What are you thankful for?

[methamaniac]

Thanksgiving is around the corner.
Those that live in a democratic society such as America are very blessed. Sometimes so blessed one can even forget this.
Blessings are good things.
What blessings are you thankful for?
(To be politically correct you may substitue random luck/favorite possesion for blessing)

Me, to many things to list.
Sobriety heads my list at moment.
My family and their patience follows.
Of course I'm always thankful not to have to choose between denouncing my faith and decapitation.

 

[wezface]

I am extremely thankful that, even though I'm ill and cannot work, I have the support and resources that allow me to get quality health care, have a place to live, have food to eat, and have emotional support. I know a lot of people in my situation don't have this and I know how lucky I am to have it myself.

I'm thankful for my wonderful husband who has stuck by me through all of this and is more wonderful than I could ever ask for.

I'm thankful for my family who is amazing. I know many people dread spending time with their families, but mine is grateful and simple and wonderful and we are very close.

And yes, I'm also glad I don't have to choose between denouncing my faith and decapitation as well.

 

[421]

Seed-bearing plants.

 

[swilow]

I'm thankful that I have a brain and the desire to reason and think. I imagine how empty my life would be without that desire and its a sad vision...

I've never really understood the American thanksgiving holiday/celebration (??). Probably the closest analogue would be Australia Day; to commemorate the arrival of the first white people to Australia. But, and increasingly, it is referred to as Invasion Day, mainly by indigenous Australians but also by an expanding subset of the population, who are aware of what the day represents for Australian aboriginal people; simply the end of their culture, in any meaningful way, forever. Seems fucking cruel, callous and myopic that this people even dare celebrate this day...

 

[methamaniac]

^
Aw, dont worry about it.
Its "evolution before our eyes".
Survival of the strongest remember.

 

[Nom de Plume]

I'm most thankful for all the brain's neuroreceptors and all the ligands that effect them.

 

[What 23]

I'm thankful that I have a brain and the desire to reason and think. I imagine how empty my life would be without that desire and its a sad vision...

I've never really understood the American thanksgiving holiday/celebration (??). Probably the closest analogue would be Australia Day; to commemorate the arrival of the first white people to Australia. But, and increasingly, it is referred to as Invasion Day, mainly by indigenous Australians but also by an expanding subset of the population, who are aware of what the day represents for Australian aboriginal people; simply the end of their culture, in any meaningful way, forever. Seems fucking cruel, callous and myopic that this people even dare celebrate this day...

Hmm. So you're sayin that we should feel bad for becoming human?

This sentiment for poor indigenous cultures and whatnot is a bit overdone. I mean Euros should feel bad for outcompeting the Neanderthals at this rate.

I say tough. White people were successful. Be nice and everything yea, but really... This sentiment of feeling shameful or guilty for getting the girl is just.. Away with it.

Just to say, I myself seem to have at least one Amerindian ancestor. I've gone through a period of 'hating' white men, on their behalf, before knowing about my own seeming contribution from them. But I got over it... I guess. Life happens. White men won the war. They took what they wanted/what they could get away with. I don't really expect much different from life. I'm good on reflecting and being better, but I don't think it's something to cry about. And I think Australians should be able to celebrate their coming to this land of theirs-their home, while still being respectful... And not weighed down. Because seriously... We're all standing on the dead. Always.

I'm thankful for marijuana. And other things.

 

[wezface]

I kind of feel the same way about celebrating Thanksgiving: It's a great sentiment, but it comes from a back story full of lies and deceit and ethnocentrism. They talk about how the Indians and the pilgrims got together and shared food and shit and had a grand old time and lived in harmony. Really, we should talk about how we gave them all smallpox and forcibly removed them from their homeland and didn't bother to even start feeling a bit bad about it for a few hundred years.
Survival of the fittest is one thing; celebrating genocide is quite another.

 

[swilow]

^
Aw, dont worry about it.
Its "evolution before our eyes".
Survival of the strongest remember.

You must have the worlds smallest axe, so much do you grind it! :D

Thanks for using it to hammer the final nail down though

Hmm. So you're sayin that we should feel bad for becoming human?

This sentiment for poor indigenous cultures and whatnot is a bit overdone. I mean Euros should feel bad for outcompeting the Neanderthals at this rate.

No, not saying that even slightly. I'm not talking about guilt, just the distaste I feel given the celebratory nature of Australia day, given the context of it, the finality of it. There's a huge difference between feeling guilt and choosing not to celebrate something. But well done for managing to overlook that entirely.

Just to say, I myself seem to have at least one Amerindian ancestor. I've gone through a period of 'hating' white men, on their behalf, before knowing about my own seeming contribution from them. But I got over it... I guess. Life happens. White men won the war. They took what they wanted/what they could get away with. I don't really expect much different from life. I'm good on reflecting and being better, but I don't think it's something to cry about. And I think Australians should be able to celebrate their coming to this land of theirs-their home, while still being respectful... And not weighed down. Because seriously... We're all standing on the dead. Always.

