Here comes Peter Cottontail.

I'm sure many of you heard all of the Santa Claus scandals over the Christmas season.

In case you hadn't, or you'd like a reminder, here you go:

- A department store Santa was fired for saying "ho ho ho"; Santas' trademarked laugh, right? I guess not any longer. "Ho Ho Ho" has been deemed demeaning to women.

- Santa has been the target of fat jokes for years. And it's only getting worse. Parents are blaming him for setting a poor image for children.

- Christians are blaming the popularity of Santa for robbing children of the real meaning of Christmas and the story of Jesus Christ. (What's the big deal about some Mexican?).

All kidding aside. This is serious business. It may seem foolish now, and like good fuel for silly jokes. But these are issues that affect our youth and our world.

I mean, just look at the Easter Bunny! It wasn't that long ago that his slogan was, "Fuck N*ggers and F*gs". And people didn't bat an eye! But that's because olden day people were racist and unaccepting (just talk to your grandparents for proof). The world changed and so did Easter, now it's a fun holiday with eggs and chocolate and junk, and best of all, the Easter Bunny is mute. If that racist little fucker can't say anything, he can't be offensive.

Food for thought folks. Here's to a skinny and respectful Santa Claus in '08.