It's that time of year again. The holidays are upon us, and the internet will soon slow to a crawl as bloggers of all faiths spend more time with their families, take vacations, or just sit back and relax. But in this dearth of posts, the Carnival lives on. Through rain, snow, sleet, or postal strikes the Carnival is here for you providing some of the best that the Blogosphere has to offer.

With that said it brings me great pleasure to offer you, the 118th Edition of the Carnival of the Vanities. Our finest gifts we bring:

Join the buy nothing for Xmas campaign so that you can have more to spend on yourself.

Brian J. Noggle says screw those people who don't appreciate inclusive goodwill tiding like Happy Holidays. He's wishing it to them anyhow.

Josh Cohen asks what about those of us who aren't threatened by Christmas? What about those of us who get upset about commercials trying to respect the "holiday" spirit but still end up being Christmas-y? These advertisers should go all-Christmas or none at all.

Yes, Virginia there is a Santa Claus. But he was killed by rampant consumerism and corporate greed

With Christmas being the deadliest day of the year, Outside The Beltway takes a look at how Santa Claus is lucky to be alive.

Mentalogical wants to send us a Christmas Card, but his attorney won't let him: Please accept with no obligation, implied or implicit, my best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low stress, non-addictive, gender-neutral, celebration of some sort of holiday. . .

Protomonkey is bringing in the Christmas Spirit.

In the spirit of Christmas, Wordlab presents an entertaining commercial message.

Banana Oil! brings us a new Christmas Carol: Rudolph in the Sky with Diamonds.

The Atheists had better make DARN SURE they cover all the bases if they want to ban Christmas (or for that matter, everything associated with Christ). SmarterCop has a small checklist for 'em.

Vik Rubenfeld's boots are made for walkin'. The Big Picture wants you to know that a 55 mile march is planned to help protect the right of American cities to show appreciation for religion.

How to take a generic sermon, adapt it, and make it a study on what salt really stands for, Biblically, and what we need to take away from the study of it.

The Electric Commentary looks at how closing the cultural gap between the U.S. and Europe would be beneficial to both parties.

point2point takes a look at our new Libyan friends and their shameless attempt to spring the mastermind of the Pan Am 103 bombing out of jail.

The Unrepentant Leftist explores the statements of CIA analysts who say that WMD evidence was deliberately manufactured to justify the war in Iraq.

Baboon Pirates takes a look at the importance of private property in a rebuttal to a friend claiming "private property/ownership is one of the all time worst ideas of mankind, ever."

The Battle of Trenton was fought on December 26, 1776, and is credited for turning the tide of the Revolutionary War. Douglas Bass wonders how it would've been reported if it was fought in 2004.

On the war in Iraq, Kevin Drum has questions, Pursuit of Happiness has the answers.

What famous periodical has a cover showing Castro "liberating" Havana; an editorial savaging the U.S.; and lead articles full of junk science and low-tech studies? How about one of the four leading medical journals in the world.

Bob Gronlund has some thoughts about who the real Minutemen are in Iraq -- and why it really is all the Republicans fault after all.

This week is the 60th Anniversary of the great escape of WWII POW's - in Phoenix, Arizona! I love this story, because many people today don't even know that German POW's were held all over the US. It has everything - Nazis, a long tunnel, cleverness, deception, one fatal mistake, and, best of all, a German U-boat commander.

According to the New York Times, publishing houses have started to regard the blogosphere as a potential source for promising, marketable writers. Interested-Participant takes a look.

You've heard of Neoconservatives. Well QandO Blog brings us Neolibertarians - those that are socially tolerant, fiscally conservative, strong on defense, and in favor of limited government. And of course, an introduction to the (beginning soon) Neolibertarian Network of Bloggers. Democracy! Whiskey! Sexy!

Charles Hill looks at what the unholy marriage of Fox News and Clear Channel Radio is likely to produce - not much of anything.

Bill Adams wants somebody to tell the media what "epicenter" means. And make them stop misusing it.

Watcher of Weasels takes a look at hose up-armored humvees. Find out what the mainstream media isn't telling you.

