Hard Times Are Hitting Santa, Too

Is this harsh advice?

Yes, it is, and especially so if you have children. Christmas is their big day. Think brides on their wedding day. Kids get keyed up at the first sight of Christmas decorations.

They look forward to the holiday season all year long. You know that, and they know that. So I understand that it's hard to look at those excited, eager faces and announce you can't deliver on the goods or that Santa is in a recession, too.

And yet do I have to remind you of the current economic climate, where none of us can be 100 percent sure that our jobs are secure?

Well, I'm going to remind you anyway.

The unemployment rate has hit a 14-year high of 6.5 percent. The number of people applying for state unemployment benefits is at recessionary levels.

As of the opening bell on the day before Thanksgiving, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 36 percent for the year. Some of you are afraid to look at your retirement portfolio. Others who have dared to look feel like falling back with their hands over their hearts, the way Redd Foxx used to do when he played Fred Sanford in the '70s sitcom "Sanford and Son." However, you're not faking a heart attack for laughs. It's real. Your heart really hurts.

One economist talking to the Associated Press put it this way: "We are in the early stages of one of the worst recessions in the postwar period, even factoring in a massive stimulus program."

Now that you've been reminded, man up (or woman up) and have the talk. Don't punk out because 'tis the season or you hate to disappoint your kids. Use this trying time to teach your children by example to recognize their limitations and that there is no shame in having financial limitations.

By discussing with them that money is tight, you are admitting that at times you can't do or get what you want. You are teaching them you can't spend what you don't have.

I didn't choose the word "fool" lightly. I want to be blunt. I don't want to be gentle. These are hard times we're in.

"Our future is bright if we make good decisions," President-elect Barack Obama said during a recent news conference announcing the creation of a new economic recovery advisory board.