Close the fort gates! Man the big guns! Yes indeed, the War on Christmas is upon us.
At first it was the right-wing self-promoting dunderheads such as Bill O’Reilly who warned us that the secular progressives were wanting to put the kibosh on Christmas. Just who these secular progressives are who would destroy the celebration for all Christians is perhaps known only in the minds of the O’Reillys of the world.
Well, let me tell you, things have just gone bad to worse. Now it’s the Jews (You know, those people who Mel Gibson says starts all the wars) who want to burn our Christmas trees and smash our festive lights into dust. Just check out what’s happened in the Northwest.
Officials at the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport ordered that Christmas trees be taken down. The trees had decorated the facility’s entrance for the past 25 years. Such drastic steps were not so much as a complaint response as it was an overreaction to a suggestion, according to the rabbi who was responsible for the trees being yanked. The rabbi had asked the airport to build a menorah and hold a lighting ceremony along with the Christmas decorations.
However, the head of the airport’s governing body said some time-sensitive ultimata were issued by the rabbi’s attorneys. The airport suppposedly believed it would be easier to deal with the situation — at least for the time being — by taking down the trees.
Thank Shiva that all this wasn’t caused by those Godless secular progressives!
What is so galling about this story is not that the rabbi suggested a symbol of his faith be added or even that the trees symbolizing Christmas were removed. No, what is irritating is how the so-called “mainstream media” has jumped on the bandwagon that has mostly been pulled by the dunderheaded reactionaries.
Perhaps it is just that the media are overcompensating or don’t want to offend those to whom the Bill O’Reillys play. Not that it matters because many of those people hate the media anyway.
Then again, the Christmas war bandwagon could be a case of group think among editors and television news bigwigs who believe any conflict, no matter how ridiculous, is compelling to their audience.
Having to accommodate those of different faiths and backgrounds is just part of living in this melting pot of ethnicities and beliefs. Sure people want to show and celebrate their traditions and religious backgrounds. Sometimes there will be disagreements. That isn’t exactly something new.
And just because people don’t always agree on every little detail about each others’ lives does not mean that it is a war. It is when dialog between people breaks down and viewpoints and opinions are intractable as well as unworthy of consideration that leads to more serious disagreements in which war might erupt somewhere way down the line.
As long as people are talking — even though some weasel attorney — there is no war. It’s merely a discussion.