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This is rant. A heartfelt, head-spinning rant. I've just received my third "Holiday Gift Meme" in as many days and I DO NOT WANT!
I normally avoid stores from Thanksgiving through the end of the year. Not only do I hate crowds, but the whole gimme grab leaves me saddened and exhausted. If I told you I didn't exchange gifts with friends, I'd be lying. But more and more, I've been moving toward gifts to charities, personal assistance to others in lieu of material gifts.
And while I don't begrudge any else's buying of gifts, its the not so subtle asking that seems to becoming a bit more ballsy the last few years.
My least favorite version of this phenomenon is the LJ/Facebook/Blog Christmas exchange list/Holiday gift meme.
The 'if you just happen to have a deluxe full feature camera, or an iPad, or gee, maybe a cashmere coat that you weren't planning on doing anything with - maybe you could send it my way?'
For the record - if I have something I don't need, I give it to charity. Coat I'm not wearing goes to charity. Sweater that doesn't fit - ditto. Blu ray player - how many people have spare blu ray players sitting around their house? And if you do, I'll bet a nursing home or children's hospital would be thrilled to have it.
Don't you feel any embarrassment at your obviously grubby begging meme, in many cases asking virtual strangers to give you stuff? Not food or clothes or shelter, but luxuries that no one has to have?
This isn't anything like a person trying to raise money to pay medical bills or offset funeral expenses or help with college tuition when their scholarship discontinued or vet bills for a sick pet.
This is asking your on-line pals to be Santa.You want something for free...use freecycle. But honestly, I don't want to be accosted with lists for wonderful sparkly items you'd like to have cause, well, because dammit everyone else has one.
In a year when the stated US unemployment rate is 10%, but the real unemployment rate is closer to 20%, people are losing jobs and homes faster than the blink of an eye, maybe, just maybe, this is the year where you say..."I have all that I need, I have more than I need. I am not so self-involved that I think my need for an iphone deserves more attention than someone who doesn't have a winter coat."
And please don't tell me how filled with the Christmas spirit you are, or how Jewish you feel (whatever the hell that means) and then put up a list of what you want as gifts. Because really, who are you kidding?
Now in the interest of full disclosure, if anyone has the following hanging around in exra supply, please feel free to forward them to my attention. I'll make sure those who have real needs get these:
So bah humbug to the gift list memes.
I wonder how long it will take to get the first 'you're a stinkin' socialist' comment.
I normally avoid stores from Thanksgiving through the end of the year. Not only do I hate crowds, but the whole gimme grab leaves me saddened and exhausted. If I told you I didn't exchange gifts with friends, I'd be lying. But more and more, I've been moving toward gifts to charities, personal assistance to others in lieu of material gifts.
And while I don't begrudge any else's buying of gifts, its the not so subtle asking that seems to becoming a bit more ballsy the last few years.
My least favorite version of this phenomenon is the LJ/Facebook/Blog Christmas exchange list/Holiday gift meme.
The 'if you just happen to have a deluxe full feature camera, or an iPad, or gee, maybe a cashmere coat that you weren't planning on doing anything with - maybe you could send it my way?'
For the record - if I have something I don't need, I give it to charity. Coat I'm not wearing goes to charity. Sweater that doesn't fit - ditto. Blu ray player - how many people have spare blu ray players sitting around their house? And if you do, I'll bet a nursing home or children's hospital would be thrilled to have it.
Don't you feel any embarrassment at your obviously grubby begging meme, in many cases asking virtual strangers to give you stuff? Not food or clothes or shelter, but luxuries that no one has to have?
This isn't anything like a person trying to raise money to pay medical bills or offset funeral expenses or help with college tuition when their scholarship discontinued or vet bills for a sick pet.
This is asking your on-line pals to be Santa.You want something for free...use freecycle. But honestly, I don't want to be accosted with lists for wonderful sparkly items you'd like to have cause, well, because dammit everyone else has one.
In a year when the stated US unemployment rate is 10%, but the real unemployment rate is closer to 20%, people are losing jobs and homes faster than the blink of an eye, maybe, just maybe, this is the year where you say..."I have all that I need, I have more than I need. I am not so self-involved that I think my need for an iphone deserves more attention than someone who doesn't have a winter coat."
And please don't tell me how filled with the Christmas spirit you are, or how Jewish you feel (whatever the hell that means) and then put up a list of what you want as gifts. Because really, who are you kidding?
Now in the interest of full disclosure, if anyone has the following hanging around in exra supply, please feel free to forward them to my attention. I'll make sure those who have real needs get these:
- Affordable health care for everyone
- A government that works for the people not the big corporations
- Food for everyone, so that no one goes to bed hungry
- Ending discrimination against others because of their race, or religion, or country of origin, or sexual orientation, or gender or disability, or political beliefs or personal private behavior.
- A decent job with decent pay and benefits for anyone who is willing to work.
So bah humbug to the gift list memes.
I wonder how long it will take to get the first 'you're a stinkin' socialist' comment.
