“And a happy Independence Day back atcha! ;-). Or does that send the message that some are not welcome?”
Er, well, some are not welcome here but that is not a bad thing, not a bad thing at all in many cases.
As a practicing Jew, I just cannot get my mind around this idea that I should be offended and “uncomfortable” at the public celebration of a Christian holiday. The arrogance of such a position is breathtaking.
Last year, a lib I have the misfortune to know asked me if wasn’t offended at all the Christmas decorations and songs around town. I said, “No, I am not a totalitarian bigot.”
“Are you suggesting that those who take offense at this are totalitarian bigots?!” he huffed.
“Yes, I am suggesting exactly that.” He huffed away at that point, no doubt looking for some Muslims or New-Age shamanists who might come closer to meeting his expectations.
Oh, good for you!
My personal gripe is about celebrating "Christmas" months before the actual date. "Merry Christmas!" says the clerk at the Food Lion on November 5. "Happy birthday!" I respond. "It's not my birthday." "It's not Christmas, either; it's November 5. Be sure to vote for Hullinger for Town Council and Quinn for Mayor tomorrow!"
LOL...most of the New Age sorts I know celebrate Christmas as a cultural holiday and enjoy giving gifts and seeing decorations and singing carols, both secular and traditional. They pretty much look over the explicit religious parts and give them no real heed, but celebrate the rest happily. Even for non-Christians, it’s cultural, just as Halloween is a cultural but not religious holiday to American Protestants.
“Yes, I am suggesting exactly that.”
Good for you! It is long past time that people of good will and logical thought joined together to stop the social pathology of Political Correctness. PC is a form of mental illness masquerading as tolerance in which one person's discomfort or offense is held to exercise a veto on all others' public expressions of faith, belief, policy, or whatever.
I am also Jewish and I genuinely look forward every year to seeing the bright red and green lights that signal the beginning of the Christmas (not "Winter") Season. I play Christmas (not Channukah) music in my house and happily join my Christian friends in singing along with them.
The willingness and ability of all persons to respect and enjoy each group publicly celebrating their faith is what has made America truly special and a beacon of hope to the world. That special quality is now threatened from two quarters: Left-wing atheists who impress their irrational fears and intentional policy preferences on others, and radical Islamists who deny to all others their choice of faith and freedom.
Whether you choose to do so in Latin or English or Hebrew, pray for America, and please help fight for her Constitution, in which is guaranteed freedom of (not "from") religion.
Perfect!
I always thought that evergreens decorated with red and green lights in December were called “Hannukah Bushes”.