As we all know, the majority of people in the world are blindly following traditions based on ancient pagan gods and idol worship. There is nothing holy about holidays... everything was created to deceive the masses. Sheeples have been brainwashed since birth and passes on to their kids fairy tale stories. Santa is Satan!
You are right in choosing not to lie. This could be your way out of the world of illusions. However, the next step should be seeing things as they are really. Being honest with oneself is a good step to seeing the truth of everything as it is.
Also, saint nicholas has got nothing to do with christmas. He's celebrated on the 6. of december. In Switzerland he's called Samichlaus and gives a bag of peanuts, tangerines and chocolate to kids. Little kids sometimes have to(at least when I was about 5 years old) tell him a poem to get their bag. but the rituals differ frim country to country.^^ you can read all about it on wikipedia.
I think I read somewhere some time ago that santa became knwon and popular in the USA mainly because of the use of the saint nicholas(Sankt Nikolaus) in the Coca cola advertisements.(That's why he's wearing red and white.)
I like you Healthyaddict but you are SO SO missing the point. YOUR parents DIDN'T make Santa up as you said at 1.22. They were just keeping up a tradition of what billions of parents do for their kids. Its not as if they lied to you about something serious for eg. you're actually adopted or whatever. There IS something very magic when you're a kid about believing in Santa. When I found out he didn't exist I didnt think how could you lie to me. I was just glad of having those magic memories
I get enjoyment out of fantasy but I realize that it is fantasy. Teaching children about the myths of Jesus or Santa as reality instead of the myth/ fantasy it is- well it is called lying. And I am opposed to lying......
@TheOptimistPrime I disagree that there is a sense of magic in a child getting enjoyment out of Santa as you described. Magic is just the word you're applying to it. That just as many kids are apt to cry while on Santa's lap shows that it's not magic, but age-appropriate behavior that determines the child's reaction.
Hey! as a child you were a firm believer in santa, which your parents lied to you about and told you stories that made you think magical thoughts. Now, you are a firm believer in God, which your parents lied to you about and told you stories that made you think magical thoughts. Interesting...
My kids are two and four and I've told them from the beginning that Santa isn't real. I don't want to lie to them, and I want them to know they can always count on me for the truth. I also don't want them to find out later that Santa is a lie, and then start doubting God because of it. The truth is always best.
isn't santa supposed to represent how the kings came and gave gifts to jesus on his birthday. so it is a christian concept. i don't know if this is a good reason for santa for you people but it is for christians.
kids are smarter than you think , they want the fairytale so much that the rational side completely dissolves into none.
So as a parent (which I am) I let my kid have illusions while I at the same time encourages critical thinking-then later on it´s up to my kid to decide whether she likes reality or not.
when u come to think about it santa is not a good thing u got some guy who breaks into your house smokes a pipe and has magic reindeer dropping off things for ur kids
i think santa is a stab at organized religion. come to think of it, santa IS god. he has constant surveillance over every child on earth, he sees you when you're awake or sleeping, and he knows your intentions. furthermore, he decides your fate (presents:coal as opposed to heaven:hell). also, think about it. why does he give naughty children coal? what is coal used for? and to cap it all off, once a person becomes intelligent enough, (s)he comes to realize that santa (god) doesn't exist
If I ever have kids (and it's getting to be a bigger if every day), I would have to seriously consider doing the Santa thing - ONLY as a way to teach them critical thinking skills - doing everything I can to get them to figure it out for themselves as early as possible.
Other than that, I agree with HealthyAddict on the bad precedent perspective.
I am a Christian – not at all fundamentalist I must add – but it makes no difference. My reasons were similar to yours: no need to teach lies to children. I also think it is easier to say that parents are the ones who buy gifts... and that parents have limited financial resources.
@MrArtHistory Worshipping material possessions only goes on to build egomania and that is one of the thing that is destroying this beautiful planet, destroying ethics and creating sociopaths :-)
I've always thought it was outrageous that parents told their kids that Santa exists. For me it is just like the Jesus myth - it is used to control kids. Those who say it is "fun" to believe in Santa are, frankly, sick in my opinion. Parents tell their kids, "behave or Santa won't give you any presents". Aside from the "worship" of material possessions this teaches kids, it is also teaching bad parenting where bribery is the only way to get your kids to behave.
I've always thought it was outrageous that parents told their kids that Santa exists. For me it is just like the Jesus myth - it is used to control kids. Those who say it is "fun" to believe in Santa are, frankly, sick in my opinion. Parents tell their kids, "behave or Santa won't give you any presents". Aside from the "worship" of material possessions this teaches kids, it is also teaching bad parenting where bribery is the only way to get your kids to behave.
bstocksful, People make up their own bible. They just interpret & twist it to suit how they think of the world. But anyways, I would never tell my kids about santa. I think there's too much more exciting stuff for kids in reality & I think starting them off in delusion is probably what makes so many people so delusional. Kids are curious & if you don't bullshit them & you open them up to learn so much about the world, they would have a better chance to not be an ignorant, piece o' shit adult.
We never confirmed to our kids that santa was real. Finally one year i'd had enough of working my ass off and spending thousands of dollars over the years in presents so that some fat stranger in a red suit got all the credit for my hard work. One time I said to my son that if he didn't straighten up his room i was gonna take that gameboy from him til he did clean up, he then said "you can't, santa gave it to me not you"! man I was furious.
I never told my daughter that Santa was a sham. When she was younger I just let her believe what she wanted. When asked I'd simply say, "Well, do YOU want him to be real?" And leave it at that. NOT ONCE, did I ever tell her YES. This year she figured it out and asked me point blank. So I told her the truth. She cried. Know why? Because I loved her enough to LET her believe what she wanted without ever having to lie to her. She got her fairy tale and I was able to maintain my promise to never lie
I think I'm glad I didn't have a Mom like you. What a kill joy. I'm glad you are confident in your intelligence and question everything. Someday maybe the light will come on.
When I was little and I would lose a tooth, I would put it under my pillow, and money would always be there when I woke up. When I was 11 I started wondering if that was because I always told my mom about it, and that she was actually the one putting money there. So I conducted an "experiment." The next time I lost a tooth I didn't tell my mom. I put it under my pillow and went to sleep. When I woke up, it was still there, and I found no money.
That's how I found out the tooth fairy wasn't real.
I'm sure that most skeptics believed in Santa and the other stuff as children. It is FUN! When children come to the realization ON THEIR OWN, that is actually the best time to congratulate them on critical thinking and encourage it going forward.
Looking at this Vid again reminded me of another thing about "Santa" He climbs down the chimney in the middle of the night while everyone is sleeping and leaves presents, or so the fairytale goes!
But in reality who would climb down a chimney in the middle of the night while everyone is sleeping? A Thief! Right? But what does this Thief in the night steal? Well I'll leave that for you to answer. 8D
Please think seriously about this. cause If I'm right, the lie is bigger than ever imagined. More than just a Fairytale Character, People are openly blaspheming Christ and Mary, in fact all women by saying this Ho Ho Ho thing to each other!
What's more it fits what Satan would want everyone to do, right since Adam & Eve he has been trying to get us to curse God, could he have succeeded with this? Please keep and open mind about this!
Fuck the 'so-called' open minds.I enjoy patterns and polarizing them too,but your comments aren't anything new. To the atheists,christians(of all denominations),and other religions, give your heart to Joseph.Mary(manipulative bitch) cheated on Joseph and created this fantastic lie, that GOD must have fucked her, (her fantasy) and made poor little Jesus carry out her self-fulfilling prophecy.I got Married and then,I got Mary'd. Now I'm not so Merry. Too bad DNA tests didn't help Joseph.
@bigredlover77 Actually, its more likely Joseph was the one that Fucked Mary. Joesph just didn't want Mary to get stoned to death. They probably raised Jesus to think he really was the son of God.
In that case, Joseph would have been stoned to death along side Mary. People wrote the bible,and you don't know Gabriel,and you don't know what he said, and that's a fact. How arrogant of you, to think you know who said or did something 3000 years ago, when you can't remember being born.
