The "War on Christmas"

Good afternoon to all,
hope the day finds you all well.

Ho....Ho....Ho...
"Oh you better watch out..
Santa's packin' heat!"

Nah, not really, though there has been alot of squawkin' about a so-called "War on Christmas" lately. What's up with this latest buncha boloney?

I heard mention that the effort to convince people that the "evil secular liberals" are grinchin' it up in an effort to steal Christmas from the people is being led by none other than Bill O'Reilly. Does anyone actually take him seriously anymore? C'mon now, surely the religious minded wouldn't listen to a man who was sued by a woman employee who complained about him drunk dialing her in the middle of the night for a little heavy breathing and a happy ending. Isn't he married? And if he is, isn't that adultery in some form, even if it was just on the phone? I guess breaking one of the "Big 10" is only wrong if you didn't vote for St. George.

Ok, enough of my trying to be witty, I'm aware I'm not that funny, but does anyone actually believe that someone could actually take away Christmas, even in these days of politically-correct speech, and strange legislative remedies to cure social ills? It is my belief that Christmas is more than just a name of a tree, a greeting on a card, or a line at a store, Christmas is alive and well in the hearts of those who choose to abide by it's true meaning, a time of compassion and hope, a time when we all take notice of the smiles and joy our humble offerings can bring to others, whether it is in the form of a gift, a kind word, or a good deed. I'll admit it is a chore to try to keep that feeling alive all year long, I try, but in this time of year the feeling is somehow recharged, hopefully enough to carry me through another long new year.

I'm not a religious fundementalist, nor am I particularly conservative on all matters, but I am a person of faith which is kept on a personal level, I'm not preachy, nor do I judge anyone else, I don't believe my way of looking at things is anywhere near perfect so I wouldn't expect anyone to follow my example, though I try to do the right thing, and treat people as I would like to be treated, I'm not out to convert anyone to believe in anything. I keep an open mind to all approaches of explaining our existence, and don't discount anyone's beliefs whether gained by scientific research or by faith alone, I really can't as I admit my knowledge of both science and religious text are extremely limited, but I know enough to know I resent the use of religion for political gain in any way, and know that there is always room for me to learn more. For one group of people to say "either your with us or your against God" raises a big ol' red flag of warning for me to watch out for them, and those who would so quickly and willingly hitch their wagon to such a cause. Scary stuff indeed!

I can't help but view Mr. O'Reilly's attempt to scare people, as anything less than McCarthy-esque, he thrives upon the fear of others. Can't someone step up and give him the ol' "have you no shame, sir" treatment in national television so we can finally be rid of this guys virulent influence upon those who are most at risk of being mislead? I must say that I whole-heartedly believe there is no such thing as a "War on Christmas", though through the years people have used such a term to gain attention for themselves or to further one agenda or another. There was once a time when people questioned the use of Santa and his reindeers as a symbol of Christmas. Does anyone actually believe Santa or Rudolph, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen, and the gang are actually bad? C'mon it's fun for the kids! Now that I think about it, there probably are those who still hate the big fella in red and the shiney nosed quadruped, but do most people? Probably not.

Remember the time when "Merry Xmas" was being widely used? Some went practically crazy over that too, but did Christmas become a victim of the big scary "X"? Nope, it still comes rollin' along each and every year. The fact that our nation has a large Christian following, means that the story of Christmas will be passed along from generation to generation, with each family giving that meaning it's own interpretation and variation on the theme, who is to say who is right or wrong? Surely not me, but neither can Mr. O'Reilly, who I view as the true Grinch who tried to steal Christmas. If a store uses the term "Holiday Sale", Mr. O'Reilly would like you to believe that is one sign of the apocalypse, the end of life as we know it, the ol' lump-o-coal in the stocking... whatta goon. At a time when our nation is engaged in actual war on two fronts (Iraq and Afghanistan), Mr. O'Reilly has attempted to string together the words "war" and "Christmas" and "threat" to scare people during what should be the most joyous, most celebrated, or most sacred time of year, when it's already difficult to celebrate knowing our soldiers, who all have family members or someone who cares about them, will be spending their Christmas in a war zone. For some reason there seems to be certain people out there (both political pundits and the elected) who feel the need to keep up a level of pressure or fear, we as American citizens aren't being allowed to simply relax for a moment, to be able to step back and possibly take a look at the big picture all around us, maybe it's because those very same people are afraid we might realize we don't like what we see. Nothing appears to be off limits these days, as now even Christmas is "under threat"? It could be laughable, though even if some of the non-stories made into stories are immediately recognized as such, there's still the need to worry about a possible knee-jerk reaction that could be taken by a legislature gone wild, It's terrible and disappointing.

Guess I might as well step up and say.... "Have you no shame, sir?", and I use the respectful term "sir" with the utmost contempt, as I find the man (O'Reilly) to be not much more than a self-aggrandizing bag of wind, and a fear/hate monger.

But that's just my opinion, what do you think? Is there such a thing as a "War on Christmas"? Apart from the commercialization of the holiday, we all know that is true.

I send the best of wishes for a Very Merry Christmas to all, Happy Holidays, Season's Greetings, or whatever anyone out there might prefer, t'is the season, and t'will be again next year and beyond. *LOL