Society & Politics

Why Thanksgiving Isn't a Time for Shopping and Football

Why Thanksgiving Isn't a Time for Shopping and Football

I know what it has become. I get that Black Friday is the day after Thanksgiving and that football is traditionally played on Thanksgiving Day.

But as usual, things have gone too far in that direction. We're getting farther and farther away from the real meanings of our holidays to simply indulge in days off. Basically, I think we've reached a point where we just want every holiday to be a party...how many people act like total morons on days like Memorial Day and the 4th of July? How long have we associated Christmas with nothing but presents?

Thanksgiving is tomorrow and again we see the real message lost. Whereas there used to be ONE professional football game on that day, there are now three. Whereas Black Friday used to START ON Friday, it has since bled into Thanksgiving, as some stores actually open on Thursday evening and many open their doors just after midnight. Needless overconsumption and the heralding of our athletes of deities continues to encroach on that which Thanksgiving is supposed to mean.

Why Thanksgiving Isn't a Time for Shopping and Football

Hey, I don't mind watching the occasional game and even though I'm a guy, I don't really mind shopping, either. I DO mind the insanity behind Black Friday and the fact that TVs in American households have to be on all damn day long on Thanksgiving, most of which tuned to a sport that has nothing whatsoever to do with the day. Just because stupid things have become "tradition" doesn't necessarily mean we have to keep doing them, you know.

The vast majority of people in the U.S. have a great deal to be thankful for; it isn't too much to ask that they take one, just ONE, day out of the year to reflect on that. And no, I'm not talking about a 20-minute meal where you all bolt your food and rush to the TV set, or rush out to make those doorbuster sales. I'm talking about the entire day. It's only 24 hours (and you spend 1/3 of that sleeping, anyway) and I'm sure you can manage. Being with friends and family, appreciating what you have as opposed to whining about what you don't, and overall, just treating this holiday as the holiday that it IS...can't we all give it a try? Please?

Why Thanksgiving Isn't a Time for Shopping and Football

We all have our own Thanksgiving Day traditions, of course, and I'm not saying everyone should celebrate in exactly the same way. I'm just saying everyone should at least recognize the holiday and understand why it exists in the first place. And don't start with the revisionist histories; just embrace the symbolic nature of the holiday, which is simple and 100 percent positive and universal: Give thanks. That's all. :)

Why Thanksgiving Isn't a Time for Shopping and Football
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