#250thAnniversary #AfricanAmericanCommunity American Discovery Relay 250 to Travel Through Chicago Southland October 13–14 https://chicagocrusader.com/american-discovery-relay-250-to-travel-through-chicago-southland-october-13-14/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=mastodon
#250thanniversary — Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #250thanniversary, aggregated by home.social.
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Letter to the Editor: France helped make America | Jamestown News
As we Americans celebrate the 250th anniversary of our independence, I find myself thinking not only about t…
#France #FR #Europe #EU #250thanniversary #admiraldegrasse #america250 #AmericanRevolution #battleofthecxapes #British #chesapeake #continentalarmy #cornwallis #georgewashingont #independence #jamestown #jamestownnews #Lafayette #lettertotheeditor #roberthicks #rochambeau #yorktown
https://www.europesays.com/france/76665/ -
POV: you stepped back into 1776
Stepping back in time at Redcoats & Rebels ⚔️Old Sturbridge Village brought the American Revolution to life with reenactors, military camps, cannon and musket demonstrations, battles, music and so much more.And if you missed this one, there’s another 250th anniversary celebration happening THIS Saturday!Summer, Sounds & Sparks📍 Old Sturbridge Village, Sturbridge, MA📅 Saturday, August 15🚪 Doors open at 5:50 PM🎟️ $25 non-member adults | $10 member adults | Youth 17 & under […]https://kimbodianspeaks.wordpress.com/2026/09/08/pov-you-stepped-back-into-1776/
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https://www.europesays.com/ch/114311/ GALLERY: President Trump appears at the Patriot Games in Ohio #250thAnniversary #AthleteSelection #Cleveland #Geneva #HighSchoolAthletes #Ohio #PatriotGames #PresidentialVisit #Trump
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Hollow Mockery: Douglass, Jefferson, and 250 Years of a Promise Unkept
Mike Cone
“Your 4th of July is a sham; your boasted liberty, an unholy license . . . your shouts of liberty and equality, hollow mockery.”
— Frederick Douglass (1852)These words still resonate today.
In the wake of our celebration of the 250th birthday of our independence, let us not forget the ugly truths in the birth and history of this nation. To wash over these truths, as our current administration is wont to do, is tantamount to erasing that part of our past which we should strive to learn from, and to better ourselves as a people, to truly become that nation where the words penned by Thomas Jefferson are not just hollow mockery, but true:
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. These are the unalienable rights bestowed upon us. These rights are not to be infringed upon for any reason, whether it be race, color, ethnicity, religious beliefs or social status. For this to be true, we as a people need to understand and accept that indeed “ALL” men are created equal. In this regard, we have failed as a nation time and time again. There are numerous examples of our nation suppressing the civil liberties of the many throughout our history: chattel slavery, the Tulsa Race Massacre, forced dispossession of ancestral Native American lands, Selma, Alabama, Jim Crow laws, the Alien and Sedition Acts, Japanese internment, Kent State, the Patriot Act, just to name a few. Hell, even Lincoln suspended habeas corpus during the Civil War.
My point in all this is we need to do better. It is morally important that we learn from our past and not ignore or erase it just because at times it can be ugly and messy. We need to continue to move forward, toward morality and virtue, because virtue will always prevail.
Our current president is unwilling in this regard.
President Trump is the converse of morality and virtue and continually seems to move us backward with his version of revisionist history, distorting, altering and even falsifying historical evidence to fit his agenda. He is forever suppressing or attempting to suppress the civil liberties of those who oppose him. He has actively supported and empowered local governments to ban and remove books from public institutions. He has removed or altered exhibits, plaques and monuments from our National Parks, exhibits he terms “inappropriately disparaging to Americans past or living.” These exhibits include the nation’s first executive mansion, which detailed the nine people enslaved by George Washington; the Bunker Hill Monument, to eliminate language he deemed contrary to founding principles; and locations highlighting Japanese American internment and Native American conflicts. He has sent federal troops into our cities in direct defiance of the Posse Comitatus Act. He has allowed his defense secretary, who some call a Christian White Nationalist, to deny high-ranking promotions to senior Army and Navy officers, the majority being women and minorities, and to intervene in a Navy one-star admiral promotion list, removing nine highly vetted officers. The final list of 22 nominees contained zero women and only two non-white officers. Finally, his immigration policies appear to be an obvious attempt to rid the country of Black and Brown people. This is just a small sample of Trump’s penchant for authoritarianism and what this author feels is a deep hatred and disdain for anyone other than his own race. Donald Trump is the ideological antithesis to the phrase “all men are created equal.”
