Glenn Reynolds nails it when he says, "What does that even mean? Besides someone not wanting to say “Christmas,” that is...'Holiday' is not, in fact, a synonym for 'Christmas.'”
We've discussed this subject here before, when I was lambasting Wal-Mart for having their clerks say "Happy Holidays" instead of "Merry Christmas," as well as my two-pronged screed against the people who were offended by the placement of Christmas trees in Sea-Tac Airport in Washington state and those who were offended by choirs singing Christmas carols. You know the only thing that offends me here? All these people getting offended! (Not to mention their trying to dictate the behaviors of others to conform to said offense.)
As I said in one of the earlier posts:
many of the people who are offended by the use of "Merry Christmas" would squeal like a stuck pig if the perks of the holiday were taken away from them. Offended by the word Christmas? OK, then you lose your Christmas bonus. You don't get December 25th as a holiday, either. What's that, you say--that's different? But hang on--can you really have it both ways?
At some point in time, most sane, rational, mature people will have some sort of "tipping point"-type event that will make them say "enough already!" to the PC plague. Me, I got there a long time ago, but then, I was born white and male, so I guess I never had a chance with the PC crowd. But as I've said before, I've read the Constitution, and among those "inalienable rights" listed in the Preamble, "the right to not get one's feelings hurt" is nowhere to be found. So those who waste their lives (and lungs) complaining about things like that should indeed just be ignored, just like little kids throwing temper tantrums...which is really what they are, in adult bodies, most of the time.
And to make matters worse, Mark Steyn reports that, when a reader wrote to Amazon to complain about not using the word "Christmas" in the promotion, they received the wrong canned email in response, getting one that apologized for using the word "Christmas." Steyn provides a nice laugh at the end: "I wonder if it might be time for Amazon to crank up a computer-generated apology sincerely apologizing if you were offended by receiving the incorrect sincere apology."
Also, The Atlantic's Jeffrey Goldberg (who's Jewish, by the way) defends the use of "Merry Christmas" with this statement:
"Holiday" isn't a holiday. It's a way of avoiding offense. But who, exactly, is offended? This is what I don't understand. I'm perfectly happy living in a country that is populated mainly by Christians, particularly Christians who show nothing but acceptance for their fellow citizens who happen to follow other religions. So it doesn't sit well with me that Christians now feel constrained to offer the anodyne "Happy Holidays" rather than a greeting that touches directly on the reason for our seasonal merriment.Well said, sir.
So, my Christian sisters and brothers, feel absolutely free to greet me with "Merry Christmas," and I'll greet you right back. You can say "Happy Hannukah" as well, or "Happy Kwanzaa." Say, in other words, what you feel. The important thing is to not be afraid.
NEXT DAY UPDATE: Also via Instapundit, it appears that Amazon has relented, and the promotion is now being called the 12 Days of Christmas. Perhaps the power of a widely-read blogger (that's Instapundit, not me, LOL) really can make a difference.
Blowing out the candles: Happy birthday to my Australian blogger buddy (and groom-to-be) James.
We still remember: Pearl Harbor may have been eclipsed by 9/11 as the defining national disaster of a generation, but there are plenty of people for whom December 7, 1941 still lives in infamy, and we recognize the sacrifice for those who gave all during that time. And if you've never heard or read FDR's "infamy" speech, it can be found here.
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