The commercialism sucks, but commercialism sucks all year. It's just worse right now because they're doing the same thing they do all the time, but more of it, and with less creativity.
The frenzy is bad, too. People feel obligated to spend beyond their means, and having deadlines for extra obligations without having extra time to fulfill them is a sure recipe for stress.
But as for the holidays themselves, I'd argue that they are important. In your list of obnoxious things about the holidays, you included "meeting with friends and loved ones." Why is this a bad thing? Just as the Commandment to "keep holy the Sabbath day" forces Jews (and adherents of all the spin-off religions) to take a mandatory breather every week to unwind and to reconnect with their deity, I think holidays give us a similarly structured time to reconnect with family--natural or intentional--and to nurture bonds we may have neglected. Groaning about doing so seems a sure sign that it needs doing--sort of like an out-of-shape person whining about exercise.
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The frenzy is bad, too. People feel obligated to spend beyond their means, and having deadlines for extra obligations without having extra time to fulfill them is a sure recipe for stress.
But as for the holidays themselves, I'd argue that they are important. In your list of obnoxious things about the holidays, you included "meeting with friends and loved ones." Why is this a bad thing? Just as the Commandment to "keep holy the Sabbath day" forces Jews (and adherents of all the spin-off religions) to take a mandatory breather every week to unwind and to reconnect with their deity, I think holidays give us a similarly structured time to reconnect with family--natural or intentional--and to nurture bonds we may have neglected. Groaning about doing so seems a sure sign that it needs doing--sort of like an out-of-shape person whining about exercise.