The Value of Thanksgiving

[task0778]

“Research suggests that individuals who feel grateful experience lower blood pressure, improved immune functions, recover more quickly from illness, and can more effectively cope with stress,” explains Shilagh Mirgain, PhD, a health psychologist with UW Health (University of Wisconsin).

“Gratitude has one of the strongest links to mental health, more so than even optimism.” And the benefits can be life-long. A sense of gratitude can reduce the lifetime risk for depression, anxiety and even substance abuse disorders.

I think it's important to be thankful to people who help you and people who are good to you. After all, they chose to be helpful and giving. I think it's important to recognize and appreciate that choice. As we speak there are many who risk life and limb fighting fires or saving lives or protecting the rest of us from the bad guys. Should we all not be grateful for that?

Many people make the claim that Thanksgiving is strictly a Christian holiday and that non-Christians ought not to celebrate it. I think that's a load of crap, not believing God is real doesn't mean everyone and anyone can't be thankful. Atheists can easily be thankful to our fellow human beings who've loved us, nurtured us, taught us, grown our food, collected our garbage, fixed our cars, and thousands of other things.

Atheists can express their thanks to people but we can also be thankful for things for which the person or persons responsible are no longer alive. Being thankful doesn't require a target. A person can think, "I am thankful for these things" without having to be thankful to God. Thankfulness is, in these cases, simply a realization of how fortunate we are. And there's nothing wrong with that.

So, be thankful for who you are sharing your life with. There are some lonely people out there who have no one, be grateful that you're not one of them. Be thankful for what you have as opposed to angry or envious because somebody else has more than you. Be the kind of person that someone else is thankful for having you in their life. Have a good holiday season and a Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

 

[TroglocratsRdumb]

Left Wingers are not grateful for being an American

 

[caddo kid]

my parents, both deceased, were born in 1925 & 1930.

They both grew up during The Great Depression.

Stories of that era & those hardships were passed along to our family.

I don't need some 'holiday' to remind me how fortunate I am.

I learned that from family.

 

[WillMunny]

my parents, both deceased, were born in 1925 & 1930.

They both grew up during The Great Depression.

Stories of that era & those hardships were passed along to our family.

I don't need some 'holiday' to remind me how fortunate I am.

I learned that from family.

Does that magically mean you can't feel grateful and celebrate the first-world life America has given you, sir?

 

[caddo kid]

my family offered me the life I am blessed with; not America

 

[WillMunny]

Thanksgiving has always been my favorite holiday because it's such a comfy, satisfying holiday. Liberals are so historically ignorant (when falsely claiming Thanksgiving somehow celebrates Indian genocide), they don't realize that the Pilgrims/Indians Thanksgiving petered out after a couple of years and then 200 years later, Lincoln found the Thanksgiving holiday so interesting, he reinstated it as an American holiday in which Americans should be thankful for anything good in their lives. Which of course was very well-intentioned. So since the 1860's, America's Thanksgiving is a bit different from the Pilgrim/Indians' first Thanksgiving. I know I'm preaching to the choir, but today's Thanksgiving has nothing to do with genocide of Indians and is all about celebrating anything good in your life while enjoying a massive, fun dinner with family and friends. Only a liberal could get butthurt over such a good-natured, easygoing holiday that's about cozy, satisfying good will.

Anyway, that's how I personally see Thanksgiving. That's what it has always meant to me. Is there anything wrong with that?

 

[SassyIrishLass]

Don’t Paint It Black on Thanksgiving Day

On this Thanksgiving Day, I have lots to be thankful for. I live in a wonderful country, have a wonderful family, and enjoy freedoms that many in this world do not. This Thanksgiving, I will sit down to a beautiful meal prepared by those I love. God has given me much to be thankful for, and I am grateful.

I wonder if those on the left will be celebrating this day in the same spirit. It seems that no matter how much they have or how many freedoms they enjoy, for progressives, it is never enough. For them, the world is an awful place, America is an immoral country, and this special day will pass with no expression of gratitude to their Creator. It saddens me to see it, but that view of existence is more prevalent now than at any time since the 1960s.

In the classic song “Paint It Black” (1966), Mick Jagger sings of a sad individual who wants to turn everything he sees black. In the world he imagines, there are no flowers, no summer dresses, and no cars other than black ones. In the end, the singer comes to see that it’s his own heart that is black and that he is responsible for the emptiness that he sees.

