From history: The proclamation of Thanksgiving

This post originally ran on Nov 25th, 2010. I’m thankful for a lot of things, and I hope you are too. Too bad all that Goresian “dirty weather” around the USA today will spoil it all.  /sarc

Much like the famous editorial, Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Claus, it has become a tradition this time of year to see some newspapers reprint President George Washington’s Thanksgiving Day proclamation, it seemed appropriate to repeat here today:

George Washington’s 1789 Thanksgiving Proclamation

Whereas it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor; and Whereas both Houses of Congress have, by their joint committee, requested me “to recommend to the people of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness:”

Now, therefore, I do recommend and assign Thursday, the 26th day of November next, to be devoted by the people of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our sincere and humble thanks for His kind care and protection of the people of this country previous to their becoming a nation; for the signal and manifold mercies and the favorable interpositions of His providence in the course and conclusion of the late war; for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty which we have since enjoyed; for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enable to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national one now lately instituted’ for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge; and, in general, for all the great and various favors which He has been pleased to confer upon us.

And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech Him to pardon our national and other transgressions; to enable us all, whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually; to render our National Government a blessing to all the people by constantly being a Government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed; to protect and guide all sovereigns and nations (especially such as have show kindness to us), and to bless them with good governments, peace, and concord; to promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increase of science among them and us; and, generally to grant unto all mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as He alone knows to be best.

Given under my hand, at the city of New York, the 3d day of October, A.D. 1789.

I can’t hold a candle to the prose of our nation’s first president, but I can say that I’m thankful for the health of my family, that I still have employment in debt ravaged California, for the WUWT community of people that help with content and moderations, and visit here every day, and for living in an age where I can make friends (and enemies) instantly across the globe with the click of a mouse. – Anthony

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Gail Combs
November 22, 2012 10:01 am

Happy Thanksgiving Anthony.
For others, please read the true story of Thanksgiving that never makes it into history books for kids or the MSM link. If we do not learn from history we will repeat it.

gator69
November 22, 2012 10:08 am
Roy UK
November 22, 2012 10:18 am

Happy Thanksgiving Anthony.
From the other side of the pond.
to be devoted by the people of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be;
What a great writer that man was.

Lance
November 22, 2012 10:21 am

Happy Thanksgiving to our American friends

jorgekafkazar
November 22, 2012 10:25 am

I, for one, am grateful for the existence of WUWT and the persistence and wisdom of Anthony and his crew of moderators and all who participate.

starzmom
November 22, 2012 10:30 am

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone here. I too am grateful to live in a time when so much information is at our fingertips, literally, and I can do my own research independent of the media and the government politicians.

November 22, 2012 10:43 am

Just to make sure, I want you to know that I (in Africa) appreciate all those who comment on WUWT :
happy thanksgiving!~
Thank God for Wattsupwiththat where at last I found we can freely report the results of measurements, and express our opinions and observations freely,
without being censured in any way.
God is good.

GeologyJim
November 22, 2012 11:10 am

Happy Thanksgiving to you and your extended family, Anthony.
WUWT is high on my list of things worthy of gratitude. I visit and contribute here because the discussion is always interesting,unfailingly informative, and largely civil and positive. Those attributes reflect your intellect and demeanor, I believe, and they are reflected in the caliber and tenor of the contributors.
Congratulations on the very successful debut of WUWT-TV. That was great fun.