True. Its sad in a way, but its just life. I too have indigenous blood, but not that you would know. My brother-in-law is much more aboriginal then I and I feel protective of him because, in Australia, aboriginal people are less then 2nd class citizens. To compare indigenous americans with indigenous Australians is just generalisation. Indigenous Australians are still behind in nearly every aspect of life, with very little self-governance, self-determination or means to make something of the scraps they've been offered. They are still not really recognised in the Australian constitution. A sad fact; indigenous Australians had a relatively peaceful and cooperative culture, one that believed in sharing resources; in other words, the perfect culture to be soundlessly crushed and subsumed. You may also be unaware of who was on the First Fleet to Australia; this was a penal colony, the white people were poor, uneducated "criminals" who were banished to an entirely different hemisphere because the wealthy british didn't know what else to do with the dirty masses. These people didn't even want to be here, and yet- with our rose coloured glasses- we now believe this colony was a happy, desirable place, not an inhospitable and barren land of weird animals and sorrow.

White people WERE NOT successful. To believe that, you must be saying that our culture is not vampiric and parastitc and that it isn't edging close toward dooming all to mass extinction. A successful culture is one that stands the test of time, not one that finishes off the worlds oldest, continuously running civilisation.

Hurray! :D

Sorry, this is something I feel strongly about, because my family have been explicitly involved in the worst of this stuff. I have massively materially benefited from this situation, and yet I've experienced both sides, so I feel I have some insight.

I'm thankful for marijuana. And other things.

We can agree here Also, thankful for coffee

 

[methamaniac]

You must have the worlds smallest axe, so much do you grind it! :D

Thanks for using it to hammer the final nail down though

Well played my friend, well played.✔

 

[Xorkoth]

I'm thankful for the fact that I was incarnated in this place... a very special, very infinitesimal slice of time on a particular planet out of uncountable planets, where I get to be a human being in the midst of an age where I can drive a driving machine across great distances at will, and where I can log onto the Internet and form connections with people and discover any information I choose to find in moments, where I am able to understand the inner and outer working of the universe, and where I can exist as a creature intelligent enough to ponder his own existence.

 

[What 23]

Thanks willow for the informative post, and for not taking offense.

I didn't figure in Australia's actual history- about it at first being a penal colony as well.

I agree that we are very destructive. And may just with our 'success' destroy everything. This has been on my mind before, quite prominently, but for some reason as of late I haven't paid it much attention. I guess I'm hoping that something great will justify the bullshit.

 

[swilow]

^No worries I hope I didn't come across as too forceful, as I can get overly emotional on this matter.

Well played my friend, well played.✔

Cheers

 

[rickolasnice]

This sentiment for poor indigenous cultures and whatnot is a bit overdone. I mean Euros should feel bad for outcompeting the Neanderthals at this rate.

You mean the ones we evolved from from inbreeding?

What about if China decided to occupy America, slaughter Americans and destroy their culture.. to then celebrate it..

Your analogy is fail on so many levels.

 

[methamaniac]

You mean the ones we evolved from from inbreeding?

What about if China decided to occupy America, slaughter Americans and destroy their culture.. to then celebrate it..

Your analogy is fail on so many levels.

Talk about a failed anology....

I submit your anlogy is trying to take place now tho. Only substite the state of the Caliphate for China. If this happens are the peafeful muslims here in America that denounce such behavior guilty as well?
The difference with your anology is the Euros that came to America had no idea of other humans were even in America.
In the eyes of the law they showed no intent of harm,
however your anology does show intent. Guilt by association is a very scary concept.
The pilgrims included the native americans in their first feast to celebrate and give thanks for their first successful harvest. It was a succesful mix of two culteres, which we should all take a lesson from!!
Thats where the holiday's celebration comes from.
They cant help their first holiday's celebration gets bastardized by the guilt of the politically correct.
No more can they be responsible for what happned at the hands of other evil greedy humans.
Its not like the piligrims executed some diabolical scheme by putting roofies in the food of native americans causing them to end up in a casino on a reservation in the desert via the trail of tears.
The pilgrims weren't fortune tellers. They had no crystal ball, and no secret alternative plan.
If you want to denounce the atrocities suffered by native americans you got a 364 (365 depending on year) to do you complaining.
With flawed logic such as this, we could never celebrate anything.
In my opinion that is.......

 

[swilow]

^A lack of intent just meant these people were such bumbling idiots that they really had no idea of the consequences of their behaviour and actions. At no point ever is ignorance a reasonable excuse. To people that died of smallpox and introduced disease, do you think it matters what the intent of those that gave it to them was? That they didn't know humans were present in North America would have been a misunderstanding remedied (as you mentioned) pretty much instantly. Shouldn't a moral individual have left at that point? Everything after realising you are in somebody's home is somewhat rude IMO.

