We have also opened Christmas crackers and I have a purple crown and a stencil/protractor thingy.

We're having Snowpocalypse and eating Christmas cookies for breakfast.

Sounds like an excellent breakfast, even better than my Fiber One breakfast.

Although it's been a big news topic, I just can't see the big deal with having Rick Warren give the invocation at the inaugural. I strongly disagree with his support of prop 8, but I just don't see selecting him to give the invocation as any sort of endorsement of all of Rev. Warren's agenda. Maybe it is my general lack of religiosity coloring my view of it.

I just can't see the big deal with having Rick Warren give the invocation at the inaugural.

Substantively, it isn't. Symbolically, it's Mr. Inclusivity giving a prominent soapbox to someone who compare my family to incest and pedophilia. Which doesn't give me comfort that Mr. Inclusivity will take my side on issues of great importance to people like me and families like mine.

Symbolically, it's Mr. Inclusivity giving a prominent soapbox to someone who compare my family to incest and pedophilia.

You forgot bestiality!

It sickens me that this man is being given an implicit endorsement and a national platform. I know Obama's been falling over himself to say "No no, I still disagree with him on everything!" but...ugh. I just don't like it. There must be other conservative Christian preachers who could deliver an aisle-reaching invocation without comparing abortion rights to the Holocaust, you know?

To many people it legitimizes him in a more substantial way. It makes me sad, but I understand the concessions politicians think they have to make (even as I scream, but you already won!!). As a Christian it makes me doubly sad that so many who claim to share the same faith as me, are energized by discrimination and fear and hate. Which is not to say Warren does not do some really good stuff. Compared to some of the mega-church ministers he is vastly better in my eyes, but like many others, there are some issues that ARE a litmus test for me and he doesn't pass.

All of what they said.

But it also distresses me rather a lot that we always have to have religious bits of government functions.

Maybe he can balance it out by having PZ Meyers deliver the closing remarks. (What's the fancy-word opposite of invocation? Convocation? Exvocation?)

Outvocation?

Revocation?

Benediction? That's probably too churchy.