November 22, 2012 11:12 am

May I Heartily recommend: http://www.amazon.com/Mayflower-Story-Courage-Community-War/dp/0143111973
This book absolutely DEVESTATES the concept that the orginal Plimoth Pilgrims had any adversarial relations with their “Native Friends” at all, for almost 60 years until the “King Philip War”. (There were TWO incidents during those 60 years. One where Standish and a group of Pilgrim men went and “rescued” a fellow by the name of John Weston and the remainder of this settlement (about 20 people), and in the process ended up in “hand to hand” combat with a group of natives, killing 8 of them…, and the other was the Pequot Wars, where an unknown number of Plimoth colony people were involved helping another “friendly” tribe (the Niantic?) battle a hostile tribe, the Pequots.
Aside from that, the interactions between the orginal Plimoth plantation colonist and the Native Friends, was exceptional. (And basically so because the original Plimoth colony members regarded them as completely HUMAN, in need of the Gosple, and to be treated with the dignity you treat any man.
To give you an IDEA of the “corruption” one comes across, because of POLITICAL REASONS (i.e., “revisionist” history), in 1992, the 400th aniversary of Columbus’ visiting the “New World”, THREE TIMES I READ THIS PHRASE IN THE MINNEAPOLIS “Star and Tribune”, “Pilgrims killing Indians..” I do not count Standish’s interaction rescuing Weston (whom the Plimoth Colony people, subsequently outfitted and SENT BACK TO ENGLAND on a visiting trading ship, he was no peach!) nor the Pequot Wars as agressive or illegitimate actions. AND certainly, let us NOT forget this simple piece of LOGIC:
1. Columbus – Italian explorer, financed by SPAIN. 1492
2. Plimoth Colony: British Subjects, granted a land franchise by the CROWN (English), 1620.
Now, as they say, IT DOES NOT TAKE A ROCKET SCIENTIST to figure out that there is NO relationship between these two groups, aside from both’s interest in the New World. But in the mind of people whose lives revolve around their politics (and dare I say, politics revolve around their lives…) in this “superficial thought” realm, they are connected. (Ha! I guess as “severe weather and AWG!!!)
Max

November 22, 2012 11:28 am

You have friends all over the world. Not many people can say that. Happy Thanksgiving.

November 22, 2012 11:32 am

All well said, Anthony, from David in Dublin, Ireland.
‘God bless you!

Chris
November 22, 2012 11:50 am

I love this website full of science. But.
It really makes me wonder: Science and god, do they fit together? Do you believe or do you want to know?

November 22, 2012 11:51 am

Happy Thanksgiving, Anthony, from Los Angeles, California, where it grows cooler each year, even when using the “official” temperatures.
Air conditioning repair-men will soon be completely out of work. Let’s hope they know how to repair heating systems!
Roger

kadaka (KD Knoebel)
November 22, 2012 11:51 am

On this great American holiday, ostensibly celebrating an end-of-harvest feast between some Puritans and some Early Asian Immigrants, I helpfully mention a recipe I hope you’ll find useful. Here’ll I’ll just give the link and some excerpts:

Solar Cookers World Network
Poultry

Roast Turkey with Bread Stuffing
1 turkey, 8 to 10 pounds

(…) Stuff turkey and place in black roasting pan; cover. Bake in solar oven for 6 to 8 hours (on a clear, sunny day). Bird is done when interior temperature reaches 180°F on meat thermometer.

Do your best to enjoy the day. And may those who firmly believe in having no personal anthropogenic CO₂ releases so they may save the planet from the thoughtlessness of mankind, have a bright sunny day with minimal food poisoning.

Craig Moore
November 22, 2012 12:10 pm

A little ‘thank you’ before dinner.
We give thanks:
For food in a world where many suffer from hunger;
For courage in a world where many walk in fear;
For fellowship in a world where many live alone;
For earthly angels that share their lives helping others;
For tolerance and forgiveness from those we wrong;
And for the opportunity to make tomorrow better than today.

November 22, 2012 12:29 pm

HenryP
Science and relgion are two different ways that both lead to the Trutrh, if you are honest

Pamela Gray
November 22, 2012 12:49 pm

One of these days I will return to Ireland. I was not born there but most of my ancestors were. And for some reason it feels like my real home tho Ive never been there. And nearly all were from the North. And independent as all get out. Most were red headed and stocky. Musicians all. Fiddlers.

