I’m on Twitter!!! I know, you’re probably asking “what the heck is Twitter?” There’s a really good video on YouTube that will expain it better than I can.

So, as you can see it’s a type of micro-blogging, social networking, media 2.0, type of thingy. The definition is kinda in flux, but basically it’s anything you want it to be.  And it works with your non-Blackberry, non-IPhone cell phone too.  If you can “text” on your mobile phone then you can Tweet. So it’s highly mobile and portable.

The founder of Twitter, Evan Williams started this thingy to answer the question: “Hey, what are you doing?” but it’s taken on a life of its own.  You can do so much with it:

• You can follow famous people on Twitter. No, not their PR people, but actually them.  Mom, you can follow Oprah, that’s OPRAH!!!  Also, you can follow Martha Stuart, Demi Moore, Ellen Degeneres, Soleil Moon Frye Punky Brewster, and a whole bunch more.
• You can track packages on Twitter so that you can stalk those packages that you send up here. It works with FedEx, UPS and the USPS.
• You can also keep your Google Calendar up to date too with Twittercal. It’s a little complicated, but I can help you set it up.
• You can also get notifications from your ToDo list from RememberTheMilk.com.
• Know the location of people who are using Twitter Tweeting by using Twittervision.
• You can also read books.  Yep, read books! There’s a cool service that will read a book to Twitter.
• Also, you can also receive weather forecasts by either following a weather forecaster like Al Roker (@ARoker) or you can use Twitter Forecast.
• There are also a bunch of stuff you can do to promote your business or find a job or drive traffic to your Blog or whatever.  The list just keeps growing and growing.

I know it’s a lot to comprehend right now, but I just wanted to make you aware that I’m now on Twitter

p.s. if you’re looking for some help navigating all those abbreviations and acronyms, there is a comprehensive glossary of  Twitter acronym which can be found here.

Love you,

(http://twitter.com/jmfailla)

At what point, does the former Chairman of NASDAQ (thank you, Bernie Madoff) or perhaps a State Governor (thank you, Rod Blagojevich) not know (or care) that what he is doing or what he has done is wrong? At what point, do you own up to your wrongdoings and admit fault? At what point, do you stop listening to the little voices in your head  of the people that raised you to be responsible person?  

I just don’t get it. I don’t know where things went awry with these recent headliners.  I’m assuming that they are not ferriled orphans raised by the dogs, so they must have had someone raise them to the societal contributor that they have become.  Where did things go wrong

Well, in the true spirit of my rants, I’ve decided to give my own guidance of how not to raise responsible children.  If you’re interested in raising another Byrraju Ramalinga Raju, read on.

1. Don’t start them with tasks when they’re young. Even though young kids, as early as 2 years of age have a strong desire to help out, they should not. There is no need for you to challenge them. They’re just kids. You really don’t need or want the aggravation of screwing something up. 

2.  Use a reward system with your kids. You really don’t want your kids to develop an intrinsic sense of responsibility, do you? No need for them to develop a “big picture” value of the things that they do. It’s not the way the world works. They need to only know “what’s in it for them” and focus only on what they’re going to “get.”

3. Don’t use natural consequences when they make mistakes. If they keep losing their baseball glove somewhere, buy them a new one – always. How else are they going to play without one? You should shelter them from any consequences of their actions. Only as a very last resort, have them ask to borrow one for the game from a friend. It’s imperative that you rescue them every time they screw up, So they’ll never learn responsibility.

4. Ignore them when they are responsible – it’s what everyone else expects of them. No need to point out what you like about their behavior when they’re being responsible. This will make it less likely to happen again. 

5. Rarely talk about responsibility with your kids. Make responsibility something that is only discussed on rare occasions, and let them know it’s insignificance.

6. Do not model responsible behavior for your kids. TThe world will take care of them and make concessions for them. Modelling this type of behavior is where they’ll learn it from. 

