is anyone else bothered by the bombardment of xmas ads?

[catmother]

just picked up my newspaper and everything is x-mas gifts, trees, food, lights, etc. i don't celebrate x-mas and it bothers me every year seeing all the lights, decorations, etc. started to see it in late september already.

[Midlodemocrat]

1. Doesn't bother me at all.

I DO celebrate Christmas, and enjoy the decorations, lights, etc.

[kliljedahl]

2. I try to ignore it

decorations in the stores here before Halloween, I do celebrate Halloween, so that was a bummer. Get perturbed with the Chia Pet & Clapper ads though.


Keith’s Barbeque Central

[catmother]

6. it's hard to ignore -- the music, the decorations, the people

asking "have you finished your x-mas shopping?" or "are you ready for x-mas?" it's just assumed that everyone is a christian.

[Orangepeel]

3. No. Retailers are just trying to make money

they need heavy holiday sales to be profitable in this economy.

People who are offended, either because they don't celebrate Christmas, or because they celebrate it in a non-materialistic way, don't need to buy

[catmother]

13. but many people actually get into large amounts of credit card

debt that will probably take them all year to get out of. my feeling is if you want to buy something for someone you don't have to wait for x-mas, you can buy it anytime of the year.

[tx_dem41]

20. People have the power to buy or not.

Its not the fault of the ads.

[pitohui]

61. "you can buy it anytime of the year"

yes, but people who just buy whatever they want whenever they want are deprived of something magical -- the power of fantasy and anticipation

in theory i could prob. buy myself anything i wanted

in reality i deny myself a little and then enjoy the surprise of being pampered by a loved one

sure, it's a game, but games are fun, that's why we play them

[mrcheerful]

4. I'm sick of the whole ad thing and very seldom watch ad

TV stations. As far as the news paper goes, I toss them out without a look. What really turned me off about ads was the Axe ads, yeah right chemicals to spray on self to make you a sex god.

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

9. Actually, I bought Axe recently, and was amazed at how many women at work

said mmmmm you smell great!

I also don't think they truly are trying to convince you that if you go to a wrestling match the female wrestlers are going to tackle you LOL

[jayctravis]

65. I can second that Axe truly does something to women.

When I wear it, a female friend makes a point to visit me several times during the day in my section of the building so she can smell it.

[sandnsea]

5. I'm bothered by garden ads

Every spring, junipers, pansies, grass seed. I don't like all all that perfectly manicured yard crap and it bothers me every year when I see old people working early in the morning until late at night trying to live up to some ridiculous idea of the perfect landscape. It's a goddamned conspiracy, I tell ya. They just want everybody out in their damned yards, all day long, so they'll forget to watch the news and won't know what they're up to.

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

7. Of Course Not. It Is The Prime Marketing Time Right Now

I expect to see it around this time.

Also, even if you don't celebrate x-mas I would think you have friends that do, so why shouldn't the ad target you as well in an attempt to inspire you to buy something for one of them?

[catmother]

14. because if i want to buy something for them i don't have to wait

for x-mas, i can buy it in june.

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

18. And You Can Also Buy It In November Or December

after being inspired by an effectively marketed ad :)

[catmother]

23. i don't pay attention to ads on tv. i've actually learned to tune out

unless it's a very catchy ad. but just picking up today's paper with all the ads i'm not inspired -- there just going out into the trash.

[jayctravis]

66. It actually feels like they waited a little longer this year.

I'm used to starting to get inundated by Xmas cheer right around Halloween, and this year it wasn't in-your-face until Thanksgiving, which is as it should be.

[TahitiNut]

8. It's not all the Christmas ads that bother me as much as ...

... all those Hannukah ads, Kwaanzah ads, Ramadan ads, and Mammonism ads. :sarcasm:

[catmother]

17. you've kind of made my point. n/t

[sandnsea]

25. Yes because

targeting 2% of the population is such a winning business strategy. :eyes:

[Name removed]

49. Deleted sub-thread

Sub-thread removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[immoderate]

10. I can ignore the ads; it's the music that gets me.

If I had to work in a place that played Xmas music for months I would go bonkers.

