Happy Thanksgiving to our Canucks!

Yippee!!!
Happy Thanksgiving, Canadian buddies. Should I bring anything?

Naw . . . we roasted a chicken last night--and got vegetarian fried rice, Thai vegetarian hot and sour soup and baby bok choy in garlic sauce from the Thai place down the street. I don't think we're gonna do anything special today.

Hey, ignorant antipodean here. Do the thanksgiving Canadians do so in honour of the same dudes that the American thanksgivers semi-commemorate? Are the traditions related? Like handed down to descendants of the British settlers who came to the North American continent and survived?

What he asked.

That story about the "Pilgrim Fathers" and thanksgiving is bullshit--it's part of the New England American Myth, Inc. (TM) version of American history. The thanksgiving holiday in the United States was instituted by President Lincoln in 1863, after the twin, significant victories of Gettysburg and Vicksburg in the summer of 1863. It was intended as a day of thanksgiving to god for the mercies extended to the union. Lincoln was the first really religious president--previous presidents had sedulously avoided introducing religious observances into public life, and in the 1830s, President Jackson flatly refused to call for a day of thanksgiving after a cholera epidemic.

I'm not sure why the Canajuns do it, other than that the Americans have one, so they want one, too. (I'll probably get in trouble for that.)

According to Wiki(we're never wrong)pedia, the Canuckian holiday dates from 1957, when Paliament declared:

A Day of General Thanksgiving to Almighty God for the bountiful harvest with which Canada has been blessed – to be observed on the 2nd Monday in October.

Happy Thanksgiving, up there. If I'd a knowed it was coming I would have baked you all a turkey and ate it myself. I can at least have a Lone Star beer in your behalf, later this evening.

Have a ham sammich, too . . .

Thanks. Don't mind if I do.

Your enthusiasm for the holiday makes me want to up and move to Canada to live the festivities and festive life Sir Set.

Anywho, to all our northern neighbors? Enjoy your Thanksgiving no matter what it means to you!

Thanks for the research Set - much clearer. Well happy legislated day of observance Canadia.

(Still think it's weird your parliament introduced a law that effectively imitates an observance of your big southern neighbour - I thought you guys were a bit touchy on that score.)

Just rereading this Set - if this commemorates the Union victories at Gettysburg and Vicksburg does that mean the holiday has different connotations in the Confederate south - or is that why it's been spun by New England American Myth (TM)?

It wasn't proposed as a commemoration, but rather as a thanksgiving to god for the mecies shown to the union. I don't know how it was received in the South, but it has been taken over by New England historical myth.

In that version, the "Pilgrim Fathers" who landed at Plymouth Rock in 1620 gave thanks to their boy god for surviving the first year. There is absolutely no historical record for such an event, but the boys in New England have been successful in hijaking the holiday. I'm certain it is observed in the South now.

In fact, the first English colony in North America was at Roanoke Island in 1584. However, when the ship sailed back to England in 1585, they were involved in the panic over the Armada, and were not allowed to leave England. It was not until after 1590 that they were able to sail back to Roanoke Island, and the colonists, along with Virginia Dare, the first English child born in North America, had all disappeared. I won't go into details, but it seems they went to the mainland, and were absorbed into an Indian tribe.

The next English settlement was at Jamestown in 1607. Other small settlements were made on Massachusetts Bay, too, before the so-called Pilgrim Fathers showed up in 1620. But the New England historical myth has become so pervasive, that many Americans believe all that bullshit. The symoblism of the modern thanksgiving celebration is turkeys, "Pilgrims" dress in 17th century garb and pumpkins, squash and indian corn. It's pointless, of course, to rail against the inaccuracy. The New England boys have succeded in making their story paramount.

Here's the standard image. You'll note that most of the Indians are sitting at the "kiddie table" off to the side--the filthy savages.

I think you have an innate jealousy of us New Englanders Mr. Set! Own up to it and the truth will set you free! New England just happens to be the most happening region in this entire North America.

Yours truly,
Tsarstepan, direct descendent of William Bradford, founder of Plymouth Colony.

Uh-huh . . . what is there to be jealous of? A pack of hard-nosed, anal retentive religious freaks who fled England to escape religious persecution, and landed in North America to set up a colony where they could persecute anyone who didn't think like them? I'll pass . . .

Put your sword away Set. I thinketh you just pierced my spleen in unjustified spite.

Why wait?

We had our dinner last night at the in-laws' - 12 of sitting around, with four dogs at our feet, waiting for scraps. Tsk tsk. Today is our anniversary, so we're going out to dinner.

As for what Thanksgiving means, nothing much to me. Just another paid day off , for which I'm always thankful. Ditto with our Dominion Day or Canada Day, July 1st. Big deal... but always a treat to get paid for not working. The only person I have ever known who actually celebrated July 1st is one of my sisters and I'm not really sure why she does, or even if she knows why... she just does.