Now lets look at Santa.. if you try to make another name from it there is only one using all 5 letters, that being "Satan" .
So now we could have Satan's Claws or Satan Clause! I won't go into the "Claws thing because it's obvious. But Looky here;
Satan's Clause "HO HO HO Mary Xmas HO HO HO" No I didn't spell "merry" wrong! "Merry or Mary" sound similar too! So what is Santa Claus now saying? That Mary is a Ho and Christ should be Xrossed out!
People from all different nations and faiths found Jesus... I was saved from the New Age movement. Many Satinists were saved , muslims, catholics, hindus... and so on. That is the thing there are many lies and false religions. Jesus is God... He said religion is to feed the poor and take care of the widows.
The give of love forgivness and eternal life. If one truely seeked for the truth they will see that Jesus is the way the truth and the light. He comands us to all to love God ( the highest form of love) and one another... It is proven by Archology, Prophecy, even just taking a look at your finger print is proof. It is said to see how Santa blew it for many people.
It is quite apparent that many people who believed in Santa and found out that it was a lie are now Athiests ... it is called the Santa Syndrome.They think that the Jesus story is a lie too. That is just what Satan would want them to believe. He also wants people to be stressed out having to buy all of these gifts and stuff is taking away the true meaning of Christmas.
My father told me from the beginning that there was no santa, which made things much easier to understand as I grew older. I think this bit of information helped more than it hurt, if at all. I recommend being honest to everyone all the time, unless you have to lie to save your ass!
I've thought about this and although I'm an atheist I think I'm ok with Santa. My argument is that once they get about 8 and their logic and reasoning skills begin to develop, I think it will serve as a great opportunity to begin teaching them the difference between real and imaginary things. Not to mention the difference between believing in something because it's true and believing in something because you want it to be true. Their santa experience will allow them needed understanding.
If you Google on the News for "The Power of Magical Thinking", you'll find an article on the value of fantasy thinking and how it is normal for youngsters.
They didn't get into why people don't outgrow religion in the article.
Christmas is a pagan holiday. I watched a video about it, and i saved it in my favorite. If you want to see it, i can send it to you.
Yes, kids likes magic and they like to believe in superstitions, but why should you lie to them. Anyway, it is hard to talk about it because i didn't grew up with it, and i never believed in santa. I just heard about him being a kid, but i never thought whether santa exists or not as a kid.
why cant we just give kids presents with out a shitty flawd fairy tale or give kids a reward for loosing teeth or have candy on easter WITH OUT MADE UP BS
I have a 5 year old boy. I was thinking of telling him Santa is not real. But I talked about it with my wife and she was super against it "don't destroy his dream" she said. And I haven't told him in order to avoid an argument with my wife.
As a youth I read a lot of comic books, my favorite was Spider-Man. I new Spider-Man was a comic book character, that still did not take away any of my enjoyment of Spider-Man.
When I got into bible study as a teen, I stopped celebrating X-Mas because it wasn't Xian. As I studied more & realized it was all mythology, I enjoyed X-Mas for what it really was. If I had kids I would tell them the mythology of Santa as I would of Spider-Man, both fiction and fun. I would never want to lie to my kids.
i've had many thoughts similar to yours but i'm not sure what i would do. The only argument i can make FOR teaching about santa is similar to the "magic" argument but more focused on memories. many people have very fond memories of christmas time and santa is a big part of those memories. but i totally agree that i wouldn't like to lie to my kids.
I say that you shouldn't touch that santa is real. People should give credit to the people who took the time and money to buy the gifts and not to an imaginary figure.
Glad to see you feeling better. I think some traditions are fun, though I don't believe lying to children is good and I think there are other ways to let them have fun and let them enjoy childhood.
I think I might have started out with the "From Santa" gifts when the kids were wee, but I always felt dirty and dishonest doing it. So I changed my stance early on, I hope before I did permanent damage. I respect honesty and wanted them to do so. The example is visceral and clear that parents are hypocrites when they decide they can concoct convoluted lies for their own enjoyment but then ask their kids to be honest. They'll reap from their kids just what they've sown.
As I recall, I told my kids (who are now grown) that some people like to wrap their holidays in fictional characters that make them feel good. They like to believe in Santa, because he represents an ideal world for the relatively affluent. We had lots of gifts, but the kids knew they had them because we wanted them to enjoy nice things and that Santa wasn't favoring us white americans over some poor kids down the block or around the world.
Santa is jolly and all, but he reinforces class divisions, selfishness, and insular thinking. Hey Santa, your sleigh can get all around the world, so hows about dropping off some rice and beans to starving children and forget about the uber toys for the rich kids? So those kids deserve to die and rich folks kids get richer?
I think it is somewhat good to tell he exists if you aren't rich. If you told them that you bought the presents yourself , maybe they will say "Then why aren't you buying presents in the rest of the year?". It's hard to tell them "We don't have money all the time".So you just tell them that Santa brings them at Christmas, and at no other time. So you don't take the blame for not having money.
On the other hand, alexugoku, what about the disparity between the rich folks Santa, who brings them new laptops and the poor folks' Santa, who somehow thinks the poor kids deserve only a dollar store action figure. Santa reinforces class divisions.
I never believed in Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny. My parents were cool enough to realize that they shouldn't lie to me for fun. We should definitely not be telling our kids such nonsense.
Santa Claus, at least how I know him is a symbol for the holidays, this is why those who don't think he's real still portray him or put him on their windows. I'm wearing a Santa hat as I type. I may Tell my kids that Santa is just a precious icon and represents something fun for the season and that's why some people believe in him, because in a sense his real, or I might tell them that he is real because it's just a fun idea that shouldn't be used to manipulate your children, but inspire them.
You need to teach your kids that there is a Santa Clause! Its a perfect analogy god, and the statement "believing in god is like believing in Santa Caluse," looses its impact. Its an excellent method for teaching skepticism by example.
I disagree. My parents were cool enough to not lie to me, and I can still understand the analogy between Santa Claus and God without having to personally suffer the humiliation of believing in such a silly concept as Santa Claus.
Santa's not such a bad thing, instead of telling the kids that you buy a bunch of gifts and inject mercantile value in their head... kids think those gift appear there magically.
i mean i dont worship odin but if they say we get a day off because of him, im not mad at ya!
if we didnt celebrate holidays with pagan roots we would have nothing. i think the only one is thanksgiving and that isnt religious though. america is saturated with pagan shit disguised as christian. isnt that the dishonesty you should question my dear atheist friends? dont want to? ok lol
almost all our holidays are pagan, you want to work those days instead? fuck that shirt!
No one wants to work extra days! U.S. Americans already work more days than comparable European nations. Pagan holidays are religious, too. Just a different set of mystical beings. The top dressing is changed. I prefer to celebrate real events--like Winter Solstice, but not because I think that I can bring the sun back with superstitious mumbo jumbo. The dishonesty in question in this video is about parents expecting their young 'uns to _believe_ mumbo jumbo then letting them down.
amen ra to that lol. i think the devil concept is more interesting since santa is a alegamation of basically odin (the one eyed norse deity) and the single eyed dieties are most commonly associted with lucifer (in the christian world that is the equivolant basically) soo... in that respect you are getting your kids to pray to lucifer lol. i mean i prayed to santa. we all did. prayed to forgive us and give us presents. lol. if this is on purpose and planned is the theoretical part
i used to believe in santa and i remember feeling creeped out by the whole idea. but the presents made him worth it lol.
the title of this video is spot on! (from a christian perspective that is lol) i know that needs explanation so here it is.
santa is a prototype of odin amalgamated with other pagan traditions from rome. so to a christian anything pagan is in the hands of the devil. after all he is known as the king of this world and the prince of the wind. govt excuse to see fam is cool tho
Allowing kids to believe in Santa is fine because, unlike with god, they grow out of it. Now, if there were a huge support group for Santa believers in adulthood, as there is with churches, then it would be harmful.