--IMM

[mrcheerful]

19. Then never work for

Bronners of Frankenmuth Michigan. Its a 364 day christmas store, They only day it closes is christmas day. They play xmas music from opening to close 364 days a year lol. Get out the rubber suit time yet?

[catmother]

26. my hair salon has no decorations, no music, no poinsettas (sp)

and i love it. the salons i went to before this were decorated and played music and some of the hairdressers even wore santa hats. made me very uncomforable.

[shayes51]

59. Sounds like my house.

[tritsofme]

11. I don't think I've seen one ad that specifically mentions "Christmas" this

year...

Even ridiculously changing the words in the song "We wish you a Merry Christmas" to "We wish you a Happy Holiday" in some ads.

A huge majority of Americans celebrate Christmas, its something you have to deal with.

Just wish for peace on earth and goodwill towards men.

[WolverineDG]

28. actually

they changed it to the name of the car they're trying to hawk in that ad. i thought it was kinda weird too, but then realized they were singing "honda" or "hyundai" instead of "holiday."

dg

[catmother]

31. there trying to being politically correct. but x-mas trees mean

xmas.

[tritsofme]

33. And what's wrong with that?

A Christmas Tree is a Christmas Tree...

[pitohui]

63. xmas trees are pagan

if you look at yr history, the jehovah's witness have it right -- the xmas tree is a german pagan tradition

nothing in the xtian bible abt gathering around a tree & passing around gifts in a celebration of plenty

that is pagan, pagan, pagan

and yet most christians (other than the aforementioned spoilsport jehovah's witnesses) somehow manage to enjoy this tradition and even make it their own

do you object to yule as well as xmas


i mean, what's the deal?

i just don't see how anybody could be bothered by something so sweet and harmless as the traditional tree

[izzie]

12. I just do not hear them.

but then I could sit and read a book while all my children had a water fight in the next room and never heard a thing unless some one really got hurt. That you put in another mind set.

[flordehinojos]

15. insofar as corporate america has turned xmas into a high profit market,yes

it bothers me.

[arikara]

16. I don't appreciate it but

I pay less attention to it every year except to silently mourn for the trees that have been cut down to make the flyers. I buy less every year, rarely go in to a mall and never into a walmart. I try to either make gifts or buy from local craftspeople. Not joining in with the hype and hysteria, buying locally and not supporting the big corporations makes me feel better about the season.

[GreenPartyVoter]

21. It drives me nuts to live in a culture that promotes holidays 3 or more

months away. It just perpetuates the problem that we have as a society of not living in the present.

[otohara]

22. We're Broke, So I Don't Look At Ads - Glut of Cheap Xmas Decorations

that fill our stores from China makes me want to gag.

[catmother]

24. sorry to hear you're broke.. i hope things get better for you. n/t

[otohara]

47. It's For A Good Cause

our son is in a very good college.

Temporary - but thanks!

[Skittles]

27. it bothers me every year

I watch people running around trying to find the "perfect gift"; they don't seem to have a clue what Christmas is supposed to mean......decorating theur houses with hideous crap made by ten year olds in China.....it's all quite sickeing to me.

[earth mom]

29. Yeah it bugs me too....

especially the ads during the saturday morning cartoons-there is NO way I'm buying any "Bratz" toys for my kid-LOL!

Seriously though, what I'm really against is the excessive commercialization that has taken over our lives not just at Christmas but everyday to the point that we have to watch ads in the movie theater (one reason I rarely go these days) and see product placement in the movie too! :puke:

I started feeling this way over 20 years ago, and so, over the years, I've marched to my own drummer, not needing or caring about the latest this or that. I am seriously into garage/estate sales, thrift shops, used book stores, flea markets and antique shops. And while my kid likes getting new movies, books and games for Christmas and birthday; used movies, books and games are just as appreciated all year long, which is wonderful and good for the wallet! :)

My only suggestion for you is that maybe during the month of December, you could stop your newspaper for the month and stop watching t.v. too or at least put the t.v. on mute during the ads. Yeah, you'll have to go out of your way a bit to avoid all the brouhaha, but you will probably feel so much more peaceful for it! Good Luck!

