Christmas Cheer

[AHMETxRock]

Are you sure that is how you feel? Is it not what you're being told to feel?

Valentine's day isn't that bad. Most people complain because it emphasized the fact that they're alone, or puts emphasis on the importance of being with someone.

[Lethal Interjection]

Are you sure that is how you feel? Is it not what you're being told to feel?

Valentine's day isn't that bad. Most people complain because it emphasized the fact that they're alone, or puts emphasis on the importance of being with someone.

Valentines day is far worse. It perpetuates that love is material, in my opinion. At least commercially. I would far more appreciate the time with said someone than to be doted on with some string of gifts. Provided you aren't "buying" love, Valentine's Day is fine (other than, as you said, the fact that it makes single people miserable).
With Christmas, I feel that, it is based out of something better. Whether it is the Christian origins or just conventional niceness, Christmas does bring out something great. That said, I don't care for the commercialization of it, simply because it kind of perpetuates the "buying" love idea (or at least something akin to a give/get idea).
Basically, as long as the motives are "pure" for both, they can both be great.

[ruotwocone]

Are you sure that is how you feel? Is it not what you're being told to feel?

Valentine's day isn't that bad. Most people complain because it emphasized the fact that they're alone, or puts emphasis on the importance of being with someone.

you got me... i really do only like christmas because zales wants me to.

also, maybe people should realize that being with someone is really important and they should stop being such incompetents when it comes to relationships. plus valentines day is the one day a year where an adult man can do crafts he enjoyed when he was 7 years old and not get teased. i make my wife a valentine every year out of construction paper, ribbon, and doilies. huzzah!

[Lethal Interjection]

also, maybe people should realize that being with someone is really important and they should stop being such incompetents when it comes to relationships. plus valentines day is the one day a year where an adult man can do crafts he enjoyed when he was 7 years old and not get teased. i make my wife a valentine every year out of construction paper, ribbon, and doilies. huzzah!

Fantastic. I think Valentine's Day is more about actual "romance"* than just buying her a gold necklace. Spending some time to actually do something "romantic". That is far more what the day should be about.

*I quote romance here simply because I have such a hard time with that word, simply because it tends to mean just about nothing, thanks to movies, TV and commercialization. I guess I didn't need to do that and say actual, it is just that the word makes me cringe.

[AHMETxRock]

Thankfully you can buy love.

[wolf]

I don't celebrate any holiday or event. Not because of religion or any of that jazz. I'll fully accept the holiday pay and stuff like that and let the believers celebrate and pay tribute to their religious head figure. Or whatever.

Now I'm not a scrooge and yell bah-humbug at people, I'm not all anal retentive about people wishing me a Merry Christmas. I mean I still go and spend time with my family I just don't give or accept gifts. I prefer to tell people around me that I like and can tolerate them via my actions throughout the year. I don't need a special day of the years that was determined thousands of years ago due to the position of stars and crap like that to tell them that with material things.

Although I do think public places should refrain from saying Merry Christmas to people. Season's greetings is better and it's not the end of the world. It says "Hey I'm not a complete asshole, border-line retarded bigot. I fully realize that I live in a world where there are multiple religions and some do not celebrate Christmas like I do and it won't kill me to say Season's greetings rather than Merry Christmas." Of course the world seems to be full of people (at least in America and yes, even Canadia) who think: "BLAAARGIDY!! Saying Season's greetings means you're a communist that supports terrorism! If I say Season's greetings all my future babies will be spontaneously aborted because god is mad at me for allowing the non-believers to force me to stray from his path! This country was founded and built on Christian principles so that's the only religion we should recognize and acknowledge..... BLAAARG!"

Oh and Valentine's Day. Yeah. I don't celebrate that either. Even when I am dating someone. We use to call it Commercialism Day back in high school. Don't wait for certain days of the year to show people you care, d it everyday. or at least once a week.

[Sahan]

I'm not a Christian, but I have no qualms about someone saying 'Merry Christmas' to me. Seriously, it's just a wish of goodwill during a holiday that obviously exists and is celebrated by heaps of people. I don't think any offence could be or should be taken by that, regardless of whether or not I celebrate the holiday myself. Same applies with Ramadhan, Hannukkah or any other religious celebrations that involve goodwill and cheer.

[Lethal Interjection]

And I am a Christian, and it isn't as if I would take offence at anyone wishing me a Happy Hannukah or something.

[Kidd]

I'm a Christian in a small town in the Bible belt. Not that it doesn't exist here, but I haven't heard anyone say Happy Hanukkah for as long as I can remember.

[mountainmage]

Well as the resident Jew of the forum (in name only), Happy Hanukkah to everyone!

[AHMETxRock]

Oh goodie.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081224/ap_ ... king_santa

[Frostbite]

Oh no! Someone doing something you don't agree with! Watch out!

[cheez.wiz]

http://www.noradsanta.org/en/home.html

[Asherian]

Yes, let us all be horrorified the military is doing something for children. Agasp! it must be part of their recruitment scheme.. join the army and you'll get to stalk Santa! That's the ticket kids.

Honestly I believe in Santa still, but only so far in that I think its hilarious. See I was raised with the concept that Santa was a vampire delivering presents to children throughout the world in personal atonement for his heinous actions. See that's why you had to write him the letter, to invite him into your house so you could get the loot. The milk was a blood substitute with a large number of similar qualities and the cookies were for his demon possessed reindeer. He'd get down your chimney by turning to mist ectra. This is what being a multi-generation geek does to children.

Valentine's day I feel its important to remember the origin of the holiday. Namely St. Valentine and what he was martyred for. Namely refusing to marry nobles who were to closely related, aka cousins. So just remember this February the main point of the holiday is that its wrong to marry your cousin.

[mountainmage]

What exactly is ectra? You've said it enough to pique my curiosity.