I am by no means a Bah Humbug type about the Christmas season. Every year I buy a real tree and hang ornaments and stockings, and I’m constantly chastised for whistling Christmas tunes year round (“The Twelve Days of Christmas” and “Good King Wenceslas” being the favorites).

My only complaint, which I explore in this Op-Doc video, is that Christmas could withstand a few new faces (well, at least new to Americans). The hegemony of Santa Claus has made him complacent and he has become ossified. The American tradition has always been to appropriate and incorporate, so why not do that with a few more holiday icons? Let’s have some Christmas diversity. If you think the whole idea is just plain silly, all I can say is this: it’s about as silly as judging students’ intelligence or potential by how many dots they fill in correctly on a sheet of paper. Take it from me: I’ve worked at both a Christmas tree farm and as a grader for standardized tests.