It's always nice to hear about interfaith cooperation. Too bad the Christians involved were the bad guys. A group of them were wishing people Merry Christmas, so a few Jews wished them Happy Hanukkah, at which point the Jews were attacked by the Christmas-wishers. A Muslim nearby helped the Jews fight off the Christian attackers.
Analysis: I personally have no problem with Christmas as a holiday for several reasons. First of all, it is traditional for most of America. Secondly, it's not even Christian. Every time I see those "Remember the Reason for the Season" signs I think: pagan solstice celebrations and Germanic tree reverence. So I don't have a problem with Christmas. I do have a problem with the people talking about the "War on Christmas." Yes, there are people in this country who are NOT Christian and have their own holidays. Hanukkah and Kwanzaa spring to mind as holidays that take place around Christmas. So what the hell is wrong with wishing someone Happy Holidays? I don't think you should be forced to use Happy Holidays instead of Merry Christmas, but especially if you know someone is not Christian, maybe you should use that instead. Save the Merry Christmases for Christians. How many of these people upset with a "War on Christmas" would be extremely offended to be wished a Happy Kwanzaa? But it's okay if they do it? I don't have a problem with churches putting up trees and nativity scenes. But I think government offices should stick to trees and wreaths. The Nativity IS blatantly religious and Christian. So leave that to non-governmental groups. If you own a company and want to put up a nativity scene, then go for it. You have that right. But we have something in this country called "separation of church and state." If a city decides to put up Christian symbols for a holiday, then what about Jewish holidays, or Muslim holidays, or Hindu or Buddhist or whatever? So my final answer is: nativity scene = religious, tree/wreath/candles = not religious. We may not be a Christian nation, but we are a Christmas nation.
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