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GregStevens,Publisher Chip Thompson, Editor EDITORIALBOARD How to have your say: Letters must be signed and provide the writer's home street address and home phone number. Anonymous letters, open letters to others, pen names and petition-style letters will not be allowed. Letters should be typed and no more than two double-spaced pages or 500words. When several letters address the same issue, a cross section will be published. Email: editor@ redbluffdailynews.com Fax: 530-527-9251 Mail to: P.O. Box 220, 545 Diamond Ave., Red Bluff, CA 96080 Facebook: Leave comments at FACEBOOK.COM/ RBDAILYNEWS Twitter: Follow and send tweets to @REDBLUFFNEWS In last week's column I shared how Christ- mas is celebrated in the Cornelius household. Though not wealthy, we have been blessed in that Christmas comes and Christmas goes without causing a financial hardship of any significance. Weenjoyspoilingourfour wonderful grandchildren; and fortunately are able to do so with the confi- dence that we are doing no lasting harm, as their parents are do- ing a terrific job instilling appro- priate value sys- tems. Our family, like many of yours, mostly cele- brates Christmas by giving and receiving so much stuff that it is truly difficult to remember what you gave, what you received, or where it will be day after tomor- row. That said, I submit to you that — based on personal ex- perience — I know better than most what the true meaning of Christmas is all about. When I was about five or six years old, my father suddenly was gone. I didn't know why he left, but the fact that he moved only 40 miles to Chico, and never once sent me so much as a birthday or Christmas card, probably tells you all you need to know about my father. My mother, Hazel, on the other hand, was without question the best mother in the entire world. At the age of 29, suddenly alone with three small chil- dren, my mother reluctantly found it necessary to enroll in the government-backed welfare system. Because she absolutely hated being on welfare, within a few short months she ob- tained employment as a cham- bermaid at the iconic Tremont Hotel. Frankly, from a finan- cial standpoint she would have been better off playing the sys- tem, as working at the Tremont yielded a salary of only $6 per day. Imagine, if you will, hav- ing to house, feed and clothe three growing children on $30 a week. Imagine how difficult it would be to squeeze out a few extra bucks for Christmas. Well, hard as it was, that's ex- actly what my momma did. For a decade or so my mother rented a small two-bed- room home across the street from the high school. Mom shared one bedroom with my sister Judy, and I shared the other with older brother Don. The house had cardboard walls. I had to share a bed with my brother, and the bathroom was on the back porch; but it was our home and served us reasonably well. While I was fully aware that money or the lack thereof was an issue in our home, my mom did her very best to provide for us, often ignoring her own needs while doing so. She made sure we never went to bed hun- gry. She made sure that we each had a new set or two of clothes to open every school year, and she made sure we had a Christ- mas. I remember a year or two when someone would knock on our door and leave a box of wrapped presents for me, Judy and Don. I was too young to re- alize it then, but those wonder- ful elves were very likely part of some early day adopt-a-fam- ily program. For those of you who support such programs to- day, I can tell you from personal experience that your generos- ity means more than you might imagine for a child who would otherwise receive little or noth- ing from Santa on Christmas morning. I remember how we always hoped that someone would have an extra tree to give us to dis- play in our front room. I re- member times when we waited until Christmas Eve, when the tree lot would practically give away one of their few remaining Charlie Brown Christmas trees. I remember my mother bring- ing out a single string of large bulb lights, and I remember the four of us hanging shiny icicles on every tree we owned. While we usually received but a single gift, that gift was almost always exactly what we hoped for. For me that might be a baseball glove, a basket- ball, or a corduroy jacket called a browser like the ones worn by all the cool kids in my class. My mom often went without so that we might be one of the cool kids in our class. I remember the first time I scraped together enough cash to buy my mother a Christ- mas present. I went to the old Sprouse-Reitz Five and Dime on Walnut Street, and