Friday, December 25, 2015

Does the Santa myth harm children?


CNN/Jamie Gumbrecht, 12/25/15. "Santa doesn't come to their house."

Image result for Santa or no Santa picture
Santa sent packing.
"On December 24, so the old story goes, Santa Claus and his magical reindeer fly down from the North Pole with a toy-filled sleigh to leave gifts beneath the Christmas trees of good little children. Except, of course, he doesn't come to every house -- even houses with perfectly charming children who love Christmas. In an age of sharing red-faced, sobbing Santa photos on social media and an Elf on the Shelf overload, some parents simply put the kibosh on the jolly bearded fellow. 

Related image
What's next,
no reindeer either?
They're not fun-hating, elf-slaying Christmas contrarians, they said. They celebrate. They just don't tell their kids that Santa Claus is watching, that he'll tiptoe into their homes on Christmas Eve or that he'll reward them with gifts. Their reasons vary: They don't want to lie, they don't want to give Santa credit for gifts or they don't support the North Pole behavior police. Some said they don't want to set their kids up for a hard fall when they learn the truth. Others said they don't want to confuse religious celebrations with a marketable myth. 

"I never uttered, 'Santa isn't real,' " said Myndee Corkern, a mother of three whose family doesn't "do Santa." "We just leave it out. It's just pretend."But the parents who decide on a Santa-free celebration say their choice often doesn't sit well with others. Generally, there's no harm in going along with the Santa story, and no harm in skipping it, either, said Stephanie M. Wagner, a clinical assistant professor in the department of child and adolescent psychiatry at NYU Langone's Child Study Center."  Read more.

Note:  photograph, Santa sent packing from France 24 TV; graphic, Public Domain Pixbay from Treehugger.

Posted by Kathy Meeh

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Quite possibly the stupidest thing I ever read!

Kathy Meeh said...

2:00 pm, then based upon your response (such potentially moral issues being "stupid"), hopefully you have no children.

I just talked to a friend who is a Family Psychologist and her response was, "thinking there was a Santa was fun for her children (2 boys), and eventually they figured-it-out."
My personal response is similar to others who would present Santa only as myth from the first.

Anonymous said...

Yep sure do and they are both straight A student's.

Anonymous said...

Telling your kids that there is a Santa Claus is one of the stupidest and most dangerous things you can do to a child. This was confirmed in not only my discussions with a family psychologist but also from a consult with the Easter Bunny.

The Local Libertarian said...

Rationalism goes counter to imagination. But imagination is required to propose new ideas. Rationalism can't answer for all the unknowns. And it can't accept that rationalism may not have the answers for everything. And it can't accommodate imagination and creative thinking.

Unhindered rationalism leads to depression and desperation.

Kathy Meeh said...

Libertarian 1057, then again, a rational mind could say lying about Santa may be a first act of betrayal to a child. As the child ages and becomes an adult, that betrayal memory remains. Whereas if a child pretends, it's is just play.

The human brain has both rational and creative capacity, one supports the other-- just as deductive and inductive thinking (reasoning) support finding answers and solutions.
The highly creative people I know are not liars, but seek the truth.
The highly rational people I know are have a measured view, and are not depressed and desperate.
You may be hanging-out with the wrong people. Maybe it's your politics.

Anonymous said...

Telling your kids that Pacifica has an economy, now that is dangerous to your kids?

They might just believe you and grow up to be stoned hippies!