The Evolution of Santa Claus

Did you know that the history of Santa Claus dates back to 1773? The name Santa Claus evolved from the Dutch nickname “Sinter Klaas,” which was a shortened form of Sint Nikolaas. Dutch families in New York used to gather in honor of the anniversary of St. Nicholas’ death on December 6th, and referred to him as “the protector of children and sailors.”

Washington Irving, the famous author of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, helped popularize the Sinter Klaas stories when he referred to St. Nicholas as the patron saint of New York. As a result, American families started to center the holiday around children and gift giving. So, in the early 19th century, stores began to advertise Christmas shopping and newspapers were creating separate sections for holiday advertisements which often featured images of the newly-popular Santa Claus.

In the early 1890’s, the Salvation Army needed money to pay for the Christmas meals they provided to needy families, so they began dressing men up in Santa Claus suits and sending them into the streets of New York to collect donations. To this day, the familiar Salvation Army Santas are ringing bells on the street corners of America, spreading joy and collecting donations for the needy.

Present-day Santa Claus is known for his bright red coat, full white beard, and a sack full of toys for children. This image was first started in 1822 by an Episcopal minister, Clement Clarke Moore, who wrote a Christmas poem for his three daughters named An Account of a Visit from St. Nicholas. This poem unknowingly created a new and immediately popular American icon. In 1881, cartoonist Thomas Nast drew inspiration from Moore’s poem to create the first “Santa Claus” image, which depicted Santa as a cheerful man with a white beard, holding a sack full of toys for children. He also gave Santa his bright red suit with white fur, his workshop at the North Pole, and his wife, Mrs. Claus.

Santa Claus has since been used in ads for just about anything. The most popular and well known company that uses Santa Claus to advertise is Coca-Cola. Coke ads have been featuring Santa since the 1920’s, and these ads helped shape the image of present-day Santa. In 1931, Coca-Cola began placing ads in popular magazines, and wanted to show a wholesome Santa who was both realistic and symbolic. From 1931 to 1964, Coca-Cola advertising showed Santa delivering toys, pausing to read a letter and enjoy a Coke, visiting with the children who stayed up to greet him, and enjoying the treats left for him by the children.

Throughout history, the physical image of Santa Claus has changed drastically, from being described in the book The History of New York by Washington Irving as a “rascal” with a blue three-cornered hat and yellow stockings, to a man wearing a broad-brimmed hat and a “huge pair of Flemish trunk hose.”

The modern-day Santa is known for his jolly presence, red suit, and eight reindeer who fly him all over the world to deliver presents to children. The most popular reindeer of the eight is known as “Rudolph,” and was created by Robert L. May, who created a Christmas themed story to help bring traffic into his department store. The sales trick worked; Americans loved the underdog story of Rudolph being bullied by his fellow reindeer because of his glowing red nose, and then showing how Santa needed his glowing red nose to see when the weather was foggy. Still today, Americans love rooting for Rudolph the underdog reindeer and taking their kids to get their picture with a jolly Santa Claus at their local mall.

“Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!”

Support Mercury One and their initiatives to provide humanitarian aid and education and to restore the human spirit by clicking here. Together, we can make a difference.

Republished with permission from MercuryOne.org.

POLL: Should Universities allow pro-Hamas protests?

Joseph Prezioso / Contributor | Getty Images

Just one day after Hamas’s surprise attack on Israel, which left over 1,400 people Israelis dead, 34 different student groups from Harvard University wrote a joint statement pinning the blame of Hamas' terrorist attack on Israel. In the following days after publishing this callous statement, these students staged a walkout and rallied in support of the Palestinians. As Glenn has discussed, this is not an isolated event, and campuses across the country have hosted similar rallies where antisemitic jargon like "we don't want no Jew state" and "globalize the intifada" is freely spewed.

Should Universities allow pro-Hamas protests?

While the Universities have not officially backed any of these rallies or student groups that organized them, they haven't stopped them either, which raises the question: should they? On one hand, these are American students in American Universities, who are protected by the First Amendment. On the other hand, history tells us how dangerous antisemitism is if left unchecked; and what of the rights of Jewish students to be safe on the campuses they pay to attend? Let us know what you think in the poll below:

Should Universities allow pro-Hamas protests? 

