Words Mean Things

Much has been made about the using the politically correct "Happy Holidays" greeting during this month. This offends me. Not because it negates Christmas, but because it's sloppy prose.

Stephen King is big on using specific nouns. Why say 'bird' when you can say 'cardinal?' Or pidgeon? Or buzzard? Each word conjures a specific and very different image. Why settle for a generic creature with wings and feathers when you can have a toucan or a penquin?

Specific nouns are always clear and crisp.

Same goes for greetings. Why say one thing when you truly mean another? If you're thinking Happy Chanukah, say so. It doesn't offend me in the least, even though I don't celebrate that holiday.

When we lived in Utah, we were wished "Happy 24th" the first July we were there by nearly everyone we met and I'm sure we looked puzzled. (Mormons celebrate July 24th even more vigorously than the 4th of July as the day Brigham Young looked out over the Salt Lake Basin and said, "This is the place.") Even though the greeting meant nothing to us, we weren't offended. We accepted the wishes in the spirit they were offered and we learned something about what was important to our Mormon neighbors.

And I hope you'll accept my very specific greeting in the same vein.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

PS. I'm still over at Chicks of Characterization with a brand new "Never-before-posted" excerpt from A CHRISTMAS BALL. Leave a comment at Coc for a chance to win a signed copy!