The 'War on Christmas' is starting early.

There is a movie being offered that focuses on the tempering of the use of the word 'christmas' in this country.

There is a trailer for the movie that I watched and I was struck by one thought.

How would I feel if I was a Jew watching this, or a Muslim.

Yes, this nation was formed by 'christians' but they also knew of the problems of a runaway religion controlling the government. That is why we specifically have a 'freedom of religion' in one of the founding documents of our government. That is why we are 'endowed with inalienable rights of freedom' by another.

We can choose what deity, or even none at all, to worship. We can choose how we want to worship. And as long as the way that we choose to worship doesn't endanger others, we are allowed by those documents to do it.

Looking back at the cristmas decorations of my youth, I remember the elaborate and sometimes outlandish decorations. I remember the manger and the live animals in one town where I grew up. I remember celebrating christmas and being fully aware of the religious connotation that it was.

It was a religious event. There was nothing inherently good for the rest of society in the celebration of that holiday. It, for a child, was about pure greed. Did you get what you wanted...

The business community, while outwardly honoring the religious tradition, sought to make the most of the capitalistic nature of the holiday to make more money. For them, it was a mark of how they ended the year. Did they make a profit on the holiday or not.

So it's easy to forget that christmas is a religious holiday. A religious event that not all religions recognize.

It's easy to assume that other religions would want to be reminded of their dislike of this holiday for months out of the year. But isn't that somewhat like the 'Whites Only' signs that covered most of the south?

As hard as it is to believe, ingrained religious celebrations are still at their core a religious celebration. It's easy to start pointing fingers at those that raise issue with the appropriateness of the celebration, but that doesn't excuse the slight to others.

To be a more tolerant society we have to be willing to confront our own wrongs and be willing to be respectful of those that do not practice the same as we do.

Here is the trailer... Get you popcorn because this probably portends a more hysterical reaction to the upcoming holiday season...