« Newt Needs First Amendment Lesson | Main | Fear Everyone! »

December 18, 2006

Throw another Yule Log on the Christmas War fire

As if the irresponsible blatherings of the hate-mongering John Gibson weren't enough, columnist Mark Steyn stokes the War-on-anyone-who-wants-to-say-Happy-Holidays:

That's, in effect, an ancient pop song that alludes to the birth of the Savior as a call to communal merry-making: No wonder it falls afoul of an overpoliced overlitigated "diversity" regime. Speaking of communal songs, they didn't sing "White Christmas" round the manger. A Jew wrote that. It's part of the vast Jewish contribution to America's common culture.

Seattle Airport could certainly put up a menorah. And maybe a commemoration of Eid, and Kwanzaa, and something for solstice worshippers, and perhaps something for litigious atheists. But to do that is to turn society into a kind of greater airport departure lounge -- to say it's no more than an assemblage of whoever happens to be in it at any particular time. Successful societies (unlike plastic trees) have deep roots: Nobody should be obliged to believe Jesus is the son of God, but likewise nobody should take such umbrage at trees and tinsel and instrumental versions of "Silent Night" that he would deny the reality of the land he lives in to the vast majority of his fellow citizens. Because the logic of that leads not to a diverse secular society but to an atomized ersatz non-society. And, as those other touchy types the Islamists well understand, once you put reality up for grabs, all kinds of pathologies suddenly become viable.

To be clear, I'm not in favor of telling carolers to put a sock in it or raze Christmas Trees just because it might offend someone. But I think Steyn's point goes well beyond that.

To add context, Steyn is objecting to carolers being asked to stop singing Christmas songs while skater Sasha Cohen (a Jew) is doing her gig in California. Steyn is also objecting to a Jewish rabbi threatening suit against SeaTac airport near Seattle for having Christmas trees without a menorah.

The core of Steyn's argument rests on the notion that the majority of the United States is Christian so therefore the rest of us should shut up and take it. We must stop expecting diversity during the Christmas season. Without this we'll have to deal with an Islamic extremist type set of splinter groups that aren't tied by a common thread.

This is of course premised on the notion that at some point the United States was based on a commonality of culture from the outset--nothing could be further from the truth.

The original thirteen colonies were extremely culturally diverse. When the Irish emigrated to the US in the mid-1800s, they brought their very own distinct cultures with them, including Catholicism--which was unwelcome to many Americans (not so different from the way Latin American immigrants to the US are treated now).

We are not a common culture kind of nation. Our strength as a nation doesn't stem from any sort of false cultural commonality. Our strength comes from the ability to come together DESPITE our cultural, spiritual and racial differences as Americans.

Individuals like John Gibson and Mark Steyn work to divide us and in doing so weaken us as a nation. Their attempts to force a common culture on those of us who don't seek it or want it only serves to set us against one another--rather than to work together to vanquish our common foes.

This will inevitably bring about the undoing of our nation unless we push back against it. Hard.

Posted by Carla at December 18, 2006 08:33 AM