[Knitting A Conundrum]

Why does it have to?

Christmas means a lot of things to a lot of people...in this case, it's a family making something for someone close to them...a very common sentiment at Christmas.

Google is not a religious organization, but that set of doodles did capture an aspect of Christmas that is still warm and good...doing something sweet for one's loved one, and in a family setting, to boot.

If we make the religious aspect of Christmas a political test of who's ok and try to say none of the other sides of Christmas celebration count, how are we any better than the Taliban?

And I say this as a person who runs a prayer thread pinglist here on FR, and who spent hours posting Christmas prayers, carols and texts.

There was nothing sacriligious in what they showed. They didn't mock or belittle it. They didn't ignore it. There was a celebration of sharing self for one's loved ones, and that's a Christmas value we have had a long time. It's indeed part of what a lot of us do. Is it all that Christmas means? No. But is is a big part.

Did you shop at stores that didn't have a nativity scene in their advertising?

Did you not give gifts to people you cared about, or only gave religious themed gifts?

IMHO, complaining about this is misdirected energy - and can lead, taken too far, to making Christianty a political test, a reverse PC behavior, which is certainly NOT in the mode of American free speech.

[Jo Nuvark]

I'll take a stab at it.

1. The pouch represents Santa's toy sack.

2. This looks like a traditional family ... possibly even hetero.

3. Humankind may be trying to erase Christmas but the animals know better.

But ask now the beasts, and they shall teach you,
and the fowls of the air, and they shall tell you
(snip) that God's hand is the life and breath of
every living thing. (Job 12:7-9)

4. The happy Roos are far better than evil elves and Surly Santa commercials we've had to endure all season. Lowes is the worst.

[NRA2BFree]

How do you know that's a reference to Christmas?

[gpk9]

"This is a total mocking of the birth of Christ in my opinion."

Christmas is a total mocking of the birth of Christ in my opinion.

See my article "Christ and Christmas".

[Knitting A Conundrum]

The series of doodles, all 5 of them, can be seen here:

http://www.google.com/doodle12.html

panel 1. Google wrapped with tinsel.

Panel 2. Kangaroo and baby start to wind garland into balls

Panel 3 Kangaroo and baby knitting

Panel 4 Kangaroo and baby give sweater to mama Kangaroo

Panel 5 family portrait of daddy, mommy and baby Kangaroo, with Mama wearing the sweater

[Eccl 10:2]

Usually the best thing you can do is ignore these "offenses". Those who believe differently than you profit not from the "offense", but rather from your reaction.

It's like being teased when you were a kid.

[hole_n_one]

FWIW, Google and "the season" thru the years......

1999.....

2000......

2001.....

2002.......

2003....

2004.....

2005.......

[Coleus]

Left-wing techies are secular.

[kingu]

And this means what on the day of Christmas? A kangaroo with its joey in the pouch? This is a total mocking of the birth of Christ in my opinion.

No, mocking the birth of Christ is those Santas up in your corner market since October. This sequence has been going in the days leading up to Christmas, showing a father and child making a gift for their mother and sharing it in a family moment. Yeah, I know, in this day and age, how dare they show a nuclear family, how dare they not have two guys and a child?

But this simple explanation is likely beyond you, and you're just seeking a reason to hate Google. Fine, do so, for censorship, for banning conservative advertisements and viewpoints, for promoting ultra-liberal ads and websites. There's plenty of reasons to hate Google.

But I won't fault the company for actually celebrating Christmas ON Christmas, showing a family sharing the spirit of giving, of home crafts, of being a mom and dad and child.