It has become an annual tradition for the President of the United States to "pardon" a turkey for Thanksgiving. Technically, a pardon is a legal forgiveness for having committing a crime, so the word really shouldn't apply to turkeys. We should say that they were granted clemency because they didn't do anything illegal prior to the imposition of their death sentence.

But what if they did?

Although Abraham Lincoln often gets the credit, the truth is that in November 1963, John Kennedy was the first president to pardon an unnamed turkey. "The turkey will probably live a long and happy life as a result of his presidential pardon," reported the Associated Press. Only, as we now know, it didn't.

As it turns out, The Turkey With No Name would soon be given a name: Patient Zero. After the turkey returned to its home in California, it was discovered the turkey was a carrier of the virus then known as "fowl plague." Today we recognize it as influenza A, more commonly called bird flu.

Bird flu is highly contagious and has been responsible for crossing species and killing millions of human beings around the world. In 1963, there was no treatment for the disease, and the only way to prevent the spread was to take swift and decisive action and cull entire flocks of birds... and anyone else who had contact with the infected fowl, including the popular President of the United States. (To prevent public panic over a potential pandemic, such extreme actions were undertaken surreptitiously with suspicion cast on convenient scapegoats.)

Any well-intentioned time travelers aware of this terrible and sordid chain of events might be tempted to take it upon themselves to "improve" history by going back in time and killing the turkey before it could trigger such a tragic spiral. However, as we all know, changing history can have dire unintended consequences. Ensuring that history plays out the way it must is the lonely but necessary job of a Time Cop, preferably one with a force field impenetrable to disease.

Thanks for performing your thankless job, Booster Gold!

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Yeah, yeah, DC's 'Twas the Mite Before Christmas has finally given us a Booster Gold in a full Santa suit.

But for my money, the best (and most extreme) Booster Gold Christmas panel is still this one:

Justice League Task Force #37 (1996)

What can I say? I just prefer a classic Christmas.

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It could be argued that self-interested corporate shill Booster Gold is the embodiment of the modern American Dream. But the DC Universe already has an embodiment of the American Spirit, and he's been around for a long, long time.

"In 1776, as a new, but tattered flag was hoisted over the thirteen free states, a new spirit was born, a spirit that grew until 48 states became united under one flag."

That's how National Comics #1 opened in 1940, thus beginning the comic book adventures of the personification of the American Spirit of Liberty, better known to comic book readers as Uncle Sam, eventual leader of the Freedom Fighters, first on Earth-X, then on the post-Crisis on Infinite Earths's only Earth, and now on Earth-10.

You might think that Booster and Uncles Sam, both being active, time-traveling, metaverse-hopping superheroes for decades now, would have worked together a bunch. But that's actually far from the case. As it happens, they've appeared on panel together in only two adventures.

The first time was in 2007's Tales of the Sinestro Corps: Superman-Prime, when the heroes of Earth came together in an attempt to put the rampaging Superman of Earth-Prime in his proper place: six-feet underground.

Tales of the Sinestro Corps: Superman-Prime #1, Page 4, Panel 1

The second time was a few year later, in the pages of Blackest Night #8, when the heroes of Earth came together in an attempt to put the rampaging Nekron in his proper place: also six-feet underground.

Blackest Night #8, Page 10, Panel 1

As you can imagine, there's not a lot of time for small talk when you're trying to save the world.

I like to think that once the smoke cleared, the two heroes got a chance to share a Coca-Cola and a slice of apple pie and argue about baseball. One might love money while the other loves freedom, but something tells me they have more in common than they have differences.

Blackest Night #8, Page 33, Panel 6

Happy Independence Day, everybody.

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Over the weekend, I was being teased by some friends about whether or not I'd be able to keep a particular New Year's Resolution I made. In response, I decided that instead of resolutions, I was going to make objectives (which sounds more aspirational than intimidating resolutions).

One of my New Year's Objectives for 2023 is to introduce at least one new person to the awesomeness of Booster Gold. I don't know where I'll find someone in my life who isn't already familiar with DC's greatest superhero, but I'll definitely be looking. I invite all Booster boosters to join me.

2023 may present us with some pretty good opportunities. In addition to whatever else it is that James Gunn has brewing at Warner Bros, there's still a Jaime Reyes-centric Blue Beetle movie coming this August. That'll give us an opportunity to enlighten new fans about the established superhero who originally introduced Jaime to his own super-heroic alter ego in 2006's Infinite Crisis #5!

If Booster Gold is good enough for Batman, he's good enough for you!

Help our hero get the recognition he deserves in 2023, Booster boosters. The future may depend on it!

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Justice League Task Force #37 (1996)

Say whatever you like, Batman, but there will always be a Justice League to wish everyone a Merry Christmas.

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