Making a list and checking it twice

Editor’s note: Residents of the Warwick Valley School District are still weighing in on the issue of whether Santa Claus is a religious figure. What follows are excerpts from the overflow of letters The Warwick Advertiser received this week. Each letter appears in full on our Web site, www.warwickadvertiser.com.) • I grew up in the Soviet Union, with no religion whatsoever. Every December a character called Ded Moroz (Grandpa Frost) would show up in schools, public places and on postcards. He looked and acted identical to Santa. Maybe we need to bring Ded Moroz to Warwick schools. By the way, Saint Nicholas was a Bishop of Myra, a Greek city in present day Turkey in the third century. He did put coins into the shoes of children who left them outside the door on his birthday. And some say he still does it today. Just relax, breath deep, stop threatening law suits and you might see the Good Bishop, too. Vladimir Golyakhovsky, Chester • Santa, ladies and gentlemen, is a fictitious character. Any logic you want to use for removing Santa from school premises applies equally to removing “Tom Sawyer” or “Clifford the Big Red Dog.” He’s a fictional character whom children enjoy. If you want to ban Santa, come up with a better excuse than the church and state argument. Derek Balling, Hurley • What symbol would you like to take next? The bells for The New Year, the heart for Valentine’s Day, the shamrock for St. Patrick’s Day, the Bunny for Easter, the flag for Flag Day, maybe the fireworks that celebrate our Independence. What about the apple for school teachers, or the Jack-o-Lantern for Halloween, and the turkey on Thanksgiving, or the Menorah for Hanukkah? These are all events that have different meanings to everyone. Santa Clause is a symbol of giving, not religion. Don’t try to take this wonderful symbol of giving away from the children and those who believe. Bonnie Tomaselli, Pine Island •The holidays are supposed to be a warm, loving time, peace on earth, good will toward man. I try to remember that every day of the year. But it seems very sad to me that I have to feel bad for believing in Christianity or for even believing in Santa. Melanie Pitingaro Warwick • The other night I saw an advertisement for a big name jewelry store where Santa bought something extra special for his wife. I could only imagine the outcry if they had used the image of Christ or the Mohammed to advertise jewelry. Imposing views on others by force is wrong. Children should be taught to be tolerant of different viewpoints, to celebrate our differences. Today we’ve taught them to bully, that disagreement is better resolved by threat than understanding. Good job. Samuel Stanaitis Pine Island • December has traditionally been accepted, religion aside, as a time of giving and January as a time of making new resolutions. We would like to ask everyone who is willing to take the time to express their opinion, to take the same amount of time to try to make a difference. There are so many ways we can help change our world. Volunteers are needed everywhere. Make your New Year’s Resolution “to get involved.” Anthony and Deborah Blomfield Warwick