Jagger and Keith Richards may have intended the song as a lament for a desperately unhappy person who despises everything he sees, but for many, the popular song was a celebration of anarchy and rebellion. It perfectly suited the angry mood of the time. With its string of assassinations, violent protests, rioting, and political bombings, the decade of the late ’60s was the most unsettled time in modern American history.

Many young men and women had painted the world black, and a substantial number of these damaged souls never grew up. They’re still out there, imagining the world a terrible place and finding meaning only in resistance. A new generation has followed them into negation. Jagger might just as well have been singing of the violence of Antifa protests. The typical Antifa protester wouldn’t be seen in anything except black, and despite the Antifa (“anti-fascist”) designation, those raised fists look a lot like fascist salutes, especially like those of modern-day fascists.

In the half-century since Jagger’s song appeared, a vast culture of antagonism has arisen in the West. That cynical culture has spread to politics, media, and schools everywhere.....more in the link


https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2018/11/dont_paint_it_black_on_thanksgiving_day.html

 

[Indeependent]

my family offered me the life I am blessed with; not America

Horse dung.

 

[WillMunny]

my family offered me the life I am blessed with; not America

You don't quite understand; your family was capable of giving you the life you were blessed with because of America itself; because of the first world life America gave your family. In a third-world country, your family would not have been capable of giving you all the good, modern things you've experienced. Don't you understand that? It's because of America's few centuries of hard work and sacrifice that you now have the "blessed" 21st-century life you have now. Whether you like it or not.

 

[WillMunny]

Don’t Paint It Black on Thanksgiving Day

On this Thanksgiving Day, I have lots to be thankful for. I live in a wonderful country, have a wonderful family, and enjoy freedoms that many in this world do not. This Thanksgiving, I will sit down to a beautiful meal prepared by those I love. God has given me much to be thankful for, and I am grateful.

I wonder if those on the left will be celebrating this day in the same spirit. It seems that no matter how much they have or how many freedoms they enjoy, for progressives, it is never enough. For them, the world is an awful place, America is an immoral country, and this special day will pass with no expression of gratitude to their Creator. It saddens me to see it, but that view of existence is more prevalent now than at any time since the 1960s.

In the classic song “Paint It Black” (1966), Mick Jagger sings of a sad individual who wants to turn everything he sees black. In the world he imagines, there are no flowers, no summer dresses, and no cars other than black ones. In the end, the singer comes to see that it’s his own heart that is black and that he is responsible for the emptiness that he sees.

Jagger and Keith Richards may have intended the song as a lament for a desperately unhappy person who despises everything he sees, but for many, the popular song was a celebration of anarchy and rebellion. It perfectly suited the angry mood of the time. With its string of assassinations, violent protests, rioting, and political bombings, the decade of the late ’60s was the most unsettled time in modern American history.

Many young men and women had painted the world black, and a substantial number of these damaged souls never grew up. They’re still out there, imagining the world a terrible place and finding meaning only in resistance. A new generation has followed them into negation. Jagger might just as well have been singing of the violence of Antifa protests. The typical Antifa protester wouldn’t be seen in anything except black, and despite the Antifa (“anti-fascist”) designation, those raised fists look a lot like fascist salutes, especially like those of modern-day fascists.

In the half-century since Jagger’s song appeared, a vast culture of antagonism has arisen in the West. That cynical culture has spread to politics, media, and schools everywhere.....more in the link


https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2018/11/dont_paint_it_black_on_thanksgiving_day.html

That's a very interesting, perceptive idea about Thanksgiving. Thank you.

 

[caddo kid]

my family offered me the life I am blessed with; not America

You don't quite understand; your family was capable of giving you the life you were blessed with because of America itself; because of the first world life America gave your family. In a third-world country, your family would not have been capable of giving you all the good, modern things you've experienced. Don't you understand that? It's because of America's few centuries of hard work and sacrifice that you now have the "blessed" 21st-century life you have now. Whether you like it or not.

that is merely an assumption & PROJECTION on your arrogant part.

there are plenty of folk that do great in non US nations.

you think the US is the ONLY nation on this big, spinning rock, where one can be honest, humble, and be successful?

When you pass the turkey tomorrow, please pass the arrogance too, but not to me.

 

[tycho1572]

I’m thankful for President Trump, and all he’s done to make this holiday the most traveled in many years. Because of Trump, millions of families can afford to reunite.