I myself, if I ever have kids, will just ask "What do you think?" if they ask if Santa is real. If they want him to be real and behave if you tell them that Santa will give them preasents if they do, then it's all good. Plus by primery school they will have stopped beliving anyway.
I don't know of any case where little ones have been harmed overall by beliving in Santa. And they grow out of it on their own, so IMO, theres no need for parents to dictate the truth in this matter at all.
Normaly the kids that belive in Santa are below the age of 5 or 6. It's a little white lie to help them think about their behavior and understand the difference between consiquences of right and wrong actions when they are too young to often fully control their emotions.
At some point, your going to tell little whie lies to children about subjects they don't understand or to make them feel better. So the excuse that telling them Santa isn't real because you don't want to lie to them is rubbish.
I'm not telling my kids there is a Santa when there isn't one. I'm not even going to impose religion on them at all... I'd let them choose and be what they want
I will tell my children about father christmas. or santa claus or whatever. When I found out there was no father christmas the magic about christmas stayed. I wasnt mad at my parents at all actually. it was more like solving a riddle. is there a santa? do my parents do all this? it was fun to find out i was right and santa wasnt real. christmas is still a magic time for me. But im 15 so what do i know?
Speaking from personal experience, the fun of believing in Santa far outweighed the dissapointment of discovering the myth. Actually, having been through the process of belief to non-belief, I think it made me a little more circumspect as a youth. After all, if a person can firmly believe in something then discover the truth, why wouldn't that be analagous to other avenues of belief? At least that's how my young mind perceived it. In retrospect, I'm glad I believed in Santa.
i say, take it to the next step. i told me kids the truth about things, but they're older now. We should teach kids to tell the other kids there is no santa or jesus. that would freakin rock.
from the beginning, my parents always told me the truth about Santa Claus. They didn't want me to have any superstitions... outside those of fundamentalist pentecostal/charismatic Christianity, of course! Also! "santa" is an anagram for "Satan"! Coincidence!? I think not!
as I have always been an atheist, from early childhood I understood the silliness of christ divinity fables, & santa was easily rolled right in as well.. My parents made feeble attempts.
This did not impact my joy in fantasy as a child, nor ruin Tolkien for me as a teen.
Having the same discussion with my fiance about our son. I say the tradition is silly, she says she'll kill me if i take santa away. I think i can sacrifice myself for my son's sake. lol. only joking.
I don't think teaching kids about Santa hurts them. It does boggle my mind that parents will teach their kids not to lie, punish them for it, then the parents will lie to their kids without even batting an eye.
I think telling kids the stories about Santa are fine. The don't seem to think Pokemon or Cinderella are real when they're told those stories but they still enjoy them.
The temporary belief in Santa never hurt me; I rather figure it helped shape my morals, more than religious nonsense that I never got trapped in.
And, besides, it proves even more to kids that stuff you believe in can be full of sh*t, so it can be easier to not start believing in gods either (or to let go of them).
We need a more traditional christmas. Time to dress up like vikings, go out and chop down the biggest yule tree. Set it on fire, drink, do drugs, and have an orgy.
Well, I'm 20 yrs old, an atheist and PEARList but I left cookies out for santa when I was a kid. My parents would even take bites of the cookies and drink the milk. I was not crushed, it didn't not mess with my reasoning abilities as an adult. But I was raised christian, that did some damage that took years to fix. Santa doesn't claim to have died for your sins and promises you eternal life. He just has elves and flying reindeers, kids come up with more creative stuff themselves.
Hell no we shouldn't! Parents' role is to teach their kids about the world...those stupid things are an abuse of their naivety, and anyone with an inquiring mind will feel betrayed to some degree or another after the bubble bursts.
Well, in north america it is sort of hard to avoid your child coming into contact with those fairy tales, and avoiding having people influence them against your wishes.
For example, classrooms in schools might discuss santa, have to draw pictures, or write stories about him. Plus extended family might push the issue, so even if you didnt want to lie to your child, everyone else could be willing to.
My parents told us the stories (Santa, Tooth Fairy, Easter Bunny) but never told us they were real. They made it clear they were only stories. That way we were able to grow up being aware but not believing.
God and Jesus were a different ball of wax, but I've since gotten over those, too.
i have a little girl. my tactic is that i don't outright tell her that these fictional characters are not real. for things that will scare her I to tell her they are not real for comfort. as far as santa, the easter bunny, and all other less frightening characters; i ask her things like does that make sense, and how would they do that. it teaches her both to imagine, but also gives her structure for logical thinking when she is truly searching for answers later in life
I say go along with the Santa tradition. My brother-in-law was raised without Santa and he feels like he missed out on an important part of childhood. I don't think believing in Santa or any of the other holiday mascots (Jesus not included) is all that harmful. If anything, one of the benefits is that each believer in Santa eventually has to work it out for him/herself and face reality. Good practice for intelligent Christians who might eventually dismiss mega-Santa (i.e., God)
Because they are kids. Fantasy is vital. Many kids have imaginary friends right? The santa thing is all around them. Let them dream on with the magic.
When they grow a bit and ask if he is real, ask them what THEY think. Then you'll have a real discussion with an inquiring young mind. A discussion that will ground them well for future challenges to reason.
We told the daughter about santa claus because otherwise she'd have ruined it for the other kids and the wife didn't want to get grief from all the scary rednecks in preschool.
We already had to have a parent/teacher conf. because the little one was telling the boys in her class that they are robots. I uh, have no idea where that came from. Well, I might have mentioned something about it.
Santa is pagan? I thought he was based off a saint, ie catholic..
Friends of mine decided they were going to tell their daughter that Santa is real. She started to beleive it anyway because kids at school were all talking about it.
I would say no about Santa, not to teach them about it... But strangely enough, yes to the Tooth Fairy. Why? Because, as anyone who had kids around when they first lose a teeth would know, it freaks them out very much... And the thing is with the tooth fairy, it makes that traumatic moment become a moment to look forward to, in which the kid is excited, not disgusted. You COULD just tell that for each tooth they lose, you'll give them a couple bucks, but I dunno, up to you I guess.
i think you should teach your kids the right and wrongs then leave them to form their own opinion of things so they might figure out santa isnt real early or later on they will figure out
Well I personally don't wanna tell my kids (when and if I have them) that santa is real. Mostly because I remember the huge disappointment I felt I can so vividly remember myself sitting down on this red bench we had in the backyard crying after I found out. I totally agree that kids are imaginative enough nurture imagination is great but lying is not. I most likely will have a Xmas tree but I am gonna tell my children that the presents are from mom and dad.
Teaching kids about santa just makes them more vulnerable and stupid... Its like indoctrinating kids in high school. They will believe what ever they tell you...
I can honestly not ever remember believing in Santa or the Easter Bunny or any of that bunch. I remember as a child talking as though I believed, and my parents talking as though he existed but it was always done in a way that we all knew there was none. From my earliest memories until this very day (at 24y/o) some presents are still marked as being from "Santa".
It can all be very fun, but we must be sure to teach children the truth. Knowing he is not real hardly takes anything away.
I had a Christian friend who didn't teach her kids about Santa, the Easter Bunny or the Tooth Fairy. Her reasoning was, "how can I say to them, believe in these things that you can see (as in costumed characters) and then tell them they are not real but I lied to you to perpetuate the magic and then expect them to believe in Jesus when they can't see him?"
healthyaddict, I'm glad you made this video. I actually think parents don't realise the harm they do their children by lying to them. Even a cute lie is a lie.
You have to remember that a belief in fairies was widespread among adults only decades ago. It doesn't surprise me that a sounder approach to parenting hasn't been realised.
I'm an old guy. I do think lying to kids about Santa, etc. is wrong, and I didn't lie to mine. It did not prevent them from having fun holidays or magical childhoods, or do them any damage. It did contribute tremendously to their critical thinking abilities and help equip them to later deal with the unreason that surrounds them in society. It also spared them the trauma I experienced as a kid because of Santa BS.
