[Raeli]

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 dy of October, A.D. 1789.

(signed) G. Washington

Normally I suppose a Happy Thanksgiving wish would be better place in Random or Announcements, but I have a feeling that if the above had been written by a TSG poster and left in CivDeb it would have started quite a few arguments, and I want to see if it does now.

Either way, Happy Thanksgiving to all!

[DiSaidSo]

Aw, c'mon Raeli! No one's going to argue with George Washington! Surely!!!



Gobble Gobble!

[angelize56]

No arguments here!

Happy Thanksgiving and God bless us all!

[LANMaster]

No argument from me.
WOW look at all the references to God. I'll bet the Liberals of his day hated him.

[Ciberblade]

Like I have said before...even as religious as they were...they knew the importance of allowing others to worship as they like.

[GoneForNow]

To my American friends and foes ( ), my this be your best Thanksgiving so far. A few thoughts for your consideration:

And the Fair Land

24 November 2004
The Wall Street Journal

(Copyright (c) 2004, Dow Jones & Company, Inc.)

Any one whose labors take him into the far reaches of the country, as ours lately have done, is bound to mark how the years have made the land grow fruitful.
This is indeed a big country, a rich country, in a way no array of figures can measure and so in a way past belief of those who have not seen it. Even those who journey through its Northeastern complex, into the Southern lands, across the central plains and to its Western slopes can only glimpse a measure of the bounty of America.
And a traveler cannot but be struck on his journey by the thought that this country, one day, can be even greater. America, though many know it not, is one of the great underdeveloped countries of the world; what it reaches for exceeds by far what it has grasped.
So the visitor returns thankful for much of what he has seen, and, in spite of everything, an optimist about what his country might be. Yet the visitor, if he is to make an honest report, must also note the air of unease that hangs everywhere.
For the traveler, as travelers have been always, is as much questioned as questioning. And for all the abundance he sees, he finds the questions put to him ask where men may repair for succor from the troubles that beset them.
His countrymen cannot forget the savage face of war. Too often they have been asked to fight in strange and distant places, for no clear purpose they could see and for no accomplishment they can measure. Their spirits are not quieted by the thought that the good and pleasant bounty that surrounds them can be destroyed in an instant by a single bomb. Yet they find no escape, for their survival and comfort now depend on unpredictable strangers in far-off corners of the globe.
How can they turn from melancholy when at home they see young arrayed against old, black against white, neighbor against neighbor, so that they stand in peril of social discord. Or not despair when they see that the cities and countryside are in need of repair, yet find themselves threatened by scarcities of the resources that sustain their way of life. Or when, in the face of these challenges, they turn for leadership to men in high places -- only to find those men as frail as any others.
So sometimes the traveler is asked whence will come their succor. What is to preserve their abundance, or even their civility? How can they pass on to their children a nation as strong and free as the one they inherited from their forefathers? How is their country to endure these cruel storms that beset it from without and from within?
Of course the stranger cannot quiet their spirits. For it is true that everywhere men turn their eyes today much of the world has a truly wild and savage hue. No man, if he be truthful, can say that the specter of war is banished. Nor can he say that when men or communities are put upon their own resources they are sure of solace; nor be sure that men of diverse kinds and diverse views can live peaceably together in a time of troubles.
But we can all remind ourselves that the richness of this country was not born in the resources of the earth, though they be plentiful, but in the men that took its measure. For that reminder is everywhere -- in the cities, towns, farms, roads, factories, homes, hospitals, schools that spread everywhere over that wilderness.
We can remind ourselves that for all our social discord we yet remain the longest enduring society of free men governing themselves without benefit of kings or dictators. Being so, we are the marvel and the mystery of the world, for that enduring liberty is no less a blessing than the abundance of the earth.
And we might remind ourselves also, that if those men setting out from Delftshaven had been daunted by the troubles they saw around them, then we could not this autumn be thankful for a fair land.

[LANMaster]

Originally Posted by ciberblade

Like I have said before...even as religious as they were...they knew the importance of allowing others to worship as they like.

Washington would be impeached for giving that speech today.

