Swaggy Bill

Interesting opinion piece by Jason Wilson in today's Guardian on-line highlighting the stupidity of clinging to imported European myths like Santa Claus... especially with all of their retained trappings
like seasonal backgrounds intact. The fat old bloke's visit to the antipodes remains in the unquestioning minds of children firmly anchored on December 25. when depiction of his costume and spectral vehicle surrounded by ice and snow hardly equates with the season south of the equator? Similar confusion attends the traditional fare served at Christmas celebrations... roasted meats and heavily cooked sweet courses hardly compatible with potentially +/-  40C ambient temperatures.

The author examines the role these and other similar anomalies play in reinforcing the feeling that we are 'aliens' in terra australis desperately clinging to the phantoms of a lost past(?) to assuage our feelings of being out of place?

I ask myself... if the above theory is sound, why not replace some of the old world phantoms with figures or habits which have been generated locally after the first migration? Since Santa is already an overlay on a solemn religious festival (which is probably a discomfort to many of its solemn adherents?), why not create a home-grown benevolent replacement similarly equipped to maintain the delights of innocent children in much the same way as Mr. 'Claus'? Perhaps the OZ version could be moved to either xmas eve or Boxing day? Wont worry the 'littlies'... they'll believe anything!