Paul Raushenbush has already written an article regarding the same topic, but after years, it seems some still don’t get the whole ‘Happy Holidays’ thing. Some -- like Joe Walsh -- suggest that it is “bullcrap” over which we shouldn’t be getting offended.

I apologize: this is going to sound a lot like a paper (finals, right? *audience laughs and claps, students in the background cry and clap*), but I think there are two aspects of this proposition that need to be addressed. First, that people are getting offended, and second, that it’s ‘bullcrap.'

Now, one could call me hypocritical: I wrote an article about Christmas Trap music and wished everyone a ‘Merry Litmas (Christmas)’ at the end -- you know, because the music is lit? I found that on the internet; I hope you're as impressed as I was. Honestly, I hadn’t considered it until now, though I consider it relevant because the remixes were of songs traditionally associated with Christmas. Maybe that’s not a good argument, I’m not sure; what do you think?

Anyway, back to the main point of the article: are people really getting offended over people saying ‘Happy Holidays’ instead of ‘Merry Christmas’? Personally, I’ve only seen articles and social media statuses that bring attention to the use of ‘Happy Holidays’ as an all-encompassing method of wishing people a good holiday season, and why that should be utilized. For me, this makes a lot of sense: as Raushenbush notes, Christmas isn’t the only holiday that occurs around December -- there’s Hanukkah and Kwanzaa, and some people just don’t really like to celebrate Christmas. People have highlighted why it should be used, and if they do happen to get offended about it I can totally see why; it’s not a term relevant to their faith or holidays. I don’t hear my Jewish friends telling me to enjoy Hanukkah, and I assume part of it is because they don’t want to assume what I’m celebrating too.

Then again, the whole ‘offended’ situation has been blown so out of proportion I can see why this debate is becoming an issue again. As soon as someone points out that something might not be a good thing to say, people line up with their ‘Are you triggered?’ memes and ‘PC culture’ rhetoric, which is honestly hella tiresome.

Perhaps people have been getting offended about it, but even if they weren’t I’d still be utilizing ‘Happy Holidays’ because it logically makes sense to use it. Literally, not everyone celebrates Christmas: if I tell them to have a Merry Christmas, of course I’d be doing it because I was raised Christian and have been accustomed to using such a term, and of course I'm not using it because I want to upset people, but I don't think it make sense to use something that isn't applicable to everyone.

The ability to consider different perspectives is always worth the frustration. It’s very easy for us to only consider our own viewpoint, and, again, it makes a lot of sense: finding out that people don’t always consider a period of time or a particular thing in the same way we do is always going to be an odd experience. We may be considerate, but still slip up.

What I’m trying to say is this: I think we should be using ‘Happy Holidays’; not just because we should be inclusive and make ourselves aware that our hugely diverse world is full of different perspectives and celebrations, but also because it does make a lot of sense to use a catch-all term.

Call me ‘triggered,' call me ‘PC’ or even that wonderful ‘cuck’ that’s being thrown around by red hat-sporting, anime-avatar possessing Twitter accounts, but you know what? Yeah, I guess that's correct.

Happy Holidays, y'all!