Well, I can't honestly say that I pay much attention to advertising, at this time of year or any other, or listen to the words of whatever piped-in "music" is available in the mall. Come to think of it, I avoid the mall.

I do think that this ongoing trend...assuming that this should be a matter of concern at all...really means that we have all come full circle. After all, the early Christians stole the solstice holiday (the time that the sun returned), which was celebrated in the frozen lands of Northern Europe with feasting, gift giving and merry-making, and used it to celebrate the birth of their Christ instead. {Most likely Rabbi Yeshua ben Yosef of Nazaret was born sometime in December or January, and I suppose December 25th is as good a guess as any.}

Going back to an earlier form of celebration seems fine to me - and there is no reason at all that the Christians, the Jews, the Wiccans, the African-Americans or anyone else shouldn't be able to celebrate it in their own way.