First off, I don’t hate Christmas, Thanksgiving or the holiday season. In fact, through the years, the holiday season has given me countless memories that I will cherish forever.

From Thanksgiving to New Years there is an indescribable calm that overcomes me, and even though it is only for a while, it’s something to look forward to year after year. I look forward to Thanksgiving every year because I get to spend time with family that either lives out of town or that I don’t get to see as much as I’d like to.

For those of us that have taken an economics class, we have learned about the Law of Diminishing Marginal Utility. It states that as a person increases consumption of a product – while keeping consumption of other products constant – there is a decline in the marginal utility that person derives from consuming each additional unit of that product.

In layman’s terms, the more you get of one thing the less special that one thing will become. For me, the holiday season is special. I don’t want to see Christmas commercials in July, or before Thanksgiving for that matter. I believe that it takes some of the spirit out of “the most wonderful time of the year.” If “the most wonderful time of the year” is eight out of the 12 months of the year, how truly wonderful and unique is it?

It just goes to show how needy we as a society have become. We can no longer wait until December to cherish the festive time with family and friends. Distributors can no longer wait until December to promote their latest toy or newest gadget. If Christmas becomes year-round, how special will it really be when Christmas time actually comes around?

Retailers and companies are trying to squeeze every single red cent out of consumers nowadays. I guess I can’t really blame them in this economic time of struggle. But nonetheless, I would rather save the holiday commercials for the holidays.

I know what you’re thinking. “Man, what a Scrooge this guy is!” On the contrary, tradition to my family is probably the most important thing in the world. Thanksgiving is a special time. Family, food and football. It should mark the beginning of the joyous month to come and the activities and get-togethers leading up to Christmas. Instead, commercialization has geared up consumers for the oncoming onslaught of the holidays. Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukah, Ramadan, Kwanzaa or any other tradition, this time of year is a time to be spent with family and friends, celebrating togetherness and enjoying the company of loved ones.

We already lost Valentines Day as a special holiday. It seems like before we even get settled in to the New Year, we get geared up for another holiday that is more than a month away. I can deal with Valentines Day being just another “Hallmark Holiday.” But not Thanksgiving. Not Christmas.

There is just so much pressure now. Children can’t help but be swamped with gift ideas, so much to where most of them get their hopes up. And then before you know it, a special time of year to be shared with loved ones is ruined because little Tommy didn’t get his Robotic Lifelike Dinosaur or Nerf Assault Rapid Fire Rifle X7 with Laser attachment. Because of over-commercialization, we have lost the true meaning and spirit of the holidays. Sure, it’s nice to receive cool stuff on Dec. 25 of every year, but let’s not forget what the best gift of all is: spending quality time with the people that you love.