Editorial
Holiday spirit thrives at UWRF
December 13, 2007
It’s the season of giving once again, and as usual the ever-caring corporate advertising world won’t let anyone forget it. It happens every year after Thanksgiving; our society is overly inundated with messages from retailers, jewelers, toy companies and the like that we should spend frivolously—meaning line their pockets—to get that gift that those special to us really need. If you can’t detect our sarcasm there, we apologize. The point is, we’re tired of the over commercialization of the holiday season. Christmas isn’t about buying a diamond pendant for that special someone, no matter how many times you hear it on television, the radio, or read it in the paper. This over-the-top push to lead everyone to believe that everyone should buy a gift for everyone else has become a little too much for us. As college students, we have enough to worry about during the month of December, like finals and numerous projects.
We aren’t condemning the holiday season by any means, just those that look to skew it and make a quick buck off of it. On the contrary, we think that many things done by groups and individuals on campus truly exemplify what this time of year should really be about. UW-River Falls has numerous programs that haven’t lost sight of the true spirit of the holidays. The UWRF men’s hockey team donates bikes to children in local schools, the UWRF chapter of Operation Christmas Child gives gifts to children whose lives have been affected by disease, natural disaster, poverty and war, the Greeks collect toys for Toys for Tots and Chartwells sponsored a toy drive for children of families in need. This, and spending time with family, is what the holidays should be about, not buying another gift for someone who doesn’t really need it.
“It seems simple, but the holidays, meant to be a time of peace, reflection and celebration, too often exhaust rather than uplift us,” according to the Web site for the non-profit organization The New American Dream.
“If you sometimes feel trapped by the shopping, spending, crass displays and frenzied preparations, you aren’t alone. Our national surveys consistently show that Americans feel put upon by the commercialization of the season and want more of what matters… not just more stuff.”
We at the Student Voice couldn’t agree more.