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Christ, not consumerism, is true meaning of season
The meaning

Sweden threat shows intolerance of fanatics
In spite of the fact that Sweden is a tolerant nation regarding religion and ethnicity, a religious fanatic attempted to detonate a bomb in a crowded marketplace.
The Swedes, like others in the West, must realize that religious fanatics are not impressed by tolerance, civil rights, civil liberties, cultural diversity, etc. This is a cultural war and the goal is to destroy the Western democracies and create a theocratic dictatorship not unlike the Dark Ages. There will be no room for unbelievers.
Moreover, there is no room for scientific inquiry. This is not a new phenomenon. Through history, unbelievers have been burned at the stake, impaled, drowned, shot full of arrows or just plain shot.
 These fanatics believe that their interpretation of the will of the almighty is the only correct one. Hence, there is no room for religious diversity or tolerance.
 It is interesting that the almighty would single out one group of Homo sapiens as the bearers of the ultimate truth while leaving others in the dark. I wonder if they would be confident enough in their beliefs to subject their claims to rigorous historical and scientific scrutiny.
 It would be a shame if they should prevail at a time when science might be the only salvation of the planet and its populace, considering the effects of global warming and pollution.
Wilkes-Barre wonderful on Christmas parade day
The day before Wilkes-Barre&rsquo;s Santa parade, a casual conversation with a friend led to me admit I was taking my children to the Scranton parade held on the same day. I frankly hadn&rsquo;t even thought of Wilkes-Barre as an option.
On parade day, in a moment of guilt and curiosity, I decided we would go to Wilkes-Barre instead. I misread the parade time and arrived at noon for a 3 p.m. parade. We parked on Public Square and chose Rodano&rsquo;s for lunch. After lunch we walked through the Art Seen Gallery and browsed for Christmas gifts.
We took a walk to Barnes &amp; Noble and were surprised to find that we would receive a discount for parade-day purchases. A Christmas book each would be our treat. On to Arts YOUniverse, because it is always fun to see what Kathleen Godwin has up her sleeve. Indeed, she was dressing as an art-bominable snow person for the parade. She let us know that there was a string concert in the lobby of the F.M. Kirby Center, which we quickly headed to see.
We luckily took our spot as hundreds gathered for a spectacular parade. My son Jacob, 8, said it was the best parade he had ever seen. Isabel, 2, and desperately in need of a nap, rallied for all of the excitement. It felt like New York City with the crowd, several people deep, being pushed back for passing floats. We had a stroller full of candy canes, Oreo cookies and other treats.
We ran out of time or we would have stopped to make a craft on the Square. At dusk, two very happy parade attendees were asleep before we crossed the Market Street Bridge.
 Yes, Santa, I do believe &ndash; in Wilkes-Barre, Mayor Tom Leighton, events coordinator Lore Majikes and the city staffers who have the fortitude and vision to move us forward. 
Merry Christmas.
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Sweden threat shows intolerance of fanatics In spite of the fac