The humor thread (formerly Sunday funny)
I hate to say it, but I don’t get it.
A little historical context. Yes, the Alamo was a slaughter. But check out the Battle of San Jacinto, the decisive battle in the fight for Texas independence. It was fought about a month and a half later and the battle cry of those Texas soldiers was “Remember the Alamo!”.
So now, we say Remember the Alamo to remind ourselves of the sacrifice that was made by folks like Davy Crockett, and to conjure up that fighting spirit to defend liberty and freedom.
My son’s name is Crockett for a reason. And our dog’s name is Alamo…that way when the girls forget to feed him, I can yell through the house: REMEMBER THE ALAMOOOO!
Hi @BanjoBen I was responding rather hastily to @Mark_Rocka list and have to confess I don’t know the history of the battle. Otherwise I would never have posted either of these two images. I thought Texans won. I sincerely apologise to ALL Texans for my shortcomings
That’s okay Archie.
I learned on my trip to Scotland that I was woefully under educated about William Wallace. I didn’t ask but I was thinking to myself, why do they have all these statues of the Mel Gibson guy from that movie? Turns out I was really glad I kept my mouth shut! That’s a very serious subject there. Much like Texans and the Alamo.
Hi @Bhive Greg I think that we Scots tend to laugh at ourselves more than other Nations might and we also like to poke the lion across the border when it steps over the mark. Our English cousins sometimes forget their place and our our American cousins don’t help much by referring to the UK as England.
A little Scottish Folklore
Why is the unicorn Scotland’s national animal?
If we asked you ‘what’s Scotland’s national animal?’, you might ponder between a couple of our iconic wildlife species. You probably wouldn’t think of a magical horned creature typically seen on children’s lunchboxes!
But it’s true: the unicorn really is the official national animal of Scotland. And our love for this famous mythological creature dates back many centuries.
Unicorns have featured in many cultures going as far back as the classical age, including the ancient Babylonians and the Indus civilization. With its white horse-like body and single spiralling horn, the unicorn is a symbol of purity, innocence and power in Celtic mythology. Legend also tells that their horns can purify poisoned water, such is the strength of their healing power.
These proud, untameable creatures are fiercely independent and famously difficult to capture or conquer, which will sound familiar to anyone who has read their Scottish history. Even though unicorns are mythological, Scots have always felt drawn to what they represent.
When did Scotland adopt the unicorn?
The answer to that question lies in heraldry – the age-old practice of designing and displaying coats of arms or crests to distinguish between groups of people, armies or institutions. Using heraldry as our guide, we can see that the unicorn was first introduced to the royal coat of arms of Scotland around the mid-1500s.
Prior to the Union of the Crowns in 1603, our coat of arms was supported by two unicorns. However, when King James VI of Scotland also became James I of England, he replaced one of the unicorns with the national animal of England, the lion, as a display of unity between the two countries. Of course, folklore fans will know that lions and unicorns have always been enemies, locked in a battle for the title of ‘king of beasts’.
An interesting thing to note is that Scottish unicorns in heraldry are always shown with gold chains wrapped around them. Why? Although we don’t know for sure, it’s believed that this was a way of showing the power of Scottish kings – that only they had the strength to tame the untameable.
Where can you find unicorns in Scotland?
For thousands of years, people around the world believed that unicorns did exist. However, in 1825, a prominent French naturalist called Georges Cuvier attempted to dispel the myth by stating that an animal with a split hoof could never grow a single horn from its head (he also argued against theories of evolution). Nevertheless, the spirit of the unicorn has lived on ever since – people even celebrate National Unicorn Day every year on 9 April.
So … do unicorns exist in Scotland? Of course they do! You just have to know where to look. Here are some places in Scotland where you can spot our country’s national animal:
When exploring Edinburgh you’ll see a number of unicorns of various shapes and sizes. There’s a fine example on a heraldic shield by the gates to the Palace of Holyroodhouse, another in the Royal Apartments at Edinburgh Castle, and several hiding among the Victorian woodcarvings at St Giles’ Cathedral, just down the road from Gladstone’s Land.
Wherever you see a mercat cross (a Scottish market cross and an old symbol of trade and prosperity for many of our towns and cities), look for a unicorn atop the tower. There are many different examples across the country, ranging from the modest to the ornate, in towns and cities such as Edinburgh, Culross, Prestonpans, Dunfermline and Falkland.
Further north, you’ll find interesting examples of Scottish unicorns at Stirling Castle, home of the ‘Hunt of the Unicorn’ tapestries, and Dundee, where HMS Unicorn, one of the oldest warships in the world, proudly displays a unicorn as its figurehead.
I remember listening to this in my twenties when it was released. As you can imagine it remains a very popular children’s song here in Scotland
The Unicorn is a folk song written by artist and poet Shel Silverstein as a poem. It was set to music by the Canadian folk band The Irish Rovers and released in 1968; it was one of their biggest hits.
Sometimes I wonder how my sense of humor turned out so cynical and then I remember all the Shel Silverstein books I loved as a child. 
