Whatever your persuasion…
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… this time of year is a great time to forget our differences and celebrate our commonalities. Even a curmudgeonly skeptic like me knows that.
Happy holidays!
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About Bad Astronomy
If you went to BadAstronomy.com and found yourself here, never fear: the BA Blog has moved to its new home at Discover Blogs. The original BA site (with the Moon Hoax debunking and all that) is still online, too.
Phil Plait, the creator of Bad Astronomy, is an astronomer, lecturer, and author. After ten years working on Hubble Space Telescope and six more working on astronomy education, he struck out on his own as a writer. He has written two books, dozens of magazine articles, and 12 bazillion blog articles. He is a skeptic, and fights misuses of science as well as praising the wonder of real science.
Bad Astronomy was chosen as one of Time.com's Best Blogs of 2009. 
Open Lab 2008 is a collection of the best blog posts of the year, all in one place. Are you a science junkie? Yeah, you want it. -
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December 24th, 2008 at 5:42 pm
It’s “Merry Christmas”, you stupid, evil, America hating liberal.
Why can’t you secular progressives stop attacking Christianity for even one day??
December 24th, 2008 at 5:54 pm
@Bill: Christmas troll?
Ah, well, have a Happy Whatever everyone!
December 24th, 2008 at 6:03 pm
It is Newtonmas in Oz now so let me take this opportunity to wish Phil and family and all the BABloggees a Merry Christmas.
Best wishes for the holidays dudes.
December 24th, 2008 at 6:08 pm
Happy Winter Break everyone!
@Bill: Ironic. Can’t tell if it’s sarcasm or just being silly.
December 24th, 2008 at 6:10 pm
@Bill:
You are a bad man. You just made the Baby Jesus cry….
December 24th, 2008 at 6:14 pm
Happy Holidays to you as well my friend. One of the best gifts I received this year was when Carr & I met you at TAM & the three of us mutually geeked out about David Tennant (along with the picture Carr drew of Adam Savage as Davros).
When we crack open a bottle of red wine this evening and make a toast to friends, you will certainly be in there. Stay warm and see you at the next event/meetup.
From your friend up in freezing MPLS,
~ “Tim3P0″ timothy s. iwan
December 24th, 2008 at 6:25 pm
@Bill. Wow. Just wow.
December 24th, 2008 at 6:38 pm
LOL @ Bill! Hilarious!
That’s the cutest picture ever….. Makes me wish I had pets.
December 24th, 2008 at 6:43 pm
One more Merry Christmas picture from me and Copernicus. I promise no more cutesy cat pictures from me today… we can’t get Copernicus to sit still to put hats or antlers on any more.
December 24th, 2008 at 6:53 pm
An even unlikelier couple:
http://www.global-report.com/mb/?l=en&a=287900
December 24th, 2008 at 8:02 pm
My four dogs, three cats, their humans, and even the seven foster dogs, wish you and yours a Wonderful Life and Happy Elf Watching! - g^2
December 24th, 2008 at 8:17 pm
# Bill Says:
December 24th, 2008 at 5:42 pm
It’s “Merry Christmas”, you stupid, evil, America hating liberal.
Why can’t you secular progressives stop attacking Christianity for even one day??
Because our Puritan forefathers outlaweded it? Shrug.
December 24th, 2008 at 8:20 pm
Cheater. You were suposed to get one of Canis Minor and Dinger.
December 24th, 2008 at 8:30 pm
Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Happy Chanukah, or whatever you happen to be celebrating this time of the year! Hope your 2008 was great, and 2009 will be better.
December 24th, 2008 at 8:40 pm
OK, I don’t know who Bill is, and unless he has a history of troll posts, I think his comment is a joke.
So we should all lighten up in this season of darkness (at least, it’s dark where I live at 5:00 PM).
Happy Yalda, everyone!
J. D.
December 24th, 2008 at 10:15 pm
Isn’t “happy holidays” simply more inclusive? Tonight might be xmas eve but there are a bunch of holidays around this time of year.
@JD Mack: I suspect you are correct about Bill’s post but I have no evidence either way.
December 24th, 2008 at 10:28 pm
Happy Chrismukkawannziurnalia!
December 24th, 2008 at 10:36 pm
Oops left out the Hindus:
Happy Chrismukkawannziurnaliaganapati
December 24th, 2008 at 11:05 pm
… this time of year is a great time to forget our differences and celebrate our commonalities.
I’ll show you curmudgeonly. Your pets are bothering my allergies. Lawn ornaments are both a stupid waste of time and hideous. It’s not cold enough. You damn kids get off my lawn! Bah, humbug!
December 24th, 2008 at 11:22 pm
May Santa’s Reindeer Poop on your Roof
Happy Holidays Everyone!
December 24th, 2008 at 11:46 pm
From the UK, happy monkey and merry squidmas one and all.
December 25th, 2008 at 12:31 am
NO WAY!!!!! I’m just looking out of my window, to the northeast, and there is a bright red light flying very low. It almost looks to be about tree-top level. Wait! It’s coming straight towards me… Oh, My… it looks like reindeer…. pulling some bearded guy in red suit… It’s… It’s… James Randi????