7. Don’t give them an allowance until they’re either dating or driving (whichever comes first). When children are little, show them that you will take care of all of their money decisions. No need for them to learn their lessons about money in a hurry – they have plenty of time to figure it out when they have no choice but to be responsible.

8. Have a strong, unfailing belief no one is more important than they are. They’ll pick up on this belief and they’ll tend to rise to the level of expectation.

9. Train them to be irresponsible. Use role play and talk to them about exactly what kind of behavior you expect from them. It’s hard for kids to be irresponsible at times when they don’t know what it looks like.

10. Do not take parenting advice from anyone else as no one should ever tell you how to parent. You will always know whether you’re being too controlling or too permissive as a parent. No need to talk to other parents, read books, or join parent support group.  It’s just a waste of time.

A child shoud be provided with the opportunity to start learning responsibility at a very young age. Parents need to learn to take advantage of the opportunities to teach responsibility as they occur. Children who are raised in a consequences free environment never have the opportunity to learn how to take responsibility for their actions. Parents who feel that they are creating a safe haven for their children by not allowing them to experience negative consequences for negative actions, are enablers. Irresponsible children raised in enabled households tend to approach all life situations with a sense of entitlement; a “the world owes me” kind of attitude. In adulthood, this attitude can lead to a real sense of discontent as other people in the child’s life do not provide that enabling role.

Now under full disclosure, I need to reveal that before my affinity for business and technology, I was a school teacher for 10+ years. And I vividly remember having many difficult conversations with parents who went through the gamut of the same emotions I am now feeling.

I believe that all parents want what is best for their child. They want their children to do well and to be successful at whatever they’re doing (as if their own ego depends on it.) Now, no parent wants to hear from their child’s teacher that they are having problems in school. If you get that news, how you react and handle the problem can make a BIG different in its outcome.

I thought that I would share with you some of my thoughts about  making the most out of a parent/teacher conversation (conference) about your child. I can frequently remember many times parents having that “deer in the headlights” look when they discovered that their child wasn’t performing up to par.  If most of them were better prepared and had a better pulse on their child, outcomes would have been much different and it would have enabled their child to be much more successful, much sooner.

A meeting or phone conversation with your child’s teacher is one that you should take full advantage of. It is one of the few opportunities that you will gain the perspective of a trained professional who spends an enormous amount of time with your child. Your child’s teacher has the opportunity to see your child interacting with other children, and is a more objective evaluator of your child than you as a parent might be.

Oftentimes, parents expect to meet with teachers and only look at test scores or the problems at-hand.  In business, we call this “the lowest hanging fruit.” That is the easiest and most accessible of all issues. It is important, as a parent, to look at the bigger picture.  What are usually issues with behavior, test scores, and social mannerisms (or lack therof), all have underlying motivators.  For example, in my son’s case, his lack of attention (attending?) and disregard for rules and authority was a direct result of his needs not being met.  My son’s pattern of behavior is directly related to him being hungry and not being able to articulate his discomfort through traditional ways. (He’s 4-1/2 years old).  And therefore, he would “communicate” his discomfort through attention seeking behaviors.

Also, teachers are usually just as interested in your input as you are in theirs.  Keep in mind that there are many things that you child’s teacher does not know about him.  It is important that teachers become aware of changes that are occurring in their personal or family life, and how he behaves at home in comparison to how he acts in school.  Their emotional well-being is the primary motivator in their academic success.

Before meeting with the teacher:

• Start preparing early – don’t wait until the last minute to get organized. Create a little folder at the beginning of the school year in which you should keep test scores, big homework assignments, and your various notes (all the things that your child has told you or any other topices you want to address).
• Talk to your child. Do you know what’s happening in your child’s world when they’re not with you? Do you know what’s going on during lunchtime, recess (playtime), or when he goes to “specials” (gym, music, art, etc.)?  You need to find out the good, the bad, and the ugly about your child.  And when you do, probe a bit. Don’t just rely on their “objectivity”. As I’ve often coached many managers in my business career – do not take things on face value – probe – and peel away the layers to the proverbial onion. You need to find out if your child is percieving everything accurately or if she’s misunderstanding a situation.

