The Sermon On The Mall

The Sermon On The Mall

By Daniel Gross

I found a great article on Christmas of all things, can you imagine. Americans, Romans, Jews, Muslims all found their way into the article and give the image that Christmas may be more than a Christian holiday, perhaps it is a holiday for the world to enjoy together. The author eludes to the various peoples in the context of a Christian holiday, hence giving the illusion that the disparate cultures will some how share or have shared in the holiday. Suddenly the author makes an abrupt turn for the rest of the article and relates it only to the American Christmas shopping season, which is where he was heading all along, forgetting that there are more than just Americans contributing to the economic impact of the holiday in the nation. Albeit this is America, the impact of non-Americans in this country on the economy is huge and apparently forgotten for the purpose of this article. The article promotes the stereotype of the American consumer being uncontrolled, irresponsible, and implies that it (spending) is one of the laughable strengths the American culture depends on. The author tries to pass off as comedy what may be more than a stereotype of the American culture, which is we are to focused on material possessions, getting high off the high life, and spending ,always spending, beyond our means.