Does Santa need to go on a diet

Yesterday’s blog post brought about a flurry of comments.  As it turns out I forgot I few things.  Since there’s no time like the present, let me put the spotlight on some of the comments.

Andrea said …

“McColl is just another author trying to sell books.  She’s desperate and she knows that creating a controversy will give her her five minutes of fame.  She’s a nut job.”   

(There were more emails to that effect, stating that McColl is simply seeking publicity)

Linda said …

“I always question the motives of these do-gooders.  What alternative motive do they have?  Nobody does something for nothing.”

Michael said …

“If a smoking Santa sets a bad example for kids, so does his body.  Santa is morbidly obese and needs to go on a diet.  His weight sets a bad example for the kids.  Perhaps kids should stop setting out milk and cookies and give him something healthy to snack on.”

Erik said …

“All things considered, Santa is breaking the law.  He’s breaking and entering.  Is this what we want to teach our kids?  That’s it’s okay to go into other people’s houses at night.”

Monica said …

“The whole Santa thing is against my beliefs.  We teach our children that love can’t be bought, but Santa is doing just that.  If he didn’t bring gifts, would kids still love him as much?”

Madeleine said …

“I have three kids and I can’t afford presents for all of them.  Last year each had to make do with a scarf.  When they saw what other kids got, they asked me if Santa didn’t love them.  When I said that of course he did, they asked why he didn’t bring them nice presents.”

Andrea said …

“If we want to set a good example for children, we should look at the fairy tales.  If parents today are complaining about violence on TV and the effect this has on younger viewers, what about Snow white, Cinderella, Red Riding Hood and Rapunzel.”

I guess it’s true, the old fairy tales are filled with violence.

Snow white casts a bad light on stepmothers.  The stepmother orders the huntsman to find Snow white and cut out her heart.  When this fails, the stepmother poisons an apple and has Snow white eating it.  She is committing murder.

In Cinderella we not only meet an evil stepmother but two evil stepsisters.  Cinderella is forced into child labor and the whole story is filled with nothing but lies and deceit.

In Red Riding Hood children encounter murder.  Remember the wolf eating Red Riding Hood and her grandmother? If memory serves me correctly, in the end a huntsman kills the wolf which set the grandmother and Red Riding Hood free, which reflects animal cruelty.

In Rapunzel we encounter abduction and a child being locked away in a tower.

The cartoons kids watch don’t set a good example either.

Think of the Roadrunner … how many times has he wolf attempted to kill the Roadrunner?  He’s tried shooting him, squashing him under rocks, blowing him up with dynamite and a series of other ways.

Perhaps McColl has something to say about that too.

Fact is, no matter how much certain mothers try to blame TV for violence, that theory doesn’t hold water.  Millions of kids grew up listening to fairy tales and watching cartoons.  Most of them turned out to be upstanding adults.  Sure, there are a few bad apples, but is that any reason to deprive kids from their favorite entertainment?

McColl and other women with similar notions should take a good look at themselves.  Could it be that, because their life is miserable they can’t rest until they’ve spoiled things for a few others?