Pamela Gray
November 22, 2012 12:52 pm

Gail do u have some book titles to share related to ypur comment? Sounds like juat my kind of good read this winter.

Joe Prins
November 22, 2012 1:22 pm

Wordsmiths of the past makes reading their historical musings such a pleasure. From Canada’s North to all my southern neighbours a very Happy Thanksgiving.

Kitefreak
November 22, 2012 1:28 pm

Wonderful post, Mr. Watts. Really good.

Pamela Gray
November 22, 2012 1:42 pm

Typingbon a phone keyboard sucks!

3x2
November 22, 2012 1:43 pm

George Washington – my backside. We need a new public day …
It is high time for me to put an end to your sitting in this place, which you have dishonoured by your contempt of all virtue, and defiled by your practice of every vice; ye are a factious crew, and enemies to all good government; ye are a pack of mercenary wretches, and would like Esau sell your country for a mess of pottage, and like Judas betray your God for a few pieces of money.
Is there a single virtue now remaining amongst you? Is there one vice you do not possess? Ye have no more religion than my horse; gold is your God; which of you have not barter’d your conscience for bribes? Is there a man amongst you that has the least care for the good of the Commonwealth?
Ye sordid prostitutes have you not defil’d this sacred place, and turn’d the Lord’s temple into a den of thieves, by your immoral principles and wicked practices? Ye are grown intolerably odious to the whole nation; you were deputed here by the people to get grievances redress’d, are yourselves gone! So! Take away that shining bauble there, and lock up the doors. In the name of God, go!

HorshamBren
November 22, 2012 1:46 pm

Happy Thanksgiving to you, Anthony, and to the many friends of this wonderful website throughout the world!

Kitefreak
November 22, 2012 1:48 pm

Chris says:
November 22, 2012 at 11:50 am
I love this website full of science. But.
It really makes me wonder: Science and god, do they fit together? Do you believe or do you want to know?
———————————————-
Science is the search for truth. Just replace the word ‘god’ with ‘the creator’ and you can skip that whole anti-religious thing by transcending it. You don’t need to worry about that – just think about where did all this sh*t that we see around us come from? The earth and sun and galaxy and universe and everything. There must have been a creator. Otherwise, what was there before?
And, like, if the universe is expanding – I’ve often wondered – what’s it expanding in to?

November 22, 2012 1:51 pm

And now, “As God is my witness. . .”
The annual WKRP turkey drop!
http://www.kewego.com/video/iLyROoafYtDe.html
Happy Thanksgiving Day!
/Mr Lynn

richardK
November 22, 2012 1:53 pm

I just looked at all the pro-AGW sites on the side bar, not one made a mention of Thanksgiving, none! I was hoping they would be thankful for Obama, Lisa Jackson, government funding or media coverage. Just shows no heart, no soul and a heart of coal. Maybe they are working on the last part. Cheers to all!

kadaka (KD Knoebel)
November 22, 2012 1:56 pm

Chris said on November 22, 2012 at 11:50 am:

I love this website full of science. But.
It really makes me wonder: Science and god, do they fit together? Do you believe or do you want to know?

This can be a contentious issue, and this is a day for seeking unity. So here is a considered response.
It is a mark of wisdom to know that no matter how much one knows, there is much more one does not know.
Science does not claim absolute knowledge. There is no settled science, everything is open to challenge and revision as warranted by the evidence.
Thus science cannot claim whether God does or does not exist. The evidence for it is insufficient, the evidence against it shall always be insufficient as we will never know everything.
Thus when thinking scientifically, agnosticism is required.
What can be agreed upon, is the universe is ours to explore, we are a curious and intelligent species ably qualified to explore and logically understand the world around us, and science is the tool we use to shape that understanding.
Indeed, it is manifestly obvious that humans, by whatever reason, are meant to be scientific, to find order and structure. At the base level, it is a trait that enhances the survival of the species.
So use that tool which you are meant to use, for what it is meant to do. But matters concerning God, faith? That tool ain’t meant for that, and never was. Use a different one.

