I want to wish you all a very Merry Christmas.

Wait, what happened? The world didn't stop turning? But someone just uttered the "phrase-that-must-not-be-said," instead of the much more politically correct "Happy Holidays."

Surely, because of this vile act something somewhere has gone horribly wrong.

Believe it or not, everything is fine. No one is scarred for life, pandemonium hasn't broken out on the streets and Lord Voldemort has not taken over the world. In fact, there may even be a few of you that appreciate the warm wishes.

It's OK to say "Merry Christmas".

But a trend started by the overly sensitive marketing departments of companies, such as Nordstrom, have led us to believe that the phrase is much too partisan or religiously inclined to be said in public. "Once upon a holiday" is their seasonal theme, and employees are instructed to use the phrase "Happy Holidays."

This alternative word choice assumes the phrase would be offensive to those who do not celebrate Christmas. But in a recent Zogby International poll, 95 percent of Americans are not offended by a Christmas greeting while they shop.

This is because these people have the ability to recognize that such a greeting is simply a display of kindness and well wishes and not an attempt to convert them.

However, the same Zogby poll revealed that 46 percent of Americans are offended by a "Happy Holidays" wish, while 36 percent said they would intentionally avoid stores or cut their visits short if they used that phrase over "Merry Christmas."

Thus, the stores that actually go out of their way to be politically correct in order to shelter an unoffended minority of customers are really just turning off and alienating a portion of their revenue.

Perhaps this general feeling of resentment for companies who use the generic holiday wording is simply a backlash against the people who created this initial controversy in the first place.

Or maybe people just don't want to have to refer to Santa as a "jubilant, aged, weight-challenged, biological (but not necessarily sociological) male who confines animals and violates breaking and entering laws" in the not-too- distant future.

The bottom line is that the vast majority of Americans celebrate Christmas. Many of the people who do are not Christian and view the holiday as more of a time to be close to loved ones rather than a celebration of a holy event.

This doesn't mean that we should just ignore the other holidays that occur around this time. If someone says "Happy Hanukah," that's great. More power to them, and thank you for your kind thoughts. This shows that you don't need to dilute your beliefs to be more "PC."

But it still remains that the majority of people still celebrate Christmas and want a greeting that is more personalized to that. We operate on a democratic system that caters to the majority. So why can't this same general principle be applied this time of the year?

People prefer this type of treatment because it does not blanket everyone in a non-offensive shelter. Being able to converse to each other with simple phrases like "Merry Christmas" and "Happy Hanukah" instead of "Happy Christmakwanzikah" shows that we are celebrating the diversity rather than hiding it.

In essence, isn't that really what the season's all about? Although it may be cram time for consumer-based businesses, for children and adults alike it's really a time to take a break from the hustle and bustle of reality and just enjoy each other. It's a time-out from life so we can, at least for a moment, enjoy peace and harmony.

So, yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. And by continuing to say "Merry Christmas" to one another, we can be assured that he will be around for a very long time.

[Reach columnist Jeff Dickson at opinion@thedaily.washington.edu.]