The Christmas season brings out the worst in me.  As hard as I try to stay positive through the entire holiday, it's tough.  This holiday is supposed to be about the birth of Jesus Christ.  I'm not religious, so I try to make it about family.  However, the sheer consumerism of America has ruined what should be a good time for most people.

I see it every year and it saddens me more and more.  Housewives, grandmas, and soccer moms raid the stores to stock up on the next big toy for their darling children.  These people put on their blinders and sprint towards the Tickle My Elmo section.   If you stand in their way, you will die!

The whole spirit of Christmas has been lost within the past 5 years.  I never even heard the term "Black Friday" until a couple years ago.  What is it that causes the middle class to drop all common sense and turn into a corporate puppet in search of the next great toy?  What causes these normally peaceful beings to actually get into fights over the next great video game?   What would possess a herd of soccer mom's unleash a deadly fury to be first in line for their 50" Plasma TV?

I don't have a good answer.  The only thing I can think is that all the things that make America great are also the same things that make Americans idiots.  The average American is a puppet in an age of consumerism.  They will blindly break out the credit card for the next gadget without giving any second thought to consequences of living a life in debt.  They take their fancy new plasma TV home so they can sit on the couch, chugging Coca Cola and watching American Idol.  It's a sick, twisted environment.  Am I the only person that sees this?

Christmas has just become a microcosm of America as a whole.  Something as beautiful as Christmas has been taken by the corporations, monetized, and we blindly accept it as life.  We have to BUY BUY BUY! Who gives a fuck if the economy is in the shitter?  Who gives a fuck if I don't have the money to pay for it? I can keep paying my minimum balance on my credit card until I die!

I think the average American is oblivious to the fact that there is a world outside of America.  While, I do not get caught up in all the hoopla of Christmas and being a spender, I am guilty of thinking that the American way is the only way.  Recently, I have taken a step back and realized this.  I am no longer blind.

One thing I'd like to do before I die is travel abroad.  I'd love to see what other countries have to offer.  I also want a break from the typical bullshit American lifestyle.  I love my country.  I love what it stands for.  What I don't love is selfishness and greed.  Each and every year, those 2 traits seem to stand out in our society.  I'd love to experience Christmas somewhere other than America one year.  I'm going to put that on the to-do list.