I have strong doubts that the first Thanksgiving even remotely resembled the "history" I was told in second grade. But considering that (when it comes to holidays) mainstream America's traditions tend to be over-eating, shopping, or getting drunk, I suppose it's a miracle that the concept of giving thanks even surfaces at all.

The speaker contrasts the sanitized, child-friendly Thanksgiving narrative taught in early schooling with a more skeptical view of what the historical event likely involved. The quote then pivots to critique contemporary U.S. holiday culture—framing it as dominated by consumption (food, retail, alcohol) rather than reflection or gratitude. The final clause is deliberately ironic: even if the holiday’s origins are mythologized and modern practices are commercialized, the persistence of “giving thanks” is presented as a surprising moral residue. Overall, it reads as a commentary on national memory, civic mythology, and the tension between ritual meaning and consumer habit.