Bill O'Reilly, a "Horror"ible person.
 

"Bring horror"!?! What a lovely Christmas sentiment, Mr. Oreilly.

Let's welcome Mr. Oreilly to reallity for a moment. No one is stopping HIM or any other individual from celebrating Christmas. There is no protected right for him to have the word Christmas show up wherever he goes. Hell, no one is "stopping" all of the stores from saying "Christmas", they are doing it of their own free will because, *gasp*, they find they get more customers when they offer an image that includes everybody (wow, rocket science). There are no laws, there are no nefarious plots, there are business people maximizing their profits and individuals making the decission to be inclusive. And then we have O'Reilly promising "horrors." What a patently disgusting thing to say.

I have my own thoughts regarding the subject and how the "holidays" movement is a far greater threat to NON Christian traditions than Christian, but I stop well short of proclaiming the forces behind it to be an evil plot to destroy me.

Bill, go home, go plug in your Christmas tree, have Christmas dinner with your family, wish your neighbors Merry Christmas, give some money to charity. The gaul to liken marketing sense to religious persecution. Screw off with your horror.

The marketing issue is is remarkably similar to the Jag/LR and Ford issue and specific marketing to gays. It is a marketing decision based on the bottom line.

However, in the same way I don't fault the stores, I don't fault O'Reilly. He has an opinion show where he offers opinions. I don't quite understand how he and his 1 million viewers (or so) will have the power to inflict horror, but go for it. Just the same as if the gay community wishes boycott Ford.

I have some issues with how various retailers market themselves, and so I shop elsewhere. Obviously, though, they have done their market research.

On a side note, I find it funny that there is much of an outroar over using Happy Holidays instead of Merry Christmas. Christmas = Christ's Mass. Holidays (from the latin, I believe) = Holy Days. Both obviously have religious overtones.

anyone have a good definition for Kwanza? I'd search for it, but Im far too lazy. :P

Merry (winter-ish sorta day for festivities of every sort and denomination, if any)

I ahve all sorts of opinions about Kwanzaa, none of which would be considered politically correct.

Just to give a hint about my thoughts, this is a day to celebrate the African heritage of African Americans. I have no problem with that. However, the man who created the day (in the 60s, I think, but can't recall his name) created a whole ritual based on corn and the importance to African Americans and their African heritage. The problem is that corn isn't grown in Africa, and it wasn't until they were in the Americas as slaves that Africans ever saw corn. Doesn't seem to have a lot to do with African heritage.

Just always thought that was funny.

But that's what scares me...I don't know what the hell he is thinking when he says "horror", but "boycott" is not the first thing that comes to my mind. It's irresponsible. I'm rarely one to "blame" a talking head for the individual actions of nutjobs, but the first person who torches a store and scrawls, "O'Reilly rules, Merry Christmas!" on the walls, Bill will deserve every bit of backlash he gets. Talk about how much you hate it all you want, but "bring horror" is dangerously close to the line of inciting violence.

(oh, and I forgot to give a link... http://mediamatters.org/items/200512070010 )

As a humorous side-note...

The first day O'Reilly began his Christmas/Holiday rantings, Keith Oberman made an interesting discovery. As Bill spouted about the evils of the word "Holiday", on Fox News' website, you could buy, O'Reilly Factor "Holiday" ornaments. :D Oberman put him on the day's "Worse, Worser, Worst" list (I believe he had the honor of holding all 3 spots that evening)...and the next day they had been changed to "Christmas" ornaments. I guess Bill watches Keith. lol

He may be the only one watching Keith Olberman. I used to love Olberman on ESPN and Sportscenter. I think he was a much better sports anchor than political pundit. He is a very smart man, though I disagree with his politics. His Sportscenter schtick was to compare various sports happenings of the day to historical events with that day as their anniversary.

That is funny, though.

Yesterday at Ralphs we saw "Eurotrees" advertsied. Though I'm not responsible for this, I hereby volunteer to be the PC replacement for Christmas - heck I've got the right first name and my birthday is on the 24th (of the next month).

Merry Euromas!

To the tune of "Oh Christmas Tree"

Oh Eurotree, oh Eurotree
We put you in our living room.
Oh Eurotree oh Eurotree
We did it 'cause that's what we do.

Happy Birthday to Jesus
or Winter Solstice, it's up to us

Oh Eurotree oh eurotree
Youhavenoreligioussignificancewhatsoever.

I've heard a similar carol, but is was entitled "Oh Eurotrash" instead of "Oh Eurotree".

This whole 'Christmas' versus 'Holiday' thing is ridiculous. Ridiculous the last time they mentioned it, ridiculous now.

Who cares? (This is not a reflection of the OP or the poster.) I just mean, who cares? This is such a nothing issue to get so riled up about.
If the religious right and nutjobs like O'Reilly are so certain about their beliefs and religion etc, why would they worry about Target saying 'Holiday' instead of 'Christmas'? If their faith is strong enough, it shouldn't matter.

