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On Friday of last week, the Texas legislature passed the so-called “Merry Christmas Bill,” a fusillade by conservative lawmakers in the “War on Christmas.” The law is designed as a legal firewall to protect educators or other public officials who wish to openly celebrate Christmas in the state, but fear legal action from secular groups.

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Raw Story spoke with Russell Glasser, co-host of the Austin public-access TV show “The Atheist Experience,” who said that the law is a way for Christian lawmakers to burrow further into their illusion of constant persecution and win the votes of “people who don’t live in Austin.”

“There’s a million idiotic little bills going through the Texas legislature all the time,” Glasser said, which sometimes makes it hard to keep track of exactly what the state’s Republican lawmakers are attempting to do.

The “Merry Christmas Bill,” he said, “sounds like the usual ‘War on Christmas’ nonsense.”

“As far as I can tell, nobody has ever actually stopped saying ‘Merry Christmas’ because they’re afraid to get sued,” he continued. “Does anybody sue anyone for saying ‘Merry Christmas?’ Because I think that’s a bunch of bullshit.”

“They’re claiming that they’re under oppression,” he said, “and they use this as an excuse all the time to pass laws that basically codify Christianity and make sure that everybody hears about it as often as possible.”

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“It’s not about freedom of expression, because kids can go around and wish each other ‘Merry Christmas’ all they want,” he insisted. “There’s a lot bigger things for people to worry about if they care about the separation of church and state.”

Glasser shares hosting duties on “The Atheist Experience” with Matt Dillahunty, who Raw Story readers may remember from an incident earlier this year in which a Christian caller on the show said that perhaps a little girl was raped because she was “evil.”

“First of all, you portray that little girl as someone who’s innocent, she’s just as evil as you,” said the caller.

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Dillahunty disconnected the call, saying, “Goodbye, you piece of shit! You know what? I was a better Christian than you when I was a Christian, and I still am.”

[image of angry Santa Claus via Shutterstock.com]

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