Does Sarah Palin have a stated position on TWOC? It seems a perfect marriage of “issue” and spokesperson to me.
“She tells you what she believes,” Anderson said. “You don’t have to guess. It’s better to listen to her than the media.” Alice Revell, from rock-ribbed Sioux County to the north of here, sported a pin that read: “I Don’t Want To Have To Say Happy Holidays.”
Kryptik
Is it just me…or have I heard more frothing over “Happy Holidays” than I ever heard about anyone saying “Merry Christmas”?
Egypt Steve
Right. If you’re not celebrating Christmas, have a shitty holiday.
K. Grant
Besides, its not Christmas yet, won’t be until the 25th. It is the season of Advent. If they are going to get all frothy, it would be nice if they were actually accurate – liturgically speaking. Knaves.
DCPlod
And a bah humbug to you.
cleek
so does the TimeCube guy.
Chat Noir (iPhone)
Obviously, to these folks, there is no other faith than Christianity. That will be news to my Jewish husband.
Hunter Gathers
I don’t think the Chanukah Zombie is going to be very pleased about all this.
geg6
Hell, I don’t either. In fact, I don’t want to hear a goddam word about “Merry Christmas,” “Happy Holidays,” or even “Happy New Year.” I hate all of it. Equally.
ricky
Your link to Andrew Sullivan’s blog has solved one of the world’s great mysteries for me.
Sully claims he and Levi Johnston will be the two guests on tonight’s Joy Behar Show.
Over at Joy’s website she says her two guests will be Levi and Ann Coulter. http://joybehar.blogs.cnn.com/
Hmmmm!!!
freelancer
Yes, (West) Virginia, there are morons in Omaha. Happy Festivus.
chopper
yeah, why say ‘happy holidays’ during chanukah when its like 2 weeks til christmas? you should tell everyone ‘merry christmas’ even when its a totally different holiday altogether.
hell, i’m going to start wishing people ‘merry christmas’ on every other holiday of the year.
DCPlod
I think I know why the wingers’ have such a problem with ‘Happy Holidays’. Holiday = not working = welfare queen = taking my hard-earned money = soshulism.
shoutingattherain
And WTF is up with “rock-ribbed”? Is that town anywhere near “Rock Ridge”?
Trueblood
Where are the festive, crucifix-adorned “I refuse to dignify anyone else’s beliefs” buttons? They would go along a lot better with doorbuster stampedes, rampant consumerism and mall santas, who are actually angels.
You can check that, it’s in the Bible.
R-Jud
“Rock-ribbed” as the preferred cliche descriptor of Republicans doesn’t really fit today’s conservatives. It should be “brick-brained”.
freelancer
@shoutingattherain:
Rock Rapids is about 2 hours North of Sioux City? …eh, I got nuthin’.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091206/ap_on_re_us/us_palin_iowa
ricky
@shoutingattherain:
Rock-ribbed is an adjective that describes unyielding views
and is as closely associated with conservatism. Because of alliteration it is usually a descriptive term for a conservative member of the GOP. In other words, rock-ribbed is as close to Republican as shit is to stink.
Punchy
WTF does this mean?
Humbug
Great, now I’m afraid if I put my Festivus Pole on the front lawn I’ll attract protesters. :^(
Comrade Darkness
Someone pointed this out yesterday, but it bears repeating. Happy Holy Days should hardly be offense to someone celebrating a holy day. Next, the cross worshipers will become offended by the use of a cross (X) being used to mark their holy day. Christianity would deserve more respect if it ceased to rely on bugf*ck ignorance to survive.
peach flavored shampoo
We’ve boiled down the essence of what it takes to be President in America in 2009.
By the way, how does one “fight against the government” as leader of said government? Will she fire herself?
danimal
The War on Christmas is a crucial step in the eventual reelection of our Mooslim, dark-skinned soshulist nazi preznit. We absolutely must rid the world of Season’s Greetings and Happy Holidays at all costs.
