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Tell Us: Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays?

You might be surprised at the results of a poll on the subject.

Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays?

When it comes to season's greetings, a new poll shows the majority of Americans prefer saying “Merry Christmas” to “Happy Holidays.”

According to a survey from Rasmussen Reports, 68 percent of people polled prefer the traditional “Merry Christmas” while just 23 percent like “Happy Holidays,” which can cover a variety of occasions.

When it comes to holiday signs, a whopping 70 percent of shoppers polled said they prefer to be greeted with “Merry Christmas” in stores rather than the more neutral “Happy Holidays,” according to a Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey.

The topic has been a hot one for years. Some say such greetings as “Merry Christmas” and nativity scenes exclude non-Christians. Others believe the religious connotation behind the greeting should not be sanctioned by government or schools.

 

We want to know what you think. Is “Merry Christmas” or “Happy Holidays” your choice? Tell us why in comments.

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jose December 24, 2012 at 11:19 am
merry christmas i would say it if i know that person if not happy holidays, as a bussiness owner i i feel i should show respect for all religions as some do not celebrate, preffer to say happy holidays to all, of course if they tell me merry christmas i would say the same to them.
Marilyn December 24, 2012 at 11:54 am
Happy Holidays covers all holidays...Chanukah, New Years, Etc. Much more appropriate for those who do not celebrate Christmas, including some prior christians I know.
Jenny Roush December 24, 2012 at 12:11 pm
Jenny
Merry Christmas! Let's unashamedly celebrate the birth of the Son of God who came to earth as a man. He lived a sinless life. Because He loves us He chose to obey His Father by taking on the sins of each of us. He paid the price for them in His death. He is our Savior and Substitute. Overcoming death, He rose victoriously . Praise Him!
Jean Slanger December 24, 2012 at 01:10 pm
People should have the option of using their own preferred greeting: as in saying Happy Hunakah in reply t o a Christmas greeting. And grumpy aetheists could reply Bah Humbug--all of this in a spirit of good humour
USMC Sgt December 24, 2012 at 01:56 pm
Merry Christmas everyone.
P2B December 24, 2012 at 01:57 pm
Happy Winter Solstice!..doesn't quite roll off the tongue, but it's real.
Jo March December 24, 2012 at 04:11 pm
On Christmas Day, I say "Merry Christmas" but for the rest of the festive season, I wish people "Happy Holidays" since we celebrate several holidays during this period.
A. December 25, 2012 at 03:58 pm
MERRY CHRISTMAS !!!!!!!!!!!
A. December 25, 2012 at 03:59 pm
Yeah! What USMC SGT said! ;-)
A. December 25, 2012 at 05:42 pm
Yeah! What Jenny said!
Note Article
Just a short thought to get the word out quickly about anything in your neighborhood.
Share something with your neighbors. Write a new post... What's up? Make an announcement, speak your mind, or sell something
George Metropulos June 19, 2013 at 12:42 pm
First thing I would ask is who did you talk you, and have you followed up? Was this something youRead More got in writing? Did they give you a timeline that has lapsed?
Steve Hayes June 19, 2013 at 12:54 pm
The practical solution - just paint it yourself. Sounds like a very small job and the City alreadyRead More agreed it is a good idea.
George Metropulos June 19, 2013 at 12:59 pm
Do you really think the city is waiting for someone to get killed?
Michele Moyer June 16, 2013 at 09:17 am
Thanks Joan - there is one in the sub-head of the blog I posted on School-Force Voices today; wouldRead More love if it could be corrected. Been scratching my head til I saw this post :)
Joan S. Dentler (Editor) June 16, 2013 at 11:20 am
Sorry about that! There's nothing I can do on my end----it's system-wide bug, which I believe isRead More fixed now. :)
Belmont96 June 13, 2013 at 09:40 am
I also preferred the 'old' Patch - this format makes it difficult to find articles that are aren'tRead More that old. One example was the informative article on who was running for city Council. I was having problems finding it and finally had to query on a candidate's name to find. I don't recall having that issue with the original format. Also our neighborhood had a water break line and we were without water for some hours a few Sundays ago. I tried to find out the reason for the break (because of construction or old pipes?) and could not find anything on the Patch regarding this. Not sure if they just didn't report or I just couldn't find.
Judi June 14, 2013 at 07:28 am
Not crazy about the new Patch either. Also, I want to post-for sale, and this section is crowdedRead More with announcements, etc.
Pearl June 14, 2013 at 04:15 pm
Another thing that needs to be fixed: When you go to leave a comment, it takes you over to whereRead More you have to sign in, you sign in expecting to be returned to the article on which you are commenting, but it, instead, takes you back to some different article. PLEASE FIX THIS!!!! Also, please reinstate the feature where we can sign up to be notified if/when more comments are made concerning the article(s) we've commented on so we can follow the conversation. Thank you.
Christa Bigue (Editor) June 10, 2013 at 01:50 pm
Thanks Sam! You should also post this Half Moon Bay (halfmoonbay.patch.com) and Pacifica PatchRead More (pacifica.patch.com)! I'm sure our readers would appreciate the great tip!
Michael Williams June 9, 2013 at 04:12 pm
Strongly suggest Patch readers check all the YELP reviews of this business. Very uneven experiencesRead More reported.
don torre June 4, 2013 at 06:55 am
what do the local Belmont restaurants think of this? do these people pay a license to the city?
Joan S. Dentler (Editor) June 4, 2013 at 07:15 am
Hi Don....thanks for your question. Yes, Off the Grid does pay a licensing fee to the city, and soRead More far, we haven't heard any concerns by local restaurants. The food trucks provide an option to a traditional restaurant---pick up and go----and they are only around 4-5 hours per week (on Mondays, typically not a big restaurant night anyway). Have you tried the food yet?