Even if Santa Claus was real, the story behind it is pretty sick! The idea teaches children greed, bribing them to be good so they can be rewarded with whatever junk they're crying for. Also, the idea doesn't cover the idea that "Santa" obviously loves rich kids and couldn't give two fucks about poor kids.
I'm an atheist and I celebrate secular Christmas. The Santa story and the similar European myths make for enjoyable tales. I don't think that there's any harm in letting your child experience the wonder that goes along with Santa Claus until they figure it out. I also think it's naive to think you won't lie to your children. They will have dreams you know are never going to come true and you won't dare to ruin they're hopes by being honest with them. At least when they're younger. my2cents
I stopped believing in Santa when I was either 3 or 4. I dunno I just figured it out quickly. That's actually one of my first memories, asking my grandma if he's real and her telling me, "Well, he's real *in spirit.*" And then I knew he was bullshit.
Then when I went to preschool I tried to tell the other kids the truth and the teacher shushed me. And I was pissed. Like, "But but...it's the truth! It must be shared!"
saint nicholas is the founding character for santa , a well of manna appeared on the spot he died he was that good and gave all his wealth away.
mancsakacarl 2 weeks ago
As we all know, the majority of people in the world are blindly following traditions based on ancient pagan gods and idol worship. There is nothing holy about holidays... everything was created to deceive the masses. Sheeples have been brainwashed since birth and passes on to their kids fairy tale stories. Santa is Satan!
butchusa 2 weeks ago
@butchusa Depends on your definition of the word 'holy'. Many pagan holidays were considered sacred.
PointlessSteel 1 week ago
Everything you said, can be said about any "god".
That's why I won't tell me son that god is real, because that would be a lie.
DngerousRadical 2 weeks ago
You are right in choosing not to lie. This could be your way out of the world of illusions. However, the next step should be seeing things as they are really. Being honest with oneself is a good step to seeing the truth of everything as it is.
retlifwolley 1 month ago
Dear - healthyaddict - did you consider that your parents and your society lied to you about religion as well ?
Did you make any honest effort to look for the truth ?
I like your last phrase -- question aeverything.
retlifwolley 1 month ago
Even though santa isnt real, the values of peace and kindness that he stands for is worth beleiving in
TheGuyWithBass 1 month ago
Also, saint nicholas has got nothing to do with christmas. He's celebrated on the 6. of december. In Switzerland he's called Samichlaus and gives a bag of peanuts, tangerines and chocolate to kids. Little kids sometimes have to(at least when I was about 5 years old) tell him a poem to get their bag. but the rituals differ frim country to country.^^ you can read all about it on wikipedia.
soerenboeren 2 months ago
I think I read somewhere some time ago that santa became knwon and popular in the USA mainly because of the use of the saint nicholas(Sankt Nikolaus) in the Coca cola advertisements.(That's why he's wearing red and white.)
soerenboeren 2 months ago
I like you Healthyaddict but you are SO SO missing the point. YOUR parents DIDN'T make Santa up as you said at 1.22. They were just keeping up a tradition of what billions of parents do for their kids. Its not as if they lied to you about something serious for eg. you're actually adopted or whatever. There IS something very magic when you're a kid about believing in Santa. When I found out he didn't exist I didnt think how could you lie to me. I was just glad of having those magic memories
flares 2 months ago
I get enjoyment out of fantasy but I realize that it is fantasy. Teaching children about the myths of Jesus or Santa as reality instead of the myth/ fantasy it is- well it is called lying. And I am opposed to lying......
psychicpriest 4 months ago
@TheOptimistPrime I disagree that there is a sense of magic in a child getting enjoyment out of Santa as you described. Magic is just the word you're applying to it. That just as many kids are apt to cry while on Santa's lap shows that it's not magic, but age-appropriate behavior that determines the child's reaction.
Gargarks 5 months ago
Santa rearranged spells SATAN
Claus rearranged spells LUCAS (a shortened version of Lucifer)
Ho Ho Ho - There are 6 letters between the letters of H and O, representing 666
Santa gives gifts for being good; Satan gives gifts for your soul (doing what he requires)
Red, White & black are used to represent the ruling elite who manipulate every aspect of our society
With Santa's help Christmas has been manipulated into a profitable, manipulative, overindulgent consumer game
explorer2101 8 months ago
@explorer2101 Santa was originally green. Lol :)
Minecraft4life1000 4 months ago
Hey! as a child you were a firm believer in santa, which your parents lied to you about and told you stories that made you think magical thoughts. Now, you are a firm believer in God, which your parents lied to you about and told you stories that made you think magical thoughts. Interesting...
afatdutch 10 months ago
Looking back as an adult, believing in Santa has not changed my life one bit.
At least Santa was real enough to bring me stuff I prayed for.
pchtermino1 11 months ago
My kids are two and four and I've told them from the beginning that Santa isn't real. I don't want to lie to them, and I want them to know they can always count on me for the truth. I also don't want them to find out later that Santa is a lie, and then start doubting God because of it. The truth is always best.
hollypop2001 11 months ago
No Santa. Lying to children about Santa, the Tooth-fairy, etc is wrong in my view.
Also, the angle of refraction through your lenses is pretty sharp. Mine are similar. Years of staring at books and computer screens.
Newitt888 1 year ago
You smoke weed don't you?
daedae69 1 year ago
I wish you were my neighbour... and single :-)
The I would put in an extra door and put on som nice coffey and even clean my appartment...I like you miss HA.
ShareTheSphere 1 year ago
..take a look at the videoresponse "seek him first" and my conversation there if you have the time.
Regards
ShareTheSphere 1 year ago
isn't santa supposed to represent how the kings came and gave gifts to jesus on his birthday. so it is a christian concept. i don't know if this is a good reason for santa for you people but it is for christians.
PJmcfairybouncer 1 year ago
snata rearrange satan
chassolefdx 1 year ago
@chassolefdx no its santa=satan
badtreasey 1 year ago
in some cultures santa is a evil monster that eat kids xD
VelvetTearsNana 1 year ago
@VelvetTearsNana lmao
badtreasey 1 year ago
kids are smarter than you think , they want the fairytale so much that the rational side completely dissolves into none.
So as a parent (which I am) I let my kid have illusions while I at the same time encourages critical thinking-then later on it´s up to my kid to decide whether she likes reality or not.
We all need illusions.
And we need to know they are that.
ShareTheSphere 1 year ago
Santa isnt christian? I always thought he would be the one guy jesus would mount because hes that christian. Hmm..
GamingVidsPs3 1 year ago
The ORIGINAL REAL St. Nicholas was a good person. Santa Clause is the creation of evil corporations in order to make money
ShamusShamrock 1 year ago 2
your face confuses me...i want to draw you.
FootX360 1 year ago
Santa is the devil? isn't that a bit much.
directorlog 1 year ago
when u come to think about it santa is not a good thing u got some guy who breaks into your house smokes a pipe and has magic reindeer dropping off things for ur kids
melosher 1 year ago
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TechNed 1 year ago
i think santa is a stab at organized religion. come to think of it, santa IS god. he has constant surveillance over every child on earth, he sees you when you're awake or sleeping, and he knows your intentions. furthermore, he decides your fate (presents:coal as opposed to heaven:hell). also, think about it. why does he give naughty children coal? what is coal used for? and to cap it all off, once a person becomes intelligent enough, (s)he comes to realize that santa (god) doesn't exist
aawrestler89 1 year ago
If I ever have kids (and it's getting to be a bigger if every day), I would have to seriously consider doing the Santa thing - ONLY as a way to teach them critical thinking skills - doing everything I can to get them to figure it out for themselves as early as possible.
Other than that, I agree with HealthyAddict on the bad precedent perspective.
steveb0503 1 year ago
No Santa for me and for my children.
I am a Christian – not at all fundamentalist I must add – but it makes no difference. My reasons were similar to yours: no need to teach lies to children. I also think it is easier to say that parents are the ones who buy gifts... and that parents have limited financial resources.
mgagnonlv 1 year ago
@mgagnonlv
"no need to teach lies to children"
So that's Christianity out with Santa then :)
BlankVellum 1 year ago
I have no plans on teaching my kids santa exists. I may explain the reasons why they should question santa's existence.
