Also, you can just as easily claim that holidays like Yule and Saturnalia were corrupted by Christians who stole all their symbols.

Yes. As far as I know, there is no evidence that Jesus was born on December 25. The date was chosen because almost every pre-Christian European culture celebrated the return of the sun after the darkest day of the year. Do these clowns really think that fertile green trees brought into the house and candles and fires and hopeful winter feasts have anything to do with the birth of Jesus? Christmas is like the pagan hit parade. It has always been a mixture of European cultural traditions.

I sense a new KMart advertising compaign: "We'll give you all your pills, and thank Jesus while we're doing it!"

There's a major difference between individuals making individual choices, and a group like the AFA soliciting boycotts from their members.

I can see this point, but it's an individual choice to be a member of the AFA. The organization only has power to solicit boycotts because the people choose to give it that power, and follow the boycotts.

buy something else for your niece. that way, she doesn't get caught because of her mother's crap, but you still can tell your sister to put down the crack pipe.

I think that's the best bet. The charity contibution thing would be more fun for me, but I don't really want the nieces to get caught up in it.

The charity contibution thing would be more fun for me, but I don't really want the nieces to get caught up in it.

That's what really sucks. You hate to stick it to them at Christmas to prove a point to your sister.

We have attained pukage. This will not be a puke-free day. It will be a class-free day, though. Um, yay?!

There's a holiday slogan for the rest of us.Cashmere. Gee, vw, I was hoping your stomach would be better now.(Not as much as you, of course.)

That's what really sucks. You hate to stick it to them at Christmas to prove a point to your sister.

Stick it to her, nothing. The present is already bought, right? So she's not actually losing anything. Unless you count things like happiness that a loved one thought of you and wanted to get you something nice, and her mom's already taken that out of the picture anyway.

I seem to be getting bitchier as the day goes on. Funny how that happens.

Precisely twice as bitchy, apparently.

Also, while a kid might not see it that way (I'm sure I didin't), teaching the value of charitable giving is not a poke at the kid, but a good life lesson. My family were all pretty much horrible, but I did learn values from Easter Seal campaigns, the March of Dimes, MDA back yard carnivals, etc. I had one relative who donated to a wildlife org in my name because I love(d) animals. It felt good to know I was "saving the whales."