Loading...
Loading...
Click here if you don’t see subscription options
The EditorsDecember 22, 2008

What to Do With Bad Gifts

Is it us, or does it seem that Christmas gifts are increasingly becoming just items to turn in for cash or store credit? In difficult economic times, the temptation only grows. But here at America we want to suggest four other things you might do this year with gifts you don’t like.

1) It is the season for giving, so give. Donate your unwanted gifts of clothing to an organization that will pass them on to someone who needs them. Go to http://locator.goodwill.org or the Yellow Pages to find the Goodwill nearest you; or have a party where everyone comes wearing the gifts they can’t stand, and at the end of the night box them up for a local shelter or the St. Vincent de Paul Society. You could also donate unwanted clothing to your local high school or community theater company. They will put you in their programs and love you forever.

Think similarly about other unwanted gifts. Libraries love books. Sick kids love electronics.

2) You could also pay it forward—give your fashion faux pas to someone you know who will look good in it. Or start a “common closet” in your home where you leave stuff that others can take when they come over. You may find your friends visiting more often.

3) If you really must return something, give half of the money you receive to someone who needs the money more than you. Like your niece, or the guy from work or the lady down the hall. Or a favorite not-for-profit, always-in-need-of-donations weekly magazine.

4) Last of all, when it comes to gifts of clothing, you could try wearing it. That’s right, put it on. Who are you, Michael Kors? Maybe it actually looks good on you. Everyone’s probably tired of your same old turtleneck and sweatpants combo. Take the hint.

Restoring the Balance

Just when President-elect Obama thought the news could not be more grim, he awoke on Dec. 2 to the public report that Iran is on course to have a nuclear weapon before the end of his first year as president. Most intelligence analysts had been saying through much of 2008 that a nuclear-armed Iran was years, not months, away. Yet an unprecedented coalition of respected think tanks, including a rare partnership between the Brookings Institute and the Council on Foreign Relations, concluded that the United States faces this and several other serious and immediate threats to its strategic position in the Middle East.

The report’s authors said that any settlement with Iran would require “a comprehensive diplomatic initiative” involving “direct and unconditional talks” with Tehran. Neo-conservatives in the Bush administration, who are, thankfully, enduring the last twitches of their political death throes, have chalked the report up to liberal naïveté. What is truly naïve, however, is the idea that the United States should continue to pursue a 7-year-old strategy that has not only failed to stop the Iranians from acquiring weapons of mass destruction, but has not even slowed them down.

The report rightly concludes that a new diplomatic strategy is not only necessary, but also the only practical option. Though the challenges seem to grow more daunting by the day, Mr. Obama should keep his campaign promise to pursue diplomacy anew and not allow the foreign policy old guard to deter him.

A Dark Christmas

Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, is a red-letter day for American retailers hoping for black (that is, profitable) balance sheets. But this year Black Friday turned deadly. In Valley Stream, N.Y., a 34-year-old part-time employee was trampled to death when the doors opened at a Wal-Mart store, where customers had waited in line for hours, desperate to take advantage of some holiday bargains. Customers stampeded over (and around) his lifeless body as an emergency medical team tried to save Jdimytai Damour’s life. That same day two men were shot and killed at a Toys “R” Us in Palm Desert, Calif.

What accounts for this? First are the absurd marketing tools that stores use to whip customers into a near frenzy before Christmas. Corralling people into lines for stores that open as early as 4 a.m. for discount shopping is now common. The gimmick draws dangerously huge numbers of tired shoppers into cramped spaces. These corporate decisions, designed to maximize profits, pay little attention to the dangers inherent in luring people into crowded venues. Second, a lazy media hypes these events by reporting on Black Friday sales around-the-clock in the days before Thanksgiving. Finally, what can only be labeled a total lack of respect for human life is evident, when dozens of people first injure a man and then ignore his desperate cries for help.

These factors combined to make this Black Friday a truly dark day. Christmas is about the gift of life. It should not be about taking life to buy gifts.