Rip & Read Blogger reads the blogosphere into an MP3 player, and includes clips from C-SPAN, CNBC, and other sources.

Bogie has gone off the deep end and is attributing emotions to houses that she passes on her daily commute. There are two houses that seem to be on opposite sides of the emotional spectrum . .

Kevin Baker notes that we have reached the point where people are being arrested and charged for thought crimes.

You may not have to wait until April to get your tax refund. Grab your phone bill and head on over to Scrivener.net to find out about the $6 billion of illegally collected telephone taxes.

Dean Esmay says that a lot of the concern over the national debt is misplaced.

Jack Cluth wants to know if anyone else as sick of Kobe Bryant as he is? And should we get his chief confidant Jim Gray a pair of kneepads for Christmas??

When Pedro Martinez jumped ship from the Red Sox to the Mets, who got the best deal? According to The Monk, it was the Yankees, and Big Stein was the man behind the curtain.

Shaking Spears translates the French Presidential Commission's report identifying the causes of the Concorde crash.

L&N Line explains why you get such poor service at the movie theater, and why a large Coke costs $5.

Cunctipotent Cunctator tells us why the concept of odd and even is a philosophical illusion.

Will the Republican majority be able to get things done? La Shawn Barber has her doubts because Bush and the conservatives in Congress don't seem to be on the same page.

GM's Corner takes a look at the hostile takeover of the DNC by Moveon.org.

Liberty Dad wants to know when the left will start opposing evil.

Wicked Thoughts shows that even colonoscopies can be funny.

The Flying Space Monkey offers a tale of getting his skull cracked while goofing off as a child. Bottom line: it hurt.

Mad House Madman writes about his future intern and how much she is learning. She brings new meaning to the term prodigy.

RoguePundit takes a look at his state's global warming figures and makes a startling discovery. Most of the greenhouse gases come from so-called Blue States.

Environmental Wackos... Green Bigots... Ecoloons... No matter what you call them they have little to do with saving the environment reports Revealed Truth.

Taken In Hand has a fascinating piece about consent, dominance and forcefulness, which challenges antiliberal Nanny State notions of consent and the way the word "violence" has come to mean something necessarily bad rather than just "forcefulness".

Over at Classical Values, Eric attempts to make sense of the "science" behind gun control. If statistics show that murders are 'caused' by guns, don't they also show that murders are 'caused' by race or gender?

"A young physician named Dr. Charles unearths a forgotten article written by Mark Twain, and finds himself transported through a worm hole back into the year 1740 to treat a headache."

They say that generating randomness is impossible. Apparently they've never read The World According to Pete.

Commentary on a blogger who takes liberties commenting on others. Turnabout is fairplay. The World According To Pete .. According To Me... has the headlines.

John Ray covers basic conservatism; politically correct attacks on Christmas; suppression of free speech concerning guns; problems with Canada's free health care; "white flight" among the Dutch; and of course Hispanic immigration. Whew.

nikita demosthenes says that for all of Thomas Barnett's yammering about "the Core" and "the Gap," he misses the big picture. The important thing for the average person is not living in a country that is part of "the Core." The important thing is living in a true free-market democracy.

The initials VAWA are the acronym for the Violence Against Women Act. Passed in 1994, VAWA is far more political, and ideological than any kind of social program. It's up for reauthorization next year, and the Desert Light Journal wants you to know why it should be allowed to expire.

Right Wingnuthouse says that Man's Best Friend is really the cat.

You probably already knew your body was made up of trillions of cells, but did you know that they make a sound. Business of Life examines Molecular Music.

You'll shoot your eye out kid. That's right, childhood can be hazardous to your health.

Wiccans are handing out diplomas. And Andrew Ian Dodge has been awarded one.

Well, that's it for this edition. There were 55 56 total entries submitted. If I left anything out or made a mistake with your entry, please contact me at carnival -at- ravnwood.com as soon as possible. I'm leaving town at 12 PM sharp, so you must submit any corrections before noon.

The next Carnival will be held December 29th at The Radical Centrist