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Merry Christmas from Western Washington
First up, King County is at the top of the Fox News mobile app today. That would be a story titled “Scrooged” about how they positively forbid their employees to display anything religious on or around their personal workspaces, including “virtual workspaces” for those still too fearful of fellow employees to come to the office. It is well-known that Seattle is about as anti-religious as any place in America.
Of course, they are also so Leftist that no one can say or do anything, for fear of offending someone. Fear of Covid and hatred of religion do not make King County a very nice place to be, much less to work. And that’s not even counting the homeless camps and crime in the vicinity of the County Administration Building in downtown Seattle.
Next up, a small weather report. Much of the past week saw temperatures in the teens and low twenties, and snow everywhere. There were news stories about the freezing rain that set in on Friday, leaving streets covered in ice, and thousands of homes without power. We didn’t get any freezing rain where we live, but our internet went down for a few hours. I did see a product of the freezing rain, however, across the street from our house.
There are some great videos in my Twitter feed of cars sliding down icy streets, crashing into cars, and threatening people. Everything is back to normal now, snow all gone even from our neighborhood. Here’s a link to a post I made on my personal blog on December 20.
Merry Christmas!
Published in General
There are times I wish God would drop great big turds in the middle of all these anti-Christian bastions of bigotry and, in a loud booming voice, say, “Do you believe now?”
Somehow, I don’t think even that would make these people change . . .
It would just reinforce their belief in the Turd Fairy.
I did wonder if that interdiction applied any other time or just at Christmas and Easter. No religious symbols worn to work or in WFH videos? I couldn’t wear the James Avery cross I was given when our son was born? No ashes after morning mass on Ash Wednesday? No St Francis garden statutes visible from a window? Haven’t we been over this territory before?
My son Brian and his wife Eliza live in Seattle, where he works at the Starbucks factory and she is whatever the veterinary equivalent of an RN is. She had a minor skid accident on the way home from work and got stuck three blocks from home; they had to wait until today to get the car un-stuck because the tow trucks were booked solid. No injuries, no damage, all’s well that ends well, a Christmas blessing.
We also have some wonderful and kind people who live here, even though most of them are Democrats. My next-door neighbor is a confirmed demo, yet I can call her anytime for anything I need including a ride to the airport. I have learned, probably because I’m surrounded by Dems, to overlook their politics and pay more attention to the overall character. I don’t believe for one moment all the crazy stuff coming out of Washington DC these days and many of our local politicians who consider themselves woke. Fortunately, I know I’m right and they are wrong, and that’s all there is to it.
Don’t remember exactly when (about 1971?), but I did see a billboard in Seattle which said, “Last person leaving Seattle, turn out the lights.”
(Back then it wasn’t the weather or wokeism but Boeing employment.)
Yep, 1971 when I was in Minneapolis in grad school. Boeing had huge layoffs then, when they were a much larger force in the economy.
Two of my cousins live in Blaine, WA (about five inches from the Canadian border, slight exaggeration). They have a family “compound” out in the country. Daughter and son of one bought large piece of property with barns, etc. Then Mom and Dad and later Aunt and Uncle moved out there, too (all built separate houses.). They have been without power for about a day, but as they said, “Life is good & we are all doing well.” And they haven’t frozen – yet.
What about the display of *political* symbols?…also banned, or not?
I ask because I think Wokeism is often essentially a religion for those who profess it.
Black Lives Matter posters encouraged. Not considered political, but social, and that’s important to the social justice warriors.
What kinds of wimps or deranged people is King County hiring (or management thinks they are hiring) that are afraid of or offended by another employee’s religious displays? The county apparently does not think its employees are capable of coping with differences among the employees.
From the comments by the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, apparently the county may be concerned that someone will see an individual employee’s display as an indication that the county endorses that employee’s religion. But the Becket Fund helpfully points out that no rational person would think an employee’s display of New York Yankees paraphernalia indicates that the county endorses or sponsors the New York Yankees.
On a different angle, aren’t we supposed to celebrate differences? How can we celebrate differences if we can’t display those differences? “What is that display on your credenza” can be a great ice breaker for employees to begin to communicate with one another.
They might figure the New York Yankees are safe, but that someone with a cross might believe that all the homosexuals who work for the county will burn in hell.
I complained to Mud Bay in Ballard over this.
https://www.yelp.com/biz/mud-bay-seattle-10?hrid=C9Pg32-MjvGU8DKq91PoBw&utm_campaign=www_review_share_popup&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_source=(direct)
My review is George P’s. Her response was ridiculous. Which reminds me, maybe I should follow up and email them to see if their policy is still the same…. lol
How about you join the Pacific Northwest Ricochetti group too! I am the admin. And I shop at the Mud Bay in Mill Creek! It’s past time to schedule a meetup. I will be working on it in the new year.
I didn’t know there is a Pacific Northwest Ricochetti group! I went to a meetup years ago that was downtown Seattle, but no one ever told me there was a group.
I started it about three years ago. You can join now! I have tried to organize a summer picnic in the past, and we had two. It’s been a really long time since we did anything. Suggestions are always welcome. Like, maybe some people would like to organize a trip to the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival in my birth month of April.