During the conference:

• Be on time!  We’re all busy in life and usually have more things to do than we can handle.  That includes the teacher.  If she’s allotted 15 minutes for a conversation with you and you’re late, you will most likely not be able to make up that time.
• Enter the converstation with the right attitude. The goal of both the teacher and the parent should be the success of the student, but sometimes parens have a hard time discussing tough issues. Rather than put the teacher on the defensive, arrive with a compliment to start the conversation off on the right foot. (i.e. “My son is really enjoying the unit you’re doint with him on the Seasons.”) then address any concerns in a respectful manner.
• Find out the communication protocol. Don’t let this be the only time you talk to your child’s teacher. Ask how she likes to communicate, whether it’s by email, notes passed through a folder, or a phone call. Reinforce that you are there if she wants to talk to you. Let the teacher know you want to be that kind of partner.

After the conference:

• Follow up. If the teacher brings something to your attention that needs to be addressed with your child, take steps to put the plan in motion, whether it’s helping with organizational skills, getting extra help, or addressing a social issue.
• Update your child. Start with the positive things his teacher had to say, then fill her in on any concerns you and the teacher discussed. Explain how you can all work together to ensure your child is a success in his academic career…

I woke up this morning and put the television on in our living room.  The channel was set to the morning news. My son came in the living room sat down on the floor and was happily playing with his new toy car set. As the news was talking about the economic downturn, the terrorist invasion of Mumbai, India, the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, a lame-duck president and grim outlook of this year’s holiday season, I couldn’t help notice the pure counterpoint between my son’s enjoyment of his toys against the backdrop of televised doom and gloom. Life was so simple as a child.  I miss it fondly. So, in my usual style, I thought it would be interesting to blog the fact that I would love to resign as an adult.

I am hereby officially tendering my resignation as an adult. I have decided I would like to accept the responsibilities of an 8 year old again.

• I want to go to McDonald’s and think that it’s a four star restaurant.
• I want to skip rocks across a lake and count the skips.
• I want to think that M&Ms are better than money because you can eat them.
• I want to run a lemonade stand with my friends on a hot summer’s day.
• I want to return to a time when life was simple. When all you knew was colors, multiplication tables, and nursery rhymes; but that didn’t bother you, because you didn’t know what you didn’t know and you didn’t care. All you knew was to be happy because you were blissfully unaware of all the things that should make you worried or upset.
• I want to think the world is fair and that everyone is honest and good.
• I want to believe that anything is possible.
• I want to be oblivious to the complexities of life and be overly excited by the little things again.
• I want to live simple again. I don’t want my day to consist of meetings, computer problems, mountains of paperwork, depressing news, how to survive more days in the month than there is money in the bank, gossip, my health, gossip, illness, and the loss of loved ones.
• I want to believe in the power of smiles, hugs, a kind word, truth, justice, peace, dreams, the imagination, togetherness, and play.

• For the taxes I pay, because that means that I’m employed.
• For the mess to clean after a dinner party, because it means that I have been surrounded by friends and family.
• For the clothes that fit a little too snug on me these days, because it means I have more than enough to eat.
• For my shadow that follows me when I walk down the street, because it means that I am out in the sunshine.
• For the bathroom that needs cleaning, the dishes that are in the sink, the carpeting that needs vacuuming, because it means that I have a home.
• For all the complaining the pundits say about my government, because that means that we have freedom of speech.
• For the parking spot I find at the far end of the parking lot, because it means I am capable of walking and that I have been blessed with transportation I can afford to use.
• For my heating bill, because it means that I am warm.
• For the parishioners in my church that sing off key, because it means that I can hear.
• For the pile of laundry in my bedroom that needs to be cleaned and the shirts and pants that I need to iron, because it means I have clothes to wear.
• For the aggravation and grief my mom gives me, because it means that she is alive and can still give it to me. 
• For the exhaustion I feel after running after my 4 year old, because it means that he is healthy, active and mine.
• For the arguments, disagreements, fights and other emotional times with my wife, because it means she is physically, emotionally and mentally fit to be in a loving relationship with me.
• For the weariness and stress I feel at the end of a long day, because it means I’m capable of working hard.
• For the alarm clock that goes off early in the morning, because it means that I am alive.

