A World Christmas Meltdown

Jeff Winkler | March 25, 2009

It looks like coal might not be the worst thing Santa will leave for children this Christmas. According to Reuters, Finland plans to cut its 32 percent stake in Santapark in light of the global recession. The most likely gift for children around the world? An I.O.U.:

Finland said it would sell its 32 percent stake to Santa's Holding Oy, which will also buy shares in the Lapland-based park from the city of Rovaniemi...

...the new owners planned to slash sales and marketing costs at the park, which has struggled financially since opening in 1998...

Santa's lair, near the Arctic Circle, has faced problems before. In 2003, all the full-time elves were laid off.

Sure Santapark isn't U.S.–based, but why should that stop Obama from throwing some cash at ol' St. Nick. We don't want the park's failure to bring down "the whole [Christmas] system," do we? On Jay Leno's show last week, Obama said that intervening in AIG was "the right thing to do..." Well, intervening for the sake of the children is also the right thing to do!

Comments

|3.25.09 @ 4:18PM|#

I guess there weren't too many applicants to pick from for the Burton C. Gray Memorial Internship this year.

Jeff P|3.25.09 @ 4:19PM|#

If evangelicals are willing to buy and co-opt dinosaur parks into creatinst propoganda, they should be leaping on this.

SpongePaul|3.25.09 @ 4:20PM|#

Obama said that intervening in AIG was "the right thing to do..." Well, intervening for the sake of the children is also the right thing to do!
_____________________________________________
PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE Don't give Obama any more ideas

Jordan|3.25.09 @ 4:46PM|#

Let's not make Weird Al's "The Night Santa Went Crazy" a reality now. Too jolly to fail!

|3.25.09 @ 4:49PM|#

Congress would support a bailout if the elves were unionized.

lunchstealer|3.25.09 @ 4:59PM|#

Rovaniemi is also good for going and sitting on a hill in on the summer solstice and getting blitzed on heavily taxed beer while watching the sun go 'round the sky.

|3.25.09 @ 5:29PM|#

Yo! Fuck Santa.
Socialist elfophile bastard.

|3.25.09 @ 6:54PM|#

The children! The children!

OH . . . MY . . . GOD!!!!!

THINK OF THE CHILDREN!!!

Famous Mortimer|3.25.09 @ 7:25PM|#

Reason just keeps getting better, and better doesn't it?

It seems that both Reason and the government share the same philosophy in regards to their hiring practices.

Libertarians have a penchant for self-sabotage.

Famous Mortimer|3.25.09 @ 7:28PM|#

"Obama said that intervening in AIG was "the right thing to do..." Well, intervening for the sake of the children is also the right thing to do!"

Jesus, talk about a non-sequitur.

I'm sure that many of you glean "Socialist" propaganda in cartoons as well.

Famous Mortimer|3.25.09 @ 7:33PM|#

"From!" Goddamnit! "From!"

"Him, my name is Famous Mortimer. I would like to talk to you today about the importance of using the 'preview' button."

The Bearded Hobbit|3.25.09 @ 11:14PM|#

FM,

Kinda takes away from the rant, doesn't it!

.. Hobbit