Thanksgiving

Thursday November 28, 2024

October 10, 2020

America’s Thanksgiving Turkey – Originally published: Saturday October 10, 2020

That cartoon from Canadian Thanksgiving in 2020 is such a time capsule, isn’t it? Back then, the world was in the grip of COVID-19, Trump was stumbling his way through the pandemic response, and Canadians were quietly counting their blessings that, for all our problems, that wasn’t ours to deal with directly. The image of Trump as a giant turkey, gobbling out COVID-19 particles, captured the surreal mix of horror and relief many Canadians felt as we peered southward. The masks, the fence, and that simple punchline—“It’s not ours”—said it all.

Despite rising grocery prices, Thanksgiving 2024 offers an opportunity to reflect on the privileges many Canadians still enjoy, like access to affordable food and relative safety, even as global challenges intensify.

October 12, 2024

Now, four years later, we’re in a different time but somehow back in a similar headspace. Trump is president again, and while the pandemic is largely behind us, the sense of relief that “it’s not ours” is creeping back into the national mood. It’s less about public health this time and more about the political chaos Trump’s return is sure to unleash. Whether it’s his rhetoric, his policies, or the way he polarizes everything he touches, Trump’s presidency still feels like this storm Canadians are happy to watch from the safety of the sidelines.

Pandemic Thanksgiving 2020

Of course, this time around, the fence between us feels a little less solid. The issues spilling over—trade disputes, border pressures, global climate goals, and the ever-present tug of American culture—remind us that what happens in the U.S. rarely stays there. Trump’s second term won’t just be America’s problem; it’s going to test Canada’s ability to hold onto its values and navigate the fallout, just like it did last time.

Still, that old cartoon feels like a fitting reminder for U.S. Thanksgiving this year. As Canadians, we might not always be thrilled with everything happening on our side of the fence, but it’s hard not to feel grateful when we glance southward and think, “At least that’s not ours.”

Saturday October 12, 2024

Despite rising grocery prices, Thanksgiving 2024 offers an opportunity to reflect on the privileges many Canadians still enjoy, like access to affordable food and relative safety, even as global challenges intensify.

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday October 12, 2024

Animated making-of clip here!

Gratitude, Complaints, and Context: A Reflection on Thanksgiving 2024

September 29, 2022

As we approach Thanksgiving 2024, a holiday traditionally celebrated with gratitude and the bounty of the harvest, Canadians find themselves caught in a peculiar tension between appreciation and dissatisfaction. The rising cost of living, particularly food prices, has led many to focus on economic struggles rather than the holiday’s central theme of thankfulness. While these concerns are valid, especially for those facing real financial strain, this shift toward complaints risks overshadowing the privilege many of us still enjoy in Canada.

In recent years, grocery prices have indeed risen, as pointed out in Toronto.com, where food inflation saw a 2.4% increase over the past year.

Thanksgiving dinner flyer deals: Here’s how much you might spend on turkey, potatoes, bread rolls, pies and more for the family feast

October 10, 2020

Many shoppers are feeling the squeeze, and it’s tempting to rail against the major supermarket chains—like Loblaws Inc.—that have posted record profits. However, some voices, like columnist Maynard van der Galien’s in The Ottawa Citizen, urge us to step back and reconsider our perspective. He highlights the fact that grocery stores remain well-stocked and clean, offering deals for the strategic shopper. For instance, he found 10 pounds of potatoes for just $1—an astonishingly low price even amidst inflation .

Van der Galien’s point is not that the cost of living hasn’t increased, but that many Canadians still have access to an abundance of food at reasonable prices, provided they take advantage of sales, loyalty programs, and other budgeting tactics. In his view, rather than complaining, Thanksgiving should remind us to appreciate the privileges we enjoy: the convenience of supermarkets, the availability of food from around the world, and the stability of our supply chains.

Opinion: It’s Thanksgiving weekend. Stop complaining about grocery prices

Pandemic Thanksgiving

This argument, however, must be weighed against the realities faced by many who find themselves in tougher economic circumstances. Food banks across the country are reporting record demand, and for some, no amount of flyer-scanning or coupon-clipping will make their Thanksgiving dinner affordable. Yet, as a reader of van der Galien’s column pointed out, it’s all about perspective: even with rising prices, a Thanksgiving meal can still be prepared for less than $50, which per person is cheaper than many fast-food meals. This echoes the long-standing economic principle that inflation is inevitable, not something unique to our current moment.

Yet, there’s a bigger context to consider. While many Canadians worry about grocery costs, others around the world are grappling with much more severe hardships. War-torn regions like Ukraine and the Middle East are facing food insecurity on a much more urgent level. Climate change-fuelled disasters, like the recent hurricanes Helene and Milton, are wreaking havoc on communities to the south of us. Here in Canada, we have been spared the worst of these crises. Our supermarkets are full, our infrastructure remains intact, and most of us are safe. This, too, should factor into our reflections during Thanksgiving.

Opinion: It’s Thanksgiving weekend. Stop complaining about grocery prices

October 10, 2015

Perhaps the growing tendency to complain about rising prices during Thanksgiving reflects a shift in societal expectations. We expect stability, affordability, and abundance, and when these are threatened—even slightly—it can feel unsettling. However, it’s important to remember that the holiday is not just about food, but about gratitude for what we do have, which remains significant when compared to global challenges.

This Thanksgiving, rather than focusing on what’s changed, maybe we can focus on what hasn’t. We are still fortunate to live in a country where clean, well-stocked grocery stores operate every day of the week, where we can find food deals with a bit of effort, and where safety and peace remain constants in our lives. It’s a time to recognize our relative stability in an unstable world. While it’s natural to feel the pinch of inflation, it might be equally natural to let gratitude take precedence over grievances—if only for one weekend.

