Thursday, December 18, 2008

Just leave Father Christmas alone you PC weasels


As far as important dates in the Christian calendar are concerned, Christmas was always well down the list. In that respect people shouldn’t get excessively distressed about the secularization of the December 25th season. Those early monks and martyrs paid it no heed but instead saved their fealty energies for Easter. Easter and Good Friday are the genuine biggies for those who believe in the Christian story.

In fact, Christmas as we have come to either love or loathe it really doesn’t go back much further than Victorian times when Teutonic consort Prince Albert brought a lot of German traditions across the Channel.

It was given a further boost by Charles Dickens with A Christmas Carol. Good old Ebenezer, the only guy in the tale with any gumption, and he’s the one that gets reviled. Oh, well. Anyway, the fact that Scrooge pays no heed to Christmas was not out of the ordinary in the England of 1843, when the book was published. The fact that whining Bob Cratchit wants the ‘whole day’ off would have been quite out-of-keeping in most workplaces of the time, so Scrooge was probably possibly correct in being contemptuous of his seemingly indolent clerk.

As we know, once the Christmas concept was marketed it simply took off. Churches, of course, attempted to quell the rampant commercial extravagance of the season by reminding their parishioners and others of the ‘true’ meaning of Christmas, which was a celebration of the birth of Christ. Yes, the Christ thing was nice, and the Three Wise Men, and shepherds watching their flocks and all, and pretty, semi-sacred songs, but what most people really embraced was the Teutonic Kris Kringle thing. Yes, Santa Claus, Father Christmas, Jolly old St. Nick, and stockings hung by the chimney with care. That was really what all and sundry came to cherish.

At the same time, there arose a grumpy-pants battalion of those who felt Christmas, as we’d come to see it was nothing more than a testament to greed. Parents and others were driven into penury trying to satiate the gaping maws of greedy kids who wanted more-more-more. Newspapers came to be filled with heart-rending tales of poor families in which the kids weren’t getting’ nuthin’ and for which you should feel really bad and cough up a few toys and a few bucks, and then with clear conscience you could forget about them for the rest of the year.

Meanwhile, there have always been those individuals whose memories of Christmases past were not cheery. They recalled nasty times of alcohol abuse, family rows, never getting the toys requested, and so forth. Crisis lines exist for those people, as do chock-a-block filled shrink wards, detox facilities, and jails.

Do my comments suggest that I want to kill Christmas, too? Not at all. While there are aspects of the ‘season’ I detest, there are others that I value. Periodically I have even been known to attend a church service on Christmas eve because I love carols by a choir and some of the pageantry of it all. In that I wish we had a cathedral in our town with a massive pipe organ. Powerful organs (of the pipe variety, that is) can bring a tear to my eye. Anyway, I think in a world of too much weariness and travail, we need whatever festivities we can muster, and Christmas is one of those festive things that can take us from the mundane.

But, there are those who carry it all to an extreme. I read of a bunch of elementary teachers in England who want to obliterate all references to Father Christmas, not to mention any Christian messages in order to avoid offending ethnic minorities. To them I would ask, did any of those minorities actually ask you to do this? Furthermore, do you also refrain from references to Ramadan and Passover? I bet not. Situational PCs are offensive to all concerned, so get a grip.

Secondly, and more importantly, I will offer a suggestion. If Christmas means nothing to you and therefore gives you leave to steal it from children, why do you take that Christmas vacation? Why not give it up and just go to work as you normally would.

Bunch of killjoys and PC fascists that you are.



Labels: ,

17 Comments:

Blogger Leslie Hawes said...

Bah. Humbug. :)

1:16 PM  
Blogger Warty Mammal said...

LOL.

At my son's preschool, which is extremely multicultural, there are so many holidays celebrated that I can't keep track of them all - Diwali, Hanukkah, I forget what for the Muslims, standard Pagan/Christian holidays - and each has its own homely little craft made of pipe cleaners and air-hardening clay.

