By SJ Otto
Today, Thanksgiving is seen by many as a "politically incorrect" holiday. The pilgrim forefathers took advantage of the Indians. And some people believe that it is barbaric to plan a holiday over killing a turkey. Still there are my relatives and I probably won't tell them how bad their holiday is, at least not until after we all eat. So I print this so all may know the truth.
There was a “first Thanksgiving” dinner, but not likely turkey or the fixings we see today. The original meat was fish and deer. The turkey became part of Thanksgiving about 1857. It is supposed to be of foods native to the New World. It became a national holiday in 1941. The traditional fixings came from a women’s magazine in the 1850s.
However, many of us will go to a holiday feast with the intention of celebrating time with our families and/or friends. We are thankful in life for some things. Most of us have either accomplished something of success in our lives or we may like our relatives—spouses—or our friends and lovers. Since I’m an Epicurean and don’t believe in praying to god, I will simply be thankful. I also won’t dump a guilt trip on my relatives for the sins of their ancestors or the fact that they are eating a murdered animal.