November 1, 2007--a teeny little rant

I just wanted to vent a bit about a double standard in our culture. Every year, there is a big debate over whether or not employees can wish their customers, "Merry Christmas" since not everyone celebrates Christmas. They don't want to offend anyone. Schools call it "Winter Holiday" and leave out any religious references. Everyone is so careful to be sensitive to all religions. Why is there not the same sensitivity towards those of us who do not celebrate Halloween? Why do the cashiers at the store think it's okay to ask my kids what they are going to dress up as for Halloween? If they can't say "Merry Christmas" because someone might be offended who does not observe the holiday, why can they say "Happy Halloween"? Or is only the non-religious that they are concerned about offending? If they would apply the same standard across the board, they would call it "Fall Holiday" and be careful about using any ghouls or witches that might be offensive. Instead, we are subjected to seeing grotesque displays at all the stores, whether we like it or not. I'm not advocating they do that, necessarily. I'm not going to run out and insist that everyone tiptoe around me, making sure they don't offend me with their Halloween decorations. There are bigger issues than that, more things in our culture that are offensive than having to endure the ugly decorations for a month each year. I just wish they would be consistent at least--either censor the holidays, or don't. Just treat them equally, please.