Slasher Santa Display - Right or Wrong? (1 Viewer)

[MarkHastings]

I realize I go a little over the top with these types of people, but your explanation is probably a more grounded statment.


p.s. I'd love to find out why this guy feels this way and why commercialization bugs him this much.

 

[Glenn Overholt]

The commercialization I don't mind, but it is the length of it that I don't like. They shouldn't do anything until after turkey day (in the US - last Friday in Nov.)

After that, they can do whatever they want to. Actually, I think it is just laziness on the store's part. They had racks up for Halloween, and once that is over, they do the next one, but Thanksgiving isn't a big seller, so they skip ahead and load the shelves up early.

As for this guy's front lawn, I think it is funny, but I can see children at certain ages being traumatized by it = but then again, if they are THAT young, would they understand it?

Glenn

 

[Paul Padilla]

Ironic, isn't it?...For someone who can afford to live in a "Manhattan mansion", it's a little hipocritical to protest commercialism.

I'm all for protesting as long as it's well thought out and well presented. The imagery here isn't exactly cohesive. I can kind of get the Barbie heads as ornaments on the tree...but the bloody head doesn't really contribute to what they're trying to say.



I mostly agree. But every child is different. Personally, I probably would have gotten a chuckle as a small child walking by Slasher Santa. I had no problem with monster movies and the like...my Mother was, and is a big Sci-Fi nut. By the same token, I was terrified of the Child Catcher in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. However I had a friend who literally ran to hide once when he saw Lon Chaney Jr. turning into the werewolf. Go figure.

So I think it was irresponsible because there's no telling how small children might react to something like this. For a kid with an under developed sense of reality vs. fantasy, stumbling across this could be legitimately traumatizing. Not the, "Gee, everyone should get an award for the soccer game so none of the kids are traumatized." B.S. But severe emotional stress at the disturbing image.

 

[Bob McLaughlin]

Last year for Halloween I did something along these lines with an "evil Santa", however I didn't want to freak out the neighborhood kids, just adults coming to my Halloween party, so I kept the decoration indoors and out of the public eye.

This guy can decorate how he wants within the boundaries of the law, of course, but he should be prepared for some negative reactions. And yeah, what does blood and violence have to do with commercialization? I don't get the metaphor. If he showed Santa with a bag of money, or wearing a business suit, or even Santa killing Jesus, that would at least convey his message (offensively, of course). Actually Jack Kevorkian painted a painting illustrating this, Santa is coming down the chimney but he is crushing the baby Jesus at the same time. A not-too-subtle way of showing the displacement of one icon with another.

 

[Garrett Lundy]

Replace "gifts & food" with "alcohol & drugs" and I agree 100%

 

[Paul Padilla]

OK...so it's only in the couple of million dollar range rather than the 10s of million dollar range. They still have to make serious coin to live there.

 

[Joe Szott]

Sometimes I dress up like Frank from Donnie Darko and distribute eggs on Easter. Is that cool for the kids?

 

[DonnyD]

The mother and daughter involved in this "display" were on TV this morning and made a pitiful attempt at explaining their idea of humor....kinda sounded like they hadn't really turned loose of halloween and had no clue about what this display would or could mean. IMHO it was just a stupid stunt..... The 16 yr old daughter actually dreamed it up and she and her father built it. The parents are simply trying to excuse her "idea"..... after receiving various complaints from the neighborhood...... The mother came off as a block of wood with little to say and the daughter sounded more like she was 11...... no, maybe 10..... The family does not celebrate Christmas and I'm sure the ACLU is loving the act.....

 

[MarkHastings]

Oh my GOD! If this is actually true, I have a BIGGER beef with this family. Hold me back before I let loose!!!!

 

[MichaelBA]

According to the New York Post:

"The Krupniks, who have three children and have owned their home for 16 years, are nonpracticing Jews who don't celebrate any holidays, but like putting up decorations for them."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nypost/20051...st/oholyfright

 

[Inspector Hammer!]

This man is doing no damn good at all.

Who's he targeting with this, adults? No, because adults don't care about his pathetic "message" and will continue doing things the way they've always done them. Small children? No, because they are too young to grasp the concept of commercialism and what all that means.

