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This had been said many times before and I'm not exactly offer a fresh perspective of the topic, but I really don't give a damn: it's my iRANT and I'm free to write what I want.

This weekend, I was shooting something for work--a promo that's airing this week. It was supposed to be a group of people waving to the camera and wishing everyone a Merry Christmas. I don't know who the poison pill was, but someone suggested making it PC. As I was rolling tape, the group smiled and waved and said "Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah!"

I was so disgusted by this, I almost spit up my free cheeseburger.

See, this promo wasn't organized by lawyers or the ACLU. It was put together by little people--folks no different than you or me. And the people in the promo were little people--just viewers of our station. What I'm getting at is, no one was concerned about being sued--the kinda folks who you would expect to insist a 'Happy Hanukkah' is throw-in. These were just folks.

I hate political correctness (as evident by all my racist, sexist, and bigoted quips). Yet we're becoming brainwashed as a society--taught to be politically correct without even thinking. I'm not sure if folks even realize it. There wasn't a Jew amongst us, yet someone felt compelled to make sure we were PC. We can't wish our viewers a 'Merry Christmas' because someone didn't wanna offend the Jews. Someone without any legal risk. Someone who didn't even work for our station. Someone who volunteered his time to be out there. Someone who wasn't even Jewish.

The fact of the matter is, people are so afraid of not being PC. It's almost like being PC is a matter of being polite. Like you can't risk offending people. God forbid you hurt someone's feelings! Can't let anyone feel like they're left out (which isn't entirely true 'cause those who celebrate Kwanza or Festivus weren't acknowledged: I guess they don't count).

And what steams me the most are those who are offended--the folks who feel persecuted because they were wished a 'Merry Christmas.' That's just the biggest load of garbage I've heard since the "If it doesn't fit, you must acquit" defense. Maybe I'm just viewing the world too much through my own eyes, but Christmas has absolutely nothing to do with religion. Christmas is a commercial holiday and a time of year. The birth of Jesus has nothing to do with the Christmas we celebrate today. In my opinion, Christmas is about good will towards men and all that crap. Festive attitudes and time spent with loved ones. It's about Santa Claus, blinking lights, and dried out trees that burst into flames (none of which have ever been mention in any bible I've ever read*). Anyone who thinks Christmas is about religion is sorely lying to themselves.

Christmas is a state of mind--the Christmas spirit, if you will. Jewish, black, or Canadian--it really doesn't matter. Anyone who wants to enjoy the season is welcome. When someone wishes you a Merry Christmas, they're not telling you to dump your religion and come join ours. It's simple a greeting--a warm, festive greeting.

I'm curious to know who really is offended by this. Are folks really up in arms or is it just something people assume (like my little promo group)? Would a Jewish person really get pissed at me if I wished him a Merry Christmas? I would hope not--if so, that's one Jew with an anger problem.

If anything, I think it's more offensive to Hebrews for non-Jews to go around wishing them a Happy Hanukkah. The Festival of Lights is a very religious holiday--I know that much. For one to trivialize it by use it as a greeting or for someone to say 'Happy Hanukkah' when they know nothing of the religion, customs, or traditions--now that's offensive. That's taking something personal and important and watering it down for the rest of the world to use.

You'll never catch me using the terms Happy Holidays or Season's Greetings. In my opinion, those are phrases created by lawyers to cover their asses. They're shallow and empty (kinda like my last girlfriend). I might not be a big Christmas fan, but at least I get it--or at least the spirit of it.

* The author of this iRANT confesses to never reading any bibles--but that doesn't change the point.

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