GodofChaos45 1 year ago
Its like a lesson in reality-reception. When your kids understand that santa is a fake, they lern a good lesson.
Vallinen92 1 year ago
You got a buck from the tooth fairy?! I only got a quarter! :P
WennIchTanzenWill 1 year ago
I like the idea of promoting inquiry and skepticism through parallels
SManEasy 1 year ago
Your Dumb, life is allowed to be fun. Christmas was the most magical time a child ever has in their life.
MrArtHistory 1 year ago
@MrArtHistory Worshipping material possessions only goes on to build egomania and that is one of the thing that is destroying this beautiful planet, destroying ethics and creating sociopaths :-)
phpexe 1 year ago
This has been flagged as spam show
I've always thought it was outrageous that parents told their kids that Santa exists. For me it is just like the Jesus myth - it is used to control kids. Those who say it is "fun" to believe in Santa are, frankly, sick in my opinion. Parents tell their kids, "behave or Santa won't give you any presents". Aside from the "worship" of material possessions this teaches kids, it is also teaching bad parenting where bribery is the only way to get your kids to behave.
cailleacbhuer 1 year ago
I've always thought it was outrageous that parents told their kids that Santa exists. For me it is just like the Jesus myth - it is used to control kids. Those who say it is "fun" to believe in Santa are, frankly, sick in my opinion. Parents tell their kids, "behave or Santa won't give you any presents". Aside from the "worship" of material possessions this teaches kids, it is also teaching bad parenting where bribery is the only way to get your kids to behave.
cailleacbhuer 1 year ago
you just dont have any money to get gifts for people. your a broke ass atheist ...lets hope you dont have any kids, lets hope your barren.
NYatheistlovesjesus 1 year ago
jesus wanted me to come back here and say im sorry for my harsh words..i am .
NYatheistlovesjesus 1 year ago
bstocksful, People make up their own bible. They just interpret & twist it to suit how they think of the world. But anyways, I would never tell my kids about santa. I think there's too much more exciting stuff for kids in reality & I think starting them off in delusion is probably what makes so many people so delusional. Kids are curious & if you don't bullshit them & you open them up to learn so much about the world, they would have a better chance to not be an ignorant, piece o' shit adult.
djda99 1 year ago
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happysaks 1 year ago
doesn't the bible tell people not to lie.-or do people make their own bible?
bstocksful 1 year ago
it also says don't decorate trees in your homes. catholics are the enemies of true believers in the One true God.
ghostgate82 1 year ago
I think yes santa. Its fun for the time to believe in
cogofwar11 2 years ago
We shouldn't be inventing imaginary playmates for children, or believing in them ourselves as adults!
SuperImready 2 years ago
We never confirmed to our kids that santa was real. Finally one year i'd had enough of working my ass off and spending thousands of dollars over the years in presents so that some fat stranger in a red suit got all the credit for my hard work. One time I said to my son that if he didn't straighten up his room i was gonna take that gameboy from him til he did clean up, he then said "you can't, santa gave it to me not you"! man I was furious.
ibyourmaster 2 years ago
Would you have been happier as a kid if your parents had not maintained the fantasy?
BadString 2 years ago
I never told my daughter that Santa was a sham. When she was younger I just let her believe what she wanted. When asked I'd simply say, "Well, do YOU want him to be real?" And leave it at that. NOT ONCE, did I ever tell her YES. This year she figured it out and asked me point blank. So I told her the truth. She cried. Know why? Because I loved her enough to LET her believe what she wanted without ever having to lie to her. She got her fairy tale and I was able to maintain my promise to never lie
andreavella74 2 years ago
I think I'm glad I didn't have a Mom like you. What a kill joy. I'm glad you are confident in your intelligence and question everything. Someday maybe the light will come on.
perryfan10 2 years ago
When I was little and I would lose a tooth, I would put it under my pillow, and money would always be there when I woke up. When I was 11 I started wondering if that was because I always told my mom about it, and that she was actually the one putting money there. So I conducted an "experiment." The next time I lost a tooth I didn't tell my mom. I put it under my pillow and went to sleep. When I woke up, it was still there, and I found no money.
That's how I found out the tooth fairy wasn't real.
LEELAwhereareyou 2 years ago
I'm sure that most skeptics believed in Santa and the other stuff as children. It is FUN! When children come to the realization ON THEIR OWN, that is actually the best time to congratulate them on critical thinking and encourage it going forward.
jehophus 2 years ago
I never believed any of that stuff. I tried, but I never really bought it.
I remember my parents trying to convince my twin brother and I that we could hear santa's reindeer on the roof if we were quiet.
I remember thinking "This is bullshit!" Not in those terms, of course.
monroeward 2 years ago
Looking at this Vid again reminded me of another thing about "Santa" He climbs down the chimney in the middle of the night while everyone is sleeping and leaves presents, or so the fairytale goes!
But in reality who would climb down a chimney in the middle of the night while everyone is sleeping? A Thief! Right? But what does this Thief in the night steal? Well I'll leave that for you to answer. 8D
kryckeestrooff 2 years ago
Please think seriously about this. cause If I'm right, the lie is bigger than ever imagined. More than just a Fairytale Character, People are openly blaspheming Christ and Mary, in fact all women by saying this Ho Ho Ho thing to each other!
What's more it fits what Satan would want everyone to do, right since Adam & Eve he has been trying to get us to curse God, could he have succeeded with this? Please keep and open mind about this!
kryckeestrooff 2 years ago
Fuck the 'so-called' open minds.I enjoy patterns and polarizing them too,but your comments aren't anything new. To the atheists,christians(of all denominations),and other religions, give your heart to Joseph.Mary(manipulative bitch) cheated on Joseph and created this fantastic lie, that GOD must have fucked her, (her fantasy) and made poor little Jesus carry out her self-fulfilling prophecy.I got Married and then,I got Mary'd. Now I'm not so Merry. Too bad DNA tests didn't help Joseph.
bigredlover77 2 years ago
@bigredlover77 Actually, its more likely Joseph was the one that Fucked Mary. Joesph just didn't want Mary to get stoned to death. They probably raised Jesus to think he really was the son of God.
ZombieRyushu 2 years ago
Since when did wives get stoned to death for fucking their husbands? I never said Jesus wasn't the pawn of her game.
bigredlover77 2 years ago
@bigredlover77 Because they weren't married at the time Jesus was born. (Gabriel Said that.) Mary was single.
ZombieRyushu 2 years ago
In that case, Joseph would have been stoned to death along side Mary. People wrote the bible,and you don't know Gabriel,and you don't know what he said, and that's a fact. How arrogant of you, to think you know who said or did something 3000 years ago, when you can't remember being born.
bigredlover77 2 years ago
Now lets look at Santa.. if you try to make another name from it there is only one using all 5 letters, that being "Satan" .
So now we could have Satan's Claws or Satan Clause! I won't go into the "Claws thing because it's obvious. But Looky here;
Satan's Clause "HO HO HO Mary Xmas HO HO HO" No I didn't spell "merry" wrong! "Merry or Mary" sound similar too! So what is Santa Claus now saying? That Mary is a Ho and Christ should be Xrossed out!
Cont...
kryckeestrooff 2 years ago
Hang on a sec, You say you're Atheist. But look at the title of this video, No God, No Devil! Right? Well!!
Think about this too, I'm glad I found this Video actually, cause I thought maybe I was going mad!
This will run into the next comment btw!
Santa Claus! What kind of a name is this? Fake right?
But let's take Claus and add an "E" to that, we now have Clause, finally a word that makes sense. But doesn't it also sound like "Claws" too?
