what's wrong with happy holidays?/warning mature language and themes

[susanmcgee48176]

--- In HPFGU-OTChatter at yahoogroups.com, "Steve" <bboyminn at ...> wrote:
>
> ---  "susanmcgee48176" <Schlobin@> wrote:
> >
> > And what IS wrong with happy holidays?
> > 
> > ...
> 
> bboyminn:
> 
> Well, there is NOTHING wrong with 'Happy Holidays', nothing at
> all. I frequently say 'Happy Holidays' just to break the 
> monotony, and just to keep my season's greeting from becoming
> too generic and meaningless. Sometime is wish people BOTH
> Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays.
> 
> The 'political correctness' comes in when people become
> irrationally afraid that someone might actually have to feel
> something. Consequently, Christmas is removed from everything.
> Christmas cards become Holiday cards. Christmas pudding become
> Holiday pudding. I think that is ridiculous. 
> 

Steve, I don't quite understand what you're saying. What do you mean 
when you say people become "irrationally afraid that someone might 
actually have to feel something.




> Though if someone were to prefer it that way for themselves, 
> I have no problem with that, but when they are trying to change
> the spirit of the season into spend spend spend and don't do
> anything that might offend anyone for any reason for fear 
> that they might not spend spend spend, then I think we have
> gone a little overboard.
> 
> As I already said, I celebrate Christmas and as part of the
> celebration I wish the gifts of Christmas joy on others by
> saying Merry Christmas. Now, on a more general subject, you
> can say that I should address you according to your tradition,
> but how am I suppose to know what your traditions is? Of course,
> if I do know, I would try to respond with something appropriate
> and considerate, but you can't expect me to read your mind. 
> 

Steve, I don't get it.....why would you say Merry Christmas to 
someone if you don't know if they celebrate Christmas?

After doing some google searching, I now understand that the latest 
right wing agenda is to tell people that Christians are being 
oppressed because people say "happy holidays" instead of "merry 
christmas"...

And back to the discussion of the pagan roots of 
Christmas...actually, there are a bunch of Christians who talk about 
this most eloquently....try googling "pagan roots of Christmas" and 
see what you get...

Mistletoe, for example, was a Druid thing....the white berries when 
crushed resemble ejaculated sperm..it was a fertility symbol.

Christmas, itself..well of course Jesus was not born on December 
25th...that date was the festival of the undying sun god - Sol 
Invictus...(Mithras) as well as the Saturnalia..a Roman holiday of 
excess, dancing, singing, sex, nudity, gifts, etc...and gift giving...
December 25 was also considered to be the date of the winter 
solstice..in the old Roman Julian calendar...The Sol Invictus 
festival has a "strong claim on the responsibility" for the date of 
Christmas, according to the CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA

Pagan Scandinavia celebrated a winter festival called Yule, held in 
the late December to early January period. Yule logs were lit to 
honor Thor, the god of thunder, with the belief that each spark from 
the fire represented a new pig or calf that would be born during the 
coming year. Feasting would continue until the log burned out, which 
could take as many as twelve days. In pagan Germania (not to be 
confused with Germany), the equivalent holiday was the mid-winter 
night which was followed by 12 "wild nights", filled with eating, 
drinking and partying.[12] As Northern Europe was the last part to 
Christianize, (I think it was Iceland that was run by a pagan council 
in 1000 A.D..... its pagan celebrations had a major influence on 
Christmas. Scandinavians still call Christmas Jul. 

Holly and Ivy were also Druid derived....etc. 

Susan