As we sit down to our Thanksgiving meals this year, whether frugal or extravagant, let’s remind ourselves that being grateful doesn’t mean ignoring hardship—it means acknowledging both our challenges and our privileges. (AI)

* * * * *

Letter to the Editor, The Hamilton Spectator, October 17, 2024

Letter to the Editor

Feeling thankful for what we have

Re: Oct. 12 editorial cartoon

Graeme MacKay is spot on in terms of what countries around the world are thankful for, compared to the North American “first world problems.” I am not implying the majority of Canadians are self-absorbed in their perceived problems of high grocery prices, home costs, etc., but we are indeed lucky to be far removed from political strife that engulfs so many world nations.

So be sure to give some pause around the dinner table on Thanksgiving and think of those less fortunate and under threat of death. Even those in our own communities struggle during these festive holidays. I am very thankful for where I live and will not complain of our lifestyle or country where we live

Steve Warrick, Ancaster

 

Saturday October 8, 2022

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday October 8, 2022

Even with rising food costs, many Canadians find Thanksgiving meal traditions tough to break

Young Doug Ford: The Series

A recent online Angus Reid survey of 1,244 Canadians that found of those who celebrate Thanksgiving, more than two-thirds will be eating the same food they usually do, even with inflation pushing up the cost of everything from turkey to potatoes. 

Statistics Canada reported on Sept. 20 that inflation is up nearly 11 per cent across all retail food items. One of the main drivers is still supply-chain disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, complicated by labour shortages. Another factor is Russia’s war in Ukraine, which has driven up commodity prices.

But some traditions are hard to break.

“The majority of Canadians are sticking to traditions. If they plan to host, they probably will have a turkey,” said Sylvain Charlebois, director of the Agri-Food Analytics Lab at Dalhousie University in Halifax, which had partnered with Angus Reid for the survey. It was conducted in September with a margin of error of +/- 3.1 per cent, 19 times out of 20.

Pandemic Thanksgiving

Still, about about one-quarter of Canadians will make some meal adjustments, the survey found. Sylvain noted that lower-income households, which earn less than $50,000 a year, are almost certainly making changes due to higher food prices.

Charlebois said the per-kilogram price of turkey has increased about 16 per cent from this time last year. Potatoes are 22 per cent more expensive. Bacon, ham and chicken cost about 10 per cent more.

“People may decide to opt for a smaller bird. They may decide to perhaps go for a cheaper protein source like chicken or ham,” he said. “Perhaps people will just go for another side instead of potatoes.”

“They’ll plan ahead and they’ll try to stretch their dollar,” Charlebois said.

At a Winnipeg Food Fair, customer Jerry Brown says he’s still after the traditional bird.

September 29, 2022

“It’s only once a year or twice if you count Christmas. Nice to have a turkey,” he said.

Others are cutting back, like Ciara Maffiola, who said, “I’m not buying a whole turkey. I’m just buying a small turkey breast.”

Food Fair owner Munther Zeid said he’s noticed most people are not spending less, but they are spending differently. For instance, instead of serving a large turkey plus a ham or roast, some are opting for smaller versions of each.

“I’ve never seen increases like this in all my life. I’ve been in this business working with my dad since I was a kid. I basically started part-time in 1983 and I’ve never seen what we’re seeing right now,” he said. (CBC) 

From sketch to finish, see the current way Graeme completes an editorial cartoon using an iPencil, the Procreate app, and a couple of cheats on an iPad Pro …

 

Saturday October 10, 2020

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday October 10, 2020

Canadians are rich, but this Thanksgiving, our well-being is trickier to measure

As we huddle in our homes, separated from friends and family by a pernicious virus, economics offers a measure of one thing Canadians have to be thankful for.

September 26, 2020

Gross domestic product, or GDP for short, a reckoning of things we make and services we sell, tells us Canada is a rich country in a poor world.

Depending on how you calculate it (there are subtle differences in methodology), as of last year, Canada as a whole was about as rich as Brazil or Russia.

But what makes Canadians really, really rich is that unlike Russia and Brazil, Canada’s enormous wealth is shared among a relatively small population. We have a high GDP per capita.

As you sit there this Thanksgiving weekend — grumbling about the politician or irresponsible age group to blame for trapping you in your home on this traditionally convivial holiday — it is easy to conclude that living in a rich country isn’t enough.

That is certainly the conclusion of Bryan Smale, director of the Canadian Index of Wellbeing, a project currently located at Ontario’s University of Waterloo.

October 10, 2015

As he and his team continue their efforts to find out what Canadians really care about, their research has shown that being rich — under what their system classifies as “living standards” — is only a single one of eight crucial indicators, including health, leisure and community engagement, that are most likely to make us thankful. And for many of those indicators, COVID-19 has not been kind.

“The things that are emerging as being the most significant buffers [for well-being] are the degree to which people can continue their participation in a variety of leisure activities and their perceived access to those things, both of which have been compromised right now,” Smale said.

His research shows that going out into nature or a city park can relieve a sense of social isolation, as can interacting with strangers — even at a distance.

A well-known principle called the Easterlin Paradox, discovered by a U.S. economist, shows that after a certain point — somewhere near the official Canadian poverty level — we and the countries we live in don’t get happier as we get richer.

The COVID-19 Pandemic

One thing GDP does not do is measure happiness. Despite supporting GDP, Skuterud said it has other flaws.

“The biggest problem is that it ignores the distribution of economic wealth within a population,” he said.

The Canadian Index of Wellbeing is in no position to supersede GDP and has no plans to try, but for people like Lisa Wolff, policy and research director at UNICEF Canada who uses the CIW tools, the effects of wealth distribution are obvious and inescapable. (CBC)