In what no doubt seemed like a wonderful idea at the time, Lewisville's Eagle Gun Range announced last Wednesday that Santa would be paying a visit, and he'd be "bringing his favorite toys to share in the Christmas photos -- his AR-15 and other firearms of choice."
"Come get your picture taken with Santa and His AR-15!" the announcement continued. "Both adults and kids are welcome to choose from a variety of ornaments -- from handguns, BB-guns, 22-Rifles to modified AR15's -- then sit on Santa's lap and tell him what you want for Christmas and even take your own photo with him at no cost! Then feel free to stay and try out some of Santa's toys on the range!"
That was, of course, two days before a gunman wielding an AR-15 slaughtered 20 first-graders at a Connecticut elementary school. Suddenly, arming Santa Clause with military-grade weapons and having him pose with small children no longer seemed tasteful.
So, citing only "last week's event," the gun range decided to cancel St. Nick's Friday appearance. One assumes, given that the cancellation notice was sent yesterday afternoon, that the event scheduled for this past Saturday, the day after the Sandy Hook attack, went forward as planned.
No doubt the news broke the heart of many parents who want their kids to associate Christmas with heavily armed, strangely dressed sociopaths. For that, there's always Weird Al's "The Night Santa Went Crazy."
