With Thanksgiving behind us now, it’s time to deck the halls for the holidays. Everyone has his or her own sense of style, or lack thereof, when it comes to decorating. For some, a simple wreath and a few poinsettias is all it takes. For others, it’s just not Christmas unless the house could serve as a landing beacon for returning astronauts.

For those with a less traditional approach to decorating, you can add the “Glitter Gun” to your arsenal – pun intended - of tree ornaments. Offered by retailer Urban Outfitters, the “Glitter Gun” is a five-inch plastic revolver, complete with a ribbon for hanging. It even comes with its own tagline: “Pop a cap in your tree.”

In a twisted way, I think the tagline is pretty funny. Urban Outfitters is known for edgy humor in its catalogue, including a t-shirt with the slogan “New Mexico, Cleaner than Regular Mexico.” The joke, however, has been lost on Philadelphia, where the ornament has touched off something of a firestorm. A local radio talk show spent an entire afternoon discussing whether the ornament was “appropriate” or not. Darryl Coates of the Philadelphia Anti-Drug/Anti-Violence Network said he thinks the company should be more sensitive: "Once again, you see someone trying to profit off of the violent nature of our society, and if that's the case, they should withdraw the ornament from their catalog right away and submit an apology to the community."

For a city that has seen 400 murders in 2006, many committed with handguns by men under age 25, the response from Philadelphians like Mr. Coates is somewhat understandable. It is, however, entirely misdirected.

Like Elvis, ”appropriate” left the building long ago in this country. At the dawn of the video game age, for example, Pac Man was a popular offering. The extent of the violence in the game came when the pie-shaped hero would grab a power pellet and briefly turn the tables on his spectral tormentors. Other than that, it was essentially an eating game, with, if you think about it, a healthy focus on the importance of fruits and vegetables.

How the times have changed. One can now cavort with criminals, wield a variety of heavy weapons and get points for carjacking innocent civilians in the “Grand Theft Auto” series. At least “Mortal Kombat,” vilified for its violent content nearly a decade ago, had a fantasy element to it; “GTA” essentially allows youngsters to emulate real life thugs from the comfort of their own couch.

On the music front, of course, we’ve come a long way from Journey and Kool and the Gang. One isn’t likely to find innocent titles like “Don’t Stop Believing” or “Celebration” on a modern rap album, where the lyrical themes often revolve around materialism, misogyny, and violence.

I don’t mention any this to sound like a nostalgic old coot. I hated Pac Man. I’m rather fond of today’s first person shooter games and will admit that the occasional rap song has a nice hook to it. The point is that we as a society long ago abandoned the front lines in the war against exposing young people to questionable, if not deleterious, influences. Under constant siege, decency and decorum have been beaten down and twisted into subjective, antiquated concepts of days gone by.

If pop culture has a direct impact on how young people behave, and I believe it does, then it’s safe to say that a tree ornament from a niche retailer is not at the forefront of the assault. The “Glitter Gun” is but a totem image of what’s happening in society. One doesn’t blame the mirror for an unappealing reflection. Of all the things Coates and his organization could focus their energy on (they are discussing a boycott of Urban Outfitters), this should be at the bottom of the list.

Is the “Glitter Gun” inappropriate? Perhaps. Is it tacky? Absolutely, but no more so than Urban Outfitter’s “Ghettopoly” game. Wholesome fun for the entire family, “Ghettopoly” includes a card awarding $50 for getting “yo whole neighborhood addicted to crack.”

That said, it's also tacky for my neighbor to put a seven-foot inflatable snowman on his front lawn and leave his icicle lights up until Memorial Day. But you won't see me protesting that...formally, at least.