#1679 Our Thanksgiving Show

Listening to America

History, Politics, Unitedstates, Society & Culture, American

4.6 • 1.1K Ratings

🗓️ 25 November 2025

⏱️ 55 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Guest host Nolan Johnson and Clay talk about the history of Thanksgiving, or what John Adams might call the uses and misuses of the Thanksgiving holiday. They explore the origins of American Thanksgiving, beginning with the pilgrims of 1621, through the Civil War, and into the 20th century's additions to Thanksgiving — the parades, the NFL game, Black Friday, and its further encroachments. Clay and Nolan talk about their own Thanksgiving observances, in their families and beyond, and our memories of particularly satisfying or dramatic Thanksgivings. Thanksgiving is perhaps the only time in the calendar when almost everyone in America says some form of grace before tucking into that vast feast. Is Velveeta a legitimate cheese? Is turkey essential? What about the crazy uncle who offends almost everyone, and the college freshman — just home from university — who is now a Marxist who thinks the whole ritual is colonialist?

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hello, everyone. It's Clay. This is my introduction to this week's podcast. I'm actually in the studio with Nolan Johnson, our engineer and editor. And we've done our annual Thanksgiving program. I love our holiday programs. Nolan and I had great fun with this. And today we talk about the history of Thanksgiving, Thomas Jefferson's somewhat antagonistic view to this
0:21.5	sort of national holiday, but sort of the way that it gelled after the time of Abraham Lincoln
0:26.6	and especially after FDR messed with it on the date of Thanksgiving. So there's that whole
0:32.1	historical element that kind of takes us back to the Thomas Jefferson Hour. But really,
0:36.2	we're talking about Thanksgiving and why it's so important. For me, it's absolutely the most important holiday of the year.
0:42.9	It's traditionally been the one least ruined by merchandising, although the Black Friday
0:48.0	creep in has really gotten out of hand, I think. I think it's time for us to move back and make
0:53.7	this a more solemn
0:54.8	and sacred day, not necessarily more religious, but more of a real breaking bread with the
1:01.0	people who matter to us most in our families. Anyway, I've always loved it. I'll be alone this
1:07.6	year. I'm not sorry. Obviously, I'd love to be with my daughter and her fiance,
1:13.0	but they're in Oxford and I'm in the United States and I'm totally exhausted from a year of almost
1:17.0	unbearable travel and writing and reading and lots of important and wonderful developments and
1:25.6	distractions. But I just want to say to all of you, thank you.
1:29.3	I'm so appreciative of you as faithful listeners to this program.
1:33.3	I love the feedback.
1:34.3	Please let us know what you like and don't like and how we can improve the program.
1:38.3	We've been through some growing pains.
1:40.3	I was on the road and we had some technical issues with some of our equipment.
1:45.4	And so we've gotten that all under control.
1:48.6	I love to buy gear, of course.
1:50.9	And so we're back on, I think, on track.
	...

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