tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16659850.post4476658475209543322..comments2024-03-17T03:42:21.277-05:00Comments on LEARNING CURVE ON THE ECLIPTIC: Arty Farty Friday ~ The Santa Side of Thomas NastTwilighthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14138621610593773784noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16659850.post-10462131447735014392014-12-20T12:11:42.819-06:002014-12-20T12:11:42.819-06:00mike (again) ~ Impressive guy, Friedman - I agree!...mike (again) ~ Impressive guy, Friedman - I agree! He'd never be elected though - speaks far too much common sense. Twilighthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14138621610593773784noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16659850.post-15162229770075240402014-12-20T00:05:27.490-06:002014-12-20T00:05:27.490-06:00mike ~ At least "The Interview" will n...mike ~ At least "The Interview" will not clutter up cinema screens at Christmas (muddying the traditional "goodwill" an' all that!)<br /><br />Thanks for the link - I shall watch the video in the morning.<br />Twilighthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14138621610593773784noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16659850.post-13647020340602145352014-12-19T18:59:58.141-06:002014-12-19T18:59:58.141-06:00Seth Rogen's "The Interview"...who e...Seth Rogen's "The Interview"...who ever would have thought this fiasco would be so consuming?! Maybe it's all a publicity stunt...LOL.<br /><br />You might enjoy this varied-topic interview...it's about 45 minutes in length. It aired last night...I almost didn't watch, because Rose's broadcast was delayed due to a Xmas special. I want Friedman for our next POTUS.<br /><br />Tom Friedman on "Charlie Rose", December 18, 2014:<br /><br />http://www.charlierose.com/watch/60491918mike (again)noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16659850.post-3748602726022961122014-12-19T12:56:49.962-06:002014-12-19T12:56:49.962-06:00mike ~ Hmmm - yes - it's hard to pick out the...mike ~ Hmmm - yes - it's hard to pick out the detail in Nast's Santa & Civil War cartoon, but it was, as you describe, and a pretty dark offering.<br />It was something akin, I suppose, to that awful film of Seth Rogen's that has stirred up much dissent recently, not about content (which was my objection) but about its release cancellation due to hackers/Sony...etc.<br />and "freedom of." whatever. <br /><br />Interesting ideas in the article you linked (thanks). Trying to find reasons for Christmas is a bit like conspiracy theorists - if you don't like the commonly accepted explanations (of which there are several), make one up using available facts spliced with a bit of fiction of your choice.<br /><br />I've never thought Christmas was Jesus' birthday, but I do think someone - a wise teacher in the mould of the much later MLK, existed around New Testament times to whom the name Jesus, and all the trappings have been attached. That's my conspiracy theory. It doesn't weaken his message. :-)Twilighthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14138621610593773784noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16659850.post-74209881806560045352014-12-19T10:34:55.391-06:002014-12-19T10:34:55.391-06:00Santa Claus is another caricature that has has a s...Santa Claus is another caricature that has has a surreptitious past. I essentially agree with your attributing the visual character to Nast, the first verbal definition that Nast utilized was from Clement Clarke Moore's "'Twas the Night Before Christmas". An engraving by J.W. Evans was used to embellish Moore's poem and offered one of the first depictions, though not the contemporary.<br /><br />Interesting to note that Nast's first depictions were political in nature. The "Harper's Weekly" cartoon that you provide has some darkness:<br /><br />"Perhaps most interesting about this print is the special gift in Santa's hand. Santa is holding a dancing puppet of none-other-than Jefferson Davis, President of the Confederate States of America. The likeness to Jefferson Davis is unmistakable. Even more interesting, Davis appears to have the string tied around his neck, so Santa appears to by Lynching Jefferson Davis! This is a classic Thomas Nast illustration. This is Nast's first published picture of Santa Claus, and we can see many of our present images of Santa demonstrated in this Civil War illustration."<br />http://www.sonofthesouth.net/Original_Santa_Claus_.htm<br /><br />I've read a number of accounts about the origins of the Christmas holiday. Oddly, the birth of Jesus is the most refutable of our modern provisa and there is scant evidence to support that this person even existed, yet alone was born on this day. Here's an interesting explanation:<br /><br />"Have a Merry, Trippy Christmas<br />Is Santa a reflection of psychedelic shamanism?"<br />http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/sex-dawn/201112/have-merry-trippy-christmasmikenoreply@blogger.com