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I attended a professional school that was easily 90% Jewish. I sympathize. Believe me, I do.

The state legislature ( Republican) determined the holidays for the state colleges and K-12 schools. Soooo....When the Jewish holidays came the school was nearly empty. The professors were mostly Christian at this time since in their generation Jews were severely discriminated against when it came to admission to the professions. These non-Jewish professors still held classes and tested all the students on the material.

Of course, these students attended the city K-12 schools with predominantly Jewish enrollment and the same situation existed there throughout their childhood. All of this was imposed by a Christian and Republican state legislature.

All but a few of my friends were Jewish. The culture of Christmas was just over the top for many of them. and throughout all of December was a constant irritant for them.

Add to this the discrimination their parents faced in joining important Republican dominated clubs that would further their business interests, the open discrimination in obtaining professional and semi-professional jobs in Republican dominated business, and the blue laws ( no stores open on Sunday) enacted by Republican legislators, Is it any wonder that Jews tend to vote for Democrats?

Personally, I am as observant a Christian as anyone can get and my husband and I do NOT celebrate Christmas even though everyone else in our families and congregation does. We go skiing. No tree. No gifts, No Christmas carols, No egg nog. I detest this holiday. My favorite holiday is Thanksgiving.

So....HAPPY THANKSGIVING!, EinNYC!! And....Shouldn't we all be thankful every day of the year?

I have lived in Manhattan for over 40 years now (as well as NJ) and have never heard one Jewish friend or acquaintance say that Christmas was a “constant irritant” to them. In fact, they have always wished me Merry Christmas and I have always bought chocolate gelt for their children at Hanukkah. That's one of the beauties of America and living in a vast, thriving city. And I don't know where you get the idea that “blue laws” are solely a Republican idea. We still have blue laws in Manhattan and while, again, I've never, ever heard a Jew complain about them, I also know that this long-time Democratic city probably enacted those laws and/or has done nothing to get rid of them. Neither Jew nor Catholic can buy booze on Sunday here!

The things people complain about in this great country! Snowflakes, all.