Prominent Canadian Women Press For Gender Neutral Anthem

[exploited]

What does the current social order gain from it? How does it induce conformity? I haven't become a Christian or a consumer whore because someone said Merry Christmas, and I am not aware of anybody converting because they heard me say it.

Corporations, not people, are the number one advocates for culture-neutral language.

Therefore, anyone who wants culture-neutral language is inadvertently supporting the goals of corporate capitalism.

That is your logic here, and it makes no sense.

[The Dharma Bum]

I'm pretty sure you celebrate Christmas the way most people do, by buying presents and luxury food items etc for the holidays.

And there are conflicts in society. Their presence doesn't contraindicate the presence of cultural hegemony. And really religion is a form of social control that is a remnant of feudal organization. It doesn't really apply except among traditionalists, which are about half of the population of the US these days. The tension we see in the arguments surrounding this subject show that these attitudes are changing rapidly. These "traditions" are discredited in the eyes of many, because frankly they are not satisfying for most people.

All of these forces and more are constantly changing society, it's not static, or even predictable, by any means.

[exploited]

Cool, good way to not answer the question at all.

You have a future in politics.

[The Dharma Bum]

No, you misunderstand. The answer is you do conform to society, not necessarily because someone says "merry christmas" per se, but because we all adhere to a particular set of expectations, one of which the greeting "merry christmas" happens to be.

When buying your presents you can choose between outlaw biker paraphernalia, a punk album, or some fulfilling stuff down at the christian family store but you are still going to be buying some xmas presents this year and every other year. And that consumer behavior satisfies the needs of our system.

[exploited]

[The Dharma Bum]

Using that expression is clearly a cultural expectation that you have never bothered to think about before. Which is why the detailed explanation of cultural hegemony I've given, complete with supporting links, upsets you so much that you have to pretend that you have no idea what I'm talking about and make up stories about how you build all of your christmas presents like the Waltons or something.

[exploited]

Oh, I didn't make anything up. Not that my personal Christmas practices were relevant to begin with. You brought them up because your argument is stupid, and you know it, and you had to find a way to not answer a very simple question. I mean, seriously, step back and look at what you've said: saying Merry Christmas is an imposition because it is a cultural expectation.

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What the f**k does that mean, Dharma? Because it sounds pretty much like you just saying things. What do people expect when they say Merry Christmas? How does this undefined expectation become an imposition? And finally, how would saying Happy Holidays versus Merry Christmas change the cultural domination of consumerism, lol?

For the love of God, say something that actually has substance. Your links are just basic Marxist theory, with no relevance to the discussion at all. Yes, the ruling class manipulates culture to create assumptions that benefit them. But as I've already pointed out, corporations - the arm of the ruling class - are the number one advocate of culture neutral language. Which just immediately destroys your argument, for obvious reasons.

[Homer]

I think Dharma is wrong on this. Merry Christmas is just an alternative greeting used at a certain time of year. Should we also stop saying Happy new year? Maybe we should stop talking altogether lest we offend someone with our cultural oppression.
And the consumerism of xmas is really only a 20th century phenomenon; people were wishing each other merry xmas long before capitalism came on the scene.

[The Dharma Bum]

"Christmas" as it is conceived today didn't even actually exist until the 19th century. Santa Claus wearing a red suit and living on the North Pole is an invention of the political cartoonist Thomas Nast, for example.

The point is, it's not an actual tradition. It is a manufactured social phenomena that emerged in modern times.

[exploited]