Different Ways in Which Established Holidays are Celebrated

On Qo'noS, Easter is celebrated with a hardcore rock opera recounting the trials, tortures, and betrayals of Jesus, his iconic death, the resurrection... Some criticism was raised when the resurrection was treated to the same tones as the death of the Klingon gods at the hands of their mortal children, but much enthusiasm was had at the prospect of him retuning "I'll Be Back" in a very different form.

On Risa Valentines Day is a kind of global decathlon Purge event.

 

Why would you take the parallel evolution trope to such extremes?

 

Yes, why?

 

Kazon Independence Day. Extremely bloody. 'nuff said.
Sheliak Day of the Constitution: The Sheliak Constitution is read aloud, all 15714 pages of it.

 

They celebrate Thanksgiving by putting synthetic meatloaf in the oven. Occasionally it miraculously turns into real turkey.

 

On Cardassia, April fool's day is the time of year to play such classic pranks as re-arranging some organs during transporter rematerialisation. For example on that one superior that denied you your rightful promotion. All in good fun of course!

 

First of all, why not? This isn’t a serious thread.

Second of all, it’s not parallel evolution. These are the Human holidays being celebrated in different ways.

Third, ...as I’m sure we’ll celebrate different alien holidays on Earth no different than today my celebrating St. Patrick’s Day despite not having a drop of Irish in me.

 

But this is not about you deciding to participate in an established holiday. It’s about the idea that more than one alien culture would become so invested in human holidays (known to them for decades or a couple of centuries at most) they’d create their own versions thereof. I don’t see that happening unless you invoke ST’s convenient parallel-evolution trope, and it doesn’t sound like you were thinking of something in the middle such as a “Year of Cultural Exchange”.

Besides, I never thought it was great that DS9 writers decided everyone would want to participate in Vic Fontaine’s world; it seemed a bit like what RDM would later do with nBSG, use the near-present day to create a setting closer to home for the viewer and step outside the Roddenberry Box a bit.

 

On Easter the Vulcans actually bring someones' son back to life.

 

What, they don't have newspapers in the 23rd/24th century? Ways of aliens to learn of each other's ways? Ones that some citizens on all sides are down with adopting to various degrees? You have not read the Old Testament until you have read it in the original Klingon.

 

That seems to be your personal canon, but there is little to no official evidence. You opened this thread like it’s a no-brainer that alien cultures celebrate human holidays (even Easter!), but where have we seen that degree of integration? The quadrants are not the Galactic Republic. The Ferengi have their traditions, Klingons have their own, and sometimes you’ll see small bits of cultural exchange (such as that localized interest in Shakespeare), but nothing like this matter-of-fact assumption that you’ll find Easter on Kronos (?!?). I mean think about it: humans, Vulcans, Andorians and Tellarites supposedly founded the Federation, but do they seem likely to exchange holidays? It’s not that kind of union.

 

I think he opened it for fun to be honest.

 

Well, I wanted to have fun riffing on Arpy’s question like it was serious, but he now replied as if it actually was (unless we’re both taking the joke in the same direction?) Anyway, it really does seem like IDIC is more about treasuring diversity than any kinds of cultural imports one can assume to exist without question.

 

Nah, IDIC was about merchandising and I think you're maybe missing the joke.

 

What you don't want to see is how Orion pirates go about Trick or Treat.

 

IDIC was created to support merchandising, but it really is at the core of what Star Trek should be. What does one encounter on such a trek while boldly going where no one has gone before? IDIC, and the trek is there to experience it.

 

Uhuh....

Think you might be buying too deeply into this.

 

On Fereneginar they celebrate Christmas by selling toys to humans.

They actually go from planet to planet, whether humans are inhabitants or not, trying to get them to start celebrating the ancient human holiday of Christmas. Then open toy stores.

There was a massive galaxy-wide campaign run by Ferenginar to spread Christmas traditions and Christmas cheer to children, and their rich parents, everywhere.