With that said, I was having a conversation with my good friend Nick Allison, an Army combat veteran and fellow Chaos Section contributor, the other day and mentioned my feelings of anger and visceral disgust for our current administration, so much so that I could not find a reason to celebrate our 250 years of independence, particularly as a veteran. I’ll end with Nick’s response:
“You know what? I think we can always find a reason to celebrate, regardless of the current occupant in the Oval Office, because there are always things and ideas and people worth celebrating. This is still a great country with great people and a wonderfully unique experiment in constitutional representative freedom. It gets messy and sometimes runs off the rails, but that’s kind of the whole point of the experiment: we’re a nation of people governing ourselves, which means it’s on us to correct course when things go sideways. Most of human history has been kings, monarchs and strongmen who never had to answer to anybody. Making it 250 years as a self-correcting experiment, messy and beautiful and stupid and wonderful all at once, is reason enough to celebrate. Don’t let one egotistical, narcissistic old man who will be out of office in a couple years, dead within ten, take that away from you.”
Mike Cone is a Marine Corps infantry veteran who served as a mortarman and forward observer in Weapons Company, 2nd Battalion, 8th Marines. “Hollow Mockery” is his first piece for The Chaos Section. He lives on Long Island with his wife Cynthia.
#250thAnniversary #AmericanHistory #authoritarianism #civilLiberties #FourthOfJuly #FrederickDouglass #IndependenceDay #JapaneseInternment #NativeAmericanHistory #PosseComitatusAct #racialEquality #revisionistHistory #trump #Veterans -
Pope Leo XIV marks Fourth of July with American meal, ambassador’s family gathering at celebratory dinner in Rome
Pope Leo XIV poses on the evening of July 4, 2026, with U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See…
#Italy #Europe #Europa #EU #Rome #'popeleoxiv' #250thanniversary #BrianBurch #fourthofjuly
https://www.europesays.com/italy/30994/ -
15-Year Photo Series Showcases American Flags From Around the Country
Award-winning photographer and filmmaker Jason Lindsey’s latest project, UNFINISHED, is a “film for America’s 250th” anniversary. In the…
#NewsBeep #News #US #USA #UnitedStates #UnitedStatesOfAmerica #Artsanddesign #250thanniversary #America #americanflag #Arts #ArtsAndDesign #Design #documentary #Entertainment #flag #jasonlindsey #july4 #photojournalism
https://www.newsbeep.com/us/749310/ -
15-Year Photo Series Showcases American Flags From Around the Country https://petapixel.com/2026/07/07/15-year-photo-series-showcases-american-flags-from-around-the-country/ #unitedstatesofamerica #250thanniversary #photojournalism #americanflag #jasonlindsey #documentary #Interviews #Spotlight #Features #america #july4 #flag #usa
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1776 Against 1787: Constituent Power and the Forgotten Meaning of American Democracy
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For the Black Alliance for Peace, 250 years of Extraction, Occupation, and Repression is Nothing to Celebrate!
