When Did Christmas Become So Greedy?

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I was reading a discussion by @dragon54u, about how so many "needy" people nowadays ask for donations for frivolous stuff that aren't a necessity, such as video game consoles, fragrance body sprays, and adult-size clothing that's allegedly for their "kids." It seems that people turn to charity to try to support a lifestyle that is outside their means. I realized this last Christmas when I was going to adopt a child from the angel tree in our local Walmart, and discovered that I couldn't afford to buy any of the items these "needy" kids (or their parents) were requesting. Things like iPhones, expensive tablets, computers, game consoles, and other expensive electronics -- some for kids as young as two or three! My first thought was that the parents would probably end up hawking the stuff for drug money, and I'll be damned if I'm going to help support anyone's drug habit. (I live in a poor neighborhood and have witnessed this kind of crap going on. The kid who used to live downstairs from us could never keep anything nice because either his mom, older brother, or one of their many tweaker friends would always wind up stealing it and selling it for drugs. Plus, my felon brother pulled that crap with my own family.) My second thought was that even if the parents didn't plan on hawking these expensive gifts, they sure had a lot of nerve asking for others to pay for these things. I can't even afford most of that stuff for myself, so why would I go broke buying a laptop for a random five year old? Why does a five year old even need something like that? I was expecting to buy a toy for a kid, something like a stuffed animal, Barbie, or action figure, but I guess some kids don't want those things anymore. When I was growing up, I would have never dreamed of asking for some expensive gift for Christmas. I knew we were poor and that my parents wouldn't be able to afford it. It didn't matter if everyone else had it or would be getting it for Christmas, I knew better than to stress my parents out by asking for expensive, frivolous things. It's shameful to me that people would try to take advantage of the kindness of strangers. There is a huge difference between asking for a My Little Pony set for your child and requesting an iPad. Have people become so entitled that they just expect some kindly, wealthy stranger will supply these expensive gifts for their kids? (Or more likely, themselves.) When did Christmas become so greedy? I know people have been pondering this for decades, heck maybe even for the last century or longer. But it just seems like it's getting worse and worse. All people care about is getting, getting, getting. You see videos being shared online every year of spoiled brats having meltdowns if they don't get everything they ask for. Sure, I remember being disappointed some Christmases when I was a kid (particularly the year when my sister got the Skipper doll I had asked for because my parents forgot which one of us asked for it,) but there was more to Christmas than just presents. One of my very favorite Christmas memories is how my great grandpa would send a paper lunch bag filled with pecans, hard candies, and an orange down with my uncle Eddie for each of us kids every year, and sometimes my grandma would slip in a giant chocolate chip cookie. It wasn't anything elaborate or fancy, but it was given out of love, and that's what mattered. Nowadays kids would scoff at such a gift. Which I find really sad. Would you feel comfortable asking strangers to buy expensive gadgets for your kids if you couldn't afford to buy those things yourself? Or would you just let them learn a valuable lesson in disappointment?