Where does one sign up to fight the baby Jesus?
noncarborundum
And I’ll bet that Jesus wouldn’t want to have to hear the words “Merry Christmas” used as a cudgel to beat the infidels with, either.
Comrade Darkness
This war needs a general
Oh, and I bet I can guess which general you are hoping steps in …
ricky
@Punchy:
It means God holds the women there in such disfavor he used rocks instead of Adam to create them.
Ian
It is the season of Advent.
Yes. Enough of this Merry Christmas crap — the twelve days of Christmas start on Christmas and not a moment sooner. Right now it’s time to celebrate the end of the world. Tis the season to sing about the seas turning to blood. It makes me want to go caroling.
noncarborundum
@peach flavored shampoo:
Well, that’s one area where she does have some experience.
freelancer
@peach flavored shampoo:
Wouldn’t be the first time.
EDIT: BLAST!
Jason B at Work
I am utterly convinced that these wingers find the War on Christmas to be more fun than Christmas itself. I was in one of my clients offices today, when one of the local nutbags (in Accounting, of course) started talking about how Home Depot has banned Christmas, and that they were switching to Lowe’s. All of this angst against Home Depot is of course solely based on a chain email which has been repeatedly disproven on Snopes and other places. No one ever accused Arthur Blank (the founder of Home Depot) of being a leftie, but it’s probably true that he’s going to be as inoffensive as possible so as to make mo’ money – which yes, probably means that they do tone down the Xmas messaging in favor of inclusion. But the really notable thing about this incident was the expression that I think I saw in the guy’s eyes as he was explaining to us all why we should all immediately suicide bomb a hardware store: I’m pretty sure it was glee in those eyes, and it was creepy.
There are days when I wish I could actually drop the constant tact that I have while working, but I did at least mention the Snopes link, and also managed to burst his bubble by mentioning the fact that Lowe’s also has a sub-standard Christmas friendliness rating by all wingnut units of measure.
cleek
not just one, either. tomorrow is the Feast Of The Immaculate Conception
Waynski
I think this in synch with the Republicans are assholes thread earlier. I don’t worship the FSM, but enjoy the season nonethless and will say Merry Christmas to my friends I know are Christians and Happy Holidays to those I know aren’t or am not sure what their religion is. Declaring that she doesn’t want to have to say Happy Holidays is akin to saying I don’t give a shit about other people’s feelings and don’t want to have to worry about them. So shut up also too.
catclub
KGrant @ 3
I am with you.
We need more Advent police to enforce No Christmas carols
until December 25.
I can dream.
ricky
Due to repeated rinsing of Peach flavored remarks, my rock ribbed repetition is put in the “dumb” box.
Tonal Crow
Don’t you know that “Christmas” is a recycled pagan holiday that makes Baby Jeebus cry?
danimal
@danimal: Oops, even with edit, you can’t fix stupid. I meant of course, that we must rid the world of Merry Christmas and replace it with Season’s Greetings and Happy Holidays.
I will now enter the Alaskan reeducation camp to fix my brain.
Butch
You and Atrios both reminded me; here it is December and I haven’t done a thing to get ready for my war on Christmas this year.
r€nato
Hitler made everyone say, “Happy Holidays”, you know.
r€nato
Remember when conservatives whined incessantly about the “PC Police”?
Good times, good times.
r€nato
@shoutingattherain:
THE NEW SHERIFF IS A…
I just edited this comment because I can. Woo hoo!
kay
@Jason B at Work:
I think it’s just crazy that they turn to merchants for religion.
I’m no Bible scholar, but they are not going to find religious salvation or inspiration in Home Depot.
They’re looking in the wrong place. They need to narrow this down a little or they’re going to be wandering around bitching forever. I’d start at a church, I think.
r€nato
@chopper:
Sorry, the Christians own all of the days between the day after Thanksgiving right through Christmas itself.
Anyone who says otherwise is oppressing them and likely would send all Christians to the gas chambers if they had the chance.
slippy
@peach flavored shampoo: Be careful there.
