It's Bloggerstock! "What am I NOT Thankful For..."

Once again it is Bloggerstock time!  You know the blog-swap-ring type thing. 
Today's Post is brought to you by....
Riley Carson from http://wayfaring-stranger.com/
*Round of applause please*

She has a rather lovely blog with beautiful pictures so do stop by for a visit and enjoy! (It's all like...professional looking and stuff.  I hope she doesn't feel grungy from posting on this dive!)

Oh and please check out my post over on Ohemgille's blog .  It's a bit more serious than my usual and I spent more than 5 minutes on it.  I also was in the camp lounge chugging sipping on spiced rum and gingers.  Didn't even proofread (why start now?).

Enjoy:


The Native American’s found the Jamestown Settlers in such a wretched, starved state that they began to teach them how to farm, to fish and to survive in the nutrient dense forests of Virginia. The Settlers were so disgustingly bad that they had resorted to cannibalism, digging up graves and eating corpses, or lapping up the running blood from recent dead! One man allegedly killed, salted then ate his pregnant wife. Thank God for the Native Americans that helped the incompetent settlers.

Then a century later, the Native Americans were given small pox infested blankets, and taken away from their native lands into the deserts, the barrens and the horrible places in the middle of the country.

I bet they regret their little act of charity. I bet that’s something they’re not grateful for come November time during a celebration where Indians and settlers allegedly broke bread – ah, what a Myth .

It’s an interesting holiday for me, and the twist of traditions has an ironic flavor that tickles the cockles of my heart and sends a silly smile to my lips.

So when Bloggerstock made the theme “What are you not grateful for?” I jumped on the bandwagon. It was too good to pass up and, I think, is more in line with the history of the holiday than the tradition of going around the table for a feel-good ‘what are you thankful for this year?’I’m Riley Carson soldier, blogger, writer - and this year, I’m not grateful for propaganda.

I can’t flip a channel without seeing another enlisted soldier talking about how he’s from some farm in Bum-Fuck Nowhere, missing his wife, his mom, his kids and apple pie. Then there’s flag-waving, God Bless Americas and a short skit about how our boys overseas are still fighting the good fight.

Here’s the issue; not all soldiers came to the army by way of a turnip truck. Many soldiers aren’t boys, but men and women who don’t appreciate being infantilized. At it’s very core, we can even examine the part where “God” is always mentioned – we’re operating under the assumption that we all believe in the same God, or any God at all. There are plenty of atheists in foxholes, with Muslims, Jews, Buddhists, and pagans. Let’s not forget the gay/bisexual soldiers that wouldn’t even be able to acknowledge who they miss while on Deployment. Heck, some people don't miss their spouse/significant other at all because Deployments are the best time of their life!

Soldiers are simply a microcosm of society; they’re as diverse, as intricate and as interesting as any other society. They’re not so two-dimensional that you can wrap stars and stripes around one and say that he can represent every one.

Propaganda is potent; One day, I’ll see an Asian female soldier (like me) that’s not on a computer while wearing an Air Force uniform, but not this year. The Media wants to show the sweet faced Caucasian boys and girls with a slight southern drawl, sometimes focusing on an African American, if the diversity bug bites them. They conform to a pretty little box, a wonderful little stereotype! That makes people wave flags and go “Support the Troops!” So when someone makes the broad brush statement of “Senator so-and-so doesn’t support the troops!” we can all be filled with hatred and make sure we defend our defenseless kids who are fighting over seas and don’t have the means to vote and defend themselves.

Soldiers are being used as tools in the political game. We’ll tug your silly little feel-good heart strings as you think of us and buy yourself a little $2.00 yellow ribbon which finances some sweatshop overseas. It’ll tug the Patriotic American heart-strings the way the myth of that first Thanksgiving in Jamestown does.

It’s cute. It’s sweet. I hate it.

It’s not the truth! The truth is so much more interesting! I'm the ungrateful Riley Carson from Wayfaring Stranger, have a day! 

Riley C.

Riley@wayfaring-stranger.com

Wayfaring Stranger an outsider's social critique

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