By the Waters of Babylon
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Every year on December 24th, children anxiously fall asleep, some perched at their windows attempting to catch a glimpse of reindeer and a sleigh in the sky, others curled up in front of their fireplaces waiting to see a fat man try to fit down their chimney, and the rest snugly tucked into their beds dreaming of gifts galore. Every year people continue the Christmas tradition of Santa Clause, even though it's a lie by definition, a lie that's a bubbling spring full of happiness and contentment. Parents convince their kids that there really is a fat, bearded man in a red suit who travels in a sleigh pulled by flying reindeer ever Christmas Eve, and manages to visit every house in order to deliver gifts. This fairy tale is far from realistic, but people continue to carry on this ritual because of its positive outcome. For thousands of years, people have been selective about what they choose to tell others and what they want to hide from them. In the case of Santa Clause, children are simply given joy beyond belief, in world events, the gory details of overseas actions are masked from the general public, on TV shows, profanity is bleeped out in order that shows are able to be deemed appropriate for public broadcasting. The truth is hidden in millions of ways in society today. As revealed in "By the Waters of Babylon", sometimes too much truth can mean more harm than help.
Stephen Vincent Benet must've put a lot of thought into his short story of the future earth and civilizations. So much in it is frighteningly realistic...