Christman tree or holiday tree?

[buttmunch]

f it's a spruce tree adorned with 10,000 lights and 5,000 ornaments displayed on the Capitol grounds in December, it's a Christmas tree and that's what it should be called, says House Speaker Dennis Hastert.

Hastert, R-Ill., in a letter to the Architect of the Capitol, recommended that the annual Capitol Holiday Tree, as it has been called the past several years, be renamed the Capitol Christmas Tree.

"I strongly urge that we return to this tradition and join the White House, countless other public institutions and millions of American families in celebrating the holiday season with a Christmas tree," Hastert wrote to Architect Alan Hantman.

His office said the tree began to be referred to as the Holiday Tree in the 1990s. Spokesman Ron Bonjean said the reasons were unclear.

On Dec. 8 Hastert will flip the switch to light the tree, a 65-foot Engelmann Spruce from the Santa Fe National Forest in New Mexico. On Tuesday workmen were erecting the tree on the West Front of the Capitol.

Copyright 2005 The Associated Press

Me, I don't give a flying crap what they call it. But it is good to see that Delay's lapdog, the new speaker of the House, is making good use of his newly found power.

[Luna]

Solstice tree! Let's go back to the pagan celebrations that were taken over!

[Grimmlok]

Oh for the love of crimony, whoever called it a fucking Holiday Tree needs to die.

It's a Christmas tree. Only christmas has a gaudily decorated fir tree as part of the celebration, thusly it's a fucking Xmas tree. Yeesh.

[miss_perfect]

Interesting Snopes article on "Xmas":

http://snopes.com/holidays/christmas/xmasabbr.asp.

[Lil]

I hate hate HATE the use of 'holiday'. The festival is called Christmas in this country, it's a Christmas tree, it should be referred to a a Christmas tree. IT'S CHRISTMAS. Bloody ridiculous.

[MrsDark]

It's a fuckin' Christmas tree already! What's the big ass deal?

This is from someone who as of the last 13 years is not even religious, much less a Christian.

If someone is that sensitive an atheist that they have a problem referring to anything with a word that contains the letters that spell *christ* then friggin' call it something else already. Just don't be a big baby over it. For all practical purposes I'm an atheist, but I don't get my panties in a bunch over referring to anything holiday related as *Christmas*, especially since it has no meaning for me in a religious sense.

Please tell me this hoopla is about a supposed sensitivity toward people of other religions who have either adopted Xmas traditions like the tree or already had their own traditions that mirrored Xmas ones including the tree. Still, I think it's a bit ridiculous. Just call it a friggin Soltice tree or whatever if it floats your boat! I really hope it's not the atheists who have their panties in a bunch over this....those of us without faith/religion have to take enough unfair assumptions about us as it is.

[drama_queen]

AAAHHH it's a Christmas tree always will be.

[*trina*]

Christmas tree