1. To look for opportunities to express yourself everywhere. My son views the entire world and every new person, new object, or new event as opportunities to express himself.
2. To have structure in one’s life is to be calm, connected and productive. Leave it to a 4 year old to teach me this.  Having a routine is good and centering.  Variety is the spice of life, but your routine is the root to all your sanity.
3. Life is funny. Anything and everything is funny to my son. Who just loves life to its fullest. The simplest things can make him giggle with glee. My son’s laughter is a wonderful sound.
4. How to love unconditionally. There is no feeling on earth like becoming a parent. Until you’ve tried it, you’ll never know. Loving your child more than life itself just happens and it’s breathtaking.
5. Water is magical. From the time he was born and taking his first baths, water calmed him right down. My wife and I think sometimes that he’s part fish.
6. Learning to slow down.  I’m sure it happens with most parents. You’re in a hurry to get out the door, or your trying to get your shopping done quickly, and inevitably he’s on a different timetable taking in all the world has to offer. Lately, rather than trying to rush him, I often enjoy his pace and enjoy him.
7. Communication doesn’t need to involve words. Body language, tone and pitch of voice and patterns of movement can speak volumes.
8. It’s okay to stay up late once in a while, especially if your cuddling up with someone you love and reading a good book.
9. If you really like something, doing it over and over again will not make you bored. You can listen to Dan Zane’s “Catch The Train” a hundred times, know all the words in all of the songs and still enjoy it as if you were listening to it for the first time.
10. Just when you believe there are no ways you could possibly love your child more, you find the new wellspring of love for them and they complete you.

In creating a new job posting this morning, for yet another new job requisition at my organization, I thought: “Wouldn’t it be funny to create a posting for parenting?”  So here’s my go at this.  I hope you enjoy.

Parenting Position

Job Description:

Long term team player needed for challenging permanent work in an often chaotic house environment. Candidates must possess excellent communication and organizational skills and be willing to work variable hours, which will include evenings and weekends and frequent 24 hours shifts on call. Some overnight travel required, including exhasting trips to water parks and playgrounds. Travel expenses not reimbursed. Extensive courier duties also required to deliver forgotten lunches, projects, gym sneakers, etc.

Responsibilities:

Must provide on-site training in basic life skills, including, but not limited to: nose blowing, wiping one’s behind clean, saying thank you and please. Must have strong skills in negotiating, conflict resolution and crisis management. Ability to suture flesh wounds a plus. Must be able to quickly think out of the box, because your most likely will need it for school projects. Must reconcile petty cash disbursements and be proficient in managing budgets and resources fairly so that peace will be kept – most times.

Also, must be able to drive motor vehicles safely uder loud and adverse conditions while simultaneously practicing above mentioned skills. Must be able to chools your battles and stick to your guns. Must be able to withstand criticism from your parents, siblings, and yes, friends about how you do your job. Must be willing to be hated at least temporarily, until someone needs more juice or something to eat. Must be willing to bite your tongue on repeated occasions. 

Also must possess the physical stamina of a pack mule and be able to go from zero to 60 mph in thre seconds flat in case, this time, the screams upstairs are real cries of pain. Must be willing to face technical challenges, such as small gadget repair, mysteriously sluggish drains, and stuck zippers (when you’re in a hurry to leave). Must screen phone calls, maintain calendars and coordinate production of multiple homework projects. Must have ability to plan and organize social gatherings for clients of all ages and mental outlooks. Must be willing to be indispensable one minute, an embarrassment the next. Must handle assembly and product safety testing of a half million cheap, plastic toys and battery operated devices. 

