Quote Originally Posted by Whidbey78 View Post
Cajunscot,

Don't get me wrong...I'm not saying that all change is good. It will happen, and whether or not to go with it is up to you.

I'm a Navy vet, and I am well aware that MOST US Navy/Marine Corp traditions came from the Brits. But there are differences between how we do things and how they do it. And I'm not saying that we're a country who simply gives the finger to everyone, but we DO adapt others' traditions, technology and even language to fit within our culture. The corned beef and cabbage example given earlier is a good one. An even better one is Christmas. The "traditional" American Christmas celebration (think Norman Rockwell) is an amalgamation of traditions, rituals, foods, songs, and legends and folklore of at least a dozen countries. When was the last time you sung Silent Night in German? Do your kids get a picture taken with Basil of Caesarea, Saint Nicolas in robes, or today's version of "Santa?" We do almost everything differently from the rest of the world. It's not always a drastic difference...often it's very subtle. We even do things differently from one part of the US to the next. It's not about "non-conformity" it's about having your own style. That style will be influenced by your environment, culture, cash flow, etc. etc. etc.
Given that I teach history & folklore, I'm well aware of what you describe here. I frequently lecture on St. Patrick's Day as symbolic of how Irish-Americans struggled to fit in to traditional "native" American society, as well as how most Evangelical Protestant Americans of Puritian and Presbyterian stock rejected Christmas as a "papist" holiday until the end of the 19th century.

And for the record, my children will know both St. Nicholas's Day (Dec. 6) and Santa Claus, a la Coca Cola and Norman Rockwell. My son, who will soon make his arrival, will be named for the Bishop of Myra in fact.



T.