Celebrating Columbus Day? Read this and think again...

[Ireth]

Christopher Columbus was awful (but this other guy was not) - The Oatmeal

It's a long read, but don't let that daunt you; it's incredibly informative. Well worth your time!

 

[Sparkie]

I liked this. Subversive as hell, and mostly true to boot. Liked that the author referred to the Native Americans 'discovering' the North and South American continents. Didn't like that the author had to refer to the whole Scandinavian thing. Eurocentric viewpoints seem to rule our telling of history.

If Columbus were alive today, I think he'd make a good con-artist. Or maybe a lobbyist in D.C.

 

[Legendary Sidekick]

Well, I'll be celebrating my wedding anniversary that day… and nothing more.

 

[Devor]

Well, I'll be celebrating my wedding anniversary that day… and nothing more.

Hey Congratulations! How long has it been?

My 5-year anniversary is this weekend, too.

 

[ThinkerX]

Government Holiday. Means I can sleep in.

 

[Steerpike]

I don't know. This is probably as much a caricature of Columbus as the conventional history we were all told growing up. Martin Dugard's The Last Voyage of Columbus does a decent job of painting a picture of the guy, good, bad, and otherwise.

 

[Legendary Sidekick]

Hey Congratulations! How long has it been?

My 5-year anniversary is this weekend, too.

7. / Happy 5th!

My wife was telling a coworker what the Chinese say about the 7th year, then her coworker told her western culture has the same thing and calls it the seven-year itch. So until a couple days ago, I never knew what 'seven-year itch' meant... guess I wasn't curious. I knew basically what the itch was, but the seven-year part was what I misunderstood. I thought it had somethng to do with prison life, and without going into detail, I thought it referred to people with a sentence considerably longer than seven years.

My wife said that even if a temptation existed, with three kids who has time to be 'itchy?'



On-topic, I've always been indifferent to Columbus Day, even though 'as an Italian' (half) he's supposed to be a cultural hero. No one in my family pushed that, but I heard that on a Sopranos episode, so someone in my town must've thought that. Well, anyway.......... there's always St. Patrick for my Irish side, right?

(Please wait a few days before posting a link to the essay revealing how St. Patrick actually chased snakes into England and the resulting violence makes "Snakes on the Plane" look like a can of peanut brittle... whatever that's supposed to mean.)

 

[Reaver]

Congrats to The Legendary One and The Barbarian. I had no idea what the seven year itch was either. I've only known it as a line in a cadence from Full Metal Jacket:

HO CHI MINH IS A SON OF A BITCH
HE GOT THE BLUEBALL CRABS AND THE SEVEN YEAR ITCH

 

[deilaitha]

If Columbus were alive today, I think he'd make a good con-artist. Or maybe a lobbyist in D.C.

There's a DIFFERENCE?

 

[Lawfire]

I don't know. This is probably as much a caricature of Columbus as the conventional history we were all told growing up.

It certainly seems that way.

 

[Devor]

I just want to say . . . I detest Columbus day. My wife still works, but my son's home from school, and even the daycare centers are closed. Grr.