Christopher Columbus Day in okc may be over

[AP]

Ha what a comparison. Little Caesar's to a Federal Holiday.

[Midtowner]

That's not the only comparison I gave you, AP. Bastille Day in France, Unity Day in Russia..

You don't make an omelette without cracking a few eggs.

ETA:

This topic got me thinking as to how other countries treat similar figures who though on the whole being partially responsible for general good times in the dominant culture, caused bloodshed elsewhere. Mongolia and the Khans comes to mind as perhaps the singular best example of a Columbus Day analog.



http://www.economist.com/node/8401179

[dankrutka]

Whether you retroactively support the genocide and destruction which followed, which in the grand scheme of things is not "horrible" as many people seem to want to claim. This is just what happens when a strong culture encounters a weak one--the weaker is exploited. Sometimes that involves genocide, sometimes that involves enslavement, whatever, that's what happens.

Haunting and disturbing post.

To clarify, unless you are Columbus, no one has asked you to feel shame. You made that up yourself.

[dankrutka]

Am I wrong?

Yes. Your argument literally can be used to justify the Holocaust. That's the argument you're making. You're saying that killing people is cool as long as someone else's vision of "progress" is fulfilled. And, oh yeah, is genocide really that bad? Would you feel this way if someone had this attitude towards you and your family? Empathy - give it a try.

[Midtowner]

The Holocaust isn't even close to the largest extermination of humanity in history. I'm saying killing people is part of history and that we shouldn't try to whitewash history. But by the same token, we don't have to imagine that it is something exceptional when it really isn't. I don't really have a need to feel empathic with people who have been dead a few hundred years. Bad things happen to good people.

--and Godwin's Law, apparently. Straight to Hitler comparisons? Not even a little romance?

For more clarity, am I saying the Holocaust was justified? Nope. But it did happen and an argument could probably be made that the actual holocaust was a factor in advancing Europe to the point it is at today. The same can be said for what Mao did in China and what Stalin was responsible for in the USSR.

Celebrating the European colonization of the Americas by way of Columbus day is an acknowledgment of our history on this continent and how we got here. And the conquering of land from native peoples, slavery, etc., have all been at least partially responsible for helping the United States as a country advance to the point it now finds itself.

[dankrutka]

The Holocaust isn't even close to the largest extermination of humanity in history. I'm saying killing people is part of history and that we shouldn't try to whitewash history. But by the same token, we don't have to imagine that it is something exceptional when it really isn't. I don't really have a need to feel empathic with people who have been dead a few hundred years. Bad things happen to good people.

--and Godwin's Law, apparently. Straight to Hitler comparisons? Not even a little romance?

Who has suggested that we whitewash history? You are making arguments to the wind. I have made the exact opposite argument throughout this thread.

[Midtowner]

You seem angry.

And you seem to think the holocaust was like...the worst thing ever....

--cute.

I'm down for having an indiginous peoples day.. whatever.. Columbus Day, for obvious reasons, should remain on the calendar. We don't need to redefine our culture to satisfy the outrage warriors.