Christmas Versus Hanukkah

John Oliver and John Stewart compare Christmas with Hanukkah:

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Also look that this interesting article in Slate about the competition in the religious marketplace between Christmas and Hanukkah. First, Ray Fisman has us consider the notion that faith exists in a competitive "religious marketplace":

The idea of applying economic analysis to spiritual life isn't new. Adam Smith, the great-granddaddy of modern economics, described churches as though they were profit-maximizing firms, and congregants as their customers. Just as competition between Samsung and Sony pushes each company to make better flat-screen monitors at ever-lower prices, Smith felt that clergy in a competitive religious marketplace would provide services with greater "zeal and industry" than religious leaders in places where one faith had a monopoly.

Given this perspective recent research has examined if Christmas is putting marketplace pressure on the American Jewish community to make Hanukkah, a minor holiday in Judaism, more competitive with Christmas. Which means more spending and presents overall. More from Fisman on this research:

At no time of year do Jews feel more assaulted by other religions than at Christmas. Smith would say that to prevent a loss of market share Judaism should counter with its own holiday merriment. The authors of the study begin with a survey comparing the holiday observances of students in Israel—a country where Jews are largely insulated from outside religious pressures—with students at Stanford University. Only 30 percent of Israelis ranked Hanukkah as a "top three" festival celebrated by their Jewish classmates; at Stanford the figure was more than 95 percent...

The authors of the study (parents all of them) hypothesize that children are most susceptible to Christmas envy...