The war on Melania over Christmas
Over the last couple of days, First Lady Melania Trump has beautifully welcomed the Christmas season. Cheers to the president and Mrs. Trump!
Unfortunately, some in the media don't like it at all, as Debra Haine posted:
Did you know that those exquisite White House Christmas decorations First Lady Melania Trump proudly unveiled yesterday are "spooky," "spine-chilling," and "nightmarish" – like scenes from Mordor, Narnia, or The Shining?
It took most of the day yesterday, but by nightfall, the Trump-hating media was able to settle on an unfavorable narrative with which to belittle the newly unveiled decor.
Amazing! What is the point of getting so worked up over a White House that just dressed up for Christmas? Have we sunk to this level of silliness?
According to a Pew study from 2015, Americans celebrate Christmas in huge numbers:
About nine-in-ten Americans (92%) and nearly all Christians (96%) say they celebrate Christmas, according to a 2013 Pew Research Center survey.
This is no surprise, but what might be more unexpected is that a big majority (81%) of non-Christians in the U.S. also celebrate Christmas.
This includes 87% of people with no religion and even about three-quarters of Asian-American Buddhists (76%) and Hindus (73%).
Roughly a third of U.S. Jews (32%) – many of whom have non-Jewish spouses – said in a 2013 survey that they had a Christmas tree in their homes during the most recent holiday season.
Among Americans overall, about half (51%) say they celebrate Christmas as more of a religious holiday, while roughly a third (32%) say it is more of a cultural holiday to them personally.
Sounds about right. My own personal experience confirms that.
So are Americans worked up about the White House saying, "Merry Christmas"? Not at all, unless you were hoping that First Gentleman Bill Clinton would introduce the Christmas decorations and bake cookies in 2017.
Or maybe there is Melania Derangement Syndrome in the water at some newsrooms in the U.S.
PS: You can listen to my show (Canto Talk) and follow me on Twitter.