It’s bad enough that Bill O’Reilly hypes a phony war on Christmas as an excuse to attack, humiliate and denigrate his political foes. But now he’s hyping a phony feud with Jon Stewart over the subject in order to continue playing the conservative victim. Oh, and whipping up more ill will and antagonism among Americans while he’s at it.
You may recall that last night, Stewart lit into Fox News, including O’Reilly, over its annual War on Christmas baloney. Now, Stewart likes to mock O’Reilly but it’s in fun. In reality, they are friendly. O’Reilly, on the other hand, used his Christmas victimhood to maliciously ratchet up hostilities.
In his Talking Points commentary on the subject tonight, O’Reilly started out jovially:
Now I know Christmas is in the air because my pal Jon Stewart once again denying there is any problem with Christmas displays. Apparently, Mr. Stewart has discarded the evidence I presented that there are major organizations intimidating Americans over Christmas displays in public.
We’ve documented that time and time again… but alas, alas, Mr. Stewart is not getting the message.
Actually, I think it’s O’Reilly who’s not getting the message: that his shtick is beyond stale. Nevertheless, without a trace of irony, he added, "You know what I think it is? Stewart just likes playing the Grinch."
Then, after playing a clip of Stewart mocking him, O’Reilly addressed Stewart and his “18 writers”: “You guys are now on double secret probation. One more time, Buster, one more time, and you are officially voided from Christmas."
Then O’Reilly turned serious:
It is quite clear to anyone with a brain that there is a war between traditional Americans and secular progressives in this country.
Ironically, while O’Reilly holds himself up as the protector of Christmas, he can’t be bothered with any of that “peace on earth” and “goodwill” stuff. Instead, he used this opening to attack liberals as anti-Judeo/Christian warriors, baby-killers seeking “unfettered abortions” and “cradle-to-grave entitlements” moochers. “That’s what President Obama’s trying to accomplish,” O’Reilly added for good-Christian measure. He continued with his hate mongering in the name of Christmas:
So any public display of Christianity is not good for the progressive cause. …The struggle between traditional Americans, who believe that Judeo-Christain philosophy strengthens the nation, and the secular-progressives, who believe that America is an unfair place that must be drastically changed, is ongoing and the tactics are brutal.
And if the tactics are not brutal, it's a good bet that O’Reilly will do his best to make it so.
He ended by saying:
…So I hope Jon Stewart will reconsider the situation because in his heart, he knows I’m right. Christmas is a huge symbol of the cultural struggle in this country and has been for years. And what a great Christmas gift it would be for Jon Stewart to finally admit it.
You got that? O'Reilly's Christmas wish is not for the "brutal" "cultural struggle" to be resolved. No, he wants Stewart to admit he's right. Well, don’t hold your breath, O’Reilly.
Do stay tuned for the next salvo, however.
Well, if they WERE offended, I’m sure the Christians didn’t care.
Look, Christmas is the ONLY religious holiday that causes both the private and public sectors to grind completely to a halt. Non-Christians have little choice but to go along with it. So if non-Christians decide to decorate a “holiday tree” or wish one another “happy holidays,” Bill-O shouldn’t get his panties in a twist about it.
No, Bill- You know what’s a symbol of the cultural struggle? The right-wing hatred of the pope, because his Christian values don’t mesh with their political agenda.
The War on Christmas is just the latest in a long line of power grabs by religious bigots who are trying to privatize the holiday, and blame it on whoever they’re pissed off with that day.
