Posted on 11/29/2009 11:53:57 AM PST by DoctorBulldog
Amidst all the holiday shopping craziness, most Americans at this time of year want to see holiday signs that wish them a "Merry Christmas."
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 72% of adults prefer "Merry Christmas," while 22% like "Happy Holidays" instead.
Older Americans favor "Merry Christmas" more than younger adults.
[...]
(Excerpt) Read more at rasmussenreports.com ...
My husband (a shy guy) hears the words "Happy Holidays" and quite loudly and firmly says back to the cashier or sales clerk: "and a Merry Christmas to you too....."
We will not under any circumstances buy anything from retail stores that do not display the word "Christmas" in either their advertising or stores during the Christmas shopping season. Best Buy has NEVER been a store at which we've bought Christmas gifts. Our local Target store however, has the greeting "Merry Christmas" on their front doors.
Failing to mention Christmas specifically isn't intended to be a slight against Christians, it's just a way of including everyone. Mentioning only Christmas isn't intended to be a slight against non-Christians, it's just a way for Christians to express good cheer during a holiday that is important to them.
Both greetings are used to convey kindness and good wishes to the recipient. Isn't that what's important?
Me too. And in others news: 99% think oxygen is a good thing.
[Failing to mention Christmas specifically isn’t intended to be a slight against Christians, it’s just a way of including everyone.]
That is exactly how a liberal would describe it.
Have you ever heard anyone say, “they are trying to take Christ out of Christmas”?
CHRISTmas is the celebration of Christ’s birth and is a CHRISTian celebration, and no, it doesn’t include everyone. Others have their own ‘holidays’, and as far as I know we haven’t tried to change the wording of their holidays.
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Good post potlatch!
I'm curious to find out about the killers of the 4 policemen!
It’s the thought that counts. You showed that you remembered him and Hanukah.
That’s the important thing. Not the words.
The argument can be made that it should stay that way, so stop shoving it down non-Christian throats.
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I wonder if you'd be as happy if the only holiday greeting you could find were 'Happy Ramadan, may you kill an infidel in the coming year!'.
[The argument can be made that it should stay that way, so stop shoving it down non-Christian throats.]
You are going for ‘over-kill’ gogogodzilla!
I made ONE comment to someone who thought ‘happy holiday’ would be nice so it could include everyone.
I ALSO said that others have their own holidays and we do not try to change them.
I’m sure you are aware that in the past few years Nativity scenes, Crosses, etc, have been banned from many public buildings and city celebrations.
Your last comment was just to silly to even respond to.
to = too
Merry, Merry Christmas and Happy High Holy Days, FR! This is the 1st Sunday in Advent!
Personally, I don’t have a problem with the whole ‘Merry Christmas’ thing.
Just remember, that if you think that you have the right to have society, as a whole, use it indiscriminately during this time... you’d have to allow society to use ANY holiday greeting (even Ramadan) indiscriminately.
Which is why I brought up the Ramadan bit. If you’d find it uncomfortable to be in a society that did that, then you’re saying that you wouldn’t like to be in a society that expressly pushes a specific religion’s slogans on it’s people, regardless of their beliefs.
What it should be, and was once - before all the lawsuits started to fly, was an individual choice. Store managers, individual owners, ordinary people chose to say what they wanted, regardless of lawsuits or peer pressure.
And that’s the way it should have remained.
CHRISTmas is the celebration of Christ’s birth and is a CHRISTian celebration, and no, it doesn’t include everyone. Others have their own ‘holidays’, and as far as I know we haven’t tried to change the wording of their holidays.
Several religions and cultures have holidays around this time of year, not just Christianity. Simply because you acknowledge more than one of those holidays in your greeting does not mean you are trying to change or deny any one of those holidays. Just as if I were tell my friend "Say hello to the wife and kids for me," it doesn't mean I'm trying to individually disregard his wife or one of his kids.
If I know someone's religion I try to give them the appropriate greeting. When I don't know I sometimes use "Happy Holidays." I'm not trying to change anyone's holiday. It's just a simpler way for me to say "Merry Christmas if that's what you celebrate, or Happy Hanukkah if that's what you celebrate, or Happy Solstice if that's your thing, or ...."
I can understand why someone would think my approach is lazy or silly. I don't understand why it would be offensive to anyone.
Ok, I pretty much agree with all you just wrote. The troubling part is that people and stores USED to be able to say and display what they wanted - as you wrote.
Now we have the politically correct who are successfully trying to stop that.
In my whole life I never once thought about or minded how others practiced their religions.
The atheists, the gays and the PC liberals are the ones pushing their agenda and trying to remove all traces of my religion, and I won’t keep quiet about that.
I refuse to buy anything with Happy Holidays on it and I only send out Christmas cards with the Nativity Scene on them now. Our country was founded on Christian principals and I won't change my views on that.
Here is a list of Holidays in December. I personally refuse to pay attention to the islamic ones and the Pagan one. The Afro American Kwanzaa is a ‘made up’ one that appeared in recent years. I've never known a Buddist so haven't been familiar with that one.
Dec 7th Waqf al Arafa———Islamic
Dec 8th Bodhi Day—————Buddhist
Dec 8+9th Eid al Adha——— Islamic
Dec 21st Winter Solstice-— Pagan
Dec 22-29th Hanukah———— Jewish
Dec 25th Christmas-———— Christian
Dec 26th-Jan1st Kwanzaa——AfroAmerican
Dec 28+ 29th Al Hijra———Islamic
I just say Merry Christmas — May Christ bless you now and always.”
People are taken aback with a true message of the season!
You would be surprised how many people long to hear a cheerful and voice-filled voice during the Christmas season — which goes all the way to the Epiphany — when the three wise men came to visit the Christ Child.
Try it. You never know what has happened. Maybe their wife or husband just yelled at them and your “Merry Christmas” could turn their entire day around.
Blessings to you — today and always.
**Very, very, very few people are worthy of my good wishes.**
Can we really judge? Perhaps one of them is Christ in disguise.
If Christmas is your holiday then it's totally understandable that you would choose to buy CHRISTMAS cards and merchandise. I wouldn't expect anything else and I have no interest in trying to convince you to choose "Happy Holiday" stuff.
I understand your preference for "Merry Christmas". I just don't get the hostility towards "Happy Holidays". When you use "Merry Christmas" you aren't trying to knock Hanukkah or force the other person to accept Christ, right? You're just expressing kindness and good cheer to the other person. So why do you assume that someone using "Happy Holidays" is trying to knock YOUR holiday or trying to change YOUR beliefs?
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