I'm tired of caterwauling about liberal grinches who supposedly want to steal Christmas by limiting references to it in the public square. Talk about picking the low-hanging tree ornament. Substituting for "Merry Christmas" the phrases "Happy Holidays" or "Season's Greetings" hardly constitutes a "war on religion." If companies or governments wish to observe Christmas, that is their choice. If they don't, that is also their choice. The latter option merely puts religious observance back into the province of the individual, the family, the private gathering, the religious school, and the religious service. I must ask: IS THIS REALLY A PROBLEM?

Lately though, the anti-"holiday" mania has reached a fever pitch.

Joining the hubub, certain conservative groups are now airing ads supporting President Bush's U.S. Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito, asserting he will uphold the constitutional right to free religious expression, including fealty to public acknowledgement of Christmas and Chanukah.

Individuals are free to stand on the corner offering a "Merry Christmas" to one and all. Homeowners, private businesses, and yes, government entities, are also free to acknowledge Christmas, even go so far as to use the "C" word. However, they are also free to not do that, as well. Freedom of religion can also encompass freedom from> religion, or its cultural vestiges.

In the manner of a broken clock that is correct at least twice a day, it so happens the New York Times, in the person of commentator Adam Cohen, manages to put all this silliness in the proper perspective.

The American Family Association is leading a boycott of Target for not using the words "Merry Christmas" in its advertising. (Target denies it has an anti-Merry-Christmas policy.) The Catholic League boycotted Wal-Mart in part over the way its Web site treated searches for "Christmas." Bill O'Reilly, the Fox anchor who last year started a "Christmas Under Siege" campaign, has a chart on his Web site of stores that use the phrase "Happy Holidays," along with a poll that asks, "Will you shop at stores that do not say 'Merry Christmas'?"

This campaign - which is being hyped on Fox and conservative talk radio - is an odd one. Christmas remains ubiquitous....There is also something perverse, when Christians are being jailed for discussing the Bible in Saudi Arabia and slaughtered in Sudan, about spending so much energy on stores that sell "holiday trees."

....it's not even clear the campaign's leaders really believe in it. Just a few days ago, Fox News's online store was promoting its "Holiday Collection" for shoppers. Among the items offered to put under a "holiday tree" was "The O'Reilly Factor Holiday Ornament." After bloggers pointed this out, Fox changed the "holidays" to "Christmases."

Columnist Peter Callaghan has more in today's Tacoma News Tribune (scroll down a bit, here):

Q: You have probably noticed that Christmas is under attack in America. According to the Rev. Jerry Falwell, if the politically correct elements have their way, Christmas will soon disappear completely. Do you agree?

A: If the Rev. Falwell says it is true, it must be true. After all, he was correct when he blamed 9/11 on abortionists, feminists and gays, wasn�t he? In fact, I was thinking just this morning about how Christmas is in danger. It came to me as I was standing in line at Starbucks, waiting to order from the red-clad barista and listening to Barbra Streisand sing "Ave Maria." It is getting so bad that they didn�t even decorate the mall this year until Columbus Day. The terrorists have already won.

My favorite holiday is Thanksgiving, anyway. But I'd still like to send out wishes for a Happy Chanukah to all my good friends at the Air Force Academy.

Tom Rekdal: I share your disapproval of the current effort to coerce retailers into injecting more Christianity into their holiday sales pitches.

On the other hand, your comments remind me a little of the bad joke about the Irishman who asked, after coming upon a brawl at his local pub, whether this was a private fight or anyone could get into it.

There are also various "civil rights" organizations who regularly extort payments from corporations by threatening to blacken their reputations if they don't get something they want. This also gets my goat, but I am not sure it is my fight if corporations are too craven to resist.

Maybe third party attempts to enter such brawls only prolong them. They are tempting though.

TECHNORATI TAGS: CHRISTMAS, RELIGION, FOX NEWS, TARGET, WAL-MART, O'REILLY, AIR FORCE ACADEMY

Posted by Matt Rosenberg at December 6, 2005 11:59 AM

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