They're saying 'holiday' for three reasons that I can figure out. 1. Holiday meaning 'holy day'. Thus it acknowledges the importance of the 25th to the Christians celebrating. 2. It's an inexpensive way to say 'Happy Thanksgiving', 'Merry Christmas', 'Happy Chanukah', 'Happy Kwanzah' 'Happy Solstice' and 'Happy New Year' all at the same time. 3. It's all inclusive of everyone celebrating at this time.

These Christian facists want everything their way with an in your face 'Merry Christmas' and they're making a big stink out of it. Thus draining all festive meaning from this time to focus on the morbidity and anger of people called Christians thinking they're being victimized. Bleh.

Fine boycott everbody who says 'Happy Holidays'. Boycott Ford, boycott Wells Fargo, boycott Target, boycott Disney... Take your holy money and sit on it. And to quote what people like O'Reilly say, 'If you don't like it. Leave.'

Exactly my point, and the implication of the last paragraph in my OP. Get over it, celebrate Christmas however you please, and let others do as they please. Get off your horse over it.

And if you really want to get down to it...umm, yeah, Christmas is sooo threatened. All this Holiday stuff is just making it impossible to celebrate Christmas. :rolleyes:. STFU. Christmas starts in October now, thanks to "Happy Holidays." Hannukah is turning into (has turned into?) Jew-Christmas. There's MORE Christmas than ever, no matter what word you put on it.

Now, I don't blame anyone for that, or suspect some evil conspiracy. The more I examine it, the more I realize that it's just a consequence of the religion. It's why Christmas as we know it is actually an amalgum of every culture Christianity has run across. And it may very well lead to the eventual demise of distinguishable cultures. Not something I look forward too. However, I'm not angry about it. I don't feel that I can support it, so I do what I can to continue my personal cultural heritage, but to be up in arms about it, and calling for "horror" is irresponsible and ridiculous.

My dad made a point to say on Thanksgiving, "In this house we say Merry Christmas."

I know why he said it, the only radio stations they listen too are talk. I happened to listen to Shawn Hanady in the car a week or 2 ago and that was ALL he was talking about. It seems extremly silly coming from a man (my dad) who hasn't got a religious thought in his head. He is just becoming increasingly narrow minded as he ages.

10 years ago I worked retail. I always said "Have a great Holiday." I just thought it sounded better than a generic, not meant, "Merry Christmas."

These ultra conservatives need to find something else to harp on...

Uhh...I think you might be taking this message board thing a bit too seriously. Your first name isn't really Euro. :p

I saw the sign for the "Eurotree", stopped, grabbed The Christman and back up through the store. I almost bought one, but they were just Xmastree-shapped mini pines. What I really wanted was the sign.

Damn, why aren't markets open 24 hours anymore. You can't plan late-night shoplifting sign excursions these days.

Merry Christmas Everybody! :p

happy holy days

Ah, but it is Christian - so I think I have some leeway here

I saw a funny little segment on The Daily Show that showed a clip of O'Reilley's show where he names Jon Stewart from "Secular" Central as the leader of the War on Christmas.

It kinda cracked me up the way he said secular like it was such bad thing....like Comedy Central should be synomyous with Religion or something....

Anyway...whatever holiday anyone wishes to celebrate...I hope it's great...as far as I know whatever anyone else celebrates doesn't diminish my Christmas at all. Peace on Earth and all that.

That's funny. I love it when Jon mocks Bill. I'd probably just get mad at Bill mocking Jon.

Ok, I'm a little dense here -- why is Eurotree more/less PC/inclusive/whatever than Christmas tree?

I think that will remain one of those strange unanswered questions known only to someone in Ralphs marketing department.

I wonder if it occured to your parents that you might turn out atheist when they named you that.

Well allow me this brief derail for the condensed version of my family’s religious history. First off, I was named after my maternal grandfather without much consideration for the symbology represented by the name.

My mother’s side of the family were Mennonites of varying levels of observance – the strictest of which shunned the use of technology like radios and television, the others simply covering up such things with lace doilies when company was over.

On my father’s side, my grandmother was Catholic and my grandfather was one of those turn-of-the century (the 20th) “enlightened” Germans who lived in the woods fascinated with Schopenhauer and Buddhism declaring nature to be his church.

But my parents grew up in World War Two Germany, witnessing untold cruelty by the most righteous of neighbors, an experience that demonstrated to them in their own experience the complete lack of any sort of benevolent deity. However, they kept that to themselves and encouraged me to join my friends in their worship. As a result I grew up more comfortable in a synagogue than a church, since most of my closest friends were Jewish.

So no, don't think it mattered much to my parents, though they probably crack a smile over the irony of it.

I hope this doesn't get buried at the bottom of this thread.

Please read the entire thing here

Brilliant!!!!!!