• • • Celebrate Thanksgiving the Ayn Rand way: Thank yourself 
Debi Ghate, Christian Science Monitor Altruism  |Egoism  |Objectivist author  | Children are taught that Thanksgiving came about when Pilgrims gave thanks to God for a bountiful harvest. It seems we vaguely mumble thanks for the food on our table, the roof over our head, and how lucky we are in spite of these hard economic times. After all, our lives are so much better than, say, those in Bangladesh. But surely there is something more to celebrate, something more sacred about this holiday. What should we really be celebrating on Thanksgiving? Ayn Rand described Thanksgiving as "a typically American holiday" whose "essential, secular meaning is a celebration of successful production. It is a producers' holiday. The lavish meal is a symbol of the fact that abundant consumption is the result and reward of production." She was right.   Published: 2009-11-25