Come to think of it, all 3 sound the same!
kryckeestrooff 2 years ago
People from all different nations and faiths found Jesus... I was saved from the New Age movement. Many Satinists were saved , muslims, catholics, hindus... and so on. That is the thing there are many lies and false religions. Jesus is God... He said religion is to feed the poor and take care of the widows.
truthbeknowen 2 years ago
The give of love forgivness and eternal life. If one truely seeked for the truth they will see that Jesus is the way the truth and the light. He comands us to all to love God ( the highest form of love) and one another... It is proven by Archology, Prophecy, even just taking a look at your finger print is proof. It is said to see how Santa blew it for many people.
truthbeknowen 2 years ago
It is quite apparent that many people who believed in Santa and found out that it was a lie are now Athiests ... it is called the Santa Syndrome.They think that the Jesus story is a lie too. That is just what Satan would want them to believe. He also wants people to be stressed out having to buy all of these gifts and stuff is taking away the true meaning of Christmas.
truthbeknowen 2 years ago
well, everyone has to come to terms with Santa eventually and not everyone who does so is an atheist. your "Santa Syndrome" theory has been debunked
ToAcUt 2 years ago
My father told me from the beginning that there was no santa, which made things much easier to understand as I grew older. I think this bit of information helped more than it hurt, if at all. I recommend being honest to everyone all the time, unless you have to lie to save your ass!
yoyomagic 2 years ago
SORRY SHE FARTED AT 0:14
SYKOsk8er211 2 years ago
LOL SHE FARTED AT 0:15
SYKOsk8er211 2 years ago
Wow, Snorlax. I can feel your Christian love shine through.
Rilasciato 2 years ago
santa is not real
just another work of satan to corrupt our minds
sy0nara 2 years ago
I've thought about this and although I'm an atheist I think I'm ok with Santa. My argument is that once they get about 8 and their logic and reasoning skills begin to develop, I think it will serve as a great opportunity to begin teaching them the difference between real and imaginary things. Not to mention the difference between believing in something because it's true and believing in something because you want it to be true. Their santa experience will allow them needed understanding.
arich23 2 years ago
I never believed in that stuff, and I'd never tell my kids that these things are real. There are much more exciting things that amazed me.
FierceRodents 2 years ago
lol your funny
little ho ho ho, no no no =P
miad411 2 years ago
lol when you say 'they make shit up all the time'' really cracks me up
ClaireF93 2 years ago
If you Google on the News for "The Power of Magical Thinking", you'll find an article on the value of fantasy thinking and how it is normal for youngsters.
They didn't get into why people don't outgrow religion in the article.
8WholeThing 2 years ago
Christmas is a pagan holiday. I watched a video about it, and i saved it in my favorite. If you want to see it, i can send it to you.
Yes, kids likes magic and they like to believe in superstitions, but why should you lie to them. Anyway, it is hard to talk about it because i didn't grew up with it, and i never believed in santa. I just heard about him being a kid, but i never thought whether santa exists or not as a kid.
TheRulezzzzzz 2 years ago
why cant we just give kids presents with out a shitty flawd fairy tale or give kids a reward for loosing teeth or have candy on easter WITH OUT MADE UP BS
r0botpiss 2 years ago
christmas was 100% stolen from the pegans wiccans and a pinch of druids
zamrok73 2 years ago
I have a 5 year old boy. I was thinking of telling him Santa is not real. But I talked about it with my wife and she was super against it "don't destroy his dream" she said. And I haven't told him in order to avoid an argument with my wife.
amigojapan 2 years ago
I wouldn't teach my kids any of that santa easterbunny shit.
I'd probably go with that "tell them some believe in santa, others in jesus" heh
GentleSavage1 2 years ago
As a youth I read a lot of comic books, my favorite was Spider-Man. I new Spider-Man was a comic book character, that still did not take away any of my enjoyment of Spider-Man.
When I got into bible study as a teen, I stopped celebrating X-Mas because it wasn't Xian. As I studied more & realized it was all mythology, I enjoyed X-Mas for what it really was. If I had kids I would tell them the mythology of Santa as I would of Spider-Man, both fiction and fun. I would never want to lie to my kids.
RealWiggly 2 years ago
I would not tell kids there is a santa. Kids can have just as much with santa even if they know from the start it is not real.
prodigyat9 2 years ago
Santa is actually a very good way to teach a child to critically thinking.
At least on my part I figured it out myself and had my reasons to think it wasn't true.
shunt19 2 years ago
It's good to lie to children to get them to open up there imagination. It opens up possibilities for us we never saw existed.
When you say "the magic" i think you really mean "mans ability to create" which is what it's all about.
TheDoford 2 years ago
i've had many thoughts similar to yours but i'm not sure what i would do. The only argument i can make FOR teaching about santa is similar to the "magic" argument but more focused on memories. many people have very fond memories of christmas time and santa is a big part of those memories. but i totally agree that i wouldn't like to lie to my kids.
rocknrollgeek 2 years ago
Gorgeous babes are always better in HD.. XD
bigeyedfish0041 2 years ago
I say that you shouldn't touch that santa is real. People should give credit to the people who took the time and money to buy the gifts and not to an imaginary figure.
connerjd 2 years ago
Glad to see you feeling better. I think some traditions are fun, though I don't believe lying to children is good and I think there are other ways to let them have fun and let them enjoy childhood.
lenkel 2 years ago
I think I might have started out with the "From Santa" gifts when the kids were wee, but I always felt dirty and dishonest doing it. So I changed my stance early on, I hope before I did permanent damage. I respect honesty and wanted them to do so. The example is visceral and clear that parents are hypocrites when they decide they can concoct convoluted lies for their own enjoyment but then ask their kids to be honest. They'll reap from their kids just what they've sown.
laraesque 2 years ago
As I recall, I told my kids (who are now grown) that some people like to wrap their holidays in fictional characters that make them feel good. They like to believe in Santa, because he represents an ideal world for the relatively affluent. We had lots of gifts, but the kids knew they had them because we wanted them to enjoy nice things and that Santa wasn't favoring us white americans over some poor kids down the block or around the world.
laraesque 2 years ago
Santa is jolly and all, but he reinforces class divisions, selfishness, and insular thinking. Hey Santa, your sleigh can get all around the world, so hows about dropping off some rice and beans to starving children and forget about the uber toys for the rich kids? So those kids deserve to die and rich folks kids get richer?
laraesque 2 years ago
this literally exactly how it went for me, except my mom was making dinner instead of doing dishes...
weird.
thisguysajerk 2 years ago
I think it is somewhat good to tell he exists if you aren't rich. If you told them that you bought the presents yourself , maybe they will say "Then why aren't you buying presents in the rest of the year?". It's hard to tell them "We don't have money all the time".So you just tell them that Santa brings them at Christmas, and at no other time. So you don't take the blame for not having money.
alexugoku 2 years ago
On the other hand, alexugoku, what about the disparity between the rich folks Santa, who brings them new laptops and the poor folks' Santa, who somehow thinks the poor kids deserve only a dollar store action figure. Santa reinforces class divisions.
laraesque 2 years ago
I never believed in Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny. My parents were cool enough to realize that they shouldn't lie to me for fun. We should definitely not be telling our kids such nonsense.
CMO999 2 years ago
Santa Claus, at least how I know him is a symbol for the holidays, this is why those who don't think he's real still portray him or put him on their windows. I'm wearing a Santa hat as I type. I may Tell my kids that Santa is just a precious icon and represents something fun for the season and that's why some people believe in him, because in a sense his real, or I might tell them that he is real because it's just a fun idea that shouldn't be used to manipulate your children, but inspire them.
MUnfamiliar 2 years ago
You need to teach your kids that there is a Santa Clause! Its a perfect analogy god, and the statement "believing in god is like believing in Santa Caluse," looses its impact. Its an excellent method for teaching skepticism by example.
RaminHAL9001 2 years ago
Are you retarded, you don't trick your children into following the same beliefs you have, shame on you.
MUnfamiliar 2 years ago
I disagree. My parents were cool enough to not lie to me, and I can still understand the analogy between Santa Claus and God without having to personally suffer the humiliation of believing in such a silly concept as Santa Claus.
