For Gods Sake, Pay For The Damn Santa Claus!
Well, we all know that local governments are struggling with budget issues, and one of the first people to get the axe is Santa Claus.
Officials in New York’s Suffolk County said on Friday that they had to cut out the cost of paying for a Santa Claus to greet kids and ask them what they wanted for Christmas. The cost of a Santa Claus? $660 bucks.
I really don’t know where to begin with this. With all of the Government waste that is out there, where we have a freaking $2.7 billion budget, we can’t afford to pay for a guy to dress up as Santa Claus once a year? ARE YOU KIDDING ME?
This has got to be a joke right?
It isn’t.
There really is a guy named David McKell who is 83 years old and a World War II veteran (and who is not related to Old Man McGumbus) that has dressed up as Santa every year for ten years to get Long Island into the Christmas spirit.
We are talking $660 here for a very good thing for the community. You ain’t going to solve the budget problems by cutting out this guy, and he probably does more work than a lot of parts of government.
This kind of thing is why everybody can’t stand politics.
Steve Bellone, who is running for County Executive, paid for the Santa with his own money to get rid of the issue and to get on to something more serious.
Of course, if you are like me and have Dan Rattiner for a Dad, you don’ t need to go far to find a guy who is willing to dress up with a white beard and a big red suit, or who is willing to star in your personal re-make of Jurassic Park.
How anybody is going to solve this budget crisis is sort of beyond me, Democrat or Republican. It’s not a job I’d want, that’s for sure.
Don’t forget to vote today!