[catmother]

32. well that's another part of it. tv is my entertainment. after watching

keith olberman i want to get away from reality. so i watch CSI, Law & Order, Medium, etc. now i just looked at my TV guide and once the november sweeps are up, which is wednesday, the reruns start and will continue until after x-mas. i guess the advertisers assume that we're all out x-mas shopping at night. so now is the time i renew my membership in netflix.

[Lorien]

55. Netflix is a sanity saver

I canceled my cable several years ago, and now I only get ABC, the WB, and CBS (on a good day). Not much to watch there, and I have the remote handy for the "mute" button when the ads come on. I pretty much just watch DVDs from Netflix, and I find that I've had NO desire to shop since getting rid of the cable. Plus, Netflix is much cheaper than basic cable.

If our society were truly healthy, we'd be getting together with friends and family for dinner and conversation during our off hours and the TV would remain off-but I haven't known people who do that regularly since the '70s. :-(

[Dances with Cats]

30. only about 4-6

times each hour I watch TV. Infinite number of times trying to read the Sunday Paper. Why doesn't the "SHOP! SHOP! SHOP!" mantra make me jump up and do my duty.? Is something wrong with me, Catwoman?
And Black Friday sales were flat? Oh no.....

[catmother]

34. i'm catmother -- not catwoman -- i believe she is another poster

on DU. well i guess the same thing that's wrong with you is wrong with me. i wonder if it's contagious.

[Dances with Cats]

41. may the goddess

help you if you have the same problems as me, haha. I just get a little redundant over and over again in my posts. Here is to Cats of all stripes, Dancing and otherwise!

[DanCa]

35. That's why I celebrate Festivus -

I am tired of the crash comericalism of the holidays.

[catmother]

36. another thing that drives me crazy is the traffic and the crowds.

my mom needs a new recliner and friday would have been the perfect day to take her inasmuch as the stores are halfway between my house and hers (she spent a few days here) -- it would have been logical to go when i was driving her home. but i'm sure i would have been caught in a massive traffic jam.

i tell my husband every year if you need underwear, or anything let me know before thanksgiving so i can beat the crowds.

[acmavm]

37. You know who I feel bad for? The parents of really poor kids who, if they

do happen to have a television, know that they can't possibly buy the crap their kids are seeing advertised as 'must have'. These poor kids are being told that their really just out of it without the right toys, right clothes, right this, right that.

We were extremely poor, lived in the projects, but had been given a tv. And so help me, there were almost no ads for Christmas crap when I was little. But what little ads there were (newspaper) did kind of make us upset that we wouldn't be getting this 'must have' shit that other peoples kids surely were getting. But you know what, we were damn grateful for what we did get. Very grateful. We got one 'new' thing (inexpensive and much needed like socks, underwear, etc.) and the rest came from the Salvation Army. A lot of it was used. But we didn't care. It may not have been what was being hawked by the newspaper and tv ads, but it was appreciated and we were happy.

That's why I don't give much of a damn about Christmas now. It's ruined every year because of the greed. I have never wanted, nor do I want, the wildly expensive shit that we're told we need to have to be happy. I just want to pay my bills, keep my kids warm, have food in the kitchen, and concentrate on what the real meaning of Christmas is supposed to be.

[catmother]

42. i know what you mean. i don't know about where you live and

i never saw it when i lived in new york, but in arizona the salvation army sponsors a "christmas angel" program. there are trees in every mall and they are decorated with cards from needy children who tell you what they want. you buy the gift and bring it back to the salvation army people and they wrap it and take it to the children. i was an angel for the first few years i moved here, but i don't like the shopping so i just give money and let them buy the gift.

[Justice Is Comin]

38. It is downright nauseating to me.

What other holiday is driven up your butt for three months? What if the 4th of July was non stop promotion starting in May? What if preparations for the Thanksgiving turkey started in September?

We would be putting our heads in vices and anxious to turn the handle.

Shopping channels especially. Every damn thing and every other word is "gift." It doesn't matter if it's a gas nozzle for a barbecue broiler. It's a great gift...super gift idea...Wh-a-t a gift this would be for someone...great stocking stuffer...For TWO months!!! A#$%^&***&^$@$$#

If I was president, my first act in office would be that it would be a felony to mention the word Christmas before December 10th. And the penalty for violating it would be 30 days. In the electric chair!!

