A limerick a week #14

Faith, hope and gluttony.
That’ll be Christmas!

Big business dictates the modern spirit of Christmas (its marketing departments ensure that) and throughout its annual, tawdry attempts to wrest even more money from the season of goodwill we, as consumers, unfailingly comply.

capitalistchristmas

Nothing new of course. On his album ‘An evening wasted with Tom Lehrer‘, the songwriter/mathematician introduces his attempt at a tongue-in-cheek consumerist’s Christmas Carol with:

It has always seemed to me after all, that Christmas with its spirit of giving, offers us all a wonderful opportunity each year to reflect on what we all most sincerely and deeply believe in. I refer of course, to money“.

Many a true word spoken in jest. Or, as Kevin McKenna writing in the Observer argues:

At Christmas time though, the UK turns into a vast themed funfair reserved exclusively for the enjoyment for people with money … . At no other time of year does a person who  is experiencing real deprivation feel more alienated or deprived“.

pleb-rudolf

Therefore, as response to marketing departments the world over and in honour of Scrooges and Grinches everywhere, I give you:

It’s clearly within my ability
To indulge in a certain proclivity.
So, because our modern-day
Christmas has lost its way,
I’ll  eschew all the seasonal festivity!

Postscript: The perceptive amongst you will recognise the subtitle of this post to come from Thea Gilmore’s not-quite-a-hit Yuletide song, “That’ll be Christmas” in which her attempt to head for high ground to “forget it all” comes to nought. I suspect that will be my lot too.

Published by

LanterneRouge

😎 Former scientist, now graduated to a life of leisure; Family man (which may surprise the family - it certainly surprises him); Likes cycling and old-fashioned B&W film photography; Dislikes greasy-pole-climbing 'yes men'; Thinks Afterlife (previously known as Thea Gilmore) should be much better known than she is; Values decency over achievement.

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