Oh, the irony of burning bushes...LOL!! Television personality Glenn Beck rallied his followers to buy his branded “Patriot Star” Christmas tree ornament and light it simultaneously on Christmas Eve to shine to the heavens and “show the world Christmas is stronger than ever and you’ll never be able to take us down.” However, millions of the poorly made “Patriot Stars” were defective and caught the Christmas trees on fire during the Christmas Eve lighting. The marketing gimmick was to have all the users plug in the $69.99 Christmas tree star light on Christmas Eve in unison at 11 p.m. ET/8 PT in a show of solidarity for Christmas. Almost instantly, 800,000 emergency 911 calls were reported as Beck followers plugged in the dangerous decoration atop their trees and fire ensued. From Maine to California, trees were set ablaze by the Christmas ornament. “It was a nightmare,” Nashville firefighter Josh Statts told Yahoo News. “Ruined lots of Christmases for a lot of folks.” Some people reported extinguishing the flames themselves but others were not prepared and needed emergency help. “It just goes to show you,” Statts said, “when you buy junk from a radio host, test it out first before placing it on flammable items.” Consumer watchdog advocate Doug Jenkins told Yahoo that “a bunch of old people overpaid for a Christmas tree star and set their house on fire. I know Mr. Beck sells a lot of stuff, but please, stop selling selling anything electrical that dumb people may have a hard time using.” On Dec. 23, Beck proudly announced on his radio show that he had reached his goal of selling one million of the Patriot Stars and America “would shine bright to God in Jesus’ observance.” Take Back Our Country The “Patriot Stars” packaging states “Do not to use on wood, plastic, rubber, or any substance whatsoever.” It was for “decoration only and not to be plugged into an electrical outlet. Fortunately, only minor burns and smoke inhalation were reported but many Christmas presents were lost in the fires.” “I thought I was was joining Glenn Beck’s effort to save to Christmas from the terrorist, not burn to down my house,” said Tom Smith of Indiana. “We plugged it in right at eleven like he told us. Then a huge burst of light emitted. I thought Jesus himself had come down upon us but then I realized the tree was on fire so I grabbed the fire extinguisher and put out the flames but the ceiling was scorched and we lost a family portrait on the wall. We got off lucky.” Other buyers of Beck’s “Patriot Star” weren’t as lucky. “By the time I got the fire extinguisher, half the living room was on fire,” said Buck Jones, longtime follower of Beck. “I called the fire department and they came to put out the fire. The house was ashes by then. We’ll have to start our lives over but I know with God and Beck on our side, we’ll be back better and stronger than ever.” Beck declined to comment on the tree fires caused by his shoddy ornament, but did note his website was having an after-Christmas special with 3 percent off everything. The “Patriot Star” is 25 percent off. **We didnt bother fact checking this story; its a Daily Currant article**
Posted on: Fri, 26 Dec 2014 16:32:39 +0000
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