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Luzerne County still reviewing unwarranted homestead tax break recipients

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David Fallk, Opinion: Arbitration system tips scales of justice against ordinary citizens

<p>WILKES-BARRE &#8212; So what is this about a war on Christmas?</p><p>Who is waging it?</p><p>What weaponry is being utilized?</p><p>Have there been any casualties?</p><p>In the words of Country Joe and the Fish, &#8220;One, two, three, what are we fighting for?&#8221;</p><p>In this terrorized world we live in, can&#8217;t we at least have the decency to tolerate one human being wishing a Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays to another human being?</p><p>Can&#8217;t we all get along?</p><p>Of course we can&#8217;t, but at this time of the year, more people than usual tend to drop their guards a bit and utter those joyous words. In December, as the Christian observance of the birth of Jesus Christ approaches, people of all faiths and beliefs also fill shopping malls and stores to purchase gifts to present to each other later this month.</p><p>Yes, Christians, non-Christians, Jews, Agnostics, atheists &#8212; a high percentage of just about everybody &#8212; enjoy the season. They like to buy gifts for others. They enjoy receiving gifts from others. They find it in their hearts to donate to charities to help those in need.</p><p>It&#8217;s always a good time for people to act human, but it actually occurs more often during the holiday season. I only wish every day could be Christmas. Maybe then we could seriously address the wrongs in our world and help those who truly need help.</p><p>Maybe.</p><p>So why get upset? Why try to inflict one&#8217;s own beliefs on everybody else? Believe what you choose and also recognize the fact that everybody may not see things the same way you do. That&#8217;s what is so wonderful about the diversity of Planet Earth.</p><p>If you don&#8217;t want to buy into the materialistic aspect of &#8220;the holidays,&#8221; then don&#8217;t. But you shouldn&#8217;t feel compelled to try to ruin someone else&#8217;s celebration.</p><p>Agree or disagree, but let&#8217;s stop the fighting. Make joy, not war.</p><p>How boring and mundane would it be if we all were the same? If we were all alike to the point that we found nobody else interesting. That no other human could pique our interest to find out more about them because we already know because we are them.</p><p>Those online dating sites would be obsolete. We would not need to search for a compatible soul mate because we would all be the same &#8212; perfect for each other. Scary thought.</p><p>I, for one, enjoy the holidays. I celebrate Christmas &#8212; for its religious significance and for its so over-done commercialized fun. And it is fun to give thought to each gift you purchase and to anxiously await the reaction as you present loved ones with items they might never use.</p><p>&#8220;Oh, what a beautiful (insert gift item here),&#8221; has been uttered countless times in countless homes during countless, tension-filled gift-swapping ceremonies.</p><p>I like riding around and seeing the decorations on houses and businesses &#8212; lights, figurines, trees, wreaths, even a cross-trained Santa Claus toilet seat cover turned front door decoration. It makes me feel good to see it all.</p><p>I like to hear those stories of getting a real Christmas tree. Picking it out, bringing it home and getting it through the front door. Then standing it up in a water-filled base as you add lights, ornaments and perhaps (gasp!) an angel on top.</p><p>I offer Merry Christmas greetings to all, though sometimes I say &#8220;Happy Holidays&#8221; because that covers all celebrations. I don&#8217;t mind saying or hearing either salutation. Like I said, this is the time of year that more and more people actually do smile and offer greetings to each other.</p><p>What can be bad about that?</p><p>Nothing, that&#8217;s what.</p><p>We live in a world where we see and hear more and more tragic news. The shooting in San Bernardino is the latest reminder of just how terrible life can get.</p><p>We need to be able to celebrate, and Christmas &#8212; or &#8220;the holidays,&#8221; if you must &#8212; gives us reason. We can struggle each day at our jobs or at just living our lives and never feel good. Celebrations give us hope.</p><p>Whether it be Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Happy Birthday, Happy Easter, Happy Thanksgiving, Happy Anniversary, Happy Fourth of July or any other celebration, they are all accompanied by smiling, laughing, singing, hugging, well-wishing. So why not Happy Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday?</p><p>Corporate America should not be afraid of such celebrations. They shouldn&#8217;t disallow employees to utter those words, &#8220;Merry Christmas.&#8221; It&#8217;s OK, really. There is never an intent to harm or maim by saying &#8220;Merry Christmas&#8221; to another person.</p><p>Listen to Christmas Songs. Sit on Santa&#8217;s lap. Take time to worship. Enjoy the spirit of the season. Embrace the goodness that abounds.</p><p>So deck your halls with boughs of holly. Have yourself a merry little Christmas.</p><p>And keep the feeling of Christmas &#8212; of the holidays &#8212; in your heart all year round.</p><p>How long were we in Vietnam without a resolution?</p><p>War? What is it good for?</p><p>Absolutely nothing.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Bill O&#8217;Boyle </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/web1_Oboyle_Bill-2-3.jpg</photo0><caption0>Bill O&#8217;Boyle </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/web1_santaswoyersville013.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Santa Claus </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/web1_santaswoyersville013.jpg</photo1><caption1>Santa Claus </caption1><photoCredit1></photoCredit1></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Bill O&#8217;Boyle</p><p>boboyle@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Bill O&#8217;Boyle at 570-991-6118 or on Twitter @TLBillOBoyle.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

In Focus: War on Christmas? Bah, humbug!