No thanks to give on this Thanksgiving

One of the problems with being a reluctant atheist is that there is no one to thank for much of my good fortune.

I was born a white, straight male in the United States in the late twentieth century. That alone provides me with advantages that billions of people do not enjoy. In the grand scheme of things, these facts alone are the ones that have made the greatest impact in my life, yet it was only blind luck that made it happen.

Had I been born in parts of Africa, the Middle East, South America, Asia, or hundreds of other locales, I would’ve likely faced hardships I would never know as an American. Disease, hunger, a lack of fundamental human rights, Third World economic limitations, and millions of other factors could have hindered my success.

Had I been born a woman, I would have spent my life battling against the proverbial glass ceiling, sex discrimination, unfair wages, the lack of acceptance on a football field, perpetual chills regardless of temperature, and the stupidity of high heels.

Had I been born a minority, I would’ve undoubtedly faced prejudice and racism throughout much of my life.

Had I been a member of the LGBTQ community, I would have undoubtedly faced bigotry and a lack of fundamental freedoms throughout my life.

Had I been born earlier than 1971, I might have faced combat in Vietnam, Korea, or the European or Pacific theaters during either of the World Wars. I might’ve suffered through the Great Depression or the Civil War or been subjected to untold numbers of diseases that have since been eradicated.

I was born at the dawn of the internet, a member of the last generation of human beings who spent childhood without the internet but entered adulthood during its emergence. As a result, I enjoyed an offline childhood but an online adulthood.

Perfection, in my opinion.

I’m also healthy and intelligent. I don’t suffer from mental illness or anxiety. I don’t require much sleep and have perfect blood pressure.

Without even mentioning my remarkable wife, my sometimes perfect children, or my assortment of amazing friends, I am already ahead of billions of people on this planet, and it was through no real effort of my own. It was simply a geographic, genetic luck of the draw.

I feel incredibly fortunate, through no effort of my own, but I’m left with no one to thank for some of my greatest blessings.

Religion provides some people with the notion that God has placed them in this place, at this time, for a specific purpose. Fate and chance had nothing to do with their birthplace, the color of their skin, or the period in history in which they were born.

For the devout, God had a hand in all of these decisions.

At least they have someone to thank.

While I’m envious of the idea that life is not determined in significant part by luck, I also find it inhumane and cruel to believe that an all-powerful deity has blessed one person with such great fortune ahead of billions of other human beings who are doomed to a life of poverty and subsistence living.

Why would a good and just God doom so many people to such hardship, pain, and suffering based solely on where they were born while blessing others with unfathomable good fortune?

Also, what would God say if he was generous enough to place you in America during a time of relative peace and prosperity only to discover that you spend 28 hours a week watching television or scrolling TikTok?

If he’s the Old Testament God, watch out for the trapdoor you’re likely standing upon.

I would love to thank someone for being born where I was, when I was, and who I was, but in the end, it was nothing more than dumb luck.

I know that many people who look like me – white, straight American men – like to believe that their success has come only from hard work and self-determination, but these people are small-minded, stupid, self-serving, or all three.

So I can only thank blind luck for this good fortune, which doesn’t feel like thanks at all.

So, instead, I offer a sigh of relief, the daily acknowledgment of my privilege, a relentless attempt to lift others less fortunate, and a constant attempt to maintain humility given my incredible luck.