Friday, December 31, 2010

New Year for 2011

Song!

king crimson - 21st century schizoid man

Debatury!

Let's have a party....or Party...or..........what ever!

Monday, December 27, 2010

The New year, years, what ever….
The Gregorian calendar, also known as the Western calendar or the Christian calendar, is the internationally accepted civil calendar. It was introduced by Pope Gregory XIII, after whom the calendar was named, by a decree signed on 24 February 1582, a papal bull known by its opening words Inter gravissimas.The reformed calendar was adopted later that year by a handful of countries, with other countries adopting it over the following centuries. The motivation for the Gregorian reform was that the Julian calendar assumes that the time between vernal equinoxes is 365.25 days, when in fact it is about 11 minutes less. The accumulated error between these values was about 10 days when the reform was made, resulting in the equinox occurring on March 11 and moving steadily earlier in the calendar. Since the equinox was tied to the celebration of Easter, the Roman Catholic Church considered that this steady movement was undesirable.

The North Korean government and associated organizations use a variation of the Gregorian calendar with a Juche year based on April 15, 1912 AD, the date of birth of Kim Il-sung, as year 1. The calendar was introduced in 1997. Months are unchanged from those in the standard Gregorian calendar. In many instances, the Juche year is given after the AD year, for example, 27 June 2007 Juche 96. But in North Korean publications, the Juche year is usually placed before the corresponding AD year, as in Juche 96 (2007).^[31] Calendar schemes based on political era are also found in the Japanese era name (Nengo) system and in the Minguo calendar used in the Republic of China (Taiwan), though these are not based on the birth of an individual as in the Gregorian and Juche calendars. Incidentally, the year numbers of the Juche calendar, Minguo calendar, and Japan's Taishō period correspond to each other even though they were not meant to be related. On 2011/1/1, N. Korea will also face the Y1C Problem.
In August 1997 the Central People's Committee of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea promulgated regulations regarding use of the Juche Era calendar, according to which for dates occurring before 1912 the Gregorian calendar year is used exclusively, so that there is no "negative" Juche year, or "Before Juche" concept. For example, 1682 is rendered as "1682", while 2010 is rendered as "Juche 99, 2010" or as "Juche 99 (2010)."^[32] Critics of Juche charge that the "Juche dating system", as it is based on a person's birth date rather than a political era, reflects a dynastic tradition where era names are specified for ruling Emperors.

Modern calendar (Solar Hejri)

In Iran

On 21 February 1911, the second Persian parliament adopted as the official calendar of

Iran

the Jalālī solar calendar with months bearing the names of the twelve constellations of the zodiac and the years named for the animals of the duodecennial cycle; it remained in use until 1925.^[6] The present Iranian calendar was legally adopted on 31 March 1925, under the early Pahlavi dynasty. The law said that the first day of the year should be the first day of spring in "the true solar year", "as it has been" (کماکان). It also fixed the number of days in each month, which previously varied by year with the tropical zodiac. It revived the ancient Persian names, which are still used. It specified the origin of the calendar (Hegira of Muhammad from Mecca to Medina in 622 CE). It also deprecated the 12-year cycles of the Chinese-Uighur calendar which were not officially sanctioned but were commonly used.
The first six months (Farvardin–Shahrivar) have 31 days, the next five (Mehr–Bahman) have 30 days, and the last month (Esfand) has 29 days or 30 days in leap years. The reason the first six months have 31 days and the rest 30 may have to do with the fact that the sun moves slightly more slowly along the ecliptic in the northern spring and summer than in the northern autumn and winter (the time between the vernal equinox and the autumnal equinox is about 186 days and 10 hours, the opposite duration about 178 days, 20 hours).
The Solar Hejri calendar (Persian: گاهشماری هجری خورشیدی یا هجری شمسی) produces a five-year leap year interval after about every seven four-year leap year intervals. It usually follows a 33-year cycle with occasional interruptions by single 29-year or 37-year subcycles. By contrast, some less accurate predictive algorithms are suggestion based on confusion between average tropical year (365.2422 days, approximated with near 128-year cycles or 2820-year great cycles) and the mean interval between spring equinoxes (365.2424 days, approximated with a near 33-year cycle).
In 1976, Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi changed the origin of the calendar, using the birth of Cyrus as the first day, rather than the Hejra of Muhammad. Overnight, the year changed from 1355 to 2535. The change did not last however as it was "largely ignored".^[7]

In Afghanistan

Afghanistan legally adopted the official Jalali calendar in 1922^[6] but with different month names. The Persian language in Afghanistan uses Arabic names of the zodiac signs. The Pashto language in Afghanistan uses the Pashto names of the zodiac signs. The Persian calendar is the official calendar of the government of Afghanistan, and all national holidays and administrative issues are fixed according to the Persian calendar.

