The Santa Claus myth is not a religious ritual unto itself. It must be anchored to a value system. 200 years ago St. Nick (German: Nicklaus=Klaus=Claus) was firmly anchored in Christianity. Since that time the anchor has switched to commercial materialism. Christmas and Santa Claus can't stand by themselves. They will always be subject to the current zeitgeist and cast in it's image. In the future it may shift to something else - my bet is state politics. With a few changes, Santa has all the hallmarks of a children's myth for autoritarian governments as an agent of the state: He know what everyone does and he has a list. He rewards the good obedient people by giving them free stuff. He no longer has a magical workshop at the North Pole, but instead has a magical money creating workshop in Washington DC. The same belief and obedience lessons that Igor says motivate the original Santa Claus myth can also motivate the political one.