Ho HO HO

A 2001 UK poll found that 71.6% of the UK consider themselves Christian, 15.5% ticked "No Religion" and 7.3% refused to answer.

I'm pretty sure that the majority of the Christians only nominally consider themselves so in matters of birth, marriage and death (the so-called "hatches, matches and dispatches")and rarely step foot in a church outside of those occasions (lack of taxis, excess alcoholic fuel, a nostalgia for tea clothed figures from childhood and the lure of warmth on a cold December 24th notwithstanding).

That leaves around 6% of the population that could, apparently, be insulted or threatened or offended by the UK's continuing celebration of the birth of Christ, annual piss-up, fight with the in-laws, inappropriate acts at the office party, a much needed week off or whatever it means to people who do acknowledge it in one form or another. "Christmas should be downgraded unless other religious festivals are marked on an even footing, a Government think-tank has said."

At the risk of offending active Christians, oh for Christ's sake!

According to japan-guide.com "Less than 2% of the Japanese are Christians, and Christmas is not a national holiday. Nevertheless, the popularity of Christmas is growing in Japan especially among young female Japanese."

If I were a Daily Mail reader I might complain that the world has gone mad.

If it weren't for Daily Mail readers, I might be prepared to believe it.