I was advised by a fellow writer at The Statesman to preface this argument by saying that half of my household growing up was Jewish, therefore giving myself some sort of religious immunity to any part of this article sounding racist. Sage advice I thought at first, but after some thought, I realized not only that this perpetuates the idea I am attempting to dispel, but also that the audience I am trying to reach here will find this offensive no matter what.

I find the politically correct atmosphere placed around the holidays utterly abhorrent. In pressuring Americans to say “happy holidays” instead of “Merry Christmas,” we have inadvertently placed all of our interest into words rather than the meaning behind them.

Let’s face it. Stony Brook is not a college town. Then again, most schools renowned for their science and math programs are not making the Princeton Review list of party schools. But the issue here is not just curriculum. The infrastructure for such a prospect simply is not there.