Happy Holidays vs Merry Christmas

So the battle cry of the holidays is heard and it's over wishing people well. Ironic no? People are all up in arms, "We aren't allowed to wish anyone MERRY CHRISTMAS anymore!!! We have to say HAPPY HOLIDAYS now, it's a travesty, Political Correctness gone amuk!!eleventyone!1!". I say Balderdash! There is no need for this to be a divisive issue.


So you may be asking, "well Tadpole, why should I stop wishing people a Merry Christmas?". My answer is that you shouldn't with the qualifier of there are times where Happy Holidays is the more considerate and polite greeting. Are you going to church? Wish everyone there Merry Christmas with plenty of joy. Are you at your families Christmas gathering? Greet everyone a bright and robust Merry Christmas. Are you going to a party that was called a Christmas Party, it's a pretty safe bet you can wish people there jovial Merry Christmas. Did you meet friends who celebrate Christmas on the street? They will appreciate and return your cheery greeting of Merry Christmas.

So now you may be asking "Well then smarty frog pants, why do we need Happy Holidays at all then?". My answer to this is simple, when you are wishing a stranger well at this time, unless they are wearing something that indicates their religious beliefs, by wishing them Merry Christmas you are making the assumption that they celebrate the same holiday you do and frankly, making assumptions is rude. They may be of any number of religious beliefs, including sects of Christians who don't believe in celebrating Christmas. It makes no sense to wish people a Merry Christmas if they don't celebrate Christmas.

So here's a quick guide to who to wish what :)

People who you know celebrate Christmas: Merry Christmas!

People who you know are other beliefs, wish them happy whatever they celebrate: Happy Hanukkah or Blessed Yule or whatever greeting goes with their holiday!

People you don't know well enough to know their religious beliefs: Happy Holidays!

So we see that Merry Christmas is not on the verge of being abolished, it should be alive and well within groups that celebrate the holiday. Being considerate, kind and not making assumptions are a part of basic manners so it has nothing to do with being "Politically Correct". It has everything to do with being polite and not making assumptions.