by Allison Roberts
Staff writer
Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Season’s Greetings—no matter what you’ll be celebrating or wishing for people this winter, you’re bound to hear some complaints from various groups of people who feel pushed to the side, oppressed even, in their beliefs.
Before you start waving a Bible wrapped up in Old Glory at me, talking about freedom of religion and freedom of speech, angry about the War on Christmas, as it has been dubbed, calm down, take a breath and hear me out.
There is no War on Christmas in America.
We are still just as free to celebrate Christmas or any other holiday just as we always have been.
The reason why many Christmas celebrators are grumpy about their “Merry Christmas” catchphrase often being replaced by “Happy Holidays” or “Season’s Greetings” is simple: They’ve recently been made aware that some people have different beliefs, and they now have to deal with it.
See, I have celebrated Christmas my whole life, but as a young warthog in elementary school, I was educated on the basics of other cultures’ celebrations year-round. It was interesting to me to find out how people different from myself believed and celebrated.
I’m sure many had similar experiences. Many, though, apparently did not.
I’m not saying that your beliefs or what you celebrate is wrong, but in the Land of the Free, we have religious freedom, meaning neighbors X, Y and Z down the road from you are free to believe and celebrate whatever they choose, just as you are free to do the same.
So if you receive an awkward reaction from someone at the supermarket when you wish them Merry Christmas, don’t drop your ice cream cone about it. Perhaps they don’t celebrate the holiday. If they don’t, that’s fine. Accept it.
It’s not their part in some evil plot trying to stop you from celebrating yours.
It should be obvious that people are different and have different beliefs, so it wouldn’t be normal for an entire town, state or country to decorate its streets and pour Christmas cheer all over its citizens. The choice to decorate owned property in a religious manner belongs to individuals, not to local or federal government, no matter the beliefs of the area’s public officials.
Since, however, this is apparently a recent realization of many areas of government and society in general, and it is no longer as common to see entire towns trussed up with red and green “Merry Christmas” banners, that means the War on Christmas is underway.
To people who still don’t quite get it that they are not under attack just because people believe differently, it must be hard living in a country that is the world’s greatest melting pot of cultures and having opportunities to learn about them.
Further, it must be hard having so much knowledge at your fingertips it’s incredible and having the freedom to make movies, songs, websites and Facebook status updates dedicated to whining about your religious freedoms being stripped away when they’re not.
Oh wait, no. No, it must not be hard living in a place like that. Congratulations, you live in America.
Now please, remove your cranky blabbering tongue from the frozen metal pole of ignorance, and go on with your lives without complaining, essentially, that not all people are just like you.
To those of you who appreciate and actually understand religious freedom and freedom of speech, Merry Christmas, from me to you.
Thanks for being sane, and I’ll meet you at the next X-mas Obliteration Meeting in December 2666.