Also much have a highly energetic entrepreneurial spirit, because fund-raiser will be your middle name. Must have diverse knowledge base, so as to answer questions such as “Why is the sky blue?” or “Why doesn’t he like me?” on the fly. Must always hope for the best but be prepared for the worst. Must assume final, complete accountability for the quality of the end product. 

Responsibilities include floor maintenance and janitorial work throughout the facility. 

Possibility for Advancement and Promotion: 

Virtually none. Your job is to remain in the same position for years, without complaining, constantly retraining and updating your skills, so that those in your charge can ultimately surpass you and have a better life than you. 

Previous Experience:

None required – unfortunately! On-the-job training offered on a continually exhausting basis.

Wages and Compensation:

You pay them, offering frequent raises and bonuses. A balloon payment is due when they turn 18 because of the assumption that college will help them become financially independent. When you die, you give them whatever you have left. The oddest thing about this reverse-salary scheme is that you actually enjoy it and wish you could only do it more. 

Benefits:

While no health or dental insurance, no pension, no tuition reimbursement, no paid holidays and no stock options offered, job supplies limitless opportunities for personal growth and free hugs for a lifetime if you play your cards right.

For those who know me, I am the very proud father of a 4 year old boy.  Currently, my wife Deb and I are working very hard in raising him with what we consider to be good manners.  [Warning --ranting will ensue!] It’s just one of my pet peeves, but I cannot get over how many people that I encounter on regular basis that don’t possess good manners.  Holding a door open for the person behind you; looking at a cashier and saying “Good Morning” or “Hi there!”; “Have a nice day”; “Have a good weekend”; “Please”; “Thank you”; “No, thank you”; etc. All gone!

The other day I was at the local fast-food restaurant waiting on line and this British mum and her young child was in front of me. I was totally impressed with the politeness of this woman and her child.  Let me give you a line reading of what went on:

Cashier: Good morning! What would you like today?

Mum: Could I get one egg on a roll with cheese, please?

Cashier: Sure, would you like some coffee with that?

Mum: Yes, please.

Cashier: Would you like anything else?

[Mum looks at her 5 year old and asks her to speak up.]

Child: Can I have a bagel with some jelly, please?

Cashier: Will that be all?

Mum and child: [Almost in unison] Yes, please.

Cashier: That will be $7.56, please.

[Mum counting exact change and handing it to the cashier.]

Cashier: Thanks.

Mum: Thanks, ever so.

Child: Thank you.

Now, let me replay the same scene with a typical mom and child from America (more specifically, New York). 

Cashier: Good morning! What would you like today?

Mom: Yeah. An egg sandwich with cheese.

Cashier: Sure, would you like some coffee with that?

Mom: Yup.

Cashier: Would you like anything else?

Mom [To child]: What do you want?

Child: I want a bagel! With jelly!

Cashier: Anything else with that?

Mom [answering for herself and her child]: Nope

Cashier: That will be $7.56, please.

[Mom hands money with exact change to the cashier.]

Cashier: Thanks.

[Mom nods and walks away]

Have we all gotten too busy in our lives that we cannot afford to be polite and civilized with each other? Are the words, “Please” and “Thank you” dead in our language? The long established common courtesy duo are fading more and more.  Are they going into retirement, never to show their faces ever again?

I recently worked on training 25 customer service reps to be more effective in their roles as representatives of their company. In doing so, I discovered that 75% rarely ever used “please” and “thank you” in their dialogue with their customers. They honestly did not realize it was missing in their language.   These were not children, like my 4 year old son. They were young men and women who were unaware of the concepts of courtesy and respect. They are not alone. This has become a disease which is rapidly spreading. Although it might be prevalent in younger people, it is widespread across many generations.