Comments are automatically closed two weeks after an article's initial publication. See our comments policy for more.
virginia parker
15 years 3 months ago
The juxtaposition of the headline in Current Comment, "What to do with Bad Gifts,," next to an ad that reads , "Father Martin's books--- a gift they'll open again and again," may or may not have been deliberate but certainly succeeded in tickling my funny bone. We know his books are always well received, and if given away, done so by one enthusiatic reader to another-about-to-be. Apparently BORDERS considers his MY LIFE WITH THE SAINTS anything but a bad gift since they've been featuring it this pre-Christmas season on the "Buy one, get the second book half-priced" table. I hope Fr. Jim is enjoying his popularity and the saints he writes about all theirs as well. Despite some of the grim news being reported in your Christmas issue editorial, I wish you and all your wonderful staff not only a Holy Holiday (redundant?) but a Merry one as well.
15 years 3 months ago
You correctly opine :"What is truly naïve, however, is the idea that the United States should continue to pursue a 7-year-old strategy that has not only failed to stop the Iranians from acquiring weapons of mass destruction, but has not even slowed them down." As with most things "managed"by the Bush administration, his whining at the Ayatollahs was totally ineffective. What is equally ineffective is to pretend that these barbarians are, in ant way, amenable to negotiations. To try and understand the mindset of these brutal ideologues you might try reading The Ayatollah's book of etiquette By Ruhollah Khomeini and J. Borujerdi (Trans.)reviewed in an article in Harpers in 1985- http://www.harpers.org/archive/1985/06/0010032 The mullahcracy, enabler of Ahmedinejad etc., consumed with hatred of Jews and women and most of the coventions of the West, is incapable of civilized negotiations. Does that mean that one should consider the ultimate-? Hopefully-not- BUT- should concerned entities , in the face of inaction by Western "powers" just await a missile attack on Israel -or perhaps a nuclear detonation in Miami? Bush, and his pathetic Secretary of State, were not able to go beyond words and an weak attempt to secure NATO backing for action. The UN is, as always, totally useless. We know what doesn't work.Must we accept the inevitable probability of an insane, barbaric regime using nuclear blackmail upon free societies? Is that a blessed "turning the other cheek" or is it rank cowardice? Whatever the choice, we can be well and sadly assured that hoping in fruitful negotiations with these lunatics is a futile expectation.
15 years 3 months ago
. prada . dior. hermes . armani. dolche. gabbana. emporio. escada. cardin. ysl. puma. tj collection. no one
15 years 3 months ago
pissing porn movies ,porn gallery porn pay per
15 years 3 months ago
Yo What is up fellaz? I have a question thats been in my head for a long time.. What is acai berry? I keep seeing commercials on tv and advertisements on the internet so im finally starting to get curious. I guess its some fruit that is very healthy for you and your skin? I wouldnt mind losing some weight so i kind of want to buy acai berry .. so if any of you know any good online stores that would be cool! I also saw it was featured on OPRAH so maybe there is some truth to this lol.
15 years 2 months ago
breitling replica watchesexplorer replica rolexarmy fake swiss watchrolexreplicasinexpensive dive watchessavorski crystal womens watchesla salle watchesreplica+rolexsecond hand watches tokyowhere are bulova watches madehusband gay sex wife watchestornado watchesrating balmer watchesf 16 watchesfake omega watchespetite philippe watchesdesigner replica watchesmovado eliro replica watchexpensive brand watchesphiladelphia eagles watcheswatches buyertime change watcheshappy bunny watcheswatches for alpinistssports stop watchescorum fake watchice tek watchesjacob and co watches replicavintage hamilton watchesused watches san jose cawatches for adhdknock off rolexescroton chronomaster watchesother watchescartier watches cheapdkny watches 2007 entire collectionbohlin watchessavorski crystals women watcheswholesaler and cuff watchescasio gshock watchestag hueur watches hong kongpopular mens watcheswomens timex shock sport watchesknepper time watches portland oregoninvicta watches for discountauthentic louis vuitton watchesmens silver antique pocket watchesreal new rolex watchesbreitling navitimer replicadesigner watches new yorkwatches sport prestoguy watches house daughter takes good care of herbretling replica watchesbuliva watches antiqetime for ever watchespulsar womens watchesfacil watchestimex watches homepagereplica tag heuer link watchquiksilver watchesde longe watchesberitling watchesvintage doxa dive watchesdream interpretation of watchesindonesian rolexes watches collectiondahli watches
15 years 1 month ago
discount diamond watches vintage ladies watches made in usa
15 years 1 month ago
Hey everyone! All of the recent news stories of the breaking of the economy and loss of jobs has been driving most americans insane! I started looking sites for a way to get help and found that the government gives free grants. What I want to know is.... does anyone know what website I can find free online grant application at? Thank You! __________ Free Itunes Codes

The latest from america

Right there at the cross, in Jesus, our humanity doesn’t fall beyond its edges. Even there, even then, he continues to love. And even in that dense darkness—or loneliness—that he experiences as a human being, he doesn’t let himself forget that he is loved too.
Andriy ZelinskyyMarch 29, 2024
The 12 women whose feet were washed by Pope Francis included women from Italy, Bulgaria, Nigeria, Ukraine, Russia, Peru, Venezuela and Bosnia-Herzegovina.
"We, the members of the Society of Jesus, continue to be lifted up in prayer, in lament, in protest at the death and destruction that continue to reign in Gaza and other territories in Israel/Palestine, spilling over into the surrounding countries of the Middle East."
The Society of JesusMarch 28, 2024
A child wounded in an I.D.F. bombardment is brought to Al Aqsa hospital in Deir al Balah, Gaza Strip, on March 25. (AP Photo/Ismael abu dayyah)
While some children have been evacuated from conflict, more than 1.1 million children in Gaza and 3.7 million in Haiti have been left behind to face the rampaging adult world around them.
Kevin ClarkeMarch 28, 2024