My Take | The real war on Christmas is not being waged by Hong Kong or mainland China
From Oliver Cromwell and the Puritans to contemporary liberals and “woke” ideologues, the West has a long tradition of trying to cancel the season
It’s the festive season, and you go on holiday. Your brain doesn’t, though. In fact, it may experience higher levels of stress and joy than usual, leading to corresponding biochemical and neurological changes. So there is good and bad. Your dopamine levels, the “feel-good” chemical in the brain, may rise. It improves your mood from decorating, buying, handing out and receiving gifts. If nothing else, you don’t have to go to work.
Well, not me because I am on contract and have to write extras as everyone else goes on leave.
Normally, you get to see more friends and relatives at this time. That could be a joyful thing, but also stressful. Increased social interactions and routine disruptions, according to researchers, make some people anxious. I know I do. Some people get the blues because holidays worsen their loneliness. If you are in North America, the cold, longer nights and their isolation can also get you down. Not me, I never feel more alone than when I am with people.
You also tend to overeat and indulge yourself, leading to a temporary dopamine high, followed by a crash. Not a good idea, especially if you are diabetic. As you can tell, I am not a fan of the Christmas season, and practically cheered when the late great Alan Rickman, playing the evil Sheriff of Nottingham in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, declared: “And cancel Christmas.”
In fact, I have been constantly disappointed that recurrent Western propaganda about communist China having banned Christmas turned out to be false. Please, President Xi, let it be true just for once.
What actually happens is that some governments at local and county levels have banned official celebrations of Christmas, but they don’t care if ordinary people do it on their own. After all, Christmas means spending, and retailers on the mainland need it as much as anyone. It’s estimated that each Christmas is worth US$10 billion to the mainland economy. It’s not for nothing that China is the main producer of artificial Christmas trees. I don’t expect a ban on that either.