Christmas (or should I say “Xmas” — “the holiday season” maybe?) continues to be criminalized and the companies that make a business of tinsel, gaily wrapped packages and “ho, ho, ho” don’t know whether to embrace or hide from the specter of political incorrectness.I’m sorry. Did I offend you?In the latest blow to the no-longer-holy holidays, Santas in Sydney, Australia are being urged to say “ha, ha, ha,” instead of “ho, ho, ho.”Recruitment firm Westaff (NASDAQ: WSTF), which contracts with hundreds of Santas, sending them to stores and social appearances throughout Australia, has re-vamped its training. It’s telling would-be Santas that the “ho ho ho” phrase “could frighten children and could even be derogatory to women,” according to an Australian newspaper.
Yes, it’s funny. Yes, it’s rediculous. Yes, we are somehow going to get blamed for this.
Well, did Australia join us in fighting the war “over there”? Maybe that’s why they’re stuck with this war in their own country.
Good thing we’re fighting a war “over there” so we don’t have a war here in the States.
I just want to mention it’s called “Santa Claus Day”. For example, when some god nut says “merry christmas”, the correct reply is “Happy Santa Claus Day”. The word christmas or the abbreviated xmas is offensive, because for example the jews don’t like it, maybe because christians murdered 6 million of them. Atheists don’t like it, because jesus is a myth and/or an idiot. I’m guessing the muslims don’t like it, not that I care about people who fly airplanes into buildings.
I hope the disgusting and offensive word “christmas” becomes obsolete some day, and is replaced with “santa claus day” which is after all why the day is still celebrated. Only morons give a crap about the jesus christ preacher man.
I enjoyed reading the readers’ comments to that article. Especially the one that said “Christmas has been around since the beginning of time…” I guess ignorance isn’t always bliss
I like the santa claus day ,It totally reeks of commercial*sm aimed at helpless children.
(* It had to be edited , the word contained cial*s)
BobC, how about ‘Bullet Train into Debt Day’? Perish forbid you don’t give wifey that platinum multi-carat whatever and the kids don’t get the latest phone/camera/pod/laptop/xbox combo thingie.
And if I don’t pop in next week, everyone have a happy and safe Eat-Yourself-Stupid-and-Watch-Football Day!
Christmas is an unconstitutional national holiday…..
Here in western new york many have already put out their displays of I cant think for myself and I slept through science class (faith)….
Christmas is a state sponsored sanction of a particular religion by it being declared as a national holiday….it is unconstitutional
“Ho, Ho, Ho” could offend women? Just women?
That just sounds like some baaaaaad jr high joke
and we get blamed for that too.
I’ve been an atheist all my life, and I’ve got nothing against Christmas – not even the word “Christmas” (or the appalling “Xmas”). For me, the word has grown beyond the fairy tale it originated from and now means spend money you haven’t got and eat lots of food.
I don’t like the fact that it is an unconstitutional national holiday, any more than any of the other religious holidays. Since we have mothers/fathers days, why not make it “Children’s Day” (which already exists/existed in another form).
Australia is part of the Coalition of the Willing in the GWOX?
Santa saying, “Ha,Ha,Ha?” Not gonna happen.
But there’s something wrong with a holiday when nearly everybody you talk to says they can’t believe it is Christmas again ALREADY. I’m with whoever said we ought to combine Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas into HalloThanksMas, but I’d like to go one step further. Let’s celebrate it only every other year, okay?
And Bah-Humbug everybody.
Do what my family and I sometimes do and instead of spending xmas at home use the time off to enjoy a week in the Caribbean or Mexico. It doesn’t have to cost that much more than an over the top consumer xmas and a dose of winter sun cures the holiday blues.
I’m with you GF&G,
Scrooge was right!
And for those of you that don’t know the meaning of the word, look up “humbug” in your dictionary.
As an atheist, I don’t consider any day to be holy (holiday). Doesn’t mean I don’t party as was done loooong before the nutjobs coopted the festival.
Yes, it would seem the war has escalated. This is obviously a counter attack from the faith-based myth side against the secular myth side. Not only does it take away Santa’s signature expression, but it does away with that which the faith-based are uncomfortable with, at least out in the open. To wit, Ho, Ho, Hos.
My own atheistic war on Christ Mass takes the form of a yawn. I’m so tired of it all I mostly ignore it. ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ.
Bobc,
I prefer the name “Lie to Your Children Day.”
Charlie
Good point. Maybe when people wish me a Merry one, I’ll start wishing them a Happy Unconstitutional National Holiday! It’s a mouthful, but with some practice, I could get quite good at it.
And you’re in western NY, eh? For some reason, I thought you were in California.
Hello Karen
Im very near Buffalo….and from where I work I can see Canada eh…just across the river..
I recently spoke with a girl from Austrailia. It is a very secular country. Politics is much better over there as well. They have very intelligent concepts in government, education, politics etc. They look at people who are overly religious as strange and unusual.
Everyone MUST be allowed to vote in Australia and is highly encouraged to do so, so that the politicians must speak to the entire group of people and not just special interest groups. There is NO lobbying. They don’t hold prejudices like Americans do. And like the French, they don’t put up with large dominating countries’ BS. That’s why we aren’t in free trade with them. Now if only the 22nd greatest country in the world could start adopting these practices. They are light years ahead.
Poke any human and you’ll find prejudices, Australians included. I wouldn’t care to compare them to Americans, not having been there.
I do recall very ethnically discriminating immigration policies were the norm in Australia a few decades ago. It was the vast Asian hordes they were trying to keep out. Dunno how much that’s changed.