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I’ve been out in LA two weeks ago and then in DC last week.

I said Merry Christmas to everyone and almost always got a very Merry Christmas back. A couple even said it with a tone of relief!

One federal worker at the Department of Labor, where I was teaching, said she preferred Happy Holidays out of respect for other religions.

I remarked back to her that December 25th is in fact a FEDERAL holiday and is named “Christmas” in the federal registry. So Merry Christmas can be said by and to all Americans as that is the name of this secular holiday, as the US Government doesn’t have religious holidays. You can be any—or no—religion and it is still a federal day off.

She nodded as that seemed to actually make sense to her.

I mean, really, Merry Christmas is an innocuous term when you think about it; not proselytizing at all to ask some one to have a happy day, no? It’s not like you said “He is born” or the “Savior has arrived!”.

So the atheists can say “Merry Christmas” as it is, for them, “Have a Happy, joyful day on this end of the year federal day off form work.” Just easier to say.