Free Republic

Cuban strongman Fidel Castro is cracking down on the latest enemy of the revolution: Christmas lights. The dictatorship has threatened the American interest section in Havana with "serious consequences" if it does not remove a Christmas light display around the perimeter of its headquarters. In a country where the display of Christmas lights is strongly discouraged by the communist government - public displays of lights in the capital are virtually nonexistent - the golden lights festooning the base of the interest section have inflamed the Castro regime. Government officials "said on two occasions if we didn't take down the objects,...

With all the legislative attack on Christianity this season headed by liberal groups such as the ACLU (liberal anti-Christ union), many private Christian citizens around America are retaliating by putting simplistic to extraordinary effort in the Christmas decorations they are displaying in their front yards. If liberals are serious about their intention to secularize the entire nation, they're eventually gonna have to come out to Parker, Colorado from where these pictures have been taken. Christmas is about Jesus Christ, no matter how it has been argued. "Download "Oh Holy Night" MP3." Organizations like the ACLU are seeing to it that...

A couple things stand out about the U.S.'s assessment of Cuba these days. Number one, the U.S. diplomats in Havana have started openly stating that Castro is on his last legs. We don't usually see this kind of bluntness from these guys. What does it mean? Is there a new Cuba diplomatic offensive coming up? Forget that, we've had those, to little effect. It can only mean that he really is. Diplomats are predictable creatures, but they don't like to get surprised by events. These statements are for us, not Castro, and I think they're just telling us they're on...

GENEVA, Ill. - Greg Parcell isn't thinking about the 50,000 lights all around him, or the computer that has them blinking to the beat of "Let it Snow" on the radio. Instead, his mind is on what's missing as he stands in what seems the one empty spot in his front yard. "I still have to put up the penguins around the campfire," he says. Parcell, 47, is a toy soldier in a growing army of Christmas enthusiasts becoming more sophisticated at turning yards into blazing monuments to the holidays. New companies are cropping up with elaborate, automated decorations and...

Paul Sakuma/Associated Press Alan Aerts of Monte Sereno, Calif., once put up elaborate Christmas displays that drew thousands of visitors. Now he has only a singing Grinch that points to neighbors who complained about the traffic. MONTE SERENO, Calif., Nov. 26 (AP) - For six years, Alan and Bonnie Aerts transformed their Silicon Valley home into a Christmas wonderland, complete with a surfing Santa, jumbo candy canes and a carol-singing chorus of mannequins. Visitors loved it. Last year, after NBC's "Weekend Today" featured the $150,000 display of custom-designed props, more than 1,500 cars prowled the Aertses' cul-de-sac in this...

MONTE SERENO, Calif. (AP) - For six years, Alan and Bonnie Aerts transformed their Silicon Valley home into a Christmas cornucopia - complete with surfing Santa, nativity scene, giant candy canes flanking the driveway and a carol-singing chorus of life-sized mannequins. The popular display attracted thousands of visitors, coming from as far as San Francisco and Sacramento, to Monte Sereno, an upscale suburb just west of San Jose. After the exhibit was featured on NBC's "Weekend Today" last year, more than 1,500 cars prowled the cul-de-sac each night. But this year, the merry menagerie - worth about $150,000 in custom-designed...

<p>The Great Pumpkin is one of the Halloween decorations that makes up the $15,000 decor on the outside the Monte Sereno home of Alan Aerts.</p> <p>Nearly everyone in Monte Sereno likes one family's holiday decorations a lot. But some of the folks around town, they do not!</p>