Mo has a point, but I look at it a little differently. Thanksgiving is a day to look on the bright side. Yeah, we have a lot of problems, but we have a lot of reasons to feel thankful, too.
I'm thankful that I can express myself here. Nobody may be listening - heck, few people ever read this blog - but at least I can say what I think. Blogger makes it very easy (not to mention free) to write a blog, and the internet connects it to the world.
And I'm thankful that I can criticize religion, politicians, the government - even the President of the United States. Speaking of which, I'm thankful that Barack Obama is president. Yes, I'm disappointed in his... strange passivity, his refusal to boldly lead our country. He's certainly not perfect. But then, who is?
And can you imagine what a mess we'd be in today if we'd elected John McCain and Caribou Barbie? Say what you like, Obama stopped the economic collapse in its tracks. His stimulus wasn't big enough to grow our economy, but it did stabilize it. Saving the domestic auto industry kept unemployment from being even worse, and will likely pay for itself, too. And although the health care reform bill was far too conservative - too Republican, in fact - we did get critically needed reforms.
And think of what we didn't get. We didn't get two more right-wing fanatics on the Supreme Court. We didn't invade any more innocent countries. We've stopped torturing prisoners of war. (I can hardly believe I even have to say that! How we've fallen as a nation!) We've stopped hobbling the Environmental Protection Agency. We've stopped gagging scientists and doctors. If things aren't perfect these days, they still could have been far, far worse.
I complain a lot about the stupidity, the ignorance, the gullibility, the superstition, the apathy, the bigotry, and the cowardice of the American people, but the fact is, there are a lot of admirable people here, too. There are hard-working activists, clear-minded voters, dedicated officials, intelligent scientists and other professionals, and plenty of brave citizens trying to do what's right. Racial bigotry is far less than when I was a kid, atheists are no longer invisible, and support for gay rights is growing by leaps and bounds. Again, we're not perfect, but it could be worse, much worse.
And I'm thankful for humor. You've got to laugh, even when things look bleak. Maybe especially when things look bleak. We can't give up, we really can't. We must keep fighting, and humor really helps with that.
I've got plenty of things to be thankful for, and plenty of people to thank (no gods, though - it's human beings who create the good in our world). I don't discuss personal matters in this blog - not really - but don't think I'm not thankful for my family, living and dead. And my friends, some of whom, in this day of the internet, I've never met. And, well, plenty else.
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!
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