CMO999 2 years ago
Santa's not such a bad thing, instead of telling the kids that you buy a bunch of gifts and inject mercantile value in their head... kids think those gift appear there magically.
Urkinorobitch 2 years ago
Comment removed
pokerdice1 2 years ago
i mean i dont worship odin but if they say we get a day off because of him, im not mad at ya!
if we didnt celebrate holidays with pagan roots we would have nothing. i think the only one is thanksgiving and that isnt religious though. america is saturated with pagan shit disguised as christian. isnt that the dishonesty you should question my dear atheist friends? dont want to? ok lol
almost all our holidays are pagan, you want to work those days instead? fuck that shirt!
joopq 2 years ago
No one wants to work extra days! U.S. Americans already work more days than comparable European nations. Pagan holidays are religious, too. Just a different set of mystical beings. The top dressing is changed. I prefer to celebrate real events--like Winter Solstice, but not because I think that I can bring the sun back with superstitious mumbo jumbo. The dishonesty in question in this video is about parents expecting their young 'uns to _believe_ mumbo jumbo then letting them down.
laraesque 2 years ago
amen ra to that lol. i think the devil concept is more interesting since santa is a alegamation of basically odin (the one eyed norse deity) and the single eyed dieties are most commonly associted with lucifer (in the christian world that is the equivolant basically) soo... in that respect you are getting your kids to pray to lucifer lol. i mean i prayed to santa. we all did. prayed to forgive us and give us presents. lol. if this is on purpose and planned is the theoretical part
joopq 2 years ago
i used to believe in santa and i remember feeling creeped out by the whole idea. but the presents made him worth it lol.
the title of this video is spot on! (from a christian perspective that is lol) i know that needs explanation so here it is.
santa is a prototype of odin amalgamated with other pagan traditions from rome. so to a christian anything pagan is in the hands of the devil. after all he is known as the king of this world and the prince of the wind. govt excuse to see fam is cool tho
joopq 2 years ago
I stoped believing in santa at age 5. I stoped believing in god at age 10.
abbasmith123 2 years ago
if i had kids, i'd tell them there is a santa.
mrworms3d 2 years ago
Just make it a game. Don't say that Santa really does exist, but just talk to them truthfully about the idea of Santa.
TheStig000 2 years ago
Allowing kids to believe in Santa is fine because, unlike with god, they grow out of it. Now, if there were a huge support group for Santa believers in adulthood, as there is with churches, then it would be harmful.
Zaphrod88 2 years ago
If I tell my kids there's no Santa I have to take the blame for one of their presents being something they didn't want any more...is that selfish?
P4ZP47Z 2 years ago
Mom: God says don't lie... now be good and don't lie, or Santa won't bring you presents!
*10 years later*
Kid: Wait... what?
edeyn 2 years ago
I myself, if I ever have kids, will just ask "What do you think?" if they ask if Santa is real. If they want him to be real and behave if you tell them that Santa will give them preasents if they do, then it's all good. Plus by primery school they will have stopped beliving anyway.
I don't know of any case where little ones have been harmed overall by beliving in Santa. And they grow out of it on their own, so IMO, theres no need for parents to dictate the truth in this matter at all.
Nightmare060 2 years ago
Normaly the kids that belive in Santa are below the age of 5 or 6. It's a little white lie to help them think about their behavior and understand the difference between consiquences of right and wrong actions when they are too young to often fully control their emotions.
At some point, your going to tell little whie lies to children about subjects they don't understand or to make them feel better. So the excuse that telling them Santa isn't real because you don't want to lie to them is rubbish.
Nightmare060 2 years ago
The tooth fairy left you a buck? ugh.
My parents were so cheap ;(
Theegamedude 2 years ago
I'm not telling my kids there is a Santa when there isn't one. I'm not even going to impose religion on them at all... I'd let them choose and be what they want
iluvgh3tt0princ3ss 2 years ago
We are FOR as many ho's as possible per square time continuum unit.
ROAtheist 2 years ago
I will tell my children about father christmas. or santa claus or whatever. When I found out there was no father christmas the magic about christmas stayed. I wasnt mad at my parents at all actually. it was more like solving a riddle. is there a santa? do my parents do all this? it was fun to find out i was right and santa wasnt real. christmas is still a magic time for me. But im 15 so what do i know?
CatSchroedinger 2 years ago 2
Hail Santa!
SpahnRanch1969 2 years ago
Speaking from personal experience, the fun of believing in Santa far outweighed the dissapointment of discovering the myth. Actually, having been through the process of belief to non-belief, I think it made me a little more circumspect as a youth. After all, if a person can firmly believe in something then discover the truth, why wouldn't that be analagous to other avenues of belief? At least that's how my young mind perceived it. In retrospect, I'm glad I believed in Santa.
evolve749 2 years ago
I've always pretended to believe... Still do ;‹D
I love the mythology of Chris Kringle!
The way my parents told me the stories I knew the characters were pretend... fun and silly and generous of spirit.
Elaina43 2 years ago
I never believed in santa or toothfairy or easter bunny or any of those stuff while I was growing up. I just thought it was a pretty cool story.
FadeLLW 2 years ago
Oh yea..........finals suck. I have one at 8am tomorrow at the PAES building.....maybe I should start studying.
frambesbuckeye 2 years ago
People at Joe are wondering "Why is she talking to her camera?" LOL
frambesbuckeye 2 years ago
i say, take it to the next step. i told me kids the truth about things, but they're older now. We should teach kids to tell the other kids there is no santa or jesus. that would freakin rock.
TheAist 2 years ago
from the beginning, my parents always told me the truth about Santa Claus. They didn't want me to have any superstitions... outside those of fundamentalist pentecostal/charismatic Christianity, of course! Also! "santa" is an anagram for "Satan"! Coincidence!? I think not!
AdderallApocalypse 2 years ago
"some people believe in Santa...and some people are retarded little dipshits that believe anything they are told. Now, go brush your teeth."
All kidding aside, I have pretty much the exact same view of the idea as you have and felt the same way even when I was a Christian.
KingHeathen 2 years ago
as I have always been an atheist, from early childhood I understood the silliness of christ divinity fables, & santa was easily rolled right in as well.. My parents made feeble attempts.
This did not impact my joy in fantasy as a child, nor ruin Tolkien for me as a teen.
Skip the bs.
AtheistCitizen 2 years ago
Having the same discussion with my fiance about our son. I say the tradition is silly, she says she'll kill me if i take santa away. I think i can sacrifice myself for my son's sake. lol. only joking.
Jphss87 2 years ago
I don't think teaching kids about Santa hurts them. It does boggle my mind that parents will teach their kids not to lie, punish them for it, then the parents will lie to their kids without even batting an eye.
I think telling kids the stories about Santa are fine. The don't seem to think Pokemon or Cinderella are real when they're told those stories but they still enjoy them.
lordcheetah 2 years ago
I think it might be good to calibrate the kid's BS detector. I believed in Santa and i am an atheist now.
bezboznik84 2 years ago
The temporary belief in Santa never hurt me; I rather figure it helped shape my morals, more than religious nonsense that I never got trapped in.
And, besides, it proves even more to kids that stuff you believe in can be full of sh*t, so it can be easier to not start believing in gods either (or to let go of them).
Asantaism forever!
sp00x 2 years ago
We should be preparing kids to enter the real world, and not keep them in the Alice's wonderland.
Kids are not toys, they are not your pet project. They need to be taught how to think, and not what to think.
All I can talk about my childhood is lies. I have no special memories, only lies to bring up to the dinner table sitting across my aging parents.