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America 250 Flyovers: A Celebration of Militarization
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https://www.europesays.com/people/140900/ America split from monarchy 250 years ago. Donald Trump’s presidency is testing how far it’s come #250thAnniversary #AttorneyGeneral #BritishMonarch #DJohnSauer #DepartmentOfJustice #DonaldTrump #EzraLevin #ImperialReign #JamesComey #JohnYoo #JulianZelizer #KennedyCenter #king #KingCharlesIII #KingGeorgeIII #LetitiaJames #LisaCook #NationalMall #NoKings #PresidentDonaldTrump #TheSupremeCourt #ToddBlanche #Trump
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In 250 Years of U.S. Housing, We Are Now Living in Unprecedented Times
We are living in “unprecedented times” when it comes to the U.S. housing market, according to experts. In…
#NewsBeep #News #US #USA #UnitedStates #UnitedStatesOfAmerica #Economy #250thAnniversary #Affordability #Business #homeprices #Housing #housingmarket #Investment #U.S.Economy
https://www.newsbeep.com/us/744591/ -
https://www.europesays.com/people/140433/ Zelenskyy after call with Trump: ‘There is real chance to end war’ #250thAnniversary #Ankara #DonaldTrump #NATOSummit #Russia #Türkiye #Ukraine #VolodymyrZelenskyy
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Zelenskyy after call with Trump: ‘There is real chance to end war’ https://www.byteseu.com/2167591/ #250thAnniversary #ankara #Conflicts #DonaldTrump #NATOSummit #Russia #Türkiye #Ukraine #VolodymyrZelenskyy
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https://www.europesays.com/people/140263/ Tim Cook, Sundar Pichai, Michael Dell, Mark Benioff and other tech CEOs share July 4 greetings #250thAnniversary #IndependenceDay #July4Greetings #MarcBenioff #MarkZuckerberg #MichaelDell #SundarPichai #TechCEOs #TimCook
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Canadian PM Mark Carney marks US 250th Independence Day with gift of 250 maple trees
ANI | Updated: Jul 05, 2026 01:46 IST Ottawa [Canada], July 5 (ANI): Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney…
#Canada #MarkCarney #250thanniversary #CanadianPM #FranklinD.Roosevelt #Mapletrees #NiagaraFalls #Ottawa #primeminister #USIndependenceDay #US-CanadaRelations #WhiteHouse
https://www.europesays.com/canada/116671/ -
https://www.europesays.com/uk/1068794/ UK Royal Family congratulates US on 250th Independence Day, hails “far-reaching” bilateral ties #250thAnniversary #AmericanIndependence #BilateralTies #DonaldTrump #GlobalPartnership #KingCharles #Royal #RoyalFamilies #RoyalFamily #Royals #UKRoyalFamily #UsIndependence #USUKPartnership #UsUkAlliance
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Happy 4th of July! New York Harbor hosted a crazy array of ships today, and I managed to get off a few sketches of them at work today. Happy 250th Birthday USA!
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Canadian PM Mark Carney marks US 250th Independence Day with gift of 250 maple trees
Ottawa [Canada], July 5 (ANI): Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Saturday congratulated the United States on the…
#Canada #MarkCarney #250thanniversary #CanadianPM #FranklinD.Roosevelt #Mapletrees #NiagaraFalls #Ottawa #primeminister #USIndependenceDay #US-CanadaRelations #WhiteHouse
https://www.europesays.com/canada/116473/ -
On their #250thanniversary, let's showcase a classic #US welcome shall we?
For all their faults, we would take any other Americas state over the corrupt, racist, and vile #USA.
Here's hoping our future generations won't have to endure this bullshit.
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https://www.europesays.com/people/139891/ World leaders toast America on its 250th birthday #250thAnniversary #america #AnniversaryMessage #HeartfeltCongratulations #KarolNawrocki #NorthAtlanticAlliance #PresidentDonaldTrump #SocialMedia #UrsulaVonDerLeyen
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Heute ist der 4. Juli. Schlagermove. Parteitag. #250thAnniversary. #IndependenceDay...
Diesmal hat es Roland #Emmerich wirklich zu weit getrieben.