November 22, 2012 2:01 pm

“Science and god, do they fit together?”
Our understanding of God has to evolve the same way science has over the centuries.

ldd
November 22, 2012 2:30 pm

Happy Thanksgiving to you Anthony, the abundant great contributors to this site and all our American neighbours.

November 22, 2012 2:40 pm

There is a sense of community here of fruitful collaboration and mutual respect.
I am thankful to our host and the mods for the healthy venue they have provided.
John

mpainter
November 22, 2012 2:42 pm

“that great and glorious Being that is the beneficent author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be”
Including CO2, without which there would be no life on this planet, as we know life.
So give thanks today.

Werner Brozek
November 22, 2012 2:59 pm

Chris says:
November 22, 2012 at 11:50 am
Science and god, do they fit together?
That is an excellent question! Here is an interesting quote from:
http://www.reasons.org/about/our-creation-model-approach
“We believe God’s two revelations (Scripture and nature) will agree when properly interpreted. When apparent contradictions arise, we reexamine the data—both biblical and scientific—recognizing that our understanding is incomplete. Sometimes the scientific data seems an unclear or awkward fit with the biblical data. But we see such instances as an opportunity to study both of God’s revelations more deeply.”
Here is a quote from Stephen Hawking that also relates to your question:
“Even if there is only one possible unified theory, it is just
a set of rules and equations. What is it that breathes fire into
the equations and makes a universe for them to describe?”

RACookPE1978
Editor
November 22, 2012 3:09 pm

Any theory of the universe has to explain how ancient wandering illiterate shepherds got the whole sequence of evolution and cosmology and nuclear physics and astronomy and geology and plate tectonics exactly correct; minus a few decimal places. (But dates and log’s and powers-of-ten hadn’t been invented yet, by the way. Nor could they count with zero’s … which also weren’t invented yet.)
But they got the formation of the stars from plasma and dust, then light; then the planets, then the moon and oceans, the single continent being created in the middle of a single sea; then the splitting of that land mass by continental drift; then plants, the clearing of the atmosphere with oxygen so stars and the moon became visible; then dinosaurs (Genesis evens creates birds BEFORE mammals!); then finally domesticated animals and Man. Snakes coming in nearly last in the timeline? Yes, even snakes are credited with coming in late in evolutionary string of things!
Not a bad scientific record for a bunch of farmers who couldn’t count!
With this, am I stretching the truth, or trying to “edit” science terms into some Biblical terms where it doesn’t fit?
Not very much: Consider that “waters” isn’t a stretch into -> fluids -> gasses -> plasmas. And a “mighty force upon the waters” certainly could describe the (Divinely initiated) initial forces of the Big Bang. Which absolutely, as science claims, began as a “formless structure” in the void.
Again, both theories are correct, but Genesis was first.
Separating “light” from “darkness” requires mass be present, which only happened after “light” energy cooled down into the first matter.
Again, both theories are correct, but Genesis was first.
Separating “waters above” (interstellar gasses) from “waters below” (the atmospheric gasses) by the “dome” of the sky certainly happened. Most remarkable, because there is no reason for someone in ancient Israel to know enough to invent a tale about the interstellar gasses at all at that time!
Again, both theories are correct, but Genesis was first.
Gathering the waters (the traditional seas, in this case) into one basin certainly happened. And, if there were “one basin” then there could only be “one” land mass as well, yet clearly, Genesis contradicted what the Jews could see with their own eyes! Obviously Europe, Asia, and Africa WERE separated by different seas into different lands! (In fact, even “science” ridiculed the original proponents of continental drift (one only land mass was gathered together in the beginning, and only one sea was created in the beginning) up until the early 60’s! Only now, 5500 years after it first written, and then re-discovered in the mid-20’s, is continental drift accepted.)
Again, both theories are correct, but Genesis was first. Genesis was just harder to believe than “science” at every age.
Sea creatures and birds (dinosaurs) were the first forms of animal life, appearing well after the plants began to grow. But “science” is only now beginning to theorize that dinosaurs and birds were (are) from the same root stock!
Again, both theories are correct, but Genesis was first.
Mammals didn’t just suddenly “appear” after the dinosaurs were destroyed 65 million some-odd years ago, but they didn’t come to dominate the earth until then either. Appropriately and accurately, domesticated mammals and Man (and snakes) were certainly created last.
Again, both theories are correct, but Genesis was first.