[linskyjack]

I think that once you divorce Thanksgiving from the Pilgrims, and the plague that Europe brought upon native Americans---it is a great holiday. Just to give thanks that we aren't living in Iraq--that's enough for me.

[Raeli]

Di ~ you may be right, but I suspect there are some bitten tongues out there!

Angel ~ right back at ya!

Lan ~ those were part of what prompted me to post this, and to think people complain about today's George!

CB ~ they did, and so do we, having learned their lesson well.

GB ~

[Wino]

No arguements here. I will accept any holiday regardless of what it is based on.

Mystical - Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter (Good Friday).

Honorary - July 4th, Labor Day, Memorial & Veterans Days, Presidents Day, M.L. King Day, Columbus Day.

Festive - News Years Day and Spring Break.

Now if we can only get all other religions holidays and special days included (i.e. Jewish, Kwanzaa, Raelian, Islam, etc.) would have no problem accepting. May be throw in a David Koresh and Jim Jones (birth or death), St. Patrick's Day, Day of the Dead (Nov. 2 or 4, can't remember), Halloween, Autumnal Equinox, Summer Solstice, April Fools Day, Valentine's Day, Groundhog Day, what a wonder world it would be.

When I worked in the RP, they had over 30 days a year in holidays - throw in earthquakes, volcano's, typhoons. landslides, and I would guess the average was 60+ days a year off work.

Have a Grand Thanksgiving, all!!

[GoneForNow]

Originally Posted by Wino

Festive - News Years Day and Spring Break.

Hanging down at the beach watching the 20 year olds there Wino? Dirty old man. Now if they're 22, fair game!

[bassetman]

Originally Posted by linskyjack

I think that once you divorce Thanksgiving from the Pilgrims, and the plague that Europe brought upon native Americans---it is a great holiday. Just to give thanks that we aren't living in Iraq--that's enough for me.

Yup!

Washington would be impeached for giving that speech today.

Thanks for putting a political bash spin on a great holiday Lan!

[columbo]

Washington was just another extremely wealthy, WASP, male politician (like almost every other president to follow him) whose concerns rested mainly with his fellow rich white businessmen/land-owners/politicos. Surely he had a great influence on many aspects of the political formation of the United States, but should that alone blind future generations to many truths pertaining to Washington and the other members of the ruling elite over the last 228 years?

Give thanks to those who fought and died to bring about fair labor-laws and to improve working conditions for ordinary men and women.

Give thanks to those environmentalists, despised by many politicians and business-leaders and mocked by so many of their fellow citizens, who fought and still fight to stop corporations from poisoning your waters, your lands, your air, your food, etc.

Give thanks to civil-rights activists and peace-activists, who fought and died (and still fight) to battle injustice and discrimination, to allow people equal access to goods and services and to prevent politicians and business-interests from sending poor-people off to foreign lands to kill or be killed by other poor people (all in the name of profit and twisted ideology).

Give thanks to consumer-advocates who fought and still fight to stop businesses from ripping people off and selling faulty or dangerous products to you and your loved ones.

There....that should piss off the flag-wavers and the ultra-nationalists

[bassetman]

Originally Posted by columbo

Washington was just another extremely wealthy, WASP, male politician (like almost every other president to follow him) whose concerns rested mainly with his fellow rich white businessmen/land-owners/politicos. Surely he had a great influence on many aspects of the political formation of the United States, but should that alone blind future generations to many truths pertaining to Washington and the other members of the ruling elite over the last 228 years?

Give thanks to those who fought and died to bring about fair labor-laws and to improve working conditions for ordinary men and women.

Give thanks to those environmentalists, despised by many politicians and business-leaders and mocked by so many of their fellow citizens, who fought and still fight to stop corporations from poisoning your waters, your lands, your air, your food, etc.

Give thanks to civil-rights activists and peace-activists, who fought and died (and still fight) to battle injustice and discrimination, to allow people equal access to goods and services and to prevent politicians and business-interests from sending poor-people off to foreign lands to kill or be killed by other poor people (all in the name of profit and twisted ideology).

Give thanks to consumer-advocates who fought and still fight to stop businesses from ripping people off and selling faulty or dangerous products to you and your loved ones.

There....that should piss off the flag-wavers and the ultra-nationalists