I’m also thankful for everyone in my life. Friends and family keep me busy and focused on what’s most important.

 

[WillMunny]

my family offered me the life I am blessed with; not America

You don't quite understand; your family was capable of giving you the life you were blessed with because of America itself; because of the first world life America gave your family. In a third-world country, your family would not have been capable of giving you all the good, modern things you've experienced. Don't you understand that? It's because of America's few centuries of hard work and sacrifice that you now have the "blessed" 21st-century life you have now. Whether you like it or not.

that is merely an assumption & PROJECTION on your arrogant part.

there are plenty of folk that do great in non US nations.

you think the US is the ONLY nation on this big, spinning rock, where one can be honest, humble, and be successful?

When you pass the turkey tomorrow, please pass the arrogance too, but not to me.

When did I ever say that, you rotten little strawman punk? I NEVER SAID THAT OTHER COUNTRIES DON'T DO GOOD THINGS FOR THEIR PEOPLE, you treasonous, self-hating-American fucking asshole, I was simply talking about America itself and the good things it now provides people due to its many generations of blood, sweat, sacrifice and toil! I should have known that my point would sail over the head of a stupid, hateful, petulant, ingrate pig like you who only wants to ruin your fellow Americans, you dickheaded schmuck. I'm glad you can NEVER enjoy Thanksgiving on the level I do, because you just proved to me that you are a vile little turd who's incapable of appreciating anything..........you (all together now) !!! HORSE'S ASS!!! You hateful, bitter little testament to everything mankind has done wrong.

Look, I tried to politely reason with you like a man, but a liberal pig like you is incapable of behaving in a civilized manner. So now I'm going to lower my verbal bulldozer blade on you, maggot, because you don't have the intelligence to have a reasonable conversation about Thanksgiving, you bowel-disturbed troll-turd. I would have a lot more respect for a protozoan like you if you would just get the fuck out of this country, you joyless, miserable little turd who ALWAYS has to shit on fellow Americans having a good time. You're a walking infection, you detestable little piece of I-don't-know-what.

 

[caddo kid]

my family offered me the life I am blessed with; not America

You don't quite understand; your family was capable of giving you the life you were blessed with because of America itself; because of the first world life America gave your family. In a third-world country, your family would not have been capable of giving you all the good, modern things you've experienced. Don't you understand that? It's because of America's few centuries of hard work and sacrifice that you now have the "blessed" 21st-century life you have now. Whether you like it or not.

that is merely an assumption & PROJECTION on your arrogant part.

there are plenty of folk that do great in non US nations.

you think the US is the ONLY nation on this big, spinning rock, where one can be honest, humble, and be successful?

When you pass the turkey tomorrow, please pass the arrogance too, but not to me.

When did I ever say that, you rotten little strawman punk? I NEVER SAID THAT OTHER COUNTRIES DON'T DO GOOD THINGS FOR THEIR PEOPLE, you treasonous, self-hating-American fucking asshole, I was simply talking about America itself and the good things it now provides people due to its many generations of blood, sweat, sacrifice and toil! I should have known that my point would sail over the head of a stupid, hateful, petulant, ingrate pig like you who only wants to ruin your fellow Americans, you dickheaded schmuck. I'm glad you can NEVER enjoy Thanksgiving on the level I do, because you just proved to me that you are a vile little turd who's incapable of appreciating anything..........you (all together now) !!! HORSE'S ASS!!! You hateful, bitter little testament to everything mankind has done wrong.

Look, I tried to politely reason with you like a man, but a liberal pig like you is incapable of behaving in a civilized manner. So now I'm going to lower my verbal bulldozer blade on you, maggot, because you don't have the intelligence to have a reasonable conversation about Thanksgiving, you bowel-disturbed troll-turd. I would have a lot more respect for a protozoan like you if you would just get the fuck out of this country, you joyless, miserable little turd who ALWAYS has to shit on fellow Americans having a good time. You're a walking infection, you detestable little piece of I-don't-know-what.

and yet again, there you go with your arrogant, bullshit, projections.

Donald; is that you?

 

[task0778]

I never thought my thread would turn into a hatefest, going into a holiday like Thanksgiving. Save the vitriol and vituperation for another day, okay? Relax, let the politics go at least for awhile and enjoy yourself and those you care about. Be the kind of person that everyone else is thankful to have around in their lives.

Happy Thanksgiving everybody!