Christmas has become superficial glitter

[darkswordsman17]

and it comes sooner every year!!! RABBLE RABLBE RLABELBLELELEL

:biggrin:

 

[Angry Irishman]

Gifts were part of Yule before capitalism was invented...go open a history book.
What is next?

Coca-Cola invented Julemanden (Odin, you call him Santa Claus)...

Ummmm....who gives a shit? This is sort of how history works. That is to say that customs and traditions are indeed passed from culture to culture. This isn't really a new development. A lot of Irish Celt/Pagan tradition is still part of the Catholic Church in Ireland.... similar story for Latin America.

If you really want to celebrate Yule have a nut as no one is stopping you.

Why should it even matter to you what Christians or anyone else celebrates? If you are so anti-religious wouldn't you consider being a Pagan a religious trait?

To each their own.....

 

[OverVolt]

I really dislike the jacked up prices around Christmas. I noticed how they increase prices around October and then things go on "sale" $10 more than they were in the summer in time for black Friday. Talking about electronics or games other items that really shouldn't fluctuate in price like that.

This year was gift card year so everyone could grab post-Christmas deals. I used to be anti-gift card because some go unused but I just bought basic ones like target, vic secret, starbucks, etc. Stuff people would enjoy but not too far out of the way.

Had to explain it wasn't because I was lazy. The prices this year really irked me. Apparently they came down right before Xmas, the jig was up as far as pushing shoppers too hard this year in this economy I guess. There is nothing wrong with gifts at Christmas but it has gotten too big and too pressured. Now that I'm older I kind of wonder why my family still does so many presents, for the kids it is really cool but as adults it shouldn't be as mandatory.

 

[dawp]

It's getting to be more and more like the holiday christmas replaced, saturnalia, just a month long consumer orgy instead of 1 week.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saturnalia

 

[Perknose]

My favorite part about Xmas is watching christians get offended when I don't say Merry Xmas. They say "Merry Xmas" and I say "Have a good holiday" or something similar, and they go on rants about how Xmas is being stolen from them by "insert social group here" and how offended they are by "Happy holidays".

Never mind the fact they just assume because I'm white I must be a christian and must just be brainwashed to say happy holidays. I'm trying to be polite, next year I'm going to just start witnessing atheism to them on the spot.

Maybe you live in some ultra-redneck, fundie-infested part of the country, but where I live, which is Republican dominated and chock full of "religious" Christians, I've never personally witnessed even one person get visibly offended at being wished "Happy Holidays."

Mostly I think you may well be full of shite.

Anyway, in stores and public places around Christmas, when I get greeted by clerks with "Happy Holidays", I respond with "Merry Christmas" because that's my (American, commercial and primarily but not exclusively secular) holiday.

It may not be your holiday, Mr. Observant Jew or Hindu, but Dec. 25th is Christmas in America, and I wish YOU a merry one, too, without demanding that you buy a tree, presents, go to church, or believe in the Baby Jesus part at all.

Whether you buy into any of that or not, it's still Christmas day; I hope you have a merry one!

 

[senseamp]

This is one thing I disagree with some other atheists on. They shouldn't be trying to get rid of Christmas, which is a futile effort, they should be embracing and secularizing it.
So what if Christmas was originally a Christian holiday? So was Halloween, now it's just a nice excuse to go shopping for candy and outfits and get drunk. I don't see many atheists saying they won't celebrate Halloween because it used to be a religious holiday. It's more often Christians who renounce it as occult. If you are a secularist, and you are trying to get rid of Christmas, you are seen as a party pooper. But if you are a secularist who is enjoying the Christmas shopping, tree decorating, and gift giving, and Christians like the Pope come in saying, no, no, Christmas is about Christ's birth, not commercialism, it's them who are seen as party poopers.

 

[senseamp]

Double post

 

[WelshBloke]

This is one thing I disagree with some other atheists on. They shouldn't be trying to get rid of Christmas, which is a futile effort, they should be embracing and secularizing it.
So what if Christmas was originally a Christian holiday? So was Halloween, now it's just a nice excuse to go shopping for candy and outfits and get drunk. I don't see many atheists saying they won't celebrate Halloween because it used to be a religious holiday. It's more often Christians who renounce it as occult. If you are a secularist, and you are trying to get rid of Christmas, you are seen as a party pooper. But if you are a secularist who is enjoying the Christmas shopping, tree decorating, and gift giving, and Christians like the Pope come in saying, no, no, Christmas is about Christ's birth, not commercialism, it's them who are seen as party poopers.

*waits for someone to point out that neither Christmas or Halloween (or easter) were originally christian*

 

[So]

sounds about right. in most cases, Christmas is just an orgy of capitalism.

I mean it when I tell my family/friends that I don't want anything. donate the money to a local charity. or, hell... instead of spending 3 hours of your wages on me, spend 3 hours volunteering somewhere.

I think next year, I'm not going to do gifts for anyone except my nieces. I've just been feeling really disgusted by the whole process this year. I think I'm just going to make donations to charities in people's names and let them whine that they didn't get some shitty movie on bluray.

What's so disgusting about giving a gift to someone you care about? It's only shameful when you let it become an obligation, or turn gifts into crippling debt.

 

[Lonbjerg]

*waits for someone to point out that neither Christmas or Halloween (or easter) were originally christian*

Are you talking about Yule and Mithras?

 

[OverVolt]

What's so disgusting about giving a gift to someone you care about? It's only shameful when you let it become an obligation, or turn gifts into crippling debt.

I read stuff all the time about people taking on debt for Christmas. Add this to the hiked prices and Christmas really is just a shameful orgy of capitalism. If you want good prices you have to shop in like August lmao.

It's just logical. Tons of people shopping at the same time = high prices, bad shopping experience. Why was this ever a good idea? Maybe when there weren't as many people and everyone wasn't trying to screw each other over as hard for a buck like we do now.