Wizard4592 2 years ago
We need a more traditional christmas. Time to dress up like vikings, go out and chop down the biggest yule tree. Set it on fire, drink, do drugs, and have an orgy.
snackynak 2 years ago 3
Well, I'm 20 yrs old, an atheist and PEARList but I left cookies out for santa when I was a kid. My parents would even take bites of the cookies and drink the milk. I was not crushed, it didn't not mess with my reasoning abilities as an adult. But I was raised christian, that did some damage that took years to fix. Santa doesn't claim to have died for your sins and promises you eternal life. He just has elves and flying reindeers, kids come up with more creative stuff themselves.
tymedrop 2 years ago
Hell no we shouldn't! Parents' role is to teach their kids about the world...those stupid things are an abuse of their naivety, and anyone with an inquiring mind will feel betrayed to some degree or another after the bubble bursts.
lightmobile 2 years ago
why are we lying to our children on a mass scale? Just to crush them when they find out?
CanDoCarl 2 years ago
I still have flashbacks to the trauma. Haha.
Jeez, lighten up already.
entwood 2 years ago 2
Well, in north america it is sort of hard to avoid your child coming into contact with those fairy tales, and avoiding having people influence them against your wishes.
For example, classrooms in schools might discuss santa, have to draw pictures, or write stories about him. Plus extended family might push the issue, so even if you didnt want to lie to your child, everyone else could be willing to.
mikeypwn 2 years ago
We just teach our kids that Santa is an Anti-semite which is why he skips over jewish homes
texlevy 2 years ago
My parents told us the stories (Santa, Tooth Fairy, Easter Bunny) but never told us they were real. They made it clear they were only stories. That way we were able to grow up being aware but not believing.
God and Jesus were a different ball of wax, but I've since gotten over those, too.
worldsworstjukebox 2 years ago
i have a little girl. my tactic is that i don't outright tell her that these fictional characters are not real. for things that will scare her I to tell her they are not real for comfort. as far as santa, the easter bunny, and all other less frightening characters; i ask her things like does that make sense, and how would they do that. it teaches her both to imagine, but also gives her structure for logical thinking when she is truly searching for answers later in life
katiegirl5786 2 years ago
I say go along with the Santa tradition. My brother-in-law was raised without Santa and he feels like he missed out on an important part of childhood. I don't think believing in Santa or any of the other holiday mascots (Jesus not included) is all that harmful. If anything, one of the benefits is that each believer in Santa eventually has to work it out for him/herself and face reality. Good practice for intelligent Christians who might eventually dismiss mega-Santa (i.e., God)
zombiechaddy 2 years ago
Why not teach critical thinking skills directly?
CHEEMA1990AJ 2 years ago 2
I agree with CHEE, why put off "your" kids interface with reality?
AtheistCitizen 2 years ago
Because they are kids. Fantasy is vital. Many kids have imaginary friends right? The santa thing is all around them. Let them dream on with the magic.
When they grow a bit and ask if he is real, ask them what THEY think. Then you'll have a real discussion with an inquiring young mind. A discussion that will ground them well for future challenges to reason.
entwood 2 years ago
We told the daughter about santa claus because otherwise she'd have ruined it for the other kids and the wife didn't want to get grief from all the scary rednecks in preschool.
We already had to have a parent/teacher conf. because the little one was telling the boys in her class that they are robots. I uh, have no idea where that came from. Well, I might have mentioned something about it.
Keippernicus 2 years ago
Santa is pagan? I thought he was based off a saint, ie catholic..
Friends of mine decided they were going to tell their daughter that Santa is real. She started to beleive it anyway because kids at school were all talking about it.
Brianswers 2 years ago
Go to 'santa claus' on wikipedia. Go to section 1.2. It explains it there.
healthyaddict 2 years ago
Seeing as christmas has become so capitalist and greed orientated and away from all teh love, i'd say the invention of santa is bad.
muchlove59 2 years ago
Just as azdvldog, I have no recollection of believing in Santa, or easter bunny... definitely no toothfairy!
Paxmax 2 years ago
Oh fudge, as for "teaching" of Santa I do not think it makes any difference.
Paxmax 2 years ago
there's no need for Santa.
you can still have a blast on Christmas without the lie.
Just like god, there's no need for it, you can still have a meaningfull and fullfiling life... ;)
iurak6868 2 years ago 2
I would say no about Santa, not to teach them about it... But strangely enough, yes to the Tooth Fairy. Why? Because, as anyone who had kids around when they first lose a teeth would know, it freaks them out very much... And the thing is with the tooth fairy, it makes that traumatic moment become a moment to look forward to, in which the kid is excited, not disgusted. You COULD just tell that for each tooth they lose, you'll give them a couple bucks, but I dunno, up to you I guess.
Keyaira14 2 years ago
i think you should teach your kids the right and wrongs then leave them to form their own opinion of things so they might figure out santa isnt real early or later on they will figure out
ZappyZ21 2 years ago
Well I personally don't wanna tell my kids (when and if I have them) that santa is real. Mostly because I remember the huge disappointment I felt I can so vividly remember myself sitting down on this red bench we had in the backyard crying after I found out. I totally agree that kids are imaginative enough nurture imagination is great but lying is not. I most likely will have a Xmas tree but I am gonna tell my children that the presents are from mom and dad.
Neridhren 2 years ago
I don't know what to think about this.
rotcafarg 2 years ago
Teaching kids about santa just makes them more vulnerable and stupid... Its like indoctrinating kids in high school. They will believe what ever they tell you...
andwii 2 years ago
I can honestly not ever remember believing in Santa or the Easter Bunny or any of that bunch. I remember as a child talking as though I believed, and my parents talking as though he existed but it was always done in a way that we all knew there was none. From my earliest memories until this very day (at 24y/o) some presents are still marked as being from "Santa".
It can all be very fun, but we must be sure to teach children the truth. Knowing he is not real hardly takes anything away.
azdvldog 2 years ago
I wouldn't tell them myself, but I'd probably let them find out, just to see how it takes them to figure out it's not true
pete275 2 years ago
I had a Christian friend who didn't teach her kids about Santa, the Easter Bunny or the Tooth Fairy. Her reasoning was, "how can I say to them, believe in these things that you can see (as in costumed characters) and then tell them they are not real but I lied to you to perpetuate the magic and then expect them to believe in Jesus when they can't see him?"
debbieomi 2 years ago
healthyaddict, I'm glad you made this video. I actually think parents don't realise the harm they do their children by lying to them. Even a cute lie is a lie.
You have to remember that a belief in fairies was widespread among adults only decades ago. It doesn't surprise me that a sounder approach to parenting hasn't been realised.
smhussain62 2 years ago
I'm an old guy. I do think lying to kids about Santa, etc. is wrong, and I didn't lie to mine. It did not prevent them from having fun holidays or magical childhoods, or do them any damage. It did contribute tremendously to their critical thinking abilities and help equip them to later deal with the unreason that surrounds them in society. It also spared them the trauma I experienced as a kid because of Santa BS.
merlin4012 2 years ago
Come on merlin4012 - you are not an old guy...
Wrath0fKhan 2 years ago
Even if Santa Claus was real, the story behind it is pretty sick! The idea teaches children greed, bribing them to be good so they can be rewarded with whatever junk they're crying for. Also, the idea doesn't cover the idea that "Santa" obviously loves rich kids and couldn't give two fucks about poor kids.
KillJesus 2 years ago
I'm an atheist and I celebrate secular Christmas. The Santa story and the similar European myths make for enjoyable tales. I don't think that there's any harm in letting your child experience the wonder that goes along with Santa Claus until they figure it out. I also think it's naive to think you won't lie to your children. They will have dreams you know are never going to come true and you won't dare to ruin they're hopes by being honest with them. At least when they're younger. my2cents
DekeBlue 2 years ago
I agree with DekeBlue on this one. Say Yes to Santa! :)
LucyLocketInMyPocket 2 years ago
Great new camera, and great vid! I've subbed :D
I stopped believing in Santa when I was either 3 or 4. I dunno I just figured it out quickly. That's actually one of my first memories, asking my grandma if he's real and her telling me, "Well, he's real *in spirit.*" And then I knew he was bullshit.
Then when I went to preschool I tried to tell the other kids the truth and the teacher shushed me. And I was pissed. Like, "But but...it's the truth! It must be shared!"
Ah youth.
fulekkei 2 years ago