Random Reasons Christmas Is Actually A Far More Horrifying Holiday Than Halloween (12 items)

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  (#5) Sexual Predators Hide Behind Mistletoe

  Mistletoe is actually a parasitic plant. It latches onto a tree, then leeches nutrients and water from its host. Despite this, a tradition that dates back to Norse mythology declares that it's bad luck to refuse a kiss when under the Mistletoe.

  Traditionally, after a kiss, the kissers are to pluck a berry from the plant. After all of the berries were gone, the Mistletoe no longer has any power. However, today this practice is a sure recipe for a cold sore.

  Additionally, the legend inadvertently acts as a tool of perverse power, as creeps can cite the legend as justification for why they are owed kisses from those around them. In the days surrounding Christmas, you need to look up, down, left, and right to stay safe.
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  (#11) Those Beautiful Christmas Songs Are Actually Creepy AF

  Even if you're not Christian, you most likely celebrate the holiday season to some extent. If nothing else, you probably enjoy hearing the occasional Christmas carol, which are basically unavoidable in the month of December. And why shouldn't you enjoy songs about spreading love and good will? 

  Hang on, what about I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus? Seriously? The pinnacle of moral authority for children is cheating on Mrs. Claus and hooking up with your mom, who happens to be cheating on your dad. The song ends after about three minutes, but the subsequent divorce proceedings, custody battles, and related emotional trauma take years to fully unfold. 

  Then, there is Baby It's Cold Outside, where a predator tries to get his date drunk, and won't let her leave. It's terrifying. When else do we celebrate such ill conduct with cheer?
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  (#1) Absolutely Everything About Santa's Pal Krampus

  If you grew up celebrating the American version of Christmas, you almost certainly know the tale of Saint Nick, but you might not have been subjected to some of his more questionable friends. 

  Chief among Santa's entourage of shady characters is Krampus, a demon with massive horns whose main job is to drag naughty children to Hell. Apparently, Santa doesn't really want to know if you've been naughty, so a few weeks before Christmas, he sends Krampus around to weed out the bad children.

  For minor offenses, Krampus might choose to simply beat the child with a bundle of sticks. If they've been especially bad however, they're tossed in his sack and brought straight to Hell.  

  FYI, Krampus begins watching you the moment you're born, as is evidenced by images of the demon taking flocks of presumably naughty infants away to some horrid fate. 
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  (#10) The Christian Tradition Of Twelfth Night Has Its Roots In Paganism

  Twelfth Night typically gets celebrated on the eve of the Epiphany (which usually falls 12 days after Christmas). On top of this, many families will take down their Christmas tree on, or immediately after, Twelfth Night. This all sort of links the Twelfth Night tradition to Christianity. 

  However, the Twelfth Night celebration is rooted in Pagan customs. Originally, Pagans celebrated the Yuletide festival around the time of the winter solstice (roughly December 21). When the Christian Church sought to combat Paganism by commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ with the celebration of Christmas, important Pagan events were converted to Christian analogs, and thus the Twelfth Night festival was born. 
   
  One particularly famous Pagan Twelfth Night tradition calls for a cake to be made with a bean and a pea baked inside of it. The man who discovers the bean gets crowned king, and the woman who finds the pea gets crowned queen. The king and queen take their seats at a throne and receive paper crowns, then a night of celebration ensues.

  In some Christian families, baking a Twelfth Night cake is still a tradition. However, while Christians view it as a rounding off of the Christmas season, Pagans saw it as a time to worship the Mother Goddess of nature.
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  (#7) Parents Allow Their Children To Sit On The Lap Of A Seasonal Mall Employee With A Beard

  Sitting on Santa's lap is consumerism's ham-fisted attempt to attract more shoppers to malls during the Christmas season (after all, you can't meet Chris Kringle while shopping on Amazon).

  Some report that the tradition goes back to 1841, when people flocked to see a life-sized Santa in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Today, the times are changing, and more parents prefer their children to just stand by Santa. However, plenty still force their kids to sit on that creep's lap.

  We've all witnessed a terrified, screaming child fighting to get off of a chubby, bearded dude's lap. Why isn't that child abuse?
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  (#3) The Nutcracker Is About A Child Lost In Another World

  Most people have seen some version of The Nutcracker. However, many are not aware that this beloved holiday staple was written and based on E.T.A. Hoffmann’s 1816 fairy tale.

  In the fairy tale, a young girl named Marie falls in love with the Nutcracker Prince, who she can only see come to life when she's asleep. During a battle between the Nutcracker Prince and the Mouse King, Marie cuts her arm and falls into a feverish sleep. There, she gets brainwashed by the Mouse King.

  After Marie recounts this story to her family, they forbid her from speaking about her dreams. Nonetheless, Marie's faithful love for the Nutcracker brings the ugly doll to life once again. She and the Nutcracker Prince leave Marie's world and choose instead to live in the doll kingdom.

  Basically, The Nutcracker is a story about a young girl who falls in love with a doll, then leaves her old family and life to spend her days with said doll in a world where toys are constantly warring with mice and child marriage laws apparently do not exist. Clearly, it's a wonderfully inspiring Christmas story.

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