December 25th, 2008 at 12:35 am
@KC:
Hey, don’t forget the Canadians!
Merry Christmas, eh!
December 25th, 2008 at 12:57 am
Happy Holy Days!
December 25th, 2008 at 3:34 am
@Bill:
Letś god give you what you wish for me.
Happy season.
December 25th, 2008 at 3:37 am
Ops…
To make the above comment to have any sense I’d say that I’m a stupid, evil, Spaniard liberal, that I like to attack Christian as I was a Roman before.
December 25th, 2008 at 3:55 am
Michael L Says:
@Bill: You are a bad man. You just made the Baby Jesus cry….
Nah, Ithink he justneed shis Holynappy chamged ! Holy Sh—-!
December 25th, 2008 at 3:57 am
Gosh durnit one line & istill get toomany flippin’ typos ..
—— TAKE II ——-
Michael L Says:
“@Bill: You are a bad man. You just made the Baby Jesus cry…”
Nah, I think he just needs his Holy nappy changed! Holy Sh—-!
December 25th, 2008 at 4:04 am
PS. Merry Christmas, Xamas, Hannukkah, Chanukkah, Sol Invictus, Saturnalia, Atheist day, Winter / Summer Solstice celebration, Yule Norse gods day, & whatever else folks! (Apologies to any holiday / faith I’ve missed.)
Ah heck can’t we just call it Xmas, say its secular enough if we want it to be (orreligious for those so inclined) & let things go at that?
Do the Jews hafta spoil everyone else’s holidays just coz “Santa Claus hates ‘em?” (see video on the Dreidel-Santa Holiday Fail thread thingy.)
Hmm .. Perhaps we should ban Hannukkah or whatever its called because *it* offends non-jews (a.k.a. 95 % of Humanity if not more) eh?
Oh well. Happy holidays & to all a good night!
(Yes even grinch-ly Jews!)
December 25th, 2008 at 4:27 am
Merry Chirsmakwanzahannusolstisaturnfestivus!
December 25th, 2008 at 5:18 am
KITTEH IZ N OLINEMENT WIT SUN
UR WACHIN MEH BACK KTHX
HAPI HOLL O’ DAZE
December 25th, 2008 at 7:16 am
Merry Christmas!
Maybe for some guys it would be better if we call it the “celebration of love” as it is also done in Germany (das Fest der Liebe). That’s always a reason to celebrate, even for atheists (
), love and peace!
I wish that those who call themselves “Christians” will start to behave as they are supposed to do - or at least will try. The world would be a better place, defenitly!
December 25th, 2008 at 8:03 am
As an agnostic, mystic, rational, materialist, Scottish, German/Jewish progressive, here’s wishing everyone on the planet a hopeful new year, from the “deep south”, where we have no a priori prejudices,,,we’re just glad it has finally become cold enough to freeze the cajones off those danged mosquitos.
Peace,
GAry 7
December 25th, 2008 at 9:55 am
I got Death From the Skies for Christmas, along with The Demon-Haunted World. It’s a Very Science Christmas!
December 25th, 2008 at 10:32 am
Merry Chrifsmass!
December 25th, 2008 at 12:54 pm
Fire and brimstone coming down from the skies! Rivers and seas boiling!
Forty years of darkness! Earthquakes, volcanoes!
The dead rising from the grave!
Human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together, mass hysteria!
(It had to be said)
December 25th, 2008 at 1:05 pm
Happy Festivus everyone! Let the feats of strength begin…
December 25th, 2008 at 1:57 pm
Well the cat looks like a small lion, but the dog is nothing like a lamb. Where are your glasses?
December 25th, 2008 at 3:49 pm
From my experience, a cat and a dog sharing a sun spot on a bed isn’t too odd. Two cats together, forget it! Oh, and poor Copernicus. The fuzzy one, not the astronomer one. Cute but poor kitty!
December 25th, 2008 at 7:17 pm
As a current agnostic (pantheist to be precise) and former atheist, I cannot for the life of me help but to feel the least bit nostalgiac, not to mention optimistic, during this winter solstace/christmas season. It could just be the booze and ambiquitous amount of food stuffs talking, but most likely not, as this is something that has been lingering on my mind for some time now. While others choose to obsess over the negative aspects of humanity, I choose to look forward to what is to come and to what we (and I) are capable of. A new year is drawing near, a year of political upheaval and idealogical reformation, a process that is long overdue, and I will personally be pursuing both my own goals & objectives without hesitation. Here’s to to a New Year. Perhaps even, a new beginning. Cheers.
December 25th, 2008 at 8:07 pm
Happy holidays!
December 25th, 2008 at 8:58 pm
HAPPY JIMMY BUFFET’S BIRTHDAY EVERYBODY!!!!
December 26th, 2008 at 6:25 pm
If differences can be worked out, that should generally be done regardless of christmas. But if they are insurmountable, then there’s the eternal vigilance bit far as I’m concerned.
F’course since I spend the holidays with my family I really don’t have time to butt heads with my enemies anyway…