I see it every year. People overspending just to celebrate Turkey Day. They don’t even know what it is about. What it really is is over customerism for the food industry combined with something irrational gluttony
Lots of downvotes for what is, inherently an unpopular opinion…
But here’s the thing… Thanksgiving is largely a communal experience.
I’m going to say “generally” but I don’t have the numbers to back it up, but GENERALLY Thanksgiving dinner has multiple contributors.
It’s not one person over-spending to feed many, it’s many people coming together to feed EVERYONE.
My family is, weirdly, doing a big dinner this year, not sure why? Fine, my wife and I are invited. I expect all told there will be 11, 12, 13 people? Something like that.
I’m taking 3 loaves bread, 2 banana breads, 1 pot of cranberry sauce, and a tray of sweet potatoes covered with a layer of toasted pecans. All home made.
Not sure what everyone else is bringing, but I have the carbs covered. Baking is super cheap, for the most part. A 5 pound bag of flour is 2,270 grams and runs $2 to $6 depending on brand.
The bread I make needs 480g, so a 5 pound bag will get me 4 loaves with some left over. The banana bread needs 200g too.
But, yeah, I did over-spend. I bought a special local flour which ran me $18 for five pounds.
So each loaf is $4.50. I already made 1 to make sure it was good before inflicting it on Thanksgiving. 😉 3 to go!
No I read it, I get what you mean. If it’s about gluttony you would be targeting everyone, not just the poors, because obviously we look at the extravagance of the rich and that’s where the waste is, but saw your nuance. Those dang poors celebrating thanksgiving? Disgusting. The only people who can be gluttonous and wasteful are the rich, am I right? Right.
Yeah! Those poors shouldn’t enjoy partaking in a uniquely American holiday custom with an enormous outpouring of charity! /s
My family was intermittently on food stamps when I was growing up, and during those years my parents always found a free (or steeply discounted) turkey, and food banks always had enough fresh potatoes, onions, etc. to feed everybody. We barely spent any money, and it was an occasion to bond as a family as we all chipped in to prepare for the big meal. There’s really only so much poultry, potato, and reconstituted stale bread that you can eat in one sitting. The rest fed our family for weeks on leftovers.
If you want to target a holiday for “wasteful consumerism” maybe try American Christmas. But, even then, I’ve got a story for you…
This reminds me of those life coaches who tell you that you’re only poor because you’re lazy and you don’t think big enough.
Well, the truth is we all spawned with a different seed and life is just different for different people. And because everyone is trying their best, we should let people enjoy things. It’s only one day out of the year.
Also I get you are saying “you don’t need to like this opinion that’s why it’s unpopular” but I not only disagree, I also think that it’s particularly dangerous to rile on large swaths of people for things outside their control. And if you look into it, your financial situation IS largely out of your control.
If you have the income it’s not wasteful. I’m saying if you barely can afford food you don’t need to over consume for a holiday. THAT’S WHAT I AM SAYING
