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Before I start on my monthly rant, I should say a couple things, since the content of this entry could offend some people. I understand that for a lot of people, religion is very important to them. It's a big part of their life. I say, good for them. It's wonderful that they can have such complete faith in one thing. Most people go through their lives finding it hard to believe in anyone or anything. Religion is not a bad thing.

But really. I wish we would all stop being so sensitive.

I'm referring to the fact that Honda was sued for saying 'Merry Christmas' in a television ad a couple years back. Come on! Are the people at Honda Advertising saying to themselves, "You know, I really wish those filthy Jews/Muslims/Pagans have a horrible holiday! Let's not wish them well. That'll show them!" Just because someone says 'Merry Christmas' instead of 'Happy Holidays' doesn't make them a raving anti-Semite. I know there's an excess of sappy Christmas movies already, and every December brings us a fresh batch; but if it's this so-called 'Christmas spirit' that makes us shut up, smile, and try to bring joy to our fellow man, then who the hell cares? I'm not saying the Christians have a monopoly on holiday cheer--I'm trying to say that this sense of happiness belongs to everyone, no matter what label you put on it. Whether it's 'Merry Christmas', 'Happy Hannukah', or any other winter holiday you can think of, whenever we say it, we're saying the same thing: I hope you have a happy life, if only for this brief time.

Now, New Year's--that's something we can all agree on, yes? Staying up late, bottles of sparkling grape juice (or for more mature participants, champagne), and a chance to start over new. We even make a nice little list of things that we have to start doing, or things that we have to stop doing. And that starts off fine and dandy, but soon enough the treadmill is collecting dust and I'm up until one in the morning working on a school project that's due the next day. It's so easy to just let yourself go.

I guess this is the part where I say that I've resolved to make myself a better person for this New Year, and how I'm going to see my goals through to the end. That would be nice, but it's just not me. Anyone who knows me knows that my motivation levels are akin with those of Nara Shikamaru when it comes to personal goals. The only exception is karate, and let's be honest--if I was really throwing myself into that, I couldn't be sitting here typing this.

Though, those New Year's Resolutions aren't entirely without merit. If nothing else, they force us to look hard at ourselves and make us want to do something about the parts we don't like. Even if we can't see them through, it's at least been put in our minds, and we can always pick them up again when we want to, when we have more time. We probably even carry out those resolutions unconsciously, looking at the nutritional chart at the McDonald's before ordering or planning out the week ahead of time. Hell, even I'm likely to do something. I've been bellyaching for most of my life about how I need to better myself--New Year's seems like as good a place as any to finally start.