So the other day I was talking to a fellow manager at the corporation that was stupid enough to make me the manager of a department and he mentioned that he only tells people 'Happy Holidays' because saying 'Merry Christmas' is too exclusionary and he didn't want to offend anyone.
I laughed and told him he was a gigantic pussy and he was the reason that America is going in the toilet...... conversation kind of tapered off at that point.
I kept thinking about it though.
Who the hell is he worried about offending? The only people I know who would be offended by someone wishing them a 'Merry Christmas' are other gigantic pussies and atheists.
I used to have a Muslim coworker - and if he would have wished me a happy Ramadan I wouldn't have been offended, I would have been delighted that he was not calling me an intolerant asshole for once. If someone right now came up and wished me a happy Hanukkah I would wish it right back at em. I don't think I know a single Jew or Muslim that is offended that I celebrate Christmas, I know some Christian's that get offended by the fact that I celebrate it in a strip club - but that is a whole different thing.
If I got offended that a Muslim told me 'Happy Ramadan' he would think I was a dick, and he would be right. Not only that - if I was offended by his Ramadan greetings the world would brand me an intolerant bigot, and honestly I don't think that would be out of line. So why in the hell do people expect others to be offended by 'Merry Christmas"?
Recently some Best Buy in Detroit put out an ad that wished everyone a happy Eid-al Adha - which made some people all butthurt, but - honestly - does anyone sane give a shit? I hope everyone did have a happy Eid-al Adha, and I presume most Muslims hope that I have a kick-ass Christmas. For that matter I hope you have an uneventful Tet and a happy day celebrating whatever crazy shit Scientologist's have a day for.
I would really be interested in knowing if I have this all wrong, and if other faiths are actually pissed when they see Christmas trees and decorations all over the place this time of year. I honestly don't give a shit if the streets look like Christmas, Hanukkah, and Ramadan exploded all over societies proverbial face. Crosses, Santa's, Dreidels, and uh ....something Ramadan-ish (there actually is not a set decoration for Ramadan it turns out). The point is I don't give a crap what holiday you decide to celebrate and I would expect the same consideration.
I honestly think that the only people all that worried about Christmas being exclusionary are douches with an agenda to push that honestly don't give a crap about inclusion - they just want a vehicle to prove how intolerant/racist/fascist America is.
So Merry Christmas - and if that offends you then suck it.
