The first Thanksgiving was a day when immigrants to this land, who were very weak and vulnerable, were welcomed by its native citizens and treated with compassion and generosity. In other words, Republicans are completely bewildered as to why we celebrate Thanksgiving…other than the opportunity to stuff a duck into a chicken then the chicken into a turkey and dropping it into a deep fryer.
We have an ongoing Thanksgiving tradition in our family, we go around the dinner table and each of us tries not to spill gravy on the nice tablecloth. This is often accomplished by distracting family members from using the gravy with a disagreement over politics or reviving an argument that began in the family even before the original baking of the fruitcake that is always brought out from storage and once again left uneaten in its canister. Oh, and we take turns sharing with each other, all of the things we are grateful for.
At The Planet, we also have a tradition of letting our nation’s top political figures express what they too are thankful for on this day.
WHAT I’M THANKFUL FOR
TED CRUZ
“I’m thankful for pigmentation, green eggs and ham, Joseph McCarthy, money being speech, never being able to underestimate the gullibility of the Republican base and snake oil. ”
JOHN BOEHNER
“I’m thankful for ultra-absorbent Kleenexes, jellyfish, Coppertone, gerrymandering, fermentation, the word “no” and grading on the curve.
CHRIS CHRISTIE
“I’m thankful for double stuff Oreos, stuffed crust pizza and other things with lots of stuff that fits in my mouth. I’m thankful for scream therapy, teachers being as fun to beat as pinatas and concrete sinking in water.”
ANTONIN SCALIA
“I’m thankful for lifetime appointments, mental illness being easily camouflaged, bitter fruit, the Spanish Inquisition and the “not equal to” symbol.
BARACK OBAMA
“I’m thankful for Republican Presidential primaries, historians, freelance computer programmers, no more election campaigns against lying sacks of manure and Ted Cruz leading the GOP.”
As for me, I am thankful for my great friend Kalima with whom I co-founded this site as well as the wonderful Bito and KQuark who we lost this year. I’m thankful for Kesmarn who joined our Admin team earlier this year and has done such a fantastic job heading up our Twitter presence. I’m grateful to Killgore Trout and SallyT for their wonderful and delightful weekend features of Music Thread and Sunday Funnies. I’m thankful for all the other brilliant, clever and creative people who contribute so much to The Planet to make it what it is, as well as our very valued readers who come here each day to catch up on the latest Planetary posts and conversations.
I’m thankful for my health, for my family and their health as well as their love, humor and thoughtfulness.
I’m thankful for our President, Barack Obama and all the Democrats and independents…and even Republicans who helped re-elect him last year and have supported his policies. I’m thankful for Obamacare, for the possibility of a peaceful path for Iran to be disarmed of nukes, the resolve of Democrats to stand up against the government shutdown extortion attempt by Republicans and ending their abuse of the filibuster on judges and other appointees.
I’m thankful that there are plentiful reasons to hope for a better America and better times for the many.
Wishing all of you a very Happy Thanksgiving Day from and weekend and whether you’re spending it with with family or not, you’ve always got family here with whom to share the holiday and weekend.
Happy Thanksgiving!
AdLib, I think I speak for a lot of other Planeteers when I say that we’re grateful for your dedication, wit, humor, and compassion. You’ve written so many wonderful articles this year — ones that made us laugh, led us to think about things in new ways, and helped us to remember that when we elected this President on the promise of hope and change, we did the right thing.
However slowly things are changing — changing, they are. And hope remains. This recent limitation on the use of the filibuster and the potential for a long-lasting limitation on nuclear weapons in Iran, are just two examples of that.
Not to mention Obamacare!
Many thanks too for the faithful dedication of our Kalima and her Morning Blog. For a person like me who has no cable access, she’s a lifeline to information from the best news sources around the world.
And I’m so grateful for all my Planetary friends. When I went through a big 12 hour surgery in May of this year — you were really, truly there for me. I’ll always remember that!
b’ito (my dear friend) and KQuark (our witty “science correspondent”) you are loved and missed. You were unique and amazing voices here, and I suspect you’re still enjoying the discussions on the Planet — from a different vantage point.
Kes, thank you so much for the very kind things you said, they’re very appreciated.
Things are indeed changing for the better…even if the process of change has been glacial and torturous. Americans generally lack perspective but we have been witnessing a series of highly remarkable and unprecedented successes and changes under Obama. Come the new year, I’ll have to write an updated article about all of the truly amazing things that have happened in the nation and the world due to our brilliant President and those who support him.
Kalima’s Morning Blog is at the core of The Planet, it’s an axis upon which every day at The Planet spins on. So thankful for Kalima, Morning Blog and all that she invests of herself into The Planet.
And you’re no slacker either, you keep our Twitter feed hopping, our subscribers keep growing under your leadership of it and you’re always here at The Planet offering comments, links and thoughts that either enlighten me or make me laugh like a silly person.
It may be a virtual community here but there are real, substantive, compassionate people behind those user names and it’s proven again and again, especially when others are facing difficult times. Makes one feel very proud to be among them.
Bito and KQuark will always be infused into The Planet so wherever it orbits, they will be right along with us.
TY! 😳
Thank you AdLib, I feel the same about you, and ditto on your sentiments about our amazing Planet members, and two irreplaceable friends we lost this year.
Hope that everyone had a wonderful time and we see you again before Christmas. 😉
Hey Kalima, having a great holiday weekend with the family…including my Planet family.
It’s been a perfect Thanksgiving weekend so far…if only the puppy hadn’t jumped on the dining table and eaten the whole meal while we were in the other room having drinks.
Just kidding!
Hope you’re having a relaxing weekend, I will be Fed-Exing you some turkey and gravy, I recommend greeting the Fed Ex guy with rubber gloves and being prepared for a sour stare from him.
Sorry it took so long, been having a bit of a problem getting through the door with this big head thanks to you and kes. 😳
Have also been taking blatant “cheeky time” off by taking advantage of your holiday. All the talk about turkey and stuffing made me feel sleepy. I’m sooo bad.
Nice to hear you are enjoying your holiday weekend, you deserve it, and I’ll be reporting back for duty in the morning. Your morning that is.
See you soon as I expect some help with cleaning this gravy off my hall tiles.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m57gzA2JCcM
Happy Thanksgiving from Alice’s Restaurant. Just in case you forgot this was about Thanksgiving.
Enjoy your Thanksgiving!!
Eat lots of Turkey, Dressing, pecan pie and ice cream!!
I got in the turkey, OK but am allergic to everything else. Sounds GREAT and hope everyone has his and her fill. We have so many people in our neighborhood without anything at all – churches in the area are providing dinner, but not everyone is well enough to get there, so the fact I could go, could eat what I could – priceless.
And equally priceless are indeed the wonderful people here on the Planet. I will treasure always having known bito and KQuark who enriched us all. I delight in everyone who posts here, and agree along with AdLib that everyone’s contribution has made this a better world.
Thank you for the friendships, the support, the ideas that made me rethink things, for just all the good thoughts and writings here. May everyone have a great ‘remains of the day’ and enjoy Thanksgivukkah – the once in 79,000 year convergence – however you may spend it. I would suggest that it be made permanent. Both the candles and turkey leftovers last eight days. It would be a good melding of traditions, right?
Happy Thanksgiving one and all!
Ad, I’m thankful for the Planet.
Thanks for mentioning Bito and KQ. They were a big part of why I stayed here after finding this wonderful site (family).