Pagan-Roots-Of Christmas-Bob Davis Podcast 887

Pagan-Roots-Of Christmas-Bob Davis Podcast 887

Christmas Is Indeed A Pagan Holiday

I know there are religious people who don’t want to hear this but Christmas is a pagan holiday. These days we’re disconnected from history and our ancestors. I’ll explain in Pagan-Roots-Of Christmas-Bob Davis Podcast 887.

Winter Solstice

The winter solstice is especially relevant here. The shortest day in the northern hemisphere. December 21st. The next day the sun starts its journey back toward us and the days will start getting longer.

A Time To Rest, Repair And Recharge

Second people have taken this time to hunker down, rest and prepare for the coming brighter and warmer months. This goes back millennia.

The Shortest Darkest Days

In contrast to those in warmer and brighter places those of us who live in the far northern reaches of North America and Northern Europe know only too well how dark it gets. Even more how long those dark and cold nights can be.

Jesus Was Not Born On December 25th

We are told Jesus Christ the bringer of light, was born in December. Truth is the bible doesn’t say when the savior was born.

The Bringer Of Light Was A Summer Baby

Moreover astronomers believe Christ was probably born in the summer, or fall somewhere between 6 or 7 BC, and 3 or 2 BC.

Rome and Saturnalia

Finally it was the Roman Catholic Church that set Christ’s birth on December 25th. Oddly enough, the new celebration would coincide with the celebration of the Roman God Saturn.

Santa IS A Pagan Symbol

Even more, Santa’s origins are rooted both in a Greek Saint in about 300 AD, and the Norse god Odin. Above all once Artist Norman Rockwell and the advertising industry shaped and advanced the idea of Saint Nick as a rosy cheeked white bearded grandfatherly symbol. Our modern Santa. For more on Odin, click here.

Holiday Season

This year I spent a little time and thought about our Winter Holiday Season, which starts with the celebration of the harvest on Thanksgiving, includes a parade of totems in New York City, and ends with New Year’s.

Natural Rhythms

Are we immune to natural human rhythms? Were our ancestors dumb? How has commerce and communication in the modern age obscured the pagan roots of Christmas, and New Year’s? Does this change the nature of Christmas for the faithful? I don’t think so.

Happy Holidays

And of course, Merry Christmas

Sponsored by Reliafund Payment Processors and Ryan Plumbing and Heating of Saint Paul

Pagan-Roots-Of Christmas-Bob Davis Podcast 887

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Read Entire 1097 Page GOP Tax Bill-Part 1-Raw Reactions-Bob Davis Podcast 688

Read Entire 1097 Page GOP Tax Bill-Part 1-Raw Reactions-Bob Davis Podcast 688

Both houses of congress have now passed the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Bill. After four hours and near blindness, I finished all one thousand plus pages. Every citizen should read this bill. In Read Entire 1097 Page GOP Tax Bill-Part 1-Raw Reactions-Bob Davis Podcast 688.

Big Little Reforms

Especially relevant is the public relations effort by republicans to convince voters this is a ‘sweeping’ reform of the US tax Code. In fact it is an amendment to a budget bill that further amends the 1987 Tax Reform Act.

Everyone Loves Or Hates

Moreover, if you read the bill, you should almost have a copy of the 1986 Tax Reform Act handy. Both sides of the so called political divide are touting how great this legislation is, or how it will end the world as we know it.  I’ll give you some details in Read Entire 1097 Page GOP Tax Bill-Part 1-Raw Reactions-Bob Davis Podcast 688.

Please Hold For Your Tax Attorney

Truth is if you are in business you’re still going to need an accountant and tax attorney advise you. Some businesses will see their taxes increase. Some individuals will see their taxes increase. Sure, the standard deduction has been doubled and tax rates reduced…but…

It Might Be Good…Then Again

There will be fewer deductions and thus fewer ways to legally reduce exposure to taxation. Depending on your specific situation you might see an increase or decrease in your overall tax. I explain some of this in Read Entire 1097 Page GOP Tax Bill-Part 1-Raw Reactions-Bob Davis Podcast 688. In addition, listen to my tax reform podcast to understand the political game going on under the guise of fixing the tax code.

Never Underestimate The Power of Free Beer

There are scores of pages concerning craft beer, wine and spirits. Guess all those receptions with free hootch for members must have worked! Finally there are lots and lots of new rules regarding businesses of all kinds.

Beware of Congressmen Bearing Cool Sounding Jargon

When congressmen and senators go out among the people and talk about all they have accomplished, you’re going to hear the words ‘pass-through’ and ‘average american will save’ such and such a lot. What does it all mean? Find out in Read Entire 1097 Page GOP Tax Bill-Part 1-Raw Reactions-Bob Davis Podcast 688.

More Government Control

In conclusion my final reaction is the sadness I feel that our federal government controls so much of what we do as citizens through the mechanism of taxation. Republicans who campaigned on a tax cut have certainly paid off on that promise, at least until 2025, but at what price. That is the 1.2 trillion dollar question. President Trump signed the bill into law Friday afternoon.

Sponsored by Ryan Plumbing and Heating of Saint Paul and Reliafund Payment Processors

Read Entire 1097 Page GOP Tax Bill-Part 1-Raw Reactions-Bob Davis Podcast 688

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Podcast 517-Bob Davis Podcasts Radio Show-32

Podcast 517-Bob Davis Podcasts Radio Show-32. With huge reaction in the financial markets, the media and in political circles raging over the British vote to exit the EU this week, it seems as though 2016 just kicked off in earnest. In fact, for me this week flew by. One of the week’s features was the visit of my son. Andrew Davis joined me on a radio show I did last week for the Northern Alliance, and then we came back to the ‘broadcast bunker’ to have some steak, father and son time, and record a podcast. Honestly, I would probably not have talked that much about the potential for the Brits to leave the EU and the impact on foreign trade, the markets and politics. Andrew Davis is an International Relations guy, with some experience in government (working on Capitol Hill for a couple of years). Our conversations about trade and the potential for a British Exit turned out to be prescient, given the surprise of a close vote in Britain on the EU question. My problem with the whole issue isn’t the vote so much as the coverage of this story by the media, and the coverage of trade issues in the United States. While trade as a whole is a complex issue that can’t be explained away with a soundbite or snarky comment, it is also a core issue in the 2016 election cycle. It is amusing and instructive that during the run up to the vote in Britain, republican candidate for the nomination Donald Trump said, as a private citizen that he could understand why the British would want to leave the EU, while President Obama condescended to lecture British on why they should stay and Hillary Clinton supported Obama. For its part the media characterized, and demonized a no vote as ‘xenophobic’, ‘populist’ and ‘nationalist’. My question is, what if the people have no words anymore to describe the frustration of living under a regime of regulation, taxation, laws that nudge (governenment-ese for encourage) certain behaviors and get in our business in so many other irritating ways? We’ve lived under a construct that government is the solution for so many years we don’t even have the words to oppose it anymore, but we do still have a vote…for the time being. Sponsored by X Government Cars and Hydrus.

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