You're a Creepy One, Elf on the Shelf   An enumeration of
everything that's wrong with the holiday toy  Associated Press
You may have heard of the Elf on the Shelf, or you may not have.
A lot depends on whether or not you have kids, and how old they
are (the Elf's target consumers are families with very little
kids) and where you live (the Elf hails from Marietta, Georgia,
and an informal poll of my Facebook friends indicates that his
biggest fan base is suburban—more on that later).  If you're
unfamiliar with the phenomenon, this is what you need to know:
It's a doll that parents place around the house during run-up to
Christmas. Parents warn their kids that the Elf is watching them
to be sure they're being good. It's massively popular, with
annual sales of $10 million and an expanding product line that
now includes several versions of the Elf doll, plus book and
DVD. And I detest it. How do I hate the Elf on the Shelf? Let me
count the ways.  It's a marketing juggernaut dressed up as a
"tradition." Yes, al