tens of thousands of dollars in legal fees and untold emotional damage. Thankfully, the corporal did arrive home to South Florida in time to have a nice Christmas with his family. But this story is a cautionary tale for any American traveling outside the USA. If you get into trouble, you will be essentially on your own, even if you are a combat veteran. Our leaders in Washington are basically bureaucrats with short attention spans. If they couldn't work up the energy to help Jon Hammar, they are not going to help you.

True leadership means helping those who are powerless and sincerely need help. That takes time and energy. President Abraham Lincoln set aside one day a week to answer calls for help from the folks. The current administration would not answer a desperate call for months.

As for Mexico, it remains a corrupt country hostile to the rule of law. Let the buyer beware.

Bill O'Reilly

Bill O'Reilly

Bill O'Reilly is host of the Fox News show "The O'Reilly Factor" and author of "Who's Looking Out For You?" and Pinheads and Patriots.
 
Carl Ray Louk

Not racist, not violent, just not silent anymore

Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.

I am Carl Ray Louk and unlike the President of the United States of America, Barack Hussein Obama, I stand with Israel

FreedomWorks
We are a community of over 2 million grassroots activists We recruit, educate & mobilize across the country Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.
http://www.freedomworks.org/

"Friendship Never Ends" SG-1996

"Let Love Lead The Way" SG-2000

"The Phoenix Shall Rise" Count Carl Ray Louk 2003

"Even A Man Who Is Pure In Heart And Says His Prayer By Nigh, May Become A Wolf When the Wolf bane Blooms And The Autumn Moon Is Bright." LT-1941

"Flesh of my flesh; blood of my blood; kin of my kin when I say come to you, you shall cross land or sea to do my bidding!" CVTD-1895

"From Hell's Heart I stab at thee, for hate sake I spit my last breath at thee" CA-1895

"I have been, and always shall be your friend" Spock

"Trick or Treat, Trick or Treat candy is dandy but murder, oh murder, is so sweet" Count Carl Ray Louk-2003

"Eye of newt, and toe of frog, wool of bat, and tongue of dog adder's fork, blind worm's sting, lizard's leg, and owlet's wing. For a charm of powerful trouble, like Hell broth boils and babble. Double, double, toil and trouble, fire burn, and caldron bubble"
WS

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Obama vs. America's Fiscal Health David Limbaugh Dec 28, 2012

Obama vs. America's Fiscal Health

 

The reason President Obama and Republicans can't come to an agreement on the fiscal cliff negotiations is that they don't share the same goals. This is also the key to understanding why President Obama appears far less worried about going over the cliff.

Republicans are focused on restoring the nation's financial health by promoting economic growth and reducing our horrendous deficits and debt. President Obama's primary aim is to complete his project of fundamentally transforming America.

I ask you loyal Democrats to please consider these things. Obama has demonstrated almost no concern for our crushing debt or deficits -- at least not since calling President George W. Bush unpatriotic for presiding over deficits and debt dramatically smaller than his own.

Obama's treasury secretary, Timothy Geithner, showed a casual indifference to our debt when responding to questions from Rep. Paul Ryan during budget hearings. He flippantly admitted the administration had no long-term plan for bringing our debt under control and was unapologetic for having failed to submit any plan to restructure our entitlements.

When David Letterman asked Obama about the size of the national debt, Obama couldn't even make a guess. It seemed to be the furthest thing from his mind.

But Obama's cynicism about the debt doesn't change the fact that it is a looming national crisis. It's undeniable that our entitlement obligations are growing at an unsustainable pace and that our national debt and the annual mandatory interest payments on it are reaching alarming heights.

The budget debates essentially boil down to the Republicans' desire to return the nation to financial health vs. Obama's desire to use the government's taxing and spending powers as tools to remake America in his image rather than to facilitate economic growth or balance the budget.

Before you write off my comments as unfairly partisan, I ask you to ponder Obama's major negotiating demands. He is insistent, is he not, on increasing tax rates and reducing deductions for higher-income earners, even though it's an objective fact that Obama's plan to raise taxes on just a small percentage of Americans would not generate enough revenue to make a significant dent in our nation's deficits or debt. He has to be demanding this change, then, for other reasons. I can think of none, other than his idea of fairness, by which he means punishing the rich, even if it won't improve the economy or our fiscal picture.