Don Worley
November 22, 2012 3:10 pm

Science/God….
opinion/
The practice of Science has brought parts of nature into the category of high confidence (known).
Beyond science there are endless mysteries yet to be brought into the known category.
Religion has established sensible rules for living as human beings, many of which have a basis in science and which serve society well. Religion also tends to acknowledge our mortal limitations as compared with the infinite universe. The practice leads one toward a sense of gratitude for the gift of life and a desire to emulate that which gives it.
Science and religion are both subsets of God. They are not mutually exclusive. Most of our greatest scientists have written about their personal faith and inspiration.
To answer your question, yes, science fits well within the domain of God, along with religion, atheism, agriculture, sports, the arts………and so on.
/opinion

David Jojnes
November 22, 2012 3:15 pm

Pamela Gray says:
November 22, 2012 at 12:49 pm
“One of these days I will return to Ireland. I was not born there but most of my ancestors were. And for some reason it feels like my real home tho Ive never been there. And nearly all were from the North. And independent as all get out. Most were red headed and stocky. Musicians all. Fiddlers.”
Pamela, I have seen it written that there are 40 million Americans who describe themselves as Irish.
That is 10 times (give or take) the number of Irish people that have ever lived.
You are in numerous company!

Knutsfordian
November 22, 2012 3:16 pm

The “great and glorious Being who is the beneficent author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be” is presumably not the same ‘Being’ who is the author of all the evil, deprevation and hopelessness that faces the inhabitants of Goma and many other regions of the world.

Hilton Gray
November 22, 2012 3:28 pm

Well Ant as a citizen on the UK, I am thankful for a country called The United States and all it’s efforts to protect and secure the freedom of the Western World! Happy Thanksgiving America!!

Gail Combs
November 22, 2012 3:57 pm

Pamela Gray says:
November 22, 2012 at 12:52 pm
Gail do u have some book titles to share related to your comment? …
_________________________________
I would suggest going straight to the source. History of Plymouth Plantation by William Bradford the governor of the colony.
Amazon link
There are related books at the bottom of the page also by William Bradford.

bacchus
November 22, 2012 4:20 pm

Happy thanksgiving to the greatest nation of this planet.

Pamela Gray
November 22, 2012 5:35 pm

I have a geneology recod from my grandfather. Right down to the town tho the name escapes me.

Pamela Gray
November 22, 2012 5:49 pm

More than one male fought in the American Revolutionary war. Later on the Civil War beckoned my great uncle. My grandfather competed in old time fiddle contests and won a few trophies. When I get back home I’ll look up the names.

John Archer
November 22, 2012 6:30 pm

When in the course of human events the calendar comes round to the fourth Thursday in November all right thinking people should wish Americans Happy Thanksgiving.
Happy Thanksgiving, Yanks! 🙂