This morning I tried an experiment. I held a door to a busy store that I was entering and five people walked in as I waited. One person said “thank you” and one smiled politely. The remainder just barged in, oblivious to both me, my courtesy and the world around them.

What the heck is going on? What has happened? This certainly is not an isolated incident. This is occurring on a daily basis and becoming more and more frequent. At what point, in which generation did we decide life would be better if we took simple acts of respect and courtesy out of the equation?

Please tell me how wrong I am.  Is it just that I’m attracting rude behavior?  Tell me about your rude or very polite observations.  I would love to read about them…

I’ve always said that if I knew at 22 what I now know at 42, how my life would be so different. I’m going through some major life changes recently, and I can’t help but notice how differently I’m realizing my experiences this time around. So I thought that I would post some of my thoughts to some of the things that I have learned over the past 20 years reflect on how I’m much more ready to accept these things as I begin to enter my middle life.

John’s 10 Wisdom Points

1. Negativity breeds, well negativity. It is very difficult to get a clear view of circumstances when your vision is clouded by bad things and negative thoughts. There are many people in my life right now that will always view the proverbial glass half empty with the excuse argument that they’re trying to be “realistic.” In order to get positivity in your life you need to be opened to it and accept it. How many people do you know that will receive something positive to only look at its negative qualities?
2. Work to live, don’t live to work. I know that this is more of a Generation X thing than my only personal wisdom, but it’s something I subscribe to. Most Baby-Boomers and pre-World (War II) Generationals would most likely disagree with me, but long are days gone by where workers stay employed for their companies for 30 years. That type of mutual loyalty you just don’t hear about anymore. Follow your passion (even if it changes every 5 years) and money will follow.
3. Enjoy yourself. What’s the sense of working very hard to follow your dreams if you don’t reward or treat yourself once in a while. Have a big slice of cake once in a while. (Apologies to my cardiologist).
4. Don’t stop developing your talents and seeking new ones along the way. Contrary to the old saying: “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks.” I believe that your learning in life truly begins when you finish your formal education after college or grad school. Formal education never teaches you how to discover yourself and it most certainly doesn’t address you how you learn. If you want to learn how to play the piano, golf, drawing, dance, etc. and have a desire to do so, then take lessons and truly become how you learn. Are you a visual learner? An auditory learner? A kinesthetic learner? If you’re interested in knowing more, I highly recommend ‘learning’ about Howard Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences or Thomas Armstrong’s 7 Kinds of Smarts.
5. You and only you must be the creator and/or seeker of opportunities. It is a rare that an opportunity finds you. How many people do you know who think that they ‘deserve to get something’ instead of working to get ‘it’ themselves? Take the initiative!
6. Where you are in life does not determine where you can go. But your destiny is your responsibility and no one else’s. You create your own limitations and horizons.
7. The key to more knowledge is directly proportionate to one’s openness. Give everything a chance and be willing to accept criticism -all the time!
8. Failure is awesome – embrace it! THE most important step to one’s success is his failure along the way. Everyone learns by their failures and if you have guts to risk failure, you’ll have the guts to succeed. I don’t know why some of my previous employers rarely acknowledged their failures and promoted learning from them.
9. You can’t do this alone: you need others. This is one I really wished I had taken to heart in the past. I’ve burned some bridges and as a result, it has taken me longer in life to be successful.
10. Count your blessings and be thankful. There are times when things are really bad. You might have financial issues, problems with your children, fights with your parents, a falling out with your boss or your spouse, or whatever. But never forget that there is always someone who has it worse than you.

What words of wisdom do you have to offer? Is there something that I’ve missed? I would really like to hear from you.