Further, he has stubbornly resisted meaningful spending cuts and has absolutely continued to dig his heels in over GOP efforts to reform entitlements to avoid our nation's impending financial meltdown.

On top of all this, Obama wants $80 billion more in "stimulus" spending. Can you believe this? In budget negotiations that are supposed to be about fiscal sanity, he's wedded to yet more federal spending of money we don't have. Finally, he is demanding that Republicans surrender their authority to set limits on future spending through budget ceilings.

As you can see, Obama's goal of fundamentally remaking America happens to be nearly incompatible with economic growth and national solvency.

Don't you see? There is no way Obama can do what he was born to do -- remake America in his image -- unless he continues to implement the very policies that drove us toward this cliff in the first place. Obama's ideology compels him to keep spending borrowed money and increase growth-suppressing tax rates on the very people whose productivity is imperative for economic growth. Maybe Obama cares some about economic growth and our national deficits and debt. Maybe not. Either way, he's tied to policies that harm both.

Republicans, for their part, are trying to get our spending and entitlements under control and to keep tax rates no higher than they are, not to protect the rich -- although the last time I looked, the Constitution applies to them, too -- but to protect economic growth and foster liberty.

Contrary to Obama's class warfare propaganda, it is his own policies, not those of Republicans, that promote greed and envy, by keeping people worked up about how much the other guy is making rather than encouraging them to become productive members of society.

How convenient for Obama that he can advance his goal of redistributing income and assets by characterizing Republicans as people who care only about the rich, which is absurd on its face.

A national leader who believed in America's founding principles and who subscribed to promoting equal opportunity rather than equal outcomes would be encouraging people off the government dependency cycle and into productive jobs. He would be seeking long-term solutions to our national debt rather than downplaying the crisis and using class warfare to facilitate his goal of social engineering.

The question is not whether America will wake up but when.

David Limbaugh

David Limbaugh

David Limbaugh, brother of radio talk-show host Rush Limbaugh, is an expert in law and politics and author of new book Crimes Against Liberty, the definitive chronicle of Barack Obama's devastating term in office so far.
 
Carl Ray Louk

Not racist, not violent, just not silent anymore

Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.

I am Carl Ray Louk and unlike the President of the United States of America, Barack Hussein Obama, I stand with Israel

FreedomWorks
We are a community of over 2 million grassroots activists We recruit, educate & mobilize across the country Fighting for lower taxes, less government, and more freedom.
http://www.freedomworks.org/

"Friendship Never Ends" SG-1996

"Let Love Lead The Way" SG-2000

"The Phoenix Shall Rise" Count Carl Ray Louk 2003

"Even A Man Who Is Pure In Heart And Says His Prayer By Nigh, May Become A Wolf When the Wolf bane Blooms And The Autumn Moon Is Bright." LT-1941

"Flesh of my flesh; blood of my blood; kin of my kin when I say come to you, you shall cross land or sea to do my bidding!" CVTD-1895

"From Hell's Heart I stab at thee, for hate sake I spit my last breath at thee" CA-1895

"I have been, and always shall be your friend" Spock

"Trick or Treat, Trick or Treat candy is dandy but murder, oh murder, is so sweet" Count Carl Ray Louk-2003

"Eye of newt, and toe of frog, wool of bat, and tongue of dog adder's fork, blind worm's sting, lizard's leg, and owlet's wing. For a charm of powerful trouble, like Hell broth boils and babble. Double, double, toil and trouble, fire burn, and caldron bubble"
WS

Facebook: www.facebook.com/CarlRayLouk

Twitter: www.twitter.com/CarlRayLouk

MySpace:
www.myspace.com/carlraylouk

Yahoo Group: Yahoo! Groups : LouksHauntedGraveyardhttp://groups.yahoo.com/group/LouksHauntedGraveyard/

Yahoo Group: Yahoo! Groups : TheWorldAccordingtoCarlRayLouk http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TheWorldAccordingtoCarlRayLouk/