[Bridget Burke]

39. Not at all.

Christmas buying has been important to the economy for quite a while. FDR caught lots of grief because he moved Thanksgiving back--thereby extending the shopping season. Due to the Bush economy, the decorations, ads, etc., started extra early this year.

There are parts of the newspaper I skip entirely--no matter the time of year. TV constantly bombards us with ads--whatever the season. Use your remote. Why did you let your Netflix account lapse? Weird suggestion: Turn off the TV & read.

About lights, food & trees--how could they "bother you"?

[catmother]

40. i cancelled my netflix when the new tv season began. i happen

to love tv. wasn't that way all my life. but i'm 64 -- i have chronic fatigue syndrome which affects my concentration so i do not read much anymore. i just left the site and restarted my netflix membership.

as far as lights, food trees they make me think of something that i want to part of. and it shoved down my throat. some of my neighbors have already put up their x-mas lights. we live in the middle of the desert on the side of a mountain and we don't like the light pollution. our local newspaper always says "please turn off your lights so we can see the stars".

[HeeBGBz]

45. I love Netflix

So far the Christmas stuff hasn't bothered me unless you count the grouchy families that I have to feed that are irritable from shopping. Of course, they've spent all their money on STUFF and can only afford to leave a dollar tip. So far they haven't turned on the Christmas music at work. That always makes me Grinchy.

[catmother]

52. well i hope that they would think twice and tip you better. n/t

[newswolf56]

43. It's Popeil Pocket Fisherman Time again! Step Right Up!

Which expresses exactly up how I feel about the commercial aspects of this season: to the extent that, the last year I lived in the country, I wanted to put Santa hats on my jack-o-lanterns.

In the country at least you can see the connection between the human holidays and the rest of nature -- Hallowe'en (or Samhain as it was called on the old pagan calendar) the night the year dies and the next day the first day of winter, Christmas as the Abrahamic version of the Winter Solstice and the rebirth of the Sun (which the Christians changed to "son") -- but in the city and the suburbs, all traces of these old-as-humanity connections are gone, and the whole time from September to January becomes naught but an orgy of compulsive spending: of which the consumer riots at Wal-Mart are the ultimate (and ultimately obscene) example.

Nor is resentment of the commercialism a new phenomenon: a Charles Dickens character said it best of all: "Bah! Humbug."

Nevertheless I love the time as it used to be: the brisk cold, the scent of evergreens, the snow-sparkling nights. When I was a Boy Scout and an Explorer we always went caroling, especially at the homes of the less fortunate (for whom our Christmas baskets were often the only Christmas at all). When I was a young adult -- a young journalist in Manhattan -- Christmas was of course as commercialized as it is now, but nevertheless what truly brought Christmas to New York City was the first blizzard of the season: typically a couple of weeks after Thanksgiving. No more: global warming has seen to that, just as its harsher and more enduring lessons will see to the end of all religion that sets itself in hostility to nature.

[CrispyQ]

44. I sit in the front area of our small office.

Last year, I put up a small but very cool tabletop Halloween decoration -- a skeleton climbing out of a coffin holding a candelabra with real candles. I placed a small candy bowl next to it.

After Thanksgiving, when one of the other women in the company discovered I wasn't going to decorate for xmas, she decorated my area one morning while I was out. Not her area, mind you, mine. She then had the nerve to ask me to take the decos down while she went on xmas vacation. I told her they could stay up forever for all I cared -- I wasn't taking them down. She was pissed at me for several weeks after that.

Holy crap!!

[catmother]

53. did she take them down? i probably would have torn them down

the minute i saw them. lol

[Mutley]

46. Nah. I worked at Toys R Us for five years

and became desensitized to Christmas ads and Christmas songs. I learned to completely tune that stuff out if I want to.

