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Senators and Congressmen have franking privileges. That means they can send mail to their constituents with the government, read taxpayers, paying the postage.

We get the reason for the rule.

After all with the cost of a first class stamp approaching 50 cents it would be awfully expensive for a legislator to send newsletters, progress reports and the like to many thousands of constituents, or in the case of Senators, millions of constituents.

We also get that the legislators are not to use the privilege to campaign in mailings.

Here’s what we don’t get: This year the House Franking Commission issued a warning to lawmakers advising them they should not use to the terms “Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah” in franked mail to constituents. It would be OK to say something general like, “Have a safe and happy holiday,” the commission said in a memo.

Frankly, for our two francs, we’re frankincensed over this. Are the people of this commission a bunch of wieners, or what?

This is political correctness gone wild.

This is the notion that no one must be offended gone wild.

So what if a letter from a Senator with the words “Merry Christmas” on it landed in the mailbox of a non-Christian? Would their hands turn to stone if they held it? Would their eyes burn when they read it?

What’s offensive about it?

If someone were to wish us a Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Winter Solstice or whatever else is happening this time of year we might be surprised, even amused, but we’d say thank you and we certainly wouldn’t be offended.

What’s offensive about wishing someone a happy or merry time?