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"Merry Christmas" is favored greeting
USA Today (Society for the Advancement of Education), Dec, 2007
"Merry Christmas" is back on the lips of many retailers greeting shoppers, much to the delight of those who say they are offended when a store clerk uses the generic, but politically correct, "Happy Holidays," according to a Zogby Interactive poll. Ninety-five percent insist they are not offended by being greeted with a "Merry Christmas" while shopping, but greet them with a "Happy Holidays," and 46% claim to take offense.
Of course, not everyone will be excited to hear more "Merry Christmas" greetings this season. One in three respondents who identified themselves as Jewish affirm that they were upset by hearing "Merry Christmas," as were 10% of those of non-Christian faiths or who did not identity themselves with a religion. Democrats are more likely to take offense at "Merry Christmas" (eight percent) compared with fewer than one percent of Republicans and Independents.
While "Happy Holidays" is a greeting intended to appeal to everyone, retailers' efforts to avoid offending anyone may have backfired. Some 51% of those polled maintain they are bothered by store clerks who greet customers with "Happy Holidays" in an effort to help stores be politically correct. For some shoppers, a clerk who says "Happy Holidays" might as well be saying "Don't shop here"--36% say they have avoided doing business at a store or have cut their visit short after being greeted with a "Happy Holidays" instead of a "Merry Christmas."
COPYRIGHT 2007 Society for the Advancement of Education
COPYRIGHT 2008 Gale, Cengage Learning