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https://www.europesays.com/news/48893/ Great American State Fair Shuts Down Amid Heat #250thAnniversary #DonaldTrump #ExtremeHeat #FireworksDisplay #freedom250 #GreatAmericanStateFair #Headlines #July4th #News #SaluteToAmericaCelebration #TopStories #TrumpSpeechJuly4th #WashingtonDC
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https://www.europesays.com/people/139240/ Trump heads to Mount Rushmore as heat bears down on America 250 celebrations in DC #250thAnniversary #america #celebration #country #firework #GreatAmericanStateFair #heat #holiday #mcnd #MountRushmore #nation #NewYorkCity #people #POTUS #PresidentDonaldTrump #PresidentOfTheUnitedStates #PresidentTrump #Seattle #Trump #US #washington
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https://www.europesays.com/ie/567848/ North Charleston artist uses tin from Freedman’s cottage #250thAnniversary #ArtExhibits #Arts #ArtsAndDesign #ArtsAndDesign #ArtsDesign #Design #Éire #Entertainment #FletcherWilliamsIii #freedman #HistoricArt #IE #Ireland #NorthCharlestonArts
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https://www.europesays.com/people/139022/ ‘America is back’: Johnson shares patriotic message as US celebrates 250th anniversary #250thAnniversary #AmericanPatriotism #DeclarationOfIndependence #FourthOfJuly #IndependenceDay #MikeJohnson #SelfGovernance #UnalienableRights
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On our #USA #250thanniversary , if you are feeling like you are ungrateful for feeling #unhappy when your quality of life is better than others, don't.
#Happiness and quality of life is measured by the brain as things getting better. It doesn't have to be perfect or the best, just getting better which is why people in nations with a lower standard of living are happier than we are. We are living in late stage rent seeking #enshittification where we might be better off than others but by every metric has gotten worse. If happiness is the brains measure of things getting better, unhappiness is caused when things are getting worse.
If you are unhappy right now you are paying attention and we don't know yet what the bottom might look like. Stay strong everyone, don't feel guilt about being unhappy, that wastes energy you could use to make it better -
Cliff Potts: Time in the Frequency of a Nation
By Cliff Potts, CSO, and Editor-in-Chief of WPS News
Baybay City, Leyte, Philippines — July 4, 2026 —
Introduction
Two hundred and fifty years ago, a small group of men signed a document declaring independence from empire. Today, from Baybay City in the Philippines, I write as one American citizen who has lived through a slice of what that declaration became.
This is not the story of a public figure. It is the story of a participant. A boy shaped by California lift, a teenager formed in Chicago bleachers, a man who watched systems rise, harden, and strain.
History is not only written in marble halls. It is carried in memory.
California Lift
I was born into early-1960s California. You did not need to hear the word “Gemini” to feel the rockets. Aerospace optimism was atmospheric. Highways grew. Suburbs spread. The future felt engineered.
Songs on AM radio carried that lift. “Up, Up and Away” floated everywhere in 1967, just as we returned from Peru. It was sunlight set to melody. It was motion upward, literal and cultural.
“California Dreamin’” had already framed longing and geography in song. Even before the counterculture defined itself, there was a sense that the West Coast was a place where something was beginning.
In 1966, we left. In 1967, we landed in Chicago. The contrast was immediate. California was horizon and expansion. Chicago was density, machine politics, industry, and winter. The country revealed its internal weather systems.
Prosser and the Rowdies
I attended Prosser Vocational High School on Chicago’s Northwest Side. When I arrived, it was an all-boys school. No cheer squad. Barely a football team. So we built our own energy in the bleachers. We became the Prosser Rowdies.
It was not rebellion for its own sake. It was tribe.
Across the street sat Nicky’s. During study hall, I sometimes signed myself in as office help and crossed over for donuts and coffee. The jukebox became a timestamp.
“Rock On.”
“Life Is a Rock (But the Radio Rolled Me).”
“Play That Funky Music.”
And above all, “Long Tall Glasses (I Can Dance).”That Leo Sayer track seemed to play every time I walked in during 1974. To this day, when it comes on, I bounce in my chair. I could never dance well. I could fake a twist. I once nearly injured someone attempting the bump. But that bass line still moves me.
High school was not defined by grades. It was defined by structure and belonging. I understood what I was supposed to do, even when I did not execute perfectly. College later became the place where I proved to myself that I could perform within academic systems.
I loved school because it made sense.
The Soundtrack of Becoming
The late 1960s and 1970s unfolded in music.
“Kicks” warned.
“White Rabbit” experimented.
“Aquarius” announced an age.
“American Pie” autopsied a decade.“Color My World” meant prom lights and awkward slow dances. “Ballroom Blitz” meant raw energy without ideology. “Barracuda” meant defiance.
