I hate Christmas

[reveal]

There are thousands of people who will receive nothing more this Christmas than barely enough food to get by, if that. There are thousands of kids who have no one to spend Christmas with and will not get gifts at all. I'm sorry you got an expensive pen from parents who obviously love you. You certainly are a victim of the season.

 

[Desdichado]

"It's the thought that counts" is an empty phrase that people who actually didn't put any thought into their gifts like to resort to to make themselves feel better about the fact that they didn't bother to buy the recipient something they actually wanted. I told you what you wanted - you got me something else. That's not thoughtful. That's rude.

And yet... not nearly as rude as your reaction to it. If you were in my family, you could probably look forward to nothing at all this year from me.

 

[buzzard]

OK, since SR seems to be on the verge of being burned in effigy, let's try an example to put this in perspective.

Someone gets you a gift. They decide to give you a year subscription to a political magazine which promotes a viewpoint you abhor. They know your politics. You politely point out after getting the gift that you don't agree with what the magazine offers. You mention that you'd rather not have a magazine subscription since you never get around to reading them much (polite fib), and would rather have a fruitcake (obvious fib, nobody likes fruitcake).

The next year they buy you a different subscription, but to a magazine of like viewpoint which still annoys you.

Is the onus on you to be gracious when someone has given you a gift which honestly is designed to force their views upon you?

buzzard

 

[Crothian]

Perhaps you missed the fact that they don't have to guess. I have told them for years what I want every year in the vain hope that they will actually do that. If I didn't offer suggestions, and they got me something that they guessed on and missed, that would be one thing. But I have told them what I would like, every year for the last decade or more. And they ignore me, and get me other stuff.

Who is being rude? The person who ignores the desires of the person they are buying for year after year, or the recipient who tells them to stop getting him stuff he doesn't want?

And sometimes people try to get gifts not from alist. Perhaps they can't find the items, perhaps they forgot the list or lost it. What is rude is the way you are doing it and the sounds of the words. Getting someone a gift that they might not like that is not off their list is not rude in any sense of the word. I think you are over reacting to getting bad gifts and sounding a bit childish.

 

[reveal]

OK, since SR seems to be on the verge of being burned in effigy, let's try an example to put this in perspective.

Someone gets you a gift. They decide to give you a year subscription to a political magazine which promotes a viewpoint you abhor. They know your politics. You politely point out after getting the gift that you don't agree with what the magazine offers. You mention that you'd rather not have a magazine subscription since you never get around to reading them much (polite fib), and would rather have a fruitcake (obvious fib, nobody likes fruitcake).

The next year they buy you a different subscription, but to a magazine of like viewpoint which still annoys you.

Is the onus on you to be gracious when someone has given you a gift which honestly is designed to force their views upon you?

buzzard

Apples and oranges. We're not talking about undermining someone's political viewpoints. We're talking about getting the wrong DVD or something innocuous like that. Nothing has been done to blatantly say "I hate you" which is what your magazine example would do.

 

[buzzard]

Apples and oranges. We're not talking about undermining someone's political viewpoints. We're talking about getting the wrong DVD or something innocuous like that. Nothing has been done to blatantly say "I hate you" which is what your magazine example would do.

You are ascribing motives to the magazine selection. The political bias could be slight, but enough to annoy the recipient. Maybe the giver doesn't even see the bias but you do. That is possible with some people.

SR has said he thinks spending a lot of money on pens is wasteful, and has explained this to the givers. Yet he gets pens for Christmas. This is somehow not comparable? They have deliberately scorned his viewpoint.

The funniest thing here is that people say that if they got SR's letter they'd stop giving gifts. My impression is that he's be happier with no gifts than people wasting money on wrong gifts. The threat of no gift rings rather hollow.

buzzard

 

[Henry]

Then I stand corrected. I can now see where you are coming from;

This is why we ask fellow posters not to ascribe motives to their peers. Often, it's something else entirely, and the level of being insulted tends to escalate.

 

[Ambrus]

nobody likes fruitcake

I like fruitcake, as long as its free of nuts. Nuts are the death of fruitcake. It's called fruitcake for a reason.

 

[Kanegrundar]

Wow. It seems like every year another person gets placed into the class of the truly ungrateful list. Looks like Storm Raven is the big "winner" this year.

I understand not getting what you want and not being happy about it, but hey that's life. Like Ralts said, they could have gotten you jack squat. I get all sorts of stuff every year that I didn't ask for or really don't like, but I like that they thought enough of me to get me anything in the first place, so I don't feel bad about it. I just take the items back and either get the cash or exchange it for something I like.

I really hope you do send your little list out, and your family is insulted by it enough to get you nothing for Christmas. If that sounded harsh, that's because it was meant to. The attitude you're exhibiting is that of a small child, not a well-adjusted adult.

 

[reveal]

You are ascribing motives to the magazine selection. The political bias could be slight, but enough to annoy the recipient. Maybe the giver doesn't even see the bias but you do. That is possible with some people.

SR has said he thinks spending a lot of money on pens is wasteful, and has explained this to the givers. Yet he gets pens for Christmas. This is somehow not comparable? They have deliberately scorned his viewpoint.

The funniest thing here is that people say that if they got SR's letter they'd stop giving gifts. My impression is that he's be happier with no gifts than people wasting money on wrong gifts. The threat of no gift rings rather hollow.

buzzard

Maybe in real life people like SR just as much as the people replying in this thread.