As I was fueling my car over the weekend, I struck up a conversation with a young lady at the pump beside me, at the conclusion of which she wished me a Merry Christmas, rather than the now-popular, Happy Holidays.

Today I read Jeffrey Tucker take on the notion of a war on Christmas:

The idea that there is a "war on Christmas" has been promoted by Bill O'Reilly and other...talking heads for years, and they intend to fight back by demanding that private enterprise make Christmas overt and with legislation requiring governments to use the phrase "Christmas tree."

To the extent that business has taken up the "Happy Holidays" cause, Tucker argues that it is not opposition to Christmas, or even Christianity itself:

This isn't a conspiracy, but just good customer relations. True, it makes some people angry, but you have to appreciate the difficulty that this conundrum presents for business. They want to contribute to the spirit of the season, if only to make a buck. But no matter what they do, there is trouble waiting. I promise you this: the instant it turns up that they are losing more revenue by saying "Happy Holidays" than by saying "Merry Christmas," the policy will change.

[...]

[I]f you aren't satisfied with this argument on capitalism's behalf, there is something you can do. There are many vendors that specialize in Christmas and appeal to every conceivable sensibility. They sell cards, trees, ornaments, icons, books, and a million other items. There is nothing wrong with favoring them over the mass market. Capitalism has provided room for them, too, so you can do your part by buying from them.

A final word: Christmas is the worst time of the year to enter a holy war. Make your peace with religious diversity. Come to understand the driving forces behind a free economy and thank God for it. Christ was born into a world that did not yet celebrate Christmas, and the kings from the East had to lie to the magistrate about the recipient of their gifts. Christmas can survive and thrive even if it is not culturally dominant. To be free to practice our faith should be our prayer.

Christians don't really need non-Christians to care about Christmas. I'm always shocked and amazed that Christians and shocked and amazed when non-Christians act like they are not Christians.

They have commercialized Christmas. Wow. What a shock.