It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.
It's around this time that everywhere you go, you see those three little words: "'Tis the season." 'Tis the season for giving! 'Tis the season to be jolly! 'Tis the season for a brand-new Honda! Oh nine-pound, eight-ounce baby Jesus, why do all of the wonderful, heartwarming aspects of humanity have to be confined to a season? Granted, we can't get that Honda every few weeks, but shouldn't giving, loving, caring, and the entire melange of all those holiday buzzwords apply year-round?
And that's what really bugs me about Christmas. 'Tis the season of pressured gift-giving, faux compassion, and sitting through all those damn movies we only watch one week out of the year. 'Tis the season of emptying our bank accounts to feel less guilty about being the inconsiderate assholes that we humans are the rest of the year. We're all Ebenezer Scrooge for 11 months and Mother Teresa in December.
You know what? I'm sure that everyone's heard all of this before. Yes, there's no way to really know when Jesus was born. And yes, the Catholic church set the date of this holiday to coincide with the pagan solstice festival (Yule). And I always get the obligatory, "Hey! You're an atheist, so you have no right to criticize our Christian holiday. Just don't celebrate it." Well you know what? Most of us don't have a choice. Even some of my Jewish friends have started celebrating Christmas; it's damn near inescapable. The American economy and media shoves Christmas down our throats starting the day after Thanksgiving, sometimes even before, and we have to swallow it. Humbuggery simply serves to mask the flavor.
I have all sorts of problems with Christmas, and I'm sure that every single person hates some aspect of it in his or her own special way. I should end this incoherent and poorly-organized rant in the most cliche and unoriginal of ways: by saying that no matter what our problem is with Christmas, it brings people together and makes everyone feel warm and fuzzy, even for just a week or two. It enwraps children in a marvelous world of fantasy and gives students and workers alike some time off. It celebrates the birth of a genuinely great man, and whether or not you believe in his divinity, Jesus' message of compassion, forgiveness, and sacrifice is one from which we can all learn. Last, but not least, it propels us into the new year with love and compassion in our hearts and smiles on our faces.
But I'm not going to end it like that.
Let the Christians celebrate the birth of their head honcho. Throw in Santa Claus, even the rampant consumerism (yay anti-Christmas buzzword!) if you want. Just eradicate the words "'tis the season" from the festivities. Love, giving, tolerance, and charity should be parts of our daily life, not just aspects of our being that we can turn on and off seasonally. That's my biggest beef with Christmas.
And if you're going to be a Grinch, for Santa's sake, don't be a Grinch to anyone else. Part of tolerance is tolerating other people's happiness, regardless if it conflicts with your seasonal-affective disorder. Get it? Huh? Huh? Yeah. So if I've ruined anyone's holiday high, know that I really didn't mean to be such a curmudgeon. I'm just venting. It's not like I'm going to deliver a speech to my relatives tomorrow about "THE BANE TO HUMANITY AND AMERICAN SOCIETY THAT IS CHRISTMAS." Although, now that I see it, it is a pretty catchy title.
In closing, humanity should have higher standards for itself, yay Jesus, yay Santa, and a Merry Fucking Christmas to you all. :)
And that's what really bugs me about Christmas. 'Tis the season of pressured gift-giving, faux compassion, and sitting through all those damn movies we only watch one week out of the year. 'Tis the season of emptying our bank accounts to feel less guilty about being the inconsiderate assholes that we humans are the rest of the year. We're all Ebenezer Scrooge for 11 months and Mother Teresa in December.
You know what? I'm sure that everyone's heard all of this before. Yes, there's no way to really know when Jesus was born. And yes, the Catholic church set the date of this holiday to coincide with the pagan solstice festival (Yule). And I always get the obligatory, "Hey! You're an atheist, so you have no right to criticize our Christian holiday. Just don't celebrate it." Well you know what? Most of us don't have a choice. Even some of my Jewish friends have started celebrating Christmas; it's damn near inescapable. The American economy and media shoves Christmas down our throats starting the day after Thanksgiving, sometimes even before, and we have to swallow it. Humbuggery simply serves to mask the flavor.
I have all sorts of problems with Christmas, and I'm sure that every single person hates some aspect of it in his or her own special way. I should end this incoherent and poorly-organized rant in the most cliche and unoriginal of ways: by saying that no matter what our problem is with Christmas, it brings people together and makes everyone feel warm and fuzzy, even for just a week or two. It enwraps children in a marvelous world of fantasy and gives students and workers alike some time off. It celebrates the birth of a genuinely great man, and whether or not you believe in his divinity, Jesus' message of compassion, forgiveness, and sacrifice is one from which we can all learn. Last, but not least, it propels us into the new year with love and compassion in our hearts and smiles on our faces.
But I'm not going to end it like that.
Let the Christians celebrate the birth of their head honcho. Throw in Santa Claus, even the rampant consumerism (yay anti-Christmas buzzword!) if you want. Just eradicate the words "'tis the season" from the festivities. Love, giving, tolerance, and charity should be parts of our daily life, not just aspects of our being that we can turn on and off seasonally. That's my biggest beef with Christmas.
And if you're going to be a Grinch, for Santa's sake, don't be a Grinch to anyone else. Part of tolerance is tolerating other people's happiness, regardless if it conflicts with your seasonal-affective disorder. Get it? Huh? Huh? Yeah. So if I've ruined anyone's holiday high, know that I really didn't mean to be such a curmudgeon. I'm just venting. It's not like I'm going to deliver a speech to my relatives tomorrow about "THE BANE TO HUMANITY AND AMERICAN SOCIETY THAT IS CHRISTMAS." Although, now that I see it, it is a pretty catchy title.
In closing, humanity should have higher standards for itself, yay Jesus, yay Santa, and a Merry Fucking Christmas to you all. :)