Would you feel safe if your child attended a University that allowed pro-Hamas protests?

 Should Universities allow pro-Israel protests?

Is pro-Hamas rhetoric protected by the First Amendment?

POLL: What do YOU think Israel should do about Gaza?

SAID KHATIB / Contributor | Getty Images

Should Israel take over Gaza after defeating Hamas? This contentious historical question has resurfaced amid Israel's retaliatory airstrikes in Gaza following Hamas' terror attacks, which resulted in the greatest death of Jews since the Holocaust. Biden and the global elites have warned Israel against occupation of the Palestinian territory. When asked on 60 Minutes if he would support the Israeli occupation of Gaza, Biden said, “I think it would be a big mistake.” Today Glenn responded to Biden’s answer: “I don't think it's a mistake to occupy."

This has been a long-standing, polarizing issue that is now more relevant than ever, and we want to hear YOUR thoughts. Let us know in the poll below:

Would you support an Israeli occupation of Gaza?

Do you think the Israeli airstrikes in Gaza are justified?

Do you think a two-state solution is still possible?

Funding IRAN?! Here are the TOP 5 reasons Joe Biden should be IMPEACHED

Bloomberg / Contributor | Getty Images

On September 12th, the House announced an official impeachment inquiry into Joe Biden with allegations of abuse of power, obstruction, and corruption. Naturally, the media quickly jumped to the President’s aid claiming that “there is no evidence to support these claims” and that the whole affair is a witch hunt.

If you’ve been listening to Glenn, you know that this is simply not the case. Biden has been committing impeachment-worthy deeds before he even stepped foot into the Oval Office—there’s no shortage of evidence to justify this inquiry. Here are 5 scathing reasons why Biden should be impeached:

He was responsible for the Afghanistan withdrawal disaster.

Click here for full video

The Biden administration began with the US's disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan. Under his watch, Biden left thousands of US citizens and allies stranded in the Taliban's hostile regime. Countless Afghan allies have been murdered by the Taliban due to the Biden administration's negligence.

He was involved with Hunter Biden's illicit foreign business dealings.

Click here for full video

There is clear evidence that Joe Biden was more than aware of his son Hunter's foreign business dealings. From suspicious money laundering through the Biden family's accounts to Joe's involvement with important business meetings within Hunter's company, there is mounting evidence to warrant an impeachment inquiry.

He lied about his involvement with Hunter's business dealings.

Click here for full video

Not only did Biden involve himself with his son's less-than-legal foreign business ventures, but he lied to the American people about it too, claiming he had NO KNOWLEDGE of what was going on.

He failed to protect the Southern border, and actively made it worse.

Click here for full video

Biden singlehandedly turned the Southern border into the worst illegal immigration crisis in US history. He reversed many policies set in place by the Trump administration, resulting in 2.3 million illegal immigrants flooding into the US under his watch, a historic high.

He sent IRAN AND HAMAS BILLIONS OF DOLLARS.

Click here for full video

Biden reversed the Trump-era policy that halted all funds going into Iran. The Wall Street Journal revealed the smoking-gun evidence proving that Iran trained AND funded Hamas before its gruesome terror attacks against Israel. Moreover, shortly before the attacks, the Biden administration unfroze $6 BILLION dollars of Iran's assets as a part of a prisoner swap. On top of this, Biden resumed $200 million worth of "humanitarian aid" to Gaza that Trump had ended—because the money was being used to buy weapons for Hamas.

Top 5 economic milestones that show HOW BAD Bidenomics has made the economy

SAUL LOEB / Contributor | Getty Images

From groceries to house prices, everything seems to get more expensive, and you can thank Biden for that. Glenn recently exposed the truth about 'Bidenomics' and the havoc it has wrought on the American economy. Here are five economic milestones during the Biden administration that expose the glaring track record of "Bidenomics:"

In July 2022, the inflation rate hit 9.1 percent, a 40-year record high.

In June 2022, gas hit an all time record high of $5 a gallon for the national average.

61 percent of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck as of this September.

Interest rates reached a 15-year high at 5.25 percent and are still increasing.

Americans have $1 trillion in collective credit card debt, in part due to food/staple pieces being very high.