Lorraine, below, has the goods, both on the origins of the Christmas holiday, and why O'Rielly strokes it like a bass fiddle.

Propaganda would be incomplete without a slam-dunk issue to identify the propagandist as one with his target audience. In this case, O'Rielly is telling all of the poor "persecuted" fundamentalist Christians, the most easily led fraction of Bush's "base," that only Faux news cares about their cause and identity -- so keep watching folks, and by the way, we have some other crap you need to buy!

Bill conveniently leaves out the fact that the undeniable trend toward saying "Holiday" for "Christmas" is driven by -- wait for it -- commercial interests. That is, businesses far and wide are responding to oversensitive consumers who complain (or are simply EXPECTED to complain) about the words used or not used.

So what is it, Bill? Do you not believe in free enterprise? Would you have businesses do something that's not in their (perceived) interests, just to make the kind of bombastic over-religious point you want them to make? Or do you not trust the "market" (consumers) to demand the Right thing for their money?

Business is just responding to consumers, mayors are just responding to voters, and voters and consumers are -- just perhaps -- realizing that not all citizens in this country are Rabid Christian Fundamentalists after all.

For my own part, I'm not even a Christian, but the holiday IS Christmas after all, and I wish everyone Merry Christmas, duh. Haven't had a complaint yet, much less an outraged apoplectic fit. They just say Merry Christmas of Happy Holidays back to me.

Is there some problem with that, that nonetheless exhibits no impact with the reality I walk through?

Ignore these jerks, and the world will suddenly seem sane.

David G: Mayor V. is a politician, right? So OF COURSE he's angling for a stepped-up higher office -- an informed citizen should take that as a given.

BUT- that does not necessarily put the lie to anything he says. In fact, if he is as canny as he is ambitious, he'll pick causes that need action and resonate with the public who would vote for him.

So... even though he may be looking forward to another run, aren't we as citizens -- as well as voters -- free to look for the sense in what he says?

And Kaiser Permanente is only a wet dream for many of us...

My employer-sponsored insurance kicks in in October 2007 (have to wait six months for it), and then includes a $500 deductible. At $10.50 per hour, and Alaskan prices and rents, I don't HAVE that $500!

Plus, the constant shuffling of providers, when changing jobs, means that anything that takes longer than a cold to develop (ie, most conditions needing surgery) is likely to be tabbed a "preexisting condition." When you are stuck with one provider, that means they will never pay for it.