First World Problems: Anti-Military Wussies All Upset Fighter Jets Are Depicted Escorting Santa

Instead of being happy that NORAD is vigilantly watching and can intercept incursions into our airspace, some "child advocates" can't handle that NORAD's site contains the image of an F-18 escorting Santa's sleigh.

Pentagon's Santa tracking experience adds armed jet escorts, riles up child advocates

Capitalizing on the popularity of its virtual “Track Santa Claus” event, which allows users to track the fictitious travel path of his sleigh, the US military has ignited some controversy through the addition of armed jet fighters.

Some 22 million people last year were reached by the holiday event put on by NORAD, the North American Aerospace Defense Command, which allowed children and families observing Christmas to either navigate to a special website or call via telephone to receive “real-time” updates of Santa Claus as he traveled across the globe delivering gifts.

The picture at the article depicts a Canadian CF-18 escorting the sleigh.

Oh noes, wail the hoplophobes! Think of the children being harmed by viewing such images, not to mention their shock at the sudden realization that our peaceful neighbor to the north actually has an air force:

According to Allen Kanner, cofounder of the Boston-based Campaign for a Commercial Free Childhood and a child and family psychologist, “children associate Santa with gifts and fun and everything else that is positive about Christmas.”

“They are associating this with the military in children’s minds. It is completely out of line.”

Geez, NORAD, after all is a military organization that exists to track and defend North America's airspace, and some people think children can't handle the image of a military jet on the Santa watch site?

C'mon now, it's not like they shoot him down with a Stinger for violating the Washington DC ADIZ and show pictures of chunks of charred reindeer falling out of the sky for realism or anything like that.

Amy Hagopian, professor of public health at the University of Washington, also likens NORAD’s efforts to an ad campaign.

“I think people are quite aware of the military’s true mission,” said Hagopian, who has delved into the topic of youth military recruitment.

“If the military wants to keep its ranks stocked, it needs to appeal to children. The military knows it can’t appeal to adults to volunteer. It is like the ad industry,” Hagopian told the Globe.

Yeah, like the US and Canadian air forces are facing recruitment shortages - oh wait, they're not.

Some people just have to be killjoys for the season, not to mention gratuitously prejudiced against the military, and view kids as the perfect vehicle for their progressive tirades.

If kids can handle the scary concept of a bearded stranger coming down their chimneys, entering their houses and creeping around, they can probably handle the concept that the stranger is being carefully watched by our military as he travels around the country to be sure he doesn't do anything untoward on his flight plan.