A reader rants:
"Watching the news this morning, trying to figure out if it's going to rain or snow or even get cold and catch a report about a shipment going to Afghanistan.

Now, this shipment is part of a 9-year-old program that gives "shoebox presents" to needy children worldwide. In other words, the gifts are packed into a shoebox. So far, fine. But these are CHRISTMAS gifts (and wrapping) going to a MUSLIM country! HELLO!

Then there's the propriety of sending starving children Play-doh and stickers and hairclips instead of food. But we'll move on from that to the piece de resistance - one firefighter, who worked as part of the rescue/recovery effort at the WTC, has been contributing for over five years. This year, in memory of the "fallen", he's placed a sticker on every box with the name of a deceased AND the date "9-11-01".

Words fail me. Is it stupidity? Hubris? Insanity? or am I wrong to get this nonplussed??????? "

- thanks to L for the Rant.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
one of our correspondents replied to that Rant:

"No, that's pretty silly. Not very culturally sensitive at all, and very reminiscent of Vietnam silliness. Sending Christmas presents to Muslims . . . with the names of fallen Americans appended. Would be hard to improve on that. Why not Christmas gift baskets full of Turkeys stuffed with bacon dressing, and set off with plum pudding and a couple of bottles of vino? "

- thanks to B for the reply