Details of the modern calendar

The Solar Hejri calendar year begins at the start of Spring in the northern hemisphere: on the midnight between the two consecutive solar noons which include the instant of the Northern spring equinox, when the sun enters the northern hemisphere. Hence, the first noon is on the last day of one calendar year and the second noon is on the first day (Nowruz) of the next year.

This recent 4 coin set from North Korea includes the aluminum 5, 10, 50 and 100 Won. The coins bear two dates, one in the Juche dating system, which is based on the birth of North Korea's founder, Kim Il Sung in 1911. The other is the AD date. The coins are dated Juche 94 and AD 2005. The designs are simple, with the denomination on one side and the arms of the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea on the other.

Iran

Coins

500 Rials.

The only bimetallic coin of this series and a new denomination through the history of coinage in Iran.
Obverse: The mythic phoenix of the Ferdowsi's Shahnaameh (A well-known mythological poetry of Iran) depicted from the Persian miniature in the middle tablet surrounded by 12 spots and the famous Rosetta of the Persepolis bas-reliefs.
Reverse: The script "Islamic Republic of Iran " at the top; 500 Rials in the middle; and the year 1383 A.H. (2004) at the bottom .
It is made of a Cu-Ni-Al & Cu-Ni-Zn alloy with an approximate weight of 8.9 gr. and a diameter of 2.72 cm.

Friday, December 24, 2010

Seasons Greetings- with a history of Christmas

From Wichita Peace and Freedom Party Examiner

Christmas wasn’t a major Christian holiday until the Roman Empire adopted Christianity. They didn’t know exactly when Jesus Christ was born so they chose December 25 because it was close to the pagan celebration Sol Invictus.

This holiday was to celebrate the Winter Solstice. It was a major holiday, so it was easy to just change its name and keep many of the customs, some of which we have today. In addition, each country or tribes in Europe contributed something from their own solstice celebration.

Mistletoe was considered sacred by the Druids of Ireland and England. They believed it had magic powers. It was later adopted by the Christian Church, In the York cathedral the minister placed the branch on the High Altar and proclaimed “public and universal liberty, pardon and freedom of all sorts of inferior and wicked people at the minster gates, and the gates of the city, towards the four quarters of heaven.”

From The Christmas Tree Farm Network;

“The Egyptians were part of a long line of cultures that treasured and worshipped evergreens. When the winter solstice arrive, they brought green date palm leaves into their homes to symbolize life's triumph over death.

The Romans celebrated the winter solstice with a fest called Saturnalia in honor of Saturnus, the god of agriculture. They decorated their houses with greens and lights and exchanged gifts. They gave coins for prosperity, pastries for happiness, and lamps to light one's journey through life.

Centuries ago in Great Britain, woods priests called Druids used evergreens during mysterious winter solstice rituals. The Druids used holly and mistletoe as symbols of eternal life, and place evergreen branches over doors to keep away evil spirits.”

Santa Claus comes from a variety of persons with different clothing and names from all over Europe.

The American Santa is a product of a blend of many different cultures and customs. His earliest ancestors date back to pre-Christian days, when sky-riding gods ruled the earth. The mythological characters Odin, Thor, and Saturn gave us the basis for many of Santa's characteristics.

His suite was not always red. He was not always fat. He had many means of travel.

According to THE MAKING OF SANTA CLAUS;

“After the Protestant Reformation in the sixteenth century, the feasting and veneration of Catholic saints were banned. But people had become accustomed to the annual visit from their gift-giving saint and didn't want to forget the purpose of the holiday. So in some countries, the festivities of St. Nicholas' Day were merged with Christmas celebrations, and although the gift-bearer took on new, non-religious forms, he still reflected the saints generous spirit.

In Germany, he appeared as Weihnachtsmann, in England as Father Christmas, and in France, as Pèrè Noël, who left small gifts in the children's shoes.”

Where ever our traditions come from it really does not matter. People can attach Christian meaning to all these symbols if they so desire. Non-Christians can choose to celebrate the Solstice. Either way this is the holiday season and many of us will take part in some of these customs.