And for my tribe in the 1970s, “Dust in the Wind” became a quiet anthem. Even as we gathered to study the Book of Revelation, even as we spoke of prophecy and permanence, we felt the fragility. All we are is dust in the wind. It was not nihilism. It was recognition.
Time moved.
“Fly Like an Eagle” named it. Time keeps on slipping into the future.
“In the Air Tonight” captured the tension that followed. Something unresolved. Something suspended.Music was not my obsession. It was my barometer. It marked the shifts in atmosphere.
Faith, Work, and Institutions
I moved through religious movements, countercultural remnants, and corporate structures. I saw idealism institutionalize. I saw institutions calcify. I saw protest give way to management. I saw corporate systems consume youth and energy.
The lesson was not despair. It was clarity.
Systems require vigilance. Culture requires renewal. No generation escapes responsibility for maintenance.
From Chicago to other states and eventually to the Philippines, I carried that awareness. Distance sharpens contrast. Watching the United States from Southeast Asia is different than watching it from within.
America at 250
In 1976, the bicentennial arrived. My family largely ignored the fireworks. Today, in 2026, the 250th anniversary arrives under strain.
The United States is older now. Heavier. Divided. Questioning itself again.
The language of liberty remains. The practice of it is contested.
From here, it feels like something is still in the air tonight — unresolved, suspended, waiting for a release that has not yet come.
I do not write this as condemnation or nostalgia. I write it as record.
I was there for California lift.
I was there for Chicago grit.
I was there for bleacher chants and jukebox quarters.
I was there for faith and doubt.
I was there for time slipping.At 250 years old, the United States is still asking fundamental questions about power, responsibility, and freedom. I am one ordinary citizen who lived through a fraction of its arc.
I did not shape history in dramatic ways. I participated in it quietly. I studied. I worked. I believed. I questioned. I observed.
That is enough to archive.
For more social commentary, please see Occupy 2.5 at https://Occupy25.com
This essay will be archived as part of the ongoing WPS News Monthly Brief Series available through Amazon.
#250thAnniversary #AmericanHistory #autobiography #California #Chicago #CliffPotts #culturalMemory #WPSNews -
List of America 250 Events Being Canceled, Replanned Over Major Heat Wave
A scorching heat wave pushing temperatures past 100 degrees in the Northeast ahead of the Fourth of July…
#NewsBeep #News #US #USA #UnitedStates #UnitedStatesOfAmerica #Environment #250thAnniversary #america250 #FourthofJuly #Heatwave #northeast #Science
https://www.newsbeep.com/us/739336/ -
New survey shows lackluster support for 250th Anniversary of Declaration of Independence https://www.byteseu.com/2159058/ #1976 #250thAnniversary #AmericanNationalElectionStudies #BicentennialAnniversary #culture #DeclarationOfIndependence #Democracy #FOURTHOFJULY #NationalIdentity #Politics #pride #PRRI #PublicReligionResearchInstitute #Religion #Semiquincentennial
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https://www.europesays.com/britain/74572/ ROLLS-ROYCE CELEBRATES AMERICA’S 250TH ANNIVERSARY – 360 MAGAZINE – GREEN | DESIGN | POP #250thAnniversary #360 #360Mag #360Magazine #4thOfJuly #Anniversary #AutoNews #AutoTrends #bespoke #BlackBadge #CarAndDriver #CarCulture #Celebration #Commission #country #fireworks #GerrySpahn #IndependenceDay #Instagram #July4th #Luxury #Nation'sCapital #Parade #RedWhiteBlue #ResidenceOfHisMajesty'sAmbassador #RollsRoyce #StarsAndStripes #the360mag #Trump #VaughnLowery #WashingtonDC
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https://www.europesays.com/dk/120571/ Roger Grossman reflects as America turns 250 #250thAnniversary #commentary #DeclarationOfIndependence #FoundingFathers #July4 #Poland #RogerGrossman #Warsaw
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A surprise advantage after downsizing to a ranch house, was discovering a perfect view of the annual Fourth of July Fireworks from our bedroom window. What convenience! #downsizing #ranchhouse #smallhouse #tinyhouse #fireworks #fireworksdisplay #fourthofjuly #250thanniversary #display #summer #summertime #celebrate #celebration #celebrating #beautiful
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Why celebrate a country when you can celebrate him instead?