DarrylB
November 22, 2012 7:09 pm

Gail Combs
Thank you for your comment and link. My daughter, who was quite familiar with the full and accurate story have discussed this. It was a significant reason the US moved in a capitalistic versus a socialistic direction. History is replete with examples of a failure of extreme socialism.
There certainly would not be the initiative to organize so many to analyze the quality of the temperature stations in the US or to create a 24 hour broadcast.
By comparison NASA, even though they had information suggesting a lack of quality of many stations never took the initiative to investigate. They certainly had more financial resources.
Just no incentive.
It points to the weaknesses of human nature and the grand experiment of the forefathers in the US. They recognized a need for checks and balances, that is a three prong government. Of course, the branches have all tried to extend their power into or around the other branches and that is a danger we now have.
Because of human nature we must have oversight over all major endeavors. The IPCC has certainly tried to extend its power beyond being a fact finding organization and seems to be ignoring IAC recommendations. In the United States the EPA did terrific things in the beginning, but it, like the IPCC, is gradually becoming more corrupt. No oversight!!! Whether it be politicians, Military leadership, or the things of the dual warnings of Dwight Eisenhower,
The Military-Industrial Complex or Science controlled by government through funding.
It is human nature to want to survive and to promote ones self. Science controlled by government spending, if it is at all biased, is a form of socialism and as Ike said, ‘Gravely to be regarded’

OssQss
November 22, 2012 8:42 pm

I am thankful for the health and well being of my family and friends.
I am also thankful for the freedom which permits the sharing and caring that bolsters our knowledge and understanding, in so many different ways, right here at WUWT.

John F. Hultquist
November 22, 2012 10:28 pm

kadaka (KD Knoebel) says @11:51 am
RE: solar cooker and 6 to 8 hours on a clear, sunny day

Having lived in solar-restricted geographical locations all my life’s Novembers, I think it is likely that by following your kind advice I would have, long ago, asked that Thanksgiving be moved to a late August Thursday. Luke warm but still raw turkey may be one of life’s great joys, but I’ll pass.
Hope y’all had a great day!

John F. Hultquist
November 22, 2012 10:46 pm

Pamela Gray (others) and the Irish:
My Grandmother was from Ballinamore, Leitrim and explained how fair-minded the Irish are. She said they disliked everybody equally.

Leo Norekens
November 23, 2012 12:53 am

Happy Thanksgiving !
For those interested in further historical background regarding Thanksgiving – and its Flemish/Dutch origins: http://tinyurl.com/c7out6h

Caz in BOS
November 23, 2012 4:22 am

I went to the National Day of Mourning in Plymouth, MA, yesterday. My wife is a choctaw, and I am not American, so we have no affiliation to traditional Thanksgiving dinner. It is an excellent experience to hear the other side of history. I highly recommend it to all good skeptics.

Gail Combs
November 23, 2012 4:34 am

John F. Hultquist says:
November 22, 2012 at 10:46 pm
Pamela Gray (others) and the Irish:
My Grandmother was from Ballinamore, Leitrim and explained how fair-minded the Irish are. She said they disliked everybody equal.
____________________________________
Any time you get a number of individuals with a common background together you can find:
See the stranger
Hate the stranger
Kill the stranger
(the baboon theory) as a guiding principle. Humans have just as much tendency to form ‘packs’ as other social animals. Generating hatred of outsiders is one method used by leaders to keep control. It is the political philosophy of “When all else fails start a war.” It diverts attention from the mess at home and unites the people under you (hopefully)
Dick Lamm, the former Governor of Colorado, at an immigration-overpopulation conference in Washington, DC, gave the following speech Eight Steps To Destroy America

….Arnold Toynbee observed that all great civilizations rise and fall and that ‘An autopsy of history would show that all great nations commit suicide.’
“Here is how they do it,” Lamm said: (First) ;”Turn America into a bilingual or multi-lingual and bi-cultural country. History shows that no nation can survive the tension, conflict, and antagonism of two or more competing languages and cultures. It is a blessing for an individual to be bilingual; however, it is a curse for a society to be bilingual.
“The historical scholar Seymour Lipset put it this way: ‘The histories of bilingual and bi-cultural societies that do not assimilate are histories of turmoil, tension, and tragedy.’ Canada, Belgium, Malaysia, Lebanon all face crises of national existence in which minorities press for autonomy, if not independence. Pakistan and Cyprus have divided. Nigeria suppressed an ethnic rebellion. France faces difficulties with Basques, Bretons, and Corsicans.”
Lamm went on: (Second:) “Invent ‘multi-culturalism’ and encourage immigrants to maintain their culture….