Be careful there, peach. If you juxtapose the “She wants to be in charge of the government” and “She’s going to fight the government” premises right in front of a winger who holds both opposing views, you will strip the event horizon from the Wingularity, and Time will have no direction or boundary, and all madnes will break loose. We’ll have to send in Leonard Nimoy to squirt some red matter at it.
Oh, never mind. We’re dealing with people who are too stupid to even realize that they’re saying two completely opposite things.
kommrade reproductive vigor
Um. Then don’t.
Simple solutions elude simple people.
You know the rest of the year she wears a “Why should I have to dial 1 for English?” button.
slippy
@kay: Yeah, remember back in the day when Tom Delay introduced H.R. 1575, the “Keep Christ in Christmas Act” of 2005, and George W. Bush announced with a flourish as he signed it: “This legislation officially puts Christ back in Christmas so that (white) (anglo saxon) (protestant) Americans can celebrate our official holiday with the appropriate focus. Amen.”
Also that was right behind HR 27345, the “We Really mean it, We Are Banning Abortion” Act of 2003 which George W. Bush totally signed, didn’t he?
Or the “Jesus is Our Lord” Act of 2004. Or the “Ten Commandments are the Law of the US” Act of 2003.
Oh never mind. I made all that up because the Repukes talk really big about all this shit but don’t actually seem to believe any of it because the appropriate legislation never gets enacted. #1 because it’s unconstitutional (which barely bothers any Republican because it’s just a god-damned piece of paper) or #2 because they’re just stringing the religious right nutbags along for the ride hoping a few weak sops a decade will keep the rubes interested.
There is no more mockable, idiotic, easily-led group of marks in the United States today than the fools of the Religious Right. This War on Xmas bullshit is just the latest con-game to distract their obviously empty and otherwise disengaged minds.
Robin G.
I assumed Rock-Ribbed was a type of condom.
r€nato
@slippy:
Not that long ago, I was at the folks’ house. In one sentence they were wishing all the illegals would go home; in the very next sentence, they were wondering where to find another Mexican to do their lawn for cheap, since the current yard guy evidently got shipped back to Mexico courtesy of ICE.
I’m so fucking tired of this two-faced shit, I don’t even bother to point it out anymore. It’s utterly useless. My stepfather used to regularly crow about how good his VA health care is, and simultaneously he bitched about government health care (“Obamacare”). I finally spoke up and pointed out that VA care IS government health care. Now he makes sure to never say anything good about the VA, and every so often he makes sure to insert a gratuitous disparaging remark about the VA.
r€nato
@kommrade reproductive vigor:
there are some folks in this world – I happen to know far, far too many of them – who would much rather have something to bitch about than solve the problem they are bitching about.
Cris
Which reminds me of a point my wife frequently makes — Chanukkah doesn’t rank particularly high among the High Holy Days. So getting a “happy Chanukkah” wish from a gentile who never mentions (and maybe isn’t aware of) Yom Kippur or Pesach is kind of irritating.
JD Rhoades
@Kryptik:
It’s not just you. Despite all the whining, I have yet to see anyone object to “Merry Christmas.” I was at a dinner last year where the speaker said “Well, we know some people might not like it, but we’re going to say Merry Christmas,” in such a defiant manner that one would have thought he was risking martyrdom for it. I asked him afterward if anyone had gotten mad at him for saying it. He went off on some bullshit screed about political correctness. I pressed him to give me an example of anyone objecting to him, or even to anyone he knew, saying “Merry Christmas.” He finally admitted that he couldn’t. I told him neither could I, and I say it all the time. I even forgot one time and wished “Merry Christmas” to a Jewish colleague. He just smiled and wished me one back. But then, he’s not a dick.
Try it sometime. Ask for examples. Let me know if anyone can tell you of any.
rob!
I imagine the residents of Sioux City are all so stupid they wander Main Street, bumping into each other, in a vain attempt to understand where the big ball of fire goes every night.
Mike G
This describes very few Midwestern Repigs nowadays.
More appropriate would be “jelly-bellied”, “lard-assed” or for the guys, “man-boobed”.