#usa #america250 #250thanniversary #trump #petty #ego #dictator
Trump Is Making the 250th Small
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Meine Stadt ist 650 Jahre älter als die USA
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#MontgomeryCountyMD is marking its 250th Anniversary with a special #RideOn bus wrap!
The bus, featuring imagery from Montgomery County's past & present, will travel throughout the county as a rolling tribute all the people, places & events that have helped shape the County.
#mdcommuters #commuting #maryland #transit #commuting #PublicTransport #250th #250thanniversary -
Drink These American Wines For America’s 250th Anniversary
Toast to America’s 250th Anniversary …
#dining #cooking #diet #food #AmericanWine #250thAnniversary #250thanniversarywines #America #Americanwine #bestamericanchardonnay #bestamericansauvignonblanc #BestAmericanWine #bestjuly4thwines #california #July4th #LynmarAdamsVineyardChardonnay #UnitedStates #UnitedStatesWine #USWine #USAWine #Wine
https://www.diningandcooking.com/2693385/drink-these-american-wines-for-americas-250th-anniversary/ -
Trump administration ordered to restore national park signage on climate change, slavery
A federal judge has ordered the Trump administration to restore signs relat…
#NewsBeep #News #US #USA #UnitedStates #UnitedStatesOfAmerica #250thAnniversary #America #americanassn. #climatechange #country #ExecutiveOrder #history #JapaneseAmericans #judge #language #nation #nationalparksignage #presidentwashington #sign #Slavery #TrumpAdministration #UnitedStatesofAmerica
https://www.newsbeep.com/us/701172/ -
Trump administration ordered to restore national park signage on climate change, slavery
A federal judge has ordered the Trump administration to restore signs related to topics such as climate change,…
#NewsBeep #News #Headlines #250thanniversary #americanassn. #Climatechange #country #executiveorder #History #japaneseamericans #judge #language #nation #nationalparksignage #presidentwashington #sign #slavery #Trumpadministration #UnitedStates #Us #USA
https://www.newsbeep.com/589730/ -
😅 This is how much of an embarrassment we’ve become…
Too real to be just a joke—another sharp satire from @jeremynewberger.bsky.social
#AmericanStateFair #250thAnniversary #DonaldTrump
🔗 https://youtu.be/u14BbPFJITU -
June 28, 2026 – To Begin the World Over Again: The Life of Thomas Paine (Los Angeles)
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#UnitedStates #ThomasJefferson #Business #250th #250thAnniversary
I will post this until the masses (including most countries) finally get it. -
UFC/GRINDR EVENT!
#CultCollege#maga #250thanniversary #trump #donaldtrump #military #ufc #weightloss #whitehouse
AI-generated video summary:
Cult College discusses reports that the Pentagon is recruiting service members to attend a UFC event at the White House. The video examines the specific physical and appearance requirements participants must meet, noting that attendees are expected to cover their own travel expenses while serving in uniform. -
Hidden deeds, quiet betrayals and untold stories of the American Revolution. Discover the covert acts of courage and cunning that never made it into the history books in The Quiet War by Charles Glenn.
#nonfiction #history #americanrevolution #250thAnniversary
https://www.amazon.com/Quiet-War-Untold-American-Revolution-ebook/dp/B0GY869YWB/ -
Sickening.
