Wednesday Wondering....
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Wednesday Wondering....
| Wed, 12-13-2006 - 8:22am |
I Was WEDNESDAY WONDERING what your thoughts were on the Seattle Airport removing all of their Christmas trees because a Rabi got upset and said a Monorah should also be 8ft and present next to each tree!
Here is the story if you are unfamiliar:
http://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=2715008&page=1
They just put all the trees back, but the fact that this Rabi threatens to sue caused the whole airport into a frenzy!
Share your thoughts on the story!

Oh I've been ranting and raving about this at home! HAHA!! I sincerely believe in everyone being allowed to celebrate their own religions/celebrations as they wish...but what got me was that instead of offering a Menorah to the display he simply contacted a lawyer and threatened to SUE if they didn't place one in the display. I can relate to the busy manager of this airport simply throwing his hands up, refusing to be bullied and putting the trees away. He didn't have the time or the desire to spend money defending himself in a lawsuit over what holiday decorations he should be required to include. I'm glad this Rabbi was made to see how irrational his lawsuit was. This wasn't a Christian display, there wasn't a nativity. Aren't Christmas trees about as non-religious as Santa Claus these days? They were decorated with red ribbons and bows! Even on The View yesterday they agreed that many Jewish people decorate trees in their homes nowadays.
I agree with how it ended...put the trees back up and next year BEFORE it gets busy with holiday traffic they can all sit down and mutally decide on a multi-cultural display that will be inclusive for everyone. Perhaps post the meeting in the local paper so anyone with a desire to be represented can be there and be heard. (Think there will be a nativity scene next year?)
I still believe that if this man had shown up with a menorah and simply asked to place it within the trees, he would have been allowed. His approach really made him look like an A*s. What a way to share the holiday spirit!
Denise
I'll be honest, I don't have time to read the article right now. I do find the whole thing ridiculous. Now did he really demand a menorah beside EACH Christmas tree, or just a few in the airport? If he demanded an equal number I find that a bit odd, if you go by percentage of people who celebrate Hannukah then you should get a percentage of the space dedicated to your symbols. My work always has a huge Christmas tree in our lobby and a huge menorah. No big deal.
I do think their excuse for saying no was a bit lame. There aren't any other holidays at this time of year besides Kwanzaa and I don't know if they have a symbol like the tree or menorah. And they said it would be more work but was not putting up and taking down and putting up all those trees more work?
I think people have taken political correctness to an extreme. Everything is so personal. If someone says Merry Christmas and you don't celebrate Christmas then its construed as insinuating you "should" celebrate. If some says Happy Holidays and you do celebrate then they are insulting your beliefs and telling you that Christms should not be a celebration of Jesus. It seems that people can't win and we all have to run around with a card we hand out to people saying which holidays we celebrate and in what manner before anyone is allowed to speak to us. So I guess mine would say "Secular, Christmas" so everyone would know its okay to say Merry Christmas
*snip*
I think people have taken political correctness to an extreme. Everything is so personal. If someone says Merry Christmas and you don't celebrate Christmas then its construed as insinuating you "should" celebrate. If some says Happy Holidays and you do celebrate then they are insulting your beliefs and telling you that Christms should not be a celebration of Jesus. It seems that people can't win and we all have to run around with a card we hand out to people saying which holidays we celebrate and in what manner before anyone is allowed to speak to us. So I guess mine would say "Secular, Christmas" so everyone would know its okay to say Merry Christmas but perhaps skip the bless your family this holiday since I'm not Christian. Goodness, lets just stifle good will and merriment by making everyone terrified to say things to people for fear of offending them. Tell me Happy Hannukah, Merry Christmas, Happy Holiday, I don't really care. Just say it with a smile on your face and a light heart and I'm happy with that. It means you actually care enough about me and my family to speak to me, to acknowledge that this is a time of year that is special for many people no matter the way you celebrate or even if you don't. You still get time off work to do things with your family you might not normally have time for.
WELL SAID TAM!!
I think it is absolutely ludacris!
I think that a Christmas Tree is a symbol of the holiday season!
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As a person who grew up in a Jewish family, it doesn't bother me when there is a display of a Christmas tree without a menorah next to it, to be honest, I don't think that these holidays should be "linked" simply because they almost always fall in the same month.
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