came home with a four-piece set of hot pink and lime green melamine dinner service. Looking back, those plastic dinner plates were about as cheesy as any made; but remembering my moth- er's response upon opening this gift causes me to believe she wouldn't have traded those plates for the finest china in the world. It was at that time I first realized that giving is far better than receiving. Fortunately, by the time I en- tered high school my mother had found employment at the Diamond National Pulp Mill, and a couple of years later she was able to purchase a nice lit- tle two-bedroom home of her own. One without cardboard walls. At the same time, our fam- ily was expanding with boy- friends, girlfriends, husbands, wives, and later a gaggle of grand kids. A new tradi- tion started, with the under- standing that the entire fam- ily would gather at grandma's house on every Christmas Eve. The grandkids would help her decorate the tree. Prior to a great family dinner and the ex- change of gifts, my mother would open her well-worn Bible to the book of Luke, Chapter 2, where she would share a half dozen verses about the true story of Christmas. Christmas is not about stuff you give or receive. Christmas is about making do with, and ap- preciating, what you have. It is about going without so that oth- ers may receive. It's about un- derstanding and appreciating what is truly important, not only at Christmas but also all year long. It's about children. It's about tradition: and for me Christmas is about my momma. Merry Christmas mom…I miss you very much. BillCorneliusisalifelong resident of Red Bluff, a retired Chief Probation Officer, a champion of the State Theatre and an exceptional athlete. He can be reached at bill. cornelius@sbcglobal.net. William Tells Thetrue meaning of Christmas Cartoonist's take "I don't know why so many people get so bent out of shape at this time every year. I thought we were supposed to be merry." "Ah, yes, you speak of the Christmas holi- day. According to History.com, it is 'both a sacred re- ligious holiday and a worldwide cultural and commercial phenomenon.'" "I thought it was the day we celebrate the nativity of Jesus Christ?" "It is an important feast or holy day for Christians, who be- lieve, as written in the Bible, that 'God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him might not perish but may have eternal life.'" "That's what I believe and the reason I go to Christ's mass — the origin of 'Christmas' — at my Catholic church every year." "That's wonderful, but as History.com points out, Christ- mas traditions have evolved to include many secular and com- mercial components — some evolved from pagan traditions." "Pagan traditions?" "Look, long before Jesus was born, December was party time. Pagan sun worshippers cele- brated winter solstice, the be- ginning of the end of long, dark days. They slaughtered cattle, ate excessively and consumed many adult beverages. " "Sounds like Christmas din- ner at my house." "Well, the Bible doesn't say what date Jesus was born. Some scholars believe that He was born in the spring — but that, in the 4th century, Catho- lic popes moved his birthday to December 25 to coincide with winter solstice celebrations. Some religious scholars debate the theory, however." "Interesting stuff." "The Christmas tree origi- nates from pagan traditions, however. It was born in the 8th century, when, according to In- foplease.com, 'St. Boniface cut down an enormous oak tree that was central to the worship of a particular tribe, but a fir tree grew in its place. The ever- green was offered as a symbol of Christianity, which the newly converted Germans began dec- orating for Christmas.'" "How about the origin of mistletoe?" "Infoplease.com says that the Druids believed that mis- tletoe 'represented the joining of heaven and Earth, and God's reconciliation with mankind. A kiss under mistletoe symbolized acceptance and reconciliation.'" "No wonder I can never get the wife beneath it." "Here's an interesting fact about modern Christmas tradi- tions: They are relatively new. In fact, did you know that in 1645 in England, Oliver Crom- well banned Christmas?" "What?" "According to LiveScience. com, reformist-minded Prot- estants of the 16th century be- lieved Christmas was too pa- ganistic — too 'raucous, rowdy and sometimes bawdy.' The American Puritans believed likewise. It was illegal to cele- brate Christmas in New Eng- land for about 25 years." "Then how did modern Christmas become such a big deal?" "Like many American tradi- tions, Americans reinvented it. History.com says that in 1819. Washington Irving penned a se- ries of