OPINION & EDITORIAL
Rockin’ around the what?
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Also by Ryan Masse:
- Rockin' around the what? (November 29, 2007)
- A downside to diversity, an upside to change (November 16, 2007)
- High schoolers can handle ads (November 8, 2007)
- Health providers must list prices (November 1, 2007)
- Employee policies in need of upgrade (October 25, 2007)
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- Merry 'Santa-mas' to you (November 29, 2007)
- Horse Feces (September 6, 2007)
- Colbert: Closest thing to real conservative in '08 (October 18, 2007)
- Right for a week (May 2, 2002)
by Ryan Masse
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Every year in the spring, children gather in Washington, D.C., spoons in hand, racing to be the first to push an egg across the finish line on the south lawn of the White House. The White House calls this annual event the "Easter Egg Roll."
Pretty outrageous, I know. And it gets worse: Every year in December, the president lights a giant and ornately decorated pine tree on the Ellipse near the White House. It's called the "National Christmas Tree." Appalling!
Luckily, the state of Wisconsin restores some sanity to this time of the year. If you go to the rotunda in the state Capitol right now, you'll find a tree quite similar to the one near the White House. In fact, an uneducated observer might even be tempted to call it the state "Christmas Tree." But it's not — it's the state "Holiday Tree."
It was named as such in the mid-1980s, when some became concerned the tree represented a religious display in the state Capitol. The forces of political correctness have kept its name as the holiday tree ever since, worried that referring to it as otherwise would offend those who don't celebrate Christmas.
Obviously, Wisconsin is on the right track here. The federal government should rename its tree the "National Holiday Tree." It should rename the Easter Egg Roll as the "Oval Office Oval-Shaped Holiday Race."
But even Wisconsin could do better. Menorahs in public, such as the one on display in the state Capitol Dec. 4-13, should be renamed "Holiday Multi-Candle Apparatuses." Even Gov. Jim Doyle, a die-hard Seinfeld fan, should rename the Festivus pole he's been known to display in the governor's mansion as the "Holiday Lusterless Metal Rod."
Does all of this seem silly? It should. It's an example of political correctness run completely amok, a public affliction in which nothing can be talked about in an honest or open manner because of a constant fear that somebody's fragile psyche will be offended.
Political correctness by its nature only aims to root out certain viewpoints, and so Christmas, more so than other holidays, has been victim of an effort to remove its mention from the public arena.
There's nothing offensive about calling a spade a spade, a menorah a menorah or a Christmas tree a Christmas tree. Christmas is the only holiday at this time of the year celebrated by decorating a giant tree, just as Hanukkah is the only one celebrated by lighting a menorah. There are no Christmas menorahs or Hanukkah trees, if one is strictly observing each respective holiday.
The generic "holiday" moniker is a pure obfuscation of the character of the events that take place in the month ahead. People don't celebrate "Holiday" — they celebrate Christmas, or Hanukkah, or Kwanzaa, or Festivus or some combination thereof. While there may be certain similarities among the different holidays, each has its own festivities and traditions that should be cherished for their uniqueness — and they should be recognized as such.
Given the annual furor over what to call the tree in the Capitol, it could be argued that we'd be better off without it altogether. Indeed, my colleague Mike "Grinch" Gendall advocates the outright removal of the tree and any other displays that could be construed as religious from the Capitol. This is a perfectly fine and principled stance.
Yet the Christmas tree in the state Capitol is a tradition that dates back nearly 100 years. Besides being a sight to behold in its own right, it symbolizes a joyous time of the year for most people, whether religious or secular. Its presence would be inappropriate, of course, if the state did not permit displays from other faiths and holidays. But as mentioned, a menorah will soon go up in the Capitol, as will an interfaith awareness display a week later. The Christmas tree is probably the least religious of the bunch — it's not a cross or nativity scene, it's just a Christmas tree, with a meaning arguably more secular than religious.
Indeed, nearly everybody celebrates a holiday in some fashion around this time. Polls consistently show 95 percent of Americans celebrate Christmas, a number far exceeding the percentage who identify as Christians.
Plenty of secular families put presents under a Christmas tree each December. You can be sure almost all of them call it a Christmas tree. The state should too.
Ryan Masse (rmasse@badgerherald.com) is a first-year law student.
Anonymous (November 29, 2007 @ 7:42am):
I've heard of Jews having "Christmas trees," so the holiday tree doesn't seem too outrageous. Really, it's an indoor tree that we decorate; it's not exactly a religious icon. Similar to Easter eggs, the Christmas tree is a symbol of our pagan roots.
Anonymous (November 29, 2007 @ 8:25am):
*applause*
Anonymous (November 29, 2007 @ 11:47am):
Actually this secular family calls it a Hanukkah Bush!
Anonymous (November 29, 2007 @ 1:42pm):
As an athiest, i dont mind christmas trees, hannakuh candles, etc, even if they are government funded. As long as they are reasonable and not gaudy wastes of tax dollars, whats the harm in reveling in a holiday that goes beyond religion to spread a feeling of goodwill among all us humans?
If you really feel a state-bought christmas tree is going to strongly affect your religious views, you are weak-willed enough to be swayed at some point anyways.
Tom Heintjes (November 30, 2007 @ 8:37am):
You can actually see a picture of Gov. Doyle with this Festivus pole at http://www.festivuspoles.com/pages/festivus/me_and_my_festivus_pole.htm ...pretty cool! And while part of me hates to see Festivus commercialized like every other holiday, it's neat to be able to buy a pole like that! There's also lots of fun Festivus stuff at http://www.cafepress.com/hoganstore/1782703 . I got some Festivus cards to mail out from them, and they're really fun, a nice alternative to Christmas cards.
Anonymous (December 6, 2007 @ 12:54am):
Interfaith Awareness Week has had displays of world religions in the Capitol Rotunda the week that includes December 10 since 2002 - the week has been the Governor's proclamation since 1998!
This year there will be a Capitol Celebration at noon on Human Rights Day (12/10) and the displays (20+ of them) will be set up to be on display the entire week.
The celebration will be multi-religious and multi-cultural.
For more info:
www.interfaithsociety.blogspot.com
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