The 2010 edition of the "War On Christmas" isn't merely playing itself out in obscure Smithsonian exhibitions. It's also opened up a front in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where a scheduled holiday parade parade is making Senator Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) have a sad because of the way it reminds him of the existence of other holidays and other people who participate in other religions. Per Jillian Rayfield, at TPM:
Oklahoma Sen. Jim Inhofe (R) says he won't participate in Tulsa's annual Holiday Parade Of Lights until the "forces of political correctness" put "Christmas" back in the title. "I'm not going to ride in a Christmas parade that doesn't recognize Christmas," he said.
"Last year, the forces of political correctness removed the word 'Christmas' and replaced it with 'Holiday' instead," the Tulsa World reports Inhofe said. "I am deeply saddened and disappointed by this change."
Indeed: why is no one making an "It gets better" YouTube clip for the "saddened and disappointed" Inhofe? What does the insensitive monster who runs Tulsa have to say about it?
Tulsa mayor Dewey Bartlett acknowledged the reality of the situation. "If it was up to me, I'd call it a Christmas parade, but I also understand that we have a diverse community, and I'm sensitive to the importance of the many cultures and traditions that make up our city," he said.
You know, as a Christian in America, I got to tell you: we have it so good here! It pretty much rules: not only do I get all sorts of time off from work at Christmastime, I get radio stations full of Christmas carols and a teevee full of Christmas specials, one of which has been reciting the Gospel of Luke on network television for forty-five years. Pretty soon, I will have the opportunity to zoom around on Creationist roller-coasters, or something, in Kentucky. On top of that, Christmas is dominant design aesthetic everywhere you go in America, beginning in about mid-October, annually. Everywhere I look, my love of Christmas and my personal religious faith is being overwhelmingly jammed down my throat -- whoops, sorry, I meant "validated."
I don't know if I'll have the chance to talk to the fancy new space bacteria that NASA has discovered, but I look forward to the opportunity to field this question: "Doesn't this 'War On Christmas' actually cheapen the actual instances of brutal religious persecution that have occurred throughout your planet's history?" I'll reply, "Oh, did NASA not brief you guys on that time where we decided to totally flip out and lose all sense of perspective?"
There will be a pause, and the space bacteria will ruefully remark, "I guess the idea of us building a mosque to our space-bacteria gods is a real non-starter."
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