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Santa-hating MSNBC host tops list of Worst Dads Ever

Dec. 27, 2012 12:23pm Meredith Jessup

It’s not an official list. And only one person votes on it (me). But after reading that Touré announced that he’d never expose his kids to the “Santa myth,” the MSNBC co-host shot to the top of my list of Worst Dads Ever.

Said Tour(e with a squiggly line): “We put out the presents before bedtime on Christmas Eve. So, there was no myth that some stranger is going to come in through the door while you’re sleeping.”

Now, this bit actually makes me feel a bit sorry for Touré. His idea of Jolly Old St. Nick is as a home intruder? How sad!

However, that’s where my pity for him ends. While he can’t control the image of Santa his parents passed to him, he does have the chance to share the magic of Santa Claus with his own kids. But like a typical stubborn liberal, he’s going to take an unwavering stand on a non-issue.

Santa hating MSNBC host tops list of Worst Dads Ever

(Image: MSNBC)

I’m Catholic and so of course we celebrate Christmas as the birth of Christ, but we also enjoy the festive spirit of Santa. While I don’t relish the idea that my parents fibbed about some flying reindeer and feasted on the cookies I’d leave out each Christmas Eve, I’m glad they did. Believing in Santa instilled a real excitement in me for the holiday season — an excitement I still have as an adult, but would never have grasped as a small child.

It’s this emotion that makes Christmas more enjoyable as an adult watching children tear open their presents on Christmas morning. Try explaining that sentiment to a child. There’s a joy in giving, which it seems Touré has shared with his children, but it’s the spirit of giving which comes from Christmas traditions like Santa Claus that give more meaning to the season.

Regardless of my personal beliefs about Santa’s sheer awesomeness, there’s also this:

Believing in Santa Claus can enhance creativity and imagination in children while also reminding kids — and kids at heart — about generosity and joy, researchers find.

“Our great tradition, Santa Claus, reminds us that Christmas is, in fact, a time of joy and plenitude just when the gray, oppressive skies of winter proclaim the opposite,” Frank Riga, emeritus professor of English at Canisius College, said in a press release. “Santa Claus, finally, knows little or nothing of credit cards and shopping sprees, but he does know the pleasure in giving and the joy of others’ joy.” …

“Magical thinking enables children to create fantastic imaginary worlds, and in this way enhances children’s capacity to view the world and act upon it from multiple perspectives,” Eugene Subbotsky, Claire Hysted and Nicola Jones from the university’s Department of Psychology said in a press release. “The results suggested that books and videos about magic might serve to expand children’s imagination and help them to think more creatively.”

Magical thinking of the beneficial sort involves believing in non-violent supernatural events like animals speaking human languages, or a “good witch” flying on a broomstick. This involves the ability to construct an alternative world and research has shown that most 4 to 6 year olds think magically in everyday life.

Children with chronic illnesses also seem to respond positively to thinking about such figures, including Santa Claus. Many charitable groups, as a result, organize visits from “Santa” to brighten the days of these kids and to remind them that Santa Claus has not forgotten them.

(Image: AP)

Santa Claus is only the beginning of children’s limitless imaginations and capacity for hope. After watching Cinderella, is Touré going to break it to his daughter that Prince Charming doesn’t exist? That Beauty and the Beast isn’t a love story, but a disturbing depiction of bestiality? That there’s no such thing as “happily ever after”? C’mon.

Whether it’s Santa, the Easter Bunny or the Tooth Fairy, they’re all good traditions to share with your child. One mom, confronting the suspicions of her own daughter, explained Santa’s role in this way:

Santa is bigger than any person, and his work has gone on longer than any of us have lived. What he does is simple, but it is powerful. He teaches children how to have belief in something they can’t see or touch.

It’s a big job, and it’s an important one. Throughout your life, you will need this capacity to believe: in yourself, in your friends, in your talents and in your family. You’ll also need to believe in things you can’t measure or even hold in your hand. Here, I am talking about love, that great power that will light your life from the inside out, even during its darkest, coldest moments. …

Santa is love and magic and hope and happiness.

And to deny his child such an experience because of his own righteous indignation lands Tour-ay a spot atop my naughty list.

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Comments (15)

Ron Staiger
Posted on December 28, 2012 at 6:41am
Toure’s hatred of Santa is much more insideous than just some misguided apprehension about a fat and jolly home intruder. This is in fact a glimpse into the deep seated hatred Toure has for WHITE men and that is why he views him as an “intruder”. I wonder if he has a gun to protect himself from the fat old fella.

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chikonabike
Posted on December 27, 2012 at 6:28pm
I’m a Christian who grew up in a split family. One family brought us up to believe in Santa, the other, where my sister was raised, did not. I see no damage to my sister, nor to those of us who grew up believing. All of us were raised with a knowledge that Christmas was really a celebration of Jesus’ birth. When my daughter was small, I did everything possible to protect the tradition of Santa for her, but if I had it to do over, I probably wouldn’t go out of my way to do that. But neither would I deprive her of the pleasure & excitement of the the story of St. Nick. I think there are ways to incorporate the fun of that without deceiving your kids, and still be able to concentrate on the whole reason for Christmas. Also, we enjoy the playfulness of the Christmas movies, but still know Who we are really celebrating.

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- trolltrainer
  Posted on December 27, 2012 at 6:46pm
  Amen. I have pictures of all my kids sitting on “Santa’s” lap. I have relatives that did and are bringing their children up believing in Santa. One girl is actually 11 now and her parents claim she STILL believes, I think this may lead to problems, but…Not my affair.
  
