The War on Holidays

A mobile billboard rolled up Washington Avenue as I strolled down to catch my bus this morning. It was a bit wordy to be useful in motion, but it stopped conveniently at a red light as I passed. The sign invited people to call a phone number or visit a website to learn about Santa Claus's Christmas Prayer. It was adamant on the point that Santa would not wish anyone "Happy Holidays," but would insist on "Merry Christmas." The advertisers themselves insisted that "Jesus is the Reason for the Season," -- the silly season, that is, that's come to be called "The War on Christmas."

Certain Christians are insulted by the idea that businesses or municipalities would acknowledge that the shopping season after Thanksgiving covers a number of holidays observed by different demographic groups. Borrowing the title of an Irving Berlin song, sensible people have adopted the "Happy Holidays" greeting to avoid confusion and possible offense. In some minds, this humble salutation has become akin to the Mark of the Beast, and a slogan of persecution. These offended parties, prominent among them a certain Bill O'Reilly, feel that any encouragement of "Happy Holidays" effectively forbids them from acknowledging their Christian faith.

In short, the war on the War on Christmas is another reactionary backlash against alleged political correctness. There's a grain of truth here; "Happy Holidays" is indisputably politically correct, and making it a mandated greeting, as at some businesses, is probably based on an exaggerated assumption of offense felt by the non-Christian hearing "Merry Christmas." This acknowledgment wins the culture warriors no sympathy, however, since they are self-evidently guilty of the very offense they attribute to their antagonists. It's impossible to say how many people, if any, are actually offended when someone says "Merry Christmas" to them, but you can probably quantify very easily exactly how many people are offended, freaked out and driven stark screaming mad by the phrase "Happy Holidays." That group is the true party of political correctness in this phony war, since they're the ones who demand amended language to appease their outraged sensibilities. It's a founding premise of the Think 3 Institute that no one has a right not to be offended. Determine for yourself who is most offended in this little kulturkampf, and you will have determined who is wrong.

For my part, I look forward to the day when no one feels offended by "Merry Christmas" or "Happy Holidays," and the time when the display of a Nativity manger in a public square would cause no more alarm than the erection of a statue of Hercules, because it would be just as harmless. Maybe not in time for you and me, as Stevie Wonder sings, but someday at Christmastime ...