Nebraska School Principal Takes The ‘War On Christmas’ To A Whole New Level Of Insane Grinchery. She Bans Everything.

An elementary school principal in Nebraska makes the Grinch look like the nice guy who made Christmas great again. Her recently instituted bans on all things associated with the most wonderful season of all are the most Draconian yet in the ongoing "War on Christmas."

According to Fox News, Jennifer Sinclair, the principal at Manchester Elementary School, has been placed on administrative leave after sending out a list of guidelines on how students should conduct themselves throughout the Christmas season. So as not to offend anyone, the students were given some of the harshest restrictions unseen since the Puritan days.

"Teachers were reportedly told that generic winter-themed items, such as sledding and scarves, and the 'Frozen' character Olaf, were acceptable," reports Fox News. "Decorations that included Santa, Christmas trees, reindeer, green and red colored items and even candy canes, however, were not acceptable for the elementary school."

KETV provided the full list of acceptable and non-acceptable ways students can express themselves for Christmas. Included among the acceptable were snowmen, snow women, and "snow people."

Sinclair's list of "not acceptable" practices includes:

• Santas or Christmas items (clipart) on worksheets
• Christmas trees in classrooms
• Elf on the Shelf - that’s Christmas-related
• Singing Christmas Carols
• Playing Christmas music
• Sending a Scholastic book that is a Christmas book - that’s Christmas-related
• Making a Christmas ornament as a gift - This assumes that the family has a Christmas tree which assumes they celebrate Christmas. I challenge the thought of, ‘Well they can just hang it somewhere else.’
• Candy Cane
• Red/Green items - traditional Christmas colors
• Reindeer
• Christmas videos/movies and/or characters from Christmas movies (emphasis added)

Sinclair's “acceptable” list included:

• Gifts to students
• Snowmen, snow women, snow people
• Snowflakes
• Gingerbread people
• Holidays Around the World
• Sledding
• Hot chocolate
• Polar Bears
• Penguins
• Scarves, boots, earmuffs, and hats

Given that Santa Claus is indeed a Saint, it is somewhat conceivable to understand the logic that a pinched-face Scrooge would apply to such a ban. But what on earth is so offensive about the sugary deliciousness of candy canes? Apparently, it has something to do with the fact they often come in a "J" shape which (okay, I'm laughing now) Sinclair suggests means "Jesus."

"Historically, the shape is a 'J' for Jesus. The red is for the blood of Christ, and the white is a symbol of his resurrection," she reportedly wrote. "This would also include different colored candy canes."

No specifications were made as to why different colored candy canes would also represent the blood of Christ and His resurrection.

"I feel uncomfortable that I have to get this specific, but for everyone's comfort, I will," Sinclair stated.

In actuality, the historical roots of the candy cane have been difficult to pinpoint. One legend says that a German choirmaster back in 1670 gave them to the children under his leadership so that they would keep quiet throughout the long Nativity service; he allegedly shaped them J to resemble that of Jesus. However, no historical record exists of this ever happening. Visual evidence of the J-shaped candy cane with red-colored stripes do not appear until the beginning of the 20th century. As noted by Snopes, the closest religious association to the candy cane is an indirect one:

In 1919 Bob McCormack began making candy canes for local use and sales in Albany, Georgia, and by the middle of the century his company (originally the Famous Candy Company, then the Mills-McCormack Candy Company, and later Bobs Candies) had become one of the world’s leading candy cane producers. But candy cane manufacturing initially required a fair bit of labor that limited production quantities (the canes had to be bent manually as they came off the assembly line in order to create their ‘J’ shape,) and it was McCormack’s brother-in-law, a Catholic priest named Gregory Harding Keller, who came up with the solution: Father Keller invented the Keller Machine that automated the process of shaping straight candy sticks into candy canes.

Fortunately, the Elkhorn School District stepped in and put an end to Sinclair's one-woman "War on Christmas."

"The memo does not reflect the policy of Elkhorn Public Schools regarding holiday symbols in the school," the district told Fox News.

Indeed, Sinclair's self-imposed policy goes against the district's policy, which states that "Christmas trees, Santa Claus and Easter eggs and bunnies are considered to be secular, seasonal symbols and may be displayed as teaching aids provided they do not disrupt the instructional program for students."

The school district placed Sinclair on administrative leave last Thursday. No indications have been made as to when she would be let back.