Being Thankful

My wife knows that Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday (because she knows everything about me). There are many reasons why I love Thanksgiving - the time of year, the food, the fellowship, the football - but the number one reason is the concept. To me it's, "Okay....HOLD EVERYTHING!" It's time to stop and remember everything good about our lives.

Did you know that our first President designated the fourth Thursday of every November as "Thanksgiving"? Because my wife knows everything about me, she knows that my favorite American hero is George Washington. However, I'll bet she does not know that George Washington was NOT the first American President. Recently, a friend sent me an e-mail about the first American President, a guy named John Hanson (under the Articles of Confederation). It was John Hanson who designated the Thanksgiving holiday.

George Washington was a man worthy of hero status. However, it's a worthy endeavor to learn more about our other fathers too. Sharon just sent, "Revolutionary Characters", by Gordon S. Wood, and "American Gospel", by Jon Meacham, because she knows what I like to read. You should Google John Hanson, or read about him at: http://www.marshallhall.org/hanson.html. Here's a little bit from that web site:

Hanson, was elected, unanimously, by Congress (George Washington was a voting member of that body). As President, he ordered all foreign troops off American soil, as well as the removal of all foreign flags. Hanson established the Great Seal of the United States, which all Presidents have since been required to use on all official documents. President Hanson also established the first Treasury Department, the first Secretary of War, and the first Foreign Affairs Department. He was President for one year. There were six other Presidents under the Articles of Confederation after him.

Did you know that the United States was governed by the Articles of Confederation for eight years? While our "founding fathers" were some of the MOST BRILLIANT political minds in history, nobody talks too much about the short period of time under the Articles because the government was a FAILURE. How is it that those brilliant men created something that failed miserably? BECAUSE they were MEN! Men make mistakes! Fortunately, they were smart enough (and HUMBLE enough) to go back to the drawing board and get it right. At least we think they got it right (with the Constitution), but the jury's still out. I mean, isn't it called, "The Great Experiment"?

So, now that we know all that, what makes any of us believe that IRAQ can get it right the first time and in just three years? Let me tell you...there are NO brilliant guys over here (Iraqi, American, or other). So, I recommend you stop listening to that crap on the news - those "brilliant" talking heads on "Face The Nation" and other shows. They don't know squat. I do recommend, however, that you be THANKFUL that we seem to have gotten it right in America. Just give thanks.

Only one picture on this blog today. Can you guess what it is?



It's a gate, at Rustamiyah (that's where the military academy is), behind which is a soccer stadium. A few years ago, the Iraqi national team lost a critical soccer match. The sons of Saddam Hussein were involved with recruiting and running the team. They had the team come here, to this soccer field after that game. The team met at this small stadium expecting to be given a tonuge lashing about how they had embarrassed the nation. Instead, they were machine gunned to death in the middle of the field. Their bodies were cut to pieces and spread across the country. That's what Iraq was like before we came to town.

I'm so THANKFUL to be American.