Dr. Feelgood
intellectual nerd
For what is supposedly a major holiday, Thanksgiving doesn't get much respect. It's not a commercial extravaganza like Christmas, Valentine's Day, Easter, and Halloween, and it doesn't offer an excuse to get drunk like New Year's and St. Patrick's Day. It is seated at the table next to the kitchen, along with Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, and Veterans' Day.
But then, what use do we have for a holiday that focuses on gratitude?* Sane people count their blessings every day, and those afflicted with the madness of our times consider themselves entitled to whatever they wish, and thus they cannot conceive of gratitude, let alone experience it. Thanksgiving seems doomed either to fade away like Columbus Day** or be swallowed up by Black Friday. I, for one, shall miss it.
*Thanksgiving is actually about humility, not gratitude. It is the day on which the elder members of the extended family remind the younger ones that they are unlovable and offer suggestions for the latter's amendment.
**Except in cities with a large Italian population. Elsewhere, Columbus Day is nearly extinct. Here in Oklahoma, most white citizens are unsure who Columbus was ("Wasn't he that detective on TV? Peter Falk played him."); the Native Americans know who he was, but they don't feel like celebrating.
But then, what use do we have for a holiday that focuses on gratitude?* Sane people count their blessings every day, and those afflicted with the madness of our times consider themselves entitled to whatever they wish, and thus they cannot conceive of gratitude, let alone experience it. Thanksgiving seems doomed either to fade away like Columbus Day** or be swallowed up by Black Friday. I, for one, shall miss it.
*Thanksgiving is actually about humility, not gratitude. It is the day on which the elder members of the extended family remind the younger ones that they are unlovable and offer suggestions for the latter's amendment.
**Except in cities with a large Italian population. Elsewhere, Columbus Day is nearly extinct. Here in Oklahoma, most white citizens are unsure who Columbus was ("Wasn't he that detective on TV? Peter Falk played him."); the Native Americans know who he was, but they don't feel like celebrating.