November 23, 2012 6:16 am

When we look back at those who made our lives possible, in a direct, physical way, the numbers double with each generation: Two parents, four grandparents, eight great-grandparents, sixteen great-great-grandparents. Assuming an average age of 25 years for each generation, by the time you get back to the Pilgrims you have 32,768 Great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandparents.
That’s roughly how many people were working hard, back in 1620, making you. Feel important? Or thankful?
What are the odds one of those 32,768 great x 13 grandparents were one of the hundred or so Pilgrims who survived the first year?
The first generations of pilgrims had huge families. Fifteen children was not uncommon. A hundred grandchildren and a thousand grandchildren wasn’t all that unlikely, though it was unlikely all would survive or you’d live to see them.
When you follow the Pilgrims down through time, the numbers grow to an amazing ten to twenty million, who walk the earth today, who can claim an ancestor was on the Mayflower. Therefore it isn’t really anything to be snobby about. However it is something to be thankful for, because those few people made a huge difference.
As they first began their “New World,” Pilgrims did toy with some social structures we might call “socialism,” attempting to be like Christians are described as being in the Book of Acts, however they swiftly made adjustments, as reality tempered idealism. If you are honest and face Truth, Truth has a way of knocking sense into your skull.
If those who came before us didn’t face hard facts and make difficult choices, they would have died, and we simply wouldn’t exist. You are therefore the last and latest in a long line of winners, even if your parents seem like dopes. And even if you yourself are childless, your ideas may stretch ahead and effect the future in ways you cannot imagine, like a mere pebble starting an mighty avalanche.
Truth is such a huge and mighty thing that, if you cling to it, and stand for it, and battle for it, it doesn’t matter how insignificant you are. Little acorns grow mighty oaks, and tiny websites become like WUWT.
Be thankful Truth has this amazing power.

November 23, 2012 7:01 am

Correction to above comment: “A hundred grandchildren and a thousand great-grandchiildren…”

Leo Norekens
November 23, 2012 7:40 am

@Caleb: The essay behind the link I posted above states that “approximately 35 million of the 311 million Americans have an ancestor who was at this event” (= the first Thanksgiving).
In Endnotes it says: “The 35 million number is found in Nathanial Philbrick, Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community, and War, (New York: Penguin, 2006), p. 355.”

November 23, 2012 8:48 am

To Leo Norekens.
I read Philborick’s book, and he was actually the one who first made me aware of how amazingly those hundred first Pilgrims proliferated. However, because I have taken some grief for the “35 million” figure, I tend to under-estimate, to be safe.
My father’s father’s family was insufferably snobby about having ancestors on the Mayflower. (They could count five.) It is one thing to be amazed, and have pride about the survival and success of a people you call your own, but it is quite another to look down your nose at people who are not in your clique, and my grandfather horrified everyone by marrying a non-Brahmin.
My grandmother was a French-Canadians and Scots mix, and was a terrific woman, college-educated despite poor beginnings, back when that was uncommon, (1908,) and she tended to get annoyed during Thanksgiving dinners when she had to listen to her in-laws go on and on about their family tree. Sooner or later she could be depended upon to say something totally inappropriate, such as, “So, do you folk you sh– cream?”
Between the two grandparents I got a nice blend of pride and humbleness.

kadaka (KD Knoebel)
November 23, 2012 10:55 am

From John F. Hultquist on November 22, 2012 at 10:28 pm:
Luke warm but still raw turkey may be one of life’s great joys, but I’ll pass.
Yup. A tiny 8-10 lb turkey, and 6 to 8 hours? I fear the solar cooling crowd has missed the distinction between cooking food and slowly warming it to a certain temperature.
You can almost visualize the wave of bacteria enjoying the favorable incubation conditions as it propagates inward…
And 6 to 8 hours of bright sunlight, in the North Hemisphere, at the end of November? How many solar cookers have sun tracking?
Here in central Pennsylvania, on Thanksgiving day between sunrise and sunset was only around 9hrs 42min. For usable sunlight, the Sun far enough above the horizon, I don’t think we even had 8 hours. A single cloud front passing through, and there goes supper.
What do the early eaters do? Put it in the solar cooker for half the time the day before then finish on Thanksgiving?