[ucmike]

48. i get tired of the hypocrisy re: the attack on christmas

okay, other people are way more into xmas than me. i see it as a time for family and friends, no religous connection for me.

so many of the "pro-christmas" arguments i'm hearing seem to frame christianity as some weak, teetering religion fighting for its life.

what gets to me is the chorus of people demanding that retailers say "merry xmas" and have the word on display. why? is the true holiness of the event sanctified by having the sikh at walmart say "merry xmas" to you. this is supposed to be a celebration of the defining moment of christian history and the cornerstone of the religion, yet so many people seem to need to have their beliefs reinforced, legitmized, and validated by corporate america.

i had an argument with my brother about the "attack on christmas" last week. my basic p.o.v. was that christmas is fine, it is celebrated by probably 85% of the people in this country and billions around the world. i told him to have some faith in his religion, its doing quite well without forcing it on the rest of us. i'm dumbfounded that people (bro included) seem to feel that walmart, target or city hall should validate their religous beliefs.

[catmother]

50. well said. n/t

[RebelOne]

51. I'm an atheist, but I do celebrate Xmas for the sake

of my family and friends. And I just block out all the Xmas ads. They don't bother me.

[catmother]

54. that's understandable. before my mom moved here we did

whatever we wanted. one thing was to go to the bakery and buy all kinds of goodies, rent some videos and stay in bed and pig out. but now she lives nearby and for her sake we at least cook a special meal. i was bitching on thanksgiving -- my husband cooked the turkey and i did the veggies and i was complaining how i hate to cook and my mom said "oh don't worry about x-mas, you do what you want, i'll stay home by myself and cry". i said "you know i'm not going to let that happen, but i would rather eat out and mom, you don't like to eat out". she said "i will if we go to a clean restaurant". i said "mom, we don't eat at dirty restaurants". lol

she's 82 and we were in a restaurant one day and she saw a fly on some pastries and even though she loved the food there, she'll never go back.

[ohio_liberal]

56. The only thing that really bothers me...

...is the cheesy music fucking EVERYWHERE. Bah humbug. Have a fucking holly jolly Christmas.

[chat_noir]

57. hey, everyone needs these

$499 vacuum


http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=3946737


$299 Christmas tree



http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=3936076&cat=435596&type=1&dept=4044&path=0%3A4044%3A440989%3A435596

[jzodda]

58. Bothered?

By the ads? yeah

By the season? HELL NO!! Its the best time of the year for me :) I love the lights and stuff. The ads drive me nuts though, as its all centered around one thing only

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

[pitohui]

60. why would it possibly bother you?

even if you don't partake, how does it hurt you that other people are having a good time?

i've never understood this attitude of dammit i'm incapable of enjoying myself so why should anybody else

i like to see the ads, so i can compare prices and get the most bang for my buck

[zippy890]

62. totally disgusted by xmas crap everywhere

the blaring xmas music in every store, the hideous tacky decorations ,(inflatable nativity -ugh - seems blasphemous as well as ugly)

its all so crass

[Kaylee]

64. I love Christmas.....

At this point, this commercialized holiday has nothing to do with Christ anyway. My family has a lot of fun with christmas. I love the music, the cheesy movies, the sappy holiday tv specials (especially a Charlie Brown christmas). It just brings out the kid in me. Now that I have two kids myself, it is fun watching their eyes light up when they see Santa Claus. Besides, I can easily get them to behave for a month, by threatening them with a stocking full of coal!

[lwbaby]

70. Xmas!

I love decorating for it. We put up a tree today and stringed lights all over our house. If you are going to do it, better to put the effort into doing it once for 4 weeks rather than just the 2 or so you'd get with a real tree that would die off and leave needles to be vacuumed up for 3 months after the fact.

As an aside, we make our own candles and just lit a homemade spicy-pie one today, it's scent permeates the whole house!

[ThatsMyBarack]

67. I'm not wild about any of them in November....

....but one in particular that gets to me is the one for 93.9 LiteFM All Christmas music. Of course, they just had to come before Thanksgiving. I love all the 'fun stuff" they usually play, especially the Disco-to-Duran '70s/'80s "Flashback Weekends".

Help, I'm going through withdrawal!

[peekaloo]

68. My sister lives down the street from a real life Clark Griswold.

and the electric company is lovin' him tonight.

[lwbaby]

69. Xmas ads

I just ignore them and shop online with a prepaid visa card at sites that offer free delivery.

I do agree with you though on a base level and think that consumerism frenzy is just plain stupid.