#Trump #penny #coins #USpol #History #250thanniversary
Killing the penny was just the start. Trump is rewriting the rules on America’s coins | CNN Business https://share.google/8pFet5P7OuVWg9YVk
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Pulitzer-Prize Winning Photographer Is Capturing Portraits Across America for US Semiquincentennial https://petapixel.com/2025/12/01/pulitzer-prize-winning-photographer-is-capturing-portraits-across-america-for-us-semiquincentennial/ #250thanniversary #photojournalism #unitedstates #documentary #Interviews #interview #Culture #history #News #usa
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The Ten Best History Books of 2025 – Smithsonian Magazine
Smithsonian magazine’s picks for the best history books of 2025 include We the People, The Stolen Crown and Medicine River. Illustration by Emily LankiewiczThe Ten Best History Books of 2025
Our favorite titles of the year resurrect overlooked histories and examine how the United States ended up where it is today
By Meilan Solly – Senior Associate Digital Editor, History November 25, 2025
Smithsonian magazine’s picks for the best history books of 2025 include We the People, The Stolen Crown and Medicine River. Illustration by Emily LankiewiczNext July, the United States will mark the 250th anniversary of its founding, a milestone set to be celebrated across the country. American history will serve as the centerpiece of many of these events, with the semiquincentennial offering a chance to reflect on the nation’s triumphs and failures alike. But the question of which stories will be told—and how they’ll be framed—remains a point of contention.
This debate over how to tell American history is unfolding at a “moment that people have described as existential, certainly a moment of division,” documentarian Ken Burns told Smithsonian magazine earlier this month, in a wide-ranging interview about his new American Revolution series on PBS. “Maybe there could be some understanding that during this revolutionary period, we were more divided than we are now. And maybe by going back and reinvesting some time in this origin story, we’ll be able to put the ‘us’ back in the U.S.”
Against this backdrop, the ten history books we’ve chosen to highlight this year serve a dual purpose. Some reflect on the fraught nature of the current moment, detailing how the nation’s past—including the American Revolution and the creation of the U.S. Constitution—informs its present and future. Others offer a respite from today’s reality, transporting readers to places like Tudor England and ancient Egypt. From a biography of Amelia Earhart to the story of the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald, these are ten of Smithsonian magazine’s favorite history books of 2025.
We the People: A History of the U.S. Constitution by Jill Lepore
Jill Lepore’s 700-page history of the U.S. Constitution revolves around a central conceit: that this founding charter, written by a group of white men in Philadelphia 238 years ago, was never meant to be a static document. As Lepore, a historian at Harvard University and staff writer at the New Yorker, writes in We the People, “Through experiment and experience, Americans came to agree that if such a strange, fragile thing as a written constitution were to endure, it would, as time passed … need to be both revised and repaired, improved and updated.”
This argument runs counter to originalism, a theory that promotes interpretation of the Constitution as it was understood at the time it was written. In Lepore’s view, originalists “rely on an artificially bounded historical record that disadvantages the descendants of people” who had no say in the creation of the Constitution, including women, the enslaved and Native Americans. Legal scholars rely on the published writings of powerful men to debate the Constitution, she argues. But historians must consider the opinions of those who didn’t serve as delegates to the Constitutional Convention and had no way of publishing their opinions in 1787. “For the historian,” Lepore writes, “unpublished documents written by less powerful people do not ‘count for nothing,’” as former Solicitor General Robert Bork argued in 1990. “In fact,” she says, “they count for rather a lot.”
We the People builds on the Amendments Project, an initiative Lepore spearheaded that tracks more than 11,000 amendments proposed in Congress between 1789 and 2022. The vast majority of these efforts never came to fruition, with just 27 amendments ratified by the states since 1791. But that doesn’t mean the failed proposals are insignificant: As Lepore tells the Guardian, “It’s so hard to amend the Constitution. If you look at efforts to do it, you just see this really big, colorful canvas of contestation, which is narratively rich and politically important.” Written in lyrical prose, Lepore’s new book unpacks this history, presenting a timely argument about the need for the Constitution to keep evolving to meet society’s needs.
Editor’s Note: The featured image at the top is by WP AI.
Continue/Read Original Article Here: The Ten Best History Books of 2025
#2025 #250thAnniversary #americanRevolution #bestHistoryBooks #founding #history #jillLepore #kenBurns #meilanSolly #momentOfDivision #smithsonian #smithsonianMagazine #uSConstitution #unitedStates #weThePeople #whichStories
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@tagesschau
#USA #history #Smithsonian #250thanniversary #Trump
Das wäre doch auch mal einen Bericht wert:
https://