Mensch On A Bench - Another New, Commercial Holiday Tradition

“Elf-On-A-Shelf Mania” is in full swing and even though I'm already sick of the little smiling bastard, I was quite amused when I recently spotted the Jewish version of the Elf called Mensch On A Bench.

Mensch On A Bench - What a cutie!

In the Elf story, your elf sits somewhere in your house, watching your children and reporting back to Santa if the kids have been naughty or nice. If the kids touch the Elf to see if he/she is real or not, the magic leaves the elf and can only return if you sprinkle a little cinnamon beside them (source: www.elfontheshelf.com); apparently, cinnamon is like “vitamins” for the Elf and gets them back to the North Pole so they can be checked out by “North Pole E.R. Doctors” (I am NOT making this stuff up, but apparently someone does).

Both Elf-On-A-Shelf and the Mensch On A Bench watch over families, judging the behavior of the kids. 

Anyway, like Elf, the Mensch is “filled with holiday magic” and watches over children to see how they're behaving. Both have the power to affect how many presents are received. While the Elf flies back to Santa to tattle on the little ones, the Mensch stays up to watch over the menorah. If the children misbehave in his house, he will holds tightly onto the shamash candle and will not allow them any presents. However, while the Elf is untouchable, the Mensch is like a cuddly, old Jewish guy and is designed to be played with like any other doll.

The Mensch is adorable and especially popular with interfaith families who are always looking to teach old traditions while starting new ones. And the book that comes with the Mensch tells the story of Hanukkah in a heartwarming way with sweet, vivid illustrations. 

 

The problem I have with the Mensch is the “holiday magic” part. For years, I have heard predominately Jewish kids in my town taunt my children, flat out saying that their parents have told them that “Santa is just a myth that Christian parents tell their kids.” Now it seems that those same families are embracing the concept of “holiday magic” and telling their pint-sized skeptics that it's okay to believe in magical beings. If it was a “lie” before told by Christian parents, why is the Mensch a “truth” now that it's being perpetuated by some Jewish ones?   How would they feel if my kids told theirs that the Mensch isn't magic?  

Why was the concept of holiday magic a "lie" before, but it's okay now that's it's being embraced by some Jewish families?  How would they feel if my kids told theirs that the Mensch isn't magic? 

Being in an interfaith marriage and raising our children both faiths (under the umbrella of the Unitarian Universalist Church), my Jewish husband wisely bows his head and sends the kids to me for all-things Santa. He's always known that holiday magic is real and should never be tampered with. Honestly, I don't like any character, magical or not, that stands to judge whether my kids are “naughty” or “nice” - all kids are good; it is their behaviors and decisions that are wrong or right. 

Now, having said this, we do have an Elf, mainly because an old family friend gave it to us. Rather than tattling, Seymour challenges my daughter to find him every morning, a total pain for me, but my little one loves it and while Seymour does fly to Santa, it's more to check in than check up on my kids.

Will we be getting the Mensch? There's no reason to. My kids know the story and traditions associated with Chanukah. They take pride in lighting the menorah every year and are proud of their Jewish heritage. The Mensch is just another commercial way for a company to make money off the “competition” between Chanukah and Christmas. It's another example of commercialism at its worst.

Maybe, rather than naughty or nice, the question for us, as adults, should be how much are we and our families succumbing to the commercialism of the season – whether in the name of Christianity, Judaism, or anything else? Elf-On-A-Shelf? Mensch On A Bench? They're both superfluous. 

THE CIRCLE: Is THIS What The Future Holds?

I could NOT put down THE CIRCLE!

What would happen if Google, Apple, Amazon, Facebook, Paypal, Twitter, the United States government and every other entity that has a piece of your online presence were merged into one picture of you which you could not opt out of and would be harnessed for profit? That’s the premise in the delightfully chilling, modern-day Orwellian book, The Circle by Dave Eggers.

 

The Circle’s mottoes, instituted via methods akin to brainwashing, include “Sharing Is Caring,” “Secrets Are Lies,” and “Privacy Is Theft.”

Mae Holland is hired to work for this thinly-disguised version of Google. At first, it seems utopian as The Circle links users’ personal emails, social media, banking, and purchasing with their universal operating system, resulting in one online identity and a new age of civility and transparency. Quickly, she finds herself “required” to attend company events, take surveys so companies can collect her “likes” and “dislikes” and post online to bump up her ratings in the Circle community. The Circle’s mottoes, instituted in methods akin to brainwashing, include “Sharing Is Caring,” “Secrets Are Lies,” and “Privacy Is Theft.”

Mae becomes part of The Circle’s movement toward “Completion” in which every piece of information about the individual, including those of one’s ancestors, is made available to the company. Will she lose her soul to this cult-like organization which is quickly gaining Internet supremacy?

The book is fascinating because every day this Dystopian reality looms larger.

  

It asks the reader to consider what the consequences are, good and bad, of further centralization of information services and social networking with the voluntary surrender of privacy spun in totalitarian terms as the ultimate act of honesty. Online, every thought, transaction, action and experience we have is stored by some corporation. The Circle resonates because this scenario is completely plausible as we actively give away our information (and that of our children).


Author Egger’s protagonist isn’t the brightest or most well-developed character. There were times that I truly did not like her. She submits to the forces of The Circle far too willingly without thought to the repercussions even as she feels a part of her resisting. Similarly, parts of the book are far too “preachy” – I get it. By being online, we, too, may be giving away part of our souls.
Still, I COULD NOT PUT THIS BOOK DOWN! It is so thought-provoking, suspenseful, and creepy. At times, it made me consider shutting down my social media accounts while forcing me to question the positive value of having data on the Web – forever.

Is THE CIRCLE right? Is Privacy a form of theft because others cannot learn from our experiences?

Read it and see if The Circle doesn’t compel YOU to deeply consider your online presence!

 

Please note that this review first appeared on TheGeekParent.com.