As far as I know, nobody gets honked about marking days that are important to those with different beliefs. On the other hand, we're all so busy breaking up fights over bicycles and toy dump trucks that maybe nobody has time to worry about it.

1:29 PM  
Blogger Hermes said...

I suggested to my students that we work through this season. After I put the fires out and got the teenagers to surrender the explosives, it still seemed like a bad idea. Gaping maws indeed. I love the image of Odin, riding on Sleipnir across the Bifrost Bridge in order to give the children of Midgard a few presents in midwinter. Thanks you Prince Albert.

2:12 PM  
Blogger Dr. Deb said...

Yeah, get a grip!
Great post, great writing and of course, great wit as always.

If I don't get back here before next week, I wish you and Wendy a Merry and a Happy!

4:21 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I have to admit, that I generally love Christmas. not the excess so much, and I avoid the mall like the plague, but I love the cnadels and trees and cookies and so on. And it just seems like there is something magical in the air. All I ask is that people stop urging me to "Remember that Jesus is the reason for the Season!"

6:39 PM  
Blogger noneofyourbusiness said...

Ian, that was great! You're truly an amazing writer. This is one that I'm going to have to share! :o)

Have a peaceful, joyful, memorable Christmas ...

9:53 PM  
Blogger Jo said...

Fortunately the schools that my Munchkins attend still have Christmas pageants, complete with Christmas carols, so Christmas has not been completely wiped off the map.

Advertisers just figured out a way to market to everyone, so they made Christmas all-inclusive, and turned it into "holiday" and "season", and the silly PC police took up the banner and ran with it. Christmas is Christmas is Christmas is Christmas...

I just popped over to wish you and your family a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Cheers!

10:51 PM  
Blogger jmb said...

To them I would ask, did any of those minorities actually ask you to do this? Furthermore, do you also refrain from references to Ramadan and Passover? I bet not.

You said it. They are just plain daft about this.

11:20 PM  
Blogger Lady Fi said...

Great post! I've read about people in the US not being allowed to say Merry Christmas anymore... just Happy Holidays. I don't think that saying Merry Christmas means disrespect of other religions at all.. As you say, it has all gone overboard.

I hate the commercialism of Christmas - but I love the magic.

12:05 AM  
Blogger Lulu LaBonne said...

It's solstice celebrating for me - but I'll join in on any hoidays I'm invited to.

12:42 AM  
Blogger Vic said...

Nice post, Ian. While Christmas now does not mean much to me, it still brings back pleasant memories of a time of innocence.

Happy Christmas to you and Wendy, and best wishes for a less Scrooge-like New Year.

6:06 AM  
Blogger Daisy said...

That's horrendous they were trying to do that, I just don't understand the UK's policy on this stuff at all. And yes quite right, good old Ebenezer!!

3:31 PM  
Blogger beachgirl said...

Awesome post Ian.
I cut way down on spoiling my grown spoiled children this year. They went to their Dads this weekend for an early Christmas with him. Everyone is working down here the day after, so no one wants to go to Orlando during Christmas week. Too busy.
I say Merry Christmas. And I live in a very Jewish neighborhood. They love my lights and tree. ;-}
I love the fact that hanukkah is the same time this year. But it's mainly for the kids. And I love the music.
May you and your family have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

5:29 PM  
Blogger meggie said...

I love to think about the real, non-religious origins of Santa Claus, call him what you will.
I laud your post.
I wish you & your wife Wendy, a wonderful Xmas, & holiday season.

11:50 PM  
Blogger Deb Sistrunk Nelson said...

Another well-written post. I love the term PC weasels. :-)

3:55 AM  
Blogger Casdok said...

Well i have just had the best christmas present ever....

2:05 PM  
Blogger VioletSky said...

I was in Dollarama yesterday and came upon three Muslims stocking up on ornaments and decorations. They didn't look the least bit offended.

2:06 AM  

Post a Comment

Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]

<< Home