Crowdsourced Christmas Cwestions

["Rob, grandpa of Ryan, Trevor, Devon & Hannah" <rMslade () shaw ca>]

This has nothing to do with security.  But, since it's the day ofter Epiphany, we 
are now officially out of the Christmas season, so one last hit before next year.

Then again, maybe it does have to do with security.  Integrity and all that.  The 
dangers of getting your answers from socnets and Wikipedia.

So, today I'm getting my hair cut.  Our hair stylist (yes, I've had to switch from a 
barber, that endangered species, to a hair stylist.  Who is really good) has become 
a good friend, and saves up questions to ask me while I'm in the chair.  Today it 
was why red is a Christmas colour.  (We discussed Clement Clark Moore, and 
persistent berries in northern climates, etc.)

I mentioned this to Gloria when I got home, and she said that the girls would have 
just googled "why is red a Christmas colour?"  So, I did that.

Oi, such nonsense I find!  There are lots of non-answers, such as the Christian 
significance of red and green, but there is Christian significance in other colours, 
too, so why those?  Answers.com was one of the sites that promulgated that one.

But then I hit yet another answer from Answers.com, and this one just blew me 
away!  So herewith the answer they gave to it ( 
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Why_is_red_and_green_a_Christmas_color ), and my 
response to the various parts (by the way, I haven't corrected any spelling, 
punctuation or grammer within the quotes):

"This has always been the case."

Oh, thanks awfully!  So helpful!  (This is the "turtles all the way down" answer.)

"Possibly the holly and wreaths,"

OK, I can accept that ...

"or contrasting stop and go images-Red and Green lights."

Of course!  The famous sixteenth-century Tudor traffic lights!  It's obvious!

"One interesting angle is the Running lights of ships"

Uh, you'll have to explain that one to me a bit more ...

"-and Christmas is transportation oriented,"

Ummmm, are we talking about the three kings, here?

"are , from port to starboard, Red, White(overhead masthead lights) and Green."

Yes, yes, I see!  The Magi must have travelled on the Orient Cruise Line (the 
Pacific not having been discovered yet).

"it was said this may have been chosen tohonor Columbus as these are the colors 
of the Itallian Flag."

Of course.  Columbus must have been the fourth wise man, and ended up as the 
Wondering ... Wop?

"it is interesting to know the term Christmas tree for the control panel on a 
submarine"

Yes, clearly this came from early Judean submarines!

"refers directly to the red (hazard, no go) and Green (safe, clear) lights."

And, clearly, Christmas is something to avoid, as hazardous.

"similar devices have other applications."

And similar holidays have other colours?

"oddly phone switchboards are usually red and white-busy and clear."

And this colour scheme has come down to us from the earliest Roman 
switchboards?

"I hope this is some help!"

No, not really.  (But it was somewhat amusing.)

======================  (quote inserted randomly by Pegasus Mailer)
rslade () vcn bc ca     slade () victoria tc ca     rslade () computercrime org
                    Obscurity is not security.
Rule #5 http://www.gamasutra.com/features/20000724/pritchard_pfv.htm
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