Dear Editor:
Please call the “holiday” light display what it is and that is a CHRISTMAS light display. I am so tired of all this politically corrrect wording of things in order not to offend someone. It offends me that Christmas and anything to do with Christmas is referred to as holiday and not Christmas. Christmas is Christmas and it should be referred to as such. Enough of this PC nonsense,
Sincerely,
Linda Snyder
I totally agree with Linda. And for those who are calling for polital correctness, with everything being equal… shouldn’t Yom Kippur, Kwanzaa, Hanukkah, Ramadan, etc be referred to as holidays? And not what they are? Religious or cultural celebrations? (ie: a Holiday Candle set as opposed to a minora?) Our country was founded on the platform to include freedom of speech and religion. Should we not embrace our independence based on these values?
Ms. Snyder,
Referring to a light display simply as “Christmas” lights denies the reality that our city is a diverse one populated by Christians, Muslims, Jews, atheists and the like. Calling them holiday lights from a city-level perspective allows the city to appreciate all of its residents and yet allows you the freedom to refer to them as Christmas lights in your home. This is not done to prevent from offense, but to celebrate diversity.
I totally agree with the allowance for diversity and differences in the population. No disagreement there.
However this was not a city sponsored event. It is a non profit organization run by neighbors in a certain area of MLT. If those residents have chosen to call it a Christmas light fundraiser, it should
I agree with John as well when related to City sponsored events. Whoever wrote this letter was a little unclear what, exactly, they are referring to and to whom the letter was directed. After reading it again and these comments it appears as if the author is writing the letter to MLTnews asking them (MLTnews) to refer to the lights display near 227th/42nd as a Christmas lights display and not just a holiday lights display.
I’ve driven through that neighborhood every year as the family enjoys the lights. Interestingly, though many have displays saying “Merry Christmas”, I recall the donation site actually referring to it as a “Holiday Lights” display. I think perhaps that they may recognize the reality that being inclusive is always better.
A non-profit organization of citizens on non-governmental property have the rights to do what they would, in compliance with the law. You are absolutely correct – and I believe the original letter was poorly-written and not descriptive of the actual event.
Dear Mr. Nasiiq;
I disagree with your assessment. All this PC nonsense is done to squelch American and its’ culture. Why should we have to embrace other peoples’ cultures but not our own? Political correctness is not about celebrating diversity but it is about doing away with our culture, who we are and our way of life. That is not something to celebrate. You say that one has the freedom to call lights in their home Christmas lights if they want, how is that freedom? Freedom allows you to say things outside your home as well as inside your home. Diversity divides, it does not bring people together.
“Other peoples’ cultures”?
These are fellow Americans. Fellow Washingtonians and fellow Mountlake Terrace residents.
These are not “other people”.
This is us.
This is not “PC nonsense” as you say, but recognition of the fact that our community is a mix of different cultures, faiths and traditions. I, for instance, am a Muslim. I would not encourage the city government to participate in Ramadan any more than I would allow them to participate in Christmas. America’s culture is a mix of everything from every corner of the globe. It is not a Christian nation nor Hindu, nor Muslim, etc.
Freedom means you have the right to do what you choose for your own self. That means celebrating Christmas in your home, your church, etc. When a governmental organization of any kind condones on religion it violates the spirit of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution – one of the few documents that actually ties together a single American “culture”.
I, as a fan of the Constitution and secular governance, will absolutely fight for your right to practice your religion. I will also absolutely fight to keep your religion (or mine or anyone else’s) out of our shared government.
“Dear Editor:
Please call the “holiday” light display what it is and that is a holiday light display. I am so tired of all this politically corrrect
wording of things in order not to offend someone. It offends me that holidays and anything to do with holiday is referred to as holiday
and not Christian. Holiday is Holiday and it should be referred to
as such. Enough of this PC nonsense,
Sincerely,”
The rest of the Non-Christian world.As far as this supposed “War on Christmas” What it really means is Christians get to do/say/display their beliefs as loudly and proudly as they want, where ever they want, public, private, where ever and anyone who stands up for themselves and their beliefs is “at war” with them…I gots news–There is other belief systems that all have similar origins, of which you, Linda are one. I like my Scandinavian pagan tree and I like that my sun being at the lowest point of the horizon for 3 days at the end of December, signifying new birth and a fresh start also coincides with your Son. But for you to claim sole ownership of my solstice holiday as not mine? You ma’am are the one committing the offence. Maybe you should clear the fog in your noodle and improve your ability to Google.
This is not “PC nonsense.” This is a way to recognize all holidays placed near the solstice without giving one preference. Not all citizens of Mountlake Terrace are Christian, you know.
Help me out with the chronology of this response stream. A bunch of people have an online conversation just after the holidays about what’s fair or right about how we say something. According to their time stamp, all of them except those from Mr. Nasliq occur in a short time window in early January. Three months later, Mr. Nasliq chimes in 3 times. Many of the suuposedly earlier comments clearly are referring to Mr. Nasliq’s positions, but are more than three months out of phase. Someone, maybe MLTNEWS.com, can explain.
The three-month-later responses are the result of my own chronological mishap. I had first posted contemporaneously with the original letter, then not been aware of responses until just the other day. I then responded further for the sake of responding only – regardless of time frame. My apologies for the confusion.