People Behaving Badly #11

It's that time again -- that time of year when we all start buzzing about, pulling out our credit cards to buy those seasonally appropriate gifts, and wrapping them all pretty-like to be placed under the holiday tree.  We say 'Seasons Greetings' to strangers we pass on the street, and hum merrily along to the carols we hear in the mall, all references to Jesus tastefully removed, of course; never once revealing what exactly it is we're actually up to... preparing for...

(shh, quietly now, I'm only going to say this once... hurry up, now, lean in close while those politcially correct freaks aren't listening...)

...Christmas. 

I mean, c'mon... we don't want to offend anybody, do we?

Believe it or not, I actually felt a pang of guilt as I wished the ticket agent at Greyhound a Merry Christmas today.  He was a white man, not quite middle-aged anymore, but not quite a 'senior', either, probably waiting anxiously for his shift to end so he could run to the airport and pick up his daughter, coming home for Christmas.  He sold me my tickets, chastised me for not being home for Christmas in the past five years, and as he sent me on my way, I thanked him kindly and then, gasp!, I heard myself utter those horribly offensive words, "Merry Christmas."  Why did I feel so guilty about what should have been a perfectly polite exchange in conversation?

Because the media has decided that it is now taboo to wish others a Merry Christmas, that's why.  Canada is not a melting pot, so I'm told; it is a mosaic, and we are supposed to honour other people's cultures and not impose our own upon them.  It's what sets us apart, I hear.  The Politically Correct Movement (from hereon out referred to as the PC movement) has made it's opinion known that the Muslims and the Jews and the Hindus and the Mormons and the Buddists who now call Canada home are offended and uncomfortable with the month-long Jesus fest us Westerners insist on throwing once a year, and out of consideration for other reliigions of the world, we should think about toning down our celebrations.

At the risk of bursting the PC Movement's bubble, which I know strives oh-so valiantly to not offend anyone, ever, I am offended by this.  What about me?  What about my religion?  What about my right to choose to say Merry Christmas in my own country?  Why do I have to take the Christ out of my Christmas, just because my neighbor won't be celebrating along side me? 

I realize that I am walking a very thin line here and am on the verge of offending many, and perhaps even sounding like a racist.  This is not my argument at all, and please don't interpret my words as such.  I am simply frustrated that the PC Movement has taken this issue so far, we've done absolutely everything and beyond to ensure we don't step on toes and offend, we are actually sacrificing our religion and our beliefs to accomodate the minority.  At a time like this, in such a situation, I find myself wondering, What would Jesus do?

I'm not a religious girl, and I won't pretend to be.  I was baptised, sure, but I don't practice.  That doesn't mean I don't feel something magical on Christmas, or that I don't stop for a minute on Christmas Eve and contemplate the meaning of it all.  And I don't think that in my country, in a city that can throw a Chinese New Year street party, and a Diwali Day, and festivities for Hanukkah; I don't think it's appropriate that we have to sweep the majority under the rug, and go about our holiday celebrations pretending Jesus never existed, or that our day doens't have religious meaning.

I can't speak for the majority of the minority in Canada, but I know for a fact that I would be disappointed and embarrassed if an entire nation suspended, or toned down, their religious celebrations on my behalf.  I mean, if I were to up and move to Isreal, there is no way I would expect Hanukkah to be muted, even just a bit.  Quick, pull the latkes out of the storefront window... there's a Christian walking up the street.  She might feel uncomfortable!  It's a rediculous thought, if you put it in a different perspective, no?

I'm just saying... we focus so much energy and attention on making sure that all of our guests get the same size piece of the pie... we've forgotten to save a piece for ourselves.  Besides, if we remove religion from the Christmas equation, all we're left with is mass consumerism.  That's not what Christmas means to you, is it?