November 23, 2012 12:51 pm

Can I, an Australian biologist, give thanks to Anthony for the global blessing that is WUWT. I have given a couple of talks to things like church groups and professionals associations on the greenhouse debate, which were well received and which tried to give both sides of the case. I found WUWT to be an indispensable source.
If God forbid you in the US experience another 9/11, you can count on us down under to do our part to deal with the miscreants. It is cool to be antiamerican in Australia but much of this is simply absorbed without thought from trendy US sources like the media, loudmouthed rockers, Hollywood or Michael Moore. When the crunch comes Australia will come to its senses and to the aid of its true friend of liberty.

highflight56433
November 23, 2012 7:51 pm

Glad to see this posted. I noticed others were sending it around as we see the media frats attempt to rewrite history according to the progressive propaganda agenda. (My soap box drama)

highflight56433
November 23, 2012 8:16 pm

“When the crunch comes Australia will come to its senses and to the aid of its true friend of liberty.”
Do you have have anything preemptive in mind? Why wait for history to repeat? There just might be more Americans that are non-Americans.

November 24, 2012 9:34 am

Chris says:
November 22, 2012 at 11:50 am
I love this website full of science. But.
It really makes me wonder: Science and god, do they fit together? Do you believe or do you want to know?
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Yes, I believe AND I want to know more. Both about Him and this world he “invented” for us.
Someone once said (I used to think it was Newton but apparently it was someone else.), “Science is thinking God’s thoughts after Him.”
Romans 1-3 basically deals Man’s problem of walking away from God and leaving himself without God. Romans 3:21 on is what God did to fix Man’s problem.
Freedom of will is a wonderful thing. God doesn’t force Himself on anyone.
In the context of “science”, you can’t put spirit or soul in a test tube. They themselves are beyond detection or analysis by the 5 senses. But whatever one believes about the origins of the physical laws we are surrounded by, barring spiritual intervention, we are bound by them. To better understand them and apply them is not a bad thing.
So, yes, science and God do fit together. I believe there wouldn’t be the former without the later. I am thankful to the later.
I believe we need to be honest with both.

November 24, 2012 12:28 pm

Gunga din says
http://wattsupwiththat.com/2012/11/22/from-history-the-proclamation-of-thanksgiving/#comment-1156181
henry says
True.
science and religion are two roads that must lead to the same truth (Truth). He who died for us to open the gates of Heaven actually claimed that He is the Truth. I think that is what made me cling to faith as the key, the faith He had. Remember He was a man, just like us.
http://www.shroud.com
Interesting that that was also Pilates’ question to Jesus: what is truth (Truth).
You mentioned Newton and I remember that when he was questioned late in his life about what he had meant to science, he answered: oh, I just went to the beach and played with a few pebbles and stones that I found lying around…..
I think I know what he meant. If everything we know is given by a circle, than the more you know, the more you realize how much you don’t know. And, indeed, so it has been for me in these past 3 years that I did some climate research.
…….but nevertheless, I would not have been much the wiser if it had not been for all those here at WUWT giving me some of their inputs and knowledge….
Thanks, thanks you guys.
Perhaps the time will come when you can also learn a bit from me….
http://blogs.24.com/henryp/2012/10/02/best-sine-wave-fit-for-the-drop-in-global-maximum-temperatures/#comment-205
God bless you all!