Many children love Santa and Christmas time, and this jerk, his house or not, is hurting childrens enjoyment of the hoildays and that is WRONG, plain wrong.

We look at this man's display and see the potential for debate, maybe even something funny or humourous, kids look at it and see Santa Claus holding a knife with a human-like head in his hand and doing something scary and that's just fucked up IMO. And to top it all off, they don't even celebrate holidays, so what do they care anyway!?

I hate the commercialism of the holidays as much as anyone, but when I give a gift to someone I love to see the smile on their faces, that's why I do it and I don't even care if they give me nothing in return.

You keep Christmas in your heart, not in your wallet or at Walmart. Cliche'd and sentimental? You bet, but it's true.

As for this man's display, he deserves all of the eggs and toilet paper that the neighborhood kids can muster together come Halloween next year, hell, if I were a parent, I just might join in on the fun along with them.

"Your Christmas display last year sucked, that's MY message."

EDIT: LOL, I just showed this story to my father and his reply was priceless, he said "That's not the meaning of Christmas, that's the meaning of a maniac!"

Good ol' dad, he always knew how to peg em'.

 

[Jim Sentry]

This guy is a sicko and so is his daughter.

Santa is a happy symbol for kids and adults. His display belongs in one of those weirdo galleries in the Village.

As for commercialism, I don't feel it at all and I get a much bigger kick out of giving gifts rather than receiving them.

 

[Dion C]

I'm snarled in the vines of stupidity, and I have no machete.

1) I am ferociously free-speech, so I believe they can do whatever they want (within the confines of the law), be as offensive as they want, as tasteless as they want, etc.

2) That being said, if I lived next to them, I'd still think they were morons and would be annoyed and feel ill will toward them.

3) THAT being said, I would exercise MY free speech rights and put up my own display that would be twice as offensive as anything their idiotic 16-year-old daughter's slug-like brain came up with -- only my display would be all about my nitwit neighbors and their ill-conceived "message." While not involving slander or any other civil or criminal violation, I guarantee you my display would offend them and only them, as well as cause them bountiful days of embarrassment and humiliation.

Merry Christmas everybody. Hope I didn't offend anybody by using the word "Christmas."

 

[Jim Sentry]

BTW... Be Naughty - Save Santa a Trip

 

[ChristopherG]

Garrett, I am curious as to what this has to do with anything:



Do you think that no one in the apparently "happy, enlightened blue states" might be offended by this? Gotta clue for you - this type of thing is simply an attention getting grab by bitter, self-centered jerks who don't care if they offend many of their neighbors and, I might be giving then more credit here than they deserve, superstitous friends.

John W - your dad is right on

 

[MarkHastings]

I'll see your sentimentality and raise you a mushiness ...

Christmas can't be represented physically, but we humans have a hard time understanding things we can't see, so that's why we need a boost. Christmas lights, music, colors, sounds, the food, the gifts, they are all physical representations that we can grasp onto in order to get to the real meaning.

With all that being said, I will try not to tote the HTF forum rules here, but I mean this in the most sincere way...

This guy (and his daughter) are not Christian, so they can't possibly grasp the meaning of Christmas. From the outside, all they see is the commercialism and greed. Like I said before, the physhical aspect of Christmas is just a way of getting to the REAL meaning. Without experiencing it, you are only going to focus on the physical aspects of it. That's what this family is doing. They are judging a book by its cover and making a nasty statement about that cover, which is WRONG!!!!!

Don't judge the book until you've read it

 

[Inspector Hammer!]

I agree with you 100%, Mark, that Christmas is not only about gifts, however to go beyond that in this forum is prohibited because it get's into the religeous arena which is more than I want to take on in this topic, it always ends badly and nothing ever comes of it.

Just know that i'm with you all the way on this.

 

[MarkHastings]

Well, while it is a religious holiday, there is a part of Christmas that has nothing to do with religion. Is that bad? Well, not exactly...the spirit of good will is not solely a religious thing. As long as we treat each other nicely, with respect, and put aside our differences for at least ONE time out of the year, that's all that the holiday season needs to be about.

 

[Garrett Lundy]

Post Deleted

 

[MichaelBA]

Cool it with the "red states" and "Jews who hate Santa" stuff, or the moderators will shut this interesting thread down in a heartbeat.