Janet Strange
Have to? Have to? Who is threatening to force this poor woman to say “Happy Holidays”? It’s always about creating fear and resentment.
Fear that those people are going to take something precious from you (e.g. everything you love about Christmas, your religion, whatever).
Resentment that someone is going to force you to do something.
Got into an argument with a climate change denier not long ago. It’s all a hoax he said. Except that he had no argument with any of the science. Finally, I had to ask what he meant about it being a hoax if he thought the science was accurate?
“I just don’t want any environmentalists telling me what to do, how to live my life.”
Sad thing is that he was in his early 20s.
Kyle
I was at a dinner last year where the speaker said “Well, we know some people might not like it, but we’re going to say Merry Christmas,” in such a defiant manner that one would have thought he was risking martyrdom for it.
And there you get down to the real gist of it. It’s not that they have suffered any actual bad consequences, it’s about playing the victim, whining about persecution and playing the brave rebel fighting overwhelming forces in a pathetic attempt to add drama and purpose to their stupid, small-minded lives.
Every situation is Red Dawn, and they aren’t doughy losers anymore but fit and valiant brave partisan Patriotic Jesus Eagles fighting the commie atheist overlords. Wolverines!
Cat
It makes me physically ill when people who forsake American values are portrayed as “Real Americans”.
Edit:
Also. Oh, I dont suppose the edit could get a preview?
kay
@slippy:
They’ve ruined the whole idea for me. I hate all the negativity and whining associated with what is a simple greeting.
I still like Happy New Year. I’m saying that. If I say “Merry Christmas” I’m some kind of unwitting warrior in yet another dumb-ass battle.
They’ve taken the shine off the flag with this same bullshit. They turned it into a symbol of division and petty nastiness.
JGabriel
Mike G: Ribs are bones, not flesh. For instance, I’m as soft and out of shape as the Pillsbury Doughboy, but my bones are like granite – never had a broken bone in my life, and didn’t have my first cavity until I was in my 20’s. So I am both rock-ribbed and, sadly, man-boobed.
Which, given that I was generally slender until only a few years ago, brings up the sad lament of Al Swearengen on Deadwood, “How did we get so fucking old?”
.
Comrade Darkness
“I Don’t Want To Have To Say Happy Holidays.”
Well, we knew it wasn’t a HolyDay the moment you went on a greedy consumer frenzy to celebrate it.
The Moar You Know
@Butch:
JesusSantaUPS just dropped off a 200-round box of buckshot, so I’m ALL set.drillfork
In 1996 I had a job interview at the Sioux City, Iowa, newspaper. It was an eerie experience. Everything in that town was covered in a dusty layer of 1978.
Had the interview (didn’t get the job, nor did I want it), and I’m on the six-hour drive home. With nothing to do but punch up crap on the car radio, I find the local wacky afternoon drive-time deejays. Since it was Barry White’s birthday, these guys thought it would be heeeeeee-sterical to play one of his songs — while constantly making fart noises. This seriously went on for like 15 minutes — I know because I’d keep flipping around and the dial would keep landing on the station playing the whoopee cushion-infused sounds of the late, great Walrus of Love.
Long story short: I’m not surprised Sarah Palin is popular in Sioux City…
Cerberus
@Kyle:
As a member of several actually oppressed groups, it’s amazing to me how no one is more married to their sense of oppression that white men. They always have to be besieged by us others who are of course coming to do horrible things to them.
I think it’s pretty much the case that everything, every last thing, a winger says is projection. And there are no exceptions.
Outbursts like this just reveal that when they whine about various groups “reveling in their supposed oppression” because of some supposed emotional benefit, they are as always talking about themselves.
It makes me wish I could introduce them to actual oppression. Here, suck on having your marriage under constant question or have it taken away or having your legal medical procedures continuously undermined or having the police constantly rough you up and harass you and then we can talk, you pathetic empty-lived fucks.