stories about Christmas celebrations — stories that in- troduced the concept of peace, ancient Christmas customs and the bringing together of people from all backgrounds. In Eng- land, Charles Dickens also ad- vanced modern Christmas tra- ditions." "The guy who wrote about Ebenezer Scrooge?" "Yes, History.com says that Dickens' famous holiday tale, 'A Christmas Carol,' promoted 'charity and good will towards all humankind' and persuaded many Victorians to embrace Christmas celebrations. His story is one reason many are so charitable during the Christ- mas season." "This year the wife and I and the extended family are forgo- ing gift-giving. We're going to give that money to the needy instead!" "An excellent idea. Look, whether Christmas is a day for believers to celebrate their reli- gious faith or a day for non-be- lievers to enjoy non-religious traditions, we should all agree on one point." "Which is?" "Christmas is a day of merri- ment, graciousness and gener- osity." "There's only one response to that sentiment. Merry Christ- mas!" Tom Purcell, author of "Misadventures of a 1970s Childhood" and "Comical Sense: A Lone Humorist Takes on a World Gone Nutty!" is a Pittsburgh Tribune-Review humor columnist. Send comments to Tom at Tom@ TomPurcell.com. Tom Purcell Merriment, generosity define Christmas Christmas is not about stuff you give or receive. Christmas is about making do with, and appreciating, what you have. Tom Purcell Bill Cornelius Stocks rose Wednesday fol- lowing the Federal Reserve's an- nouncement of the first interest rate increase since 2006. How- ever, stocks fell just two days later. One reason the positive re- action to the Fed's announce- ment did not last long is that the Fed seems to lack confidence in the economy and is unsure what policies it should adopt in the future. At her Wednesday press con- ference, Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen acknowledged con- tinuing "cyclical weakness" in the job market. She also sug- gested that future rate increases are likely to be as small, or even smaller, then Wednesday's. How- ever, she also expressed con- cerns over increasing inflation, which suggests the Fed may be open to bigger rate increases. Many investors and those who rely on interest from sav- ings for a substantial part of their income cheered the in- crease. However, others ex- pressed concern that even this small rate increase will weaken the already fragile job market. These critics echo the claims of many economists and eco- nomic historians who blame past economic crises, includ- ing the Great Depression, on ill- timed money tightening by the Fed. While the Federal Reserve is responsible for our boom-bust economy, recessions and depres- sions are not caused by tight monetary policy. Instead, the real cause of economic crisis is the loose money policies that precede the Fed's tightening. When the Fed floods the market with artificially cre- ated money, it lowers the inter- est rates, which are the price of money. As the price of money, interest rates send signals to businesses and investors regard- ing the wisdom of making cer- tain types of investments. When the rates are artificially lowered by the Fed instead of naturally lowered by the market, busi- nesses and investors receive dis- torted signals. The result is over- investment in certain sectors of the economy, such as housing. This creates the temporary il- lusion of prosperity. However, since the boom is rooted in the Fed's manipulation of the in- terest rates, eventually the bub- ble will burst and the economy will slide into recession. While the Federal Reserve may tighten the money supply before an eco- nomic downturn, the tightening is simply a futile attempt to con- trol the inflation resulting from the Fed's earlier increases in the money supply. After the bubble inevitably bursts, the Federal Reserve will inevitability try to revive the economy via new money cre- ation, which starts the whole boom-bust cycle all over again. The only way to avoid future crashes is for the Fed to stop creating inflation and bubbles. Some economists and pol- icy makers claim that the way to stop the Federal Reserve from causing economic chaos is not to end the Fed but to force the Fed to adopt a "rules-based" mone- tary policy. Adopting rules-based mone- tary policy may seem like an im- provement, but, because it still allows a secretive central bank to manipulate the money supply, it will still result in Fed-created booms and busts. Ron Paul Do we need the Fed? OPINION » redbluffdailynews.com Wednesday, December 23, 2015 » MORE AT FACEBOOK.COM/RBDAILYNEWS AND TWITTER.COM/REDBLUFFNEWS A6