The New York Times disguised a left-wing political appeal under its Christmas Day editorial, “The Miracle and the Means.”
"Some years it would be nice if there really were a Santa Claus," they wrote. "Imagine it. No lists, no shopping, no gift-wrapping, no bills, no shipping costs, an extremely low carbon footprint -- and on Christmas morning the miraculous appearance of presents that find just the right balance between desire and a sort of disciplinary justice."
It would be wonderful, too, to be woken in the earliest hours of the morning by the heralding of angels proclaiming peace on earth. Not just the laying down of arms and an end to war, but an end to the conditions that cause war: gross inequality, intolerance, the endless, destructive struggle over natural resources, and the ease with which we dehumanize our fellow humans. Imagine in its place good will and, more important, the deeds that create and embody good will.