P.S. Get a life so you can stop trying to inject these fantasies just to distract yourselves from the bland suburban conformity mills you have trapped yourselves in.
Betsy
Why do supposedly staunch Christians need their religious beliefs reinforced by alternately bored or harried Best Buy clerks? Is their faith so fragile?
Honestly, they remind me of nothing so much as whiny little kids who need every. single. person. they encounter to tell them that their construction-paper reindeer antlers are the BEST construction-paper reindeer antlers in the history of construction-paper reindeer antlers.
Jay in Oregon
@Humbug:
Pervert.
Won’t somebody please think of the children???
mds
By gutting it to the point of destruction for the benefit of the rich. Remember the previous administration? Sarah Palin is the stupider, bitchier, white trash George W. Bush. Hence, probably president someday.
Yeah, well, “Happy Yom Kippur” isn’t actually much of an improvement in the clue department.
BDeevDad
Win
flukebucket
@Robin G.: Rock-ribbed for her pleasure
Waynski
@Cerberus — I assume you meant Republican white men. Liberal white men generally don’t harbor feelings of oppression or victimhood.
BDeevDad
@Waynski: Just guilt, or is that because I’m Jewish?
BTW, Isn’t BillO already the General of TWOC army?
BC
Remember, folks, Bush got re-elected in 2004 by saying, ” You might not agree with me, but you know where I stand.” Having a “stand” is better than being right (e.g., Broder when he said it was more important for Obama to come to a decision than it was to make a good decision). Having a “stand” means that you know what you believe and all the facts and data in the world will not sway you from your beliefs. They really do not want to have someone who looks at facts and makes decisions – they want someone who is ideologically pure and will go with belief over fact, faith over data.
gwangung
@Cerberus: A-fcking-men.
Ed Drone
@cleek:
Noted in passing:
Why do the American Talivangelists agree with the muslims so much? I think they’re in cahoots!
Ed
Ed Drone
@r€nato:
Now conservatives are the “JC Police.”
Ed
Mike in NC
Have a good Navy buddy from there. He left and never looked back. Closest I made it was a business trip to Des Moines in the dead of winter several years ago. Man, that was depressing!
Faux News
Geg6: I want to marry you.
Comrade Darkness
@mds: @Cris:
Would it be appropriate to wish someone a Bloody Good Pesach, then?
DZ
At the very nice place where I buy clothes – Mario’s in Portland – all they say when I walk in is ‘would you like some champagne’. Now, that’s holiday spirit and they even do it in July. Holy crap, Batman. Wankers
Waynski
@BDeevDad — Well, I don’t think I feel guilty about being a middle aged white guy, but recognize I was given many priveleges that many others never enjoyed and still don’t. Consequently, I feel these priveleges (good education, safe neighborhood, stable family income, greater access to the employment market, equal protection under the law) really should be rights that everyone enjoys. Republicans seem to believe that only they should have these things and that if you extend these things to others, somehow, they’re losing something.
catclub
ed Drone @ 70
I bet you mean “The Incarnation”, of Jesus as the human
Son of God through Mary, is in the Koran.
I doubt that the doctrine
that “Mary was conceived without sin”, which is the immaculate conception, developed in the 1800’s by Rome,
is in the Koran.
Two different implausible doctrines, that taste great together.
I could of course be wrong about this.
Nylund
Can we do like many in the UK and say Happy Christmas? Or is the word “merry” just as much a stickler as “Christmas”?
Cris
@Nylund: If you say “Happy Christmas,” you may be deported to your country of origin.
OniHanzo
@rob!:
Hahaha best comment all day
shoutingattherain
@slippy:
Ditto. Also.
PurpleGirl
Button spotted in Queens (NY): “It’s Okay to Say Merry Christmas.”
I’ve got to make a “Have a Blessed Solstice” button.
asiangrrlMN
@Cerberus: Got it in fucking one, especially the P.S.
@geg6: I am fucking with you on this one. And, speaking of fucking….
What-the-fuck-ever. That’s what I’m going to say from now on. Or, “Happy Consumers’ Month.”