This from “Let the families without insurance fend for themselves” baby Blunt…I will let him speak for himself…comments welcome!
“Governor Matt Blunt” 11/29/2007 2:15 PM >>>
From: Governor Blunt
To: All Missouri State Employees
Date: November 29, 2007
Re: “Merry Christmas!”
Dear State Employee:
Merry Christmas!
I hope that I am among the first to wish a Merry Christmas to you, your family, and friends!
As most of us know, some question the appropriateness of saying “Merry Christmas!” particularly by government employees.
By my directive, as a government employee, you need not worry about this strange effort to undermine the historical foundation of this wonderful time of the year into an arid “Winter Break”. You need not check your religious views at the door, nor your affection for the season, nor the use of its ancient, time-honored greetings. The directive I have given to all executive agencies provides that no state employee will be reprimanded or disciplined in any way for saying “Merry Christmas.”
Please enjoy the holiday season!
Feel free to spread your cheer by wishing your colleagues — and especially the Missourians we all serve — a Merry Christmas!
Sincerely,
Matt Blunt
Guess how many state employees have been reprimanded for saying “Merry Christmas”? If the correct answer is more than zero, I’ll eat my iPod.
like the Scott Eckersley brouhaha. Nothing like playing on the true believers’ manufactured sense of persecution to whip up a little support. And Blunt is going all out–see todays story in the Post-Dispatch about Blunt’s intervention in the issue of a Christmas tree that was removed from a building in at Missouri State University.
The University has no policy regarding Christmas observations, but leaves such decisions up to departments and units. The tree that was removed was not done so permanently in any case:
The article also mentions Blunt’s reassurances to stalwart Christians that they can, indeed, wish each other (and non-believers such as myself) Merry Christmas to their heart’s content, although, to answer the first commentators question:
I know that this stuff is pandering on Blunt’s part and seems almost too trivial for anyone to pay any attention to, but allowing this type of manufactured “culture war” to slip under one’s radar may have negative results as a particular story-line is permitted to become established.
It also just irks me that folks can pretend to be persecuted when they are faced with with the dire demand that they show simple courtesy to those who do not share their beliefs. I observe some aspects of the Christmas celebration since I believe that it is a lovely, essentially pagan, mid-winter rebirth festival and most cultures have something similar. I have nothing against people wishing me Merry Christmas, but when I have to deal with spoiled triumphalist bullies who wail about how they are being intimidated–or who are so stupid and venal that they permit corrupt politicians and religious leaders to tell them that they are being persecuted–I want to stomp my feet and throw a temper-tantrum to end all temper-tantrums.
…should probably be trademarked by the right, since it appears to have gone global.
The Guardian, December 8, 2006
The New Yorker, December 26, 2005
Washington Post, December 10, 2005
It’s just like Matt “baby” Blunt to be at least two years behind the curve. You’ve just got to admire that new chief of staff.
Looks like Governor Blunt managed to hit both of the signficant wing-nut-hot-button issues in one week. Must be that new Chief of Staff!
Thanks to Blunt we know that Illegal Immigrants can’t get a drivers license (really, can’t this time, we really mean it) and state employees are free (free!) to offer personal greetings to people.