Dakota Beacon

This week’s “People, Places and Things” feature sort of wrote itself. It’s not so much that I got lazy (maybe I did) but that as usual, Dennis Prager can be relied on to provide a truthful insight into our culture and history. This time he presents Michael Medved, who in turn presents a factual and honest background for our Thanksgiving heritage. Canada celebrates Thanksgiving in October (actually closer to the historic occasion in Plymouth) but the idea of dedicating a day of thanks is really an American tradition, one which brings us together (and causes a few family arguments) regardless of our religious beliefs.

Unfortunately, the Left, as it has done with almost everything we have held sacred, has been trashing this special day. We are inundated with horror stories of Pilgrims exploiting, killing, torturing, banishing and otherwise abusing the natives of Massachusetts, beginning a long “tradition” of this mistreatment of native Americans. Of course there were incidents and some terrible policies (by the way, these poor policies continue to this day – just ask an Indian how he feels about healthcare on the reservations, not to mention other services – and much of this under Leftist administrations). But it’s not the fault of the Pilgrims and we ought to quit looking for ways to blame them.

It is constructive, to balance the one-sided indoctrination provided by our schools to our kids, to listen to the voice of an actual American Indian. The late David Yeagley was an accomplished, multi-talented Renaissance man who composed music, was an artist and a serious thinker and writer who pondered many of the most fundamental issues of our time, an American first, and a proud American Indian who identified with his Commanche heritage. He was never one to accept the pre-packaged views on offer by the Left, saw them as predators who exploited Indians as tools to achieve a culture of “political correctness”, victimizing both white Americans and Indians. Here is a link to a presentation by this fascinating and gifted American: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KT7MK13PyMw

Let’s celebrate without this phony guilt this year. Give thanks, enjoy family (try not to fight too much), toast our rich American heritage of freedom and look forward to working on improving our future with a little more humility, more as the Pilgrims did, less conceit and skip the “guilt”. Teach your kids to skip the guilt also – they will have been taught to feel guilty in school. Instead remind them that guilt is not virtue and why on earth would we celebrate Thanksgiving if we are “guilty”?

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