Obviously, I an no American so I can't really understand the importance of thanksgiving. But, in talking of political correctness, the term pilgrim has to be up there. Of course, the medieval crusades was a pilgrimage of sorts. I guess many invasions of foreign land could be characterised as such... Go ahead, celebrate what ever you want, but celebrate the non-whitewashed version, the version that is real and which occurred to all participants, not just white male Christian.

 

[methamaniac]

^Agreed about atrocities to indigenous people.
Sad. We should be thankful this doesnt go on today....um, I mean thankful it isnt happening to us.
I get your point. When eating our turkey in America we should remember the ones who died so we could eat the turkey. I concede this.
But Im not sorry to be an American.
Not one bit.
No more than a German should be ashamed for being German. And they shouldnt have to address what hitler did every time they celebrate something. They have took the right approach.
To move on. To forgive (themselves) but not to forget. They have a law in Germany (as in other European countries) that bans the denial of the holocaust. They are balancing the two.
TRUST me, currently there is no shortage of bleeding heart liberals here in America.
Right now were in no danger of forgetting our past sins. IMHO it could very well be other way around.

 

[What 23]

You mean the ones we evolved from from inbreeding?

What about if China decided to occupy America, slaughter Americans and destroy their culture.. to then celebrate it..

Your analogy is fail on so many levels.

Be realistic. I know they've got numbers but we've got a big ocean on either side of us. We've also got, so far, a much better Navy and Air Force. And it isn't as if any of their soldiers have any real world experience.

Way back in the day, if Ghengis Kahn (I know Mongol but) had conquered and settled Europe- If the Muslims had conquered the British Isles if they hadn't been stopped in Austria, and celebrated their conquest, I think it would be understandable.

I also don't think Thanksgiving is really about conquering the Indians or Australia Day about fucking the indigenous people up there, really... So there is that.

 

[swilow]

^Agreed about atrocities to indigenous people.
Sad. We should be thankful this doesnt go on today....um, I mean thankful it isnt happening to us.
I get your point. When eating our turkey in America we should remember the ones who died so we could eat the turkey. I concede this.
But Im not sorry to be an American.
Not one bit.
No more than a German should be ashamed for being German. And they shouldnt have to address what hitler did every time they celebrate something. They have took the right approach.
To move on. To forgive (themselves) but not to forget. They have a law in Germany (as in other European countries) that bans the denial of the holocaust. They are balancing the two.
TRUST me, currently there is no shortage of bleeding heart liberals here in America.
Right now were in no danger of forgetting our past sins. IMHO it could very well be other way around.

Look, I wholeheartedly agree with you regarding the pointlessness of shame for the past. It can't be changed, that is also true and, in general, these atrocities are not so widespread now. My point is simply that we should not forget the truth of the past by only partially commemorating and celebrating only half of a historical occurrence. The other side needs to be heard.

I also don't think Thanksgiving is really about conquering the Indians or Australia Day about fucking the indigenous people up there, really...

Correct, these days do not commemorate such things, at least according to our respective governments. That's only half the story though. Australia day remembers the arrival of white people to Australia; simultaneously, that can only mean the muddying and subsumption of the previously extant human civilisation. These days need to be remembered for what they really are.

I guess I could say that I am thankful for this sort of discourse. There is nothing wrong with seeking the truth in all things....

 

[rickolasnice]

Talk about a failed anology....

I submit your anlogy is trying to take place now tho. Only substite the state of the Caliphate for China. If this happens are the peafeful muslims here in America that denounce such behavior guilty as well?
The difference with your anology is the Euros that came to America had no idea of other humans were even in America.
In the eyes of the law they showed no intent of harm,
however your anology does show intent. Guilt by association is a very scary concept.
The pilgrims included the native americans in their first feast to celebrate and give thanks for their first successful harvest. It was a succesful mix of two culteres, which we should all take a lesson from!!
Thats where the holiday's celebration comes from.
They cant help their first holiday's celebration gets bastardized by the guilt of the politically correct.
No more can they be responsible for what happned at the hands of other evil greedy humans.
Its not like the piligrims executed some diabolical scheme by putting roofies in the food of native americans causing them to end up in a casino on a reservation in the desert via the trail of tears.
The pilgrims weren't fortune tellers. They had no crystal ball, and no secret alternative plan.
If you want to denounce the atrocities suffered by native americans you got a 364 (365 depending on year) to do you complaining.
With flawed logic such as this, we could never celebrate anything.
In my opinion that is.......

I didn't say China did it with the intention of genocide..

Your attempt at explaining why my analogy is fail is fail.