  In any case, my children were not “deprived” of Santa (or the Easter Bunny and Tooth Fairy for that matter) but we always implied these were fantasy characters and by age 2-3 it was clear to them they are fictional characters.
  
  If I could go back I would not change this. It has simply never been a problem and their imaginations certainly did not suffer. They are creative, well adjusted, intelligent people now.
  
  I guess my point is we are not “anti-Santa” or anything, but real is real and fantasy is fantasy. Movies and television are not real life. They are not characters in a fiction novel. Ironically, they do not believe they are vampires, werewolves, or rapping gangbangers either…Go figure…
  
  Report this comment
MrSunshine
Posted on December 27, 2012 at 4:45pm
I’d like to tell all kids that this douchebag doesn’t exist.

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65Mustang
Posted on December 27, 2012 at 4:10pm
Such a pious little creature…a disgusting man.

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Ash_Kiker
Posted on December 27, 2012 at 3:36pm
He’s probably gay and the only kids he has are the ones he flushes each moring… dropping the kids off at the pool!

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nocommie
Posted on December 27, 2012 at 3:18pm
I do not watch M.S.N.B.C so I really don’t know who this kid is but it;s pretty clear that he is mentally disturbed and maybe D.H.H.S should look into his possible child abuse potential or is he raising his children to be Nazis

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Ducky657
Posted on December 27, 2012 at 3:13pm
Don’t watch these folks–don’t care what they say–never will!

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SickOfLiberals
Posted on December 27, 2012 at 2:42pm
Maybe something happened to Toure’ as a child. Maybe when he was young he so wanted Santa Claus to be real that when he found out he wasn’t it devastated him. So he doesn’t want his kids feeling like that. I know kids who were really bummed to find out Santa wasn’t real…we are not all alike…I can’t stand Toure’, but this one doesn’t bother me. He has done far worse than not letting his kids believe in Santa Claus…

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MrSunshine
Posted on December 27, 2012 at 1:22pm
Liberals are the “enlightened” ones you know. How dare society challenge the “logic” of their world! I think I’d rather have my kids live their childhoods as children but liberals would prefer to have them be treated like adults as soon as they enter the world, ready to be sanitized into the lefties’ cold, dark existence.

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TeresaJ
Posted on December 27, 2012 at 12:56pm
I agree with you on a lot of things, but not on this one. I don’t tell my kids there is a Santa Claus, lying being a primary reason, and Santa Claus having nothing to do with Christmas for another. Santa Claus does not appear in (or on) my house outside of family sent cards. It’s not just as simple as Christmas. I don’t lie for any reason. It would take a life at stake for me to do it. And a time or two, I have needed to bring up to my kids that I have not lied to them, not even once.

This doesn’t mean that I lecture other parents about it. Every family is different, and I respect family desicions and traditions. I instruct my children not to spoil it for other families unless it couldn’t be helped. It led to some interesting conversations with their cousins. :)

Report this comment
- TeresaJ
  Posted on December 27, 2012 at 12:59pm
  I should probably add that I do not forbid my kids from watching most Christmas themed movies. Rudolph is a yearly tradition.
  
  Report this comment
- Jon Dykstra
  Posted on December 27, 2012 at 1:13pm
  Some families tell their children there is someone out there who:
  - is very good
  - can see them, where ever they go
  - who knows when they’ve been good or bad
  - who loves them and wants to shower them with good things
  Some families tell their children this being is Santa. In our family we tell our children that this is God. That’s why I don’t want to lie to my children about Santa – why point them to the pale, secular imitation, when I can point them to the real deal, and give God the glory He deserves. Like Teresaj I don’t lecture other families about this, but I find it hard to understand how Meredith Jessup can think lying to kids is the conservative approach, while telling your kids the truth is the liberal thing. You’ve got that backwards.
  
  Report this comment
- trolltrainer
  Posted on December 27, 2012 at 4:58pm
  While I always respect Meredith’s opinion (more than most of the Blaze staff), and while I agree with her 95% of the time, on this I not only differ but I have to say she has a serious blind spot. My reasoning is much like the folks above and others who commented in the main article out in the forum. If you tell a kid all these fake, imaginary characters are real then why would they believe you about God when they find out the truth about the rest? I also do not lie. I may hedge a bit depending on the issue, but I have been straight up with my kids from their births. They have all been raised to respect the story and not to antagonize those that do believe in Santa. It has been my experience with 5 kids that contrary to what Meredith claims, it has made them better people, bringing them closer to God and their Savior Jesus Christ. They also have a firm grasp on the difference between fantasy and reality, a trait which is horrifically lacking these days and which can lead to all kinds of mental issues, and is probably the biggest cause of mass shootings among other things.
  
  Sorry Meredith, I acknowledge your reasoning and I have no problem with how you raise your children. Maybe you should show the same respect?
  
  Report this comment
- shabe
  Posted on December 27, 2012 at 6:14pm
  @TeresaJ, Jon Dykstra, and TrollTrainer – agree with all three of you. I raised two of the finest kids a parent and society could hope for. I dare anyone to meet my kids and tell me they were short-changed for knowing all along that Santa is made up.
  
  Conservatives have a lot of issues that are important and should be dealt with in the best way possible. Taking a chance of ruining your credibility by calling this guy all sorts of names does nothing positive to help the cause. Choose your battles wisely, is what I say.
  
  Report this comment

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