A THOUGHT

Why oh Why on October 15th do I hear a XMAS concert advertised on local radio? Why oh Why on this day have Wal-Mart and other retailers already begun to stock the shelves with holiday season merchandise? Why oh Why other than to confirm what Carolyn Wells wrote sometime around the turn of the last century: "I always like the gifts I get,
But how I love the gifts I give!"
A lovely thought indicative of the spirit of giving component of Christmas. The author’s winning slogan in a contest "The smile that won’t come off," even more appropriately captures the spirit of the Christmas season. Yet, Christmas measures America’s ‘albedo.’ Rather than gauge the percentage of illumination reflected from the surface of the Earth by the Sun, Christmas measures America’s percentage of conspicuous, material consumption in proportion to the true meaning of the holy occasion. It (albedo) shows the ratio of incoming money reflected into the economy relative to length of time for marketing. In other words, the longer the shadow of Christmas, the darker the depths into which Americans sink into debt. Are the gifts and the smiles worth it?