Deck the halls with boughs of non-endangered plant species
Fa la la la la, la la la la
Tis the season to be self-actualizing,
Fa la la la la, la la la la

Don we now our alternate-lifestyle apparel
Fa la la la la, la la la la
Toll the ancient non-sectarian-winter-solstice-equal opportunity holiday carol
Fa la la la la, la la la la

See the blazing log of non-sectarian-winter-solstice-holiday-non-endangered wood before us,
Fa la la la la, la la la la
Play the harp without unnecessary brutality and join the new paradigm chorus
Fa la la la la, la la la la

Sing we emotionally stable in a collective group effort,
Fa la la la la la la la la
Heedless of the weather patterns despite the effects of El Niño,
Fa la la la la, la la la la
Fast away the mature year passes
Fa la la la la la la la la

Hail the new year without any implicit ageism, ye persons
Fa la la la la, la la la la
Dance in a non-hierarchical manner in merry esoteric measure,
Fa la la la la la la la la

While I tell of non-materialistic, non-sectarian-winter-solstice-holiday treasure,
Fa la la la la, la la la la

“Every company in America should be on their knees thanking Jesus for being born,” news big mouth and everyone’s favorite idiot commentator, Bill O’Reilly, said on a Fox News program. “Without Christmas, most American businesses would be far less profitable. That’s more than enough reason for business to be screaming Merry Christmas.”

I can’t believe that I would actually agree with this guy, but he’s right. After Wal-Mart took a sharp decline in “holiday” sales in 2005, they kicked Christmas into high gear for this 2006 & 2007 seasons.

What is it about the word “Christmas” that is so offensive to some people? And why do the slightest displays of public spirituality work some do-do-heads people up in such a tizzy? I find myself asking that question a lot, but I think I already know the answer. We’ve lost our sense of belonging to an organized religion. That’s fine, people have a right not to like or accept whomever, but it would be nice if the anti-faith brigade would just stop pretending like they are the models of tolerance, acceptance, open-mindedness, and diversity while doing everything they can to marginalize Christian expression.

Today we’re not arguing over burning heretics at the stake, nowadays it’s whether or not we should be able to say “Merry Christmas” at work or put up a nativity scene on public property. I have a friend that works at the Paramus (NJ) mall. It’s a clothing store that sells products targeted towards teens and young adults. She was reprimanded recently because she made the very inappropriate mistake of asking a customer if he was “Christmas shopping.” It’s not Christmas shopping she was told by her superior, it’s “Holiday shopping” and she was not to repeat the other awful phrase ever again. Not only that, but she was told that as Christmas does approach, she will only be allowed to use the phrase “Happy Holidays.”

Give me a break – how stupid!!!!!

This crazed politically correctness is not limited to this clothing store, of course. It can be found in grade schools, universities, government buildings and corporations all over the country. The majority of individuals pushing for the de-spiritualizing of Christmas and politically correct speech codes are doing so because they want to show how “tolerant,” “open-minded” and “diverse” they are. The only problem is that tolerance, open-mindedness, and diversity are rarely ever demonstrated to theologically conservative Christians or anyone else who doesn’t believe in a radical [insert political position here] agenda.

It also is appropriate to consider those whom the politically correct elite are kowtowing to. Let me just be very blunt, if it offends you that bad to hear someone say “Merry Christmas,” if you internally get that worked up over seeing a nativity scene, and if you are a smarmy elementary school administrator that prohibits one of your teachers from teaching 5th graders about the Declaration of Independence because it mentions God (as was made public last a few months ago), then it is you and not everybody else who has a problem. You’re the one who needs to have your attitude and values checked, not those nasty and backwards Christmas well-wishers.

Okay, none of these extremes should take place, but the political correctness controversies during the Christmas season are getting ridiculous. Saying Merry Christmas is not offensive. People should be free to choose which season’s greeting they’d like to say to others, may that be Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukah, Seasons Greetings, Happy Kwanza or even Happy Festivus.

Don’t embrace a politically correct, generic holiday to satisfy the whiners around you, embrace Christmas or your own special holiday! And to the whiners: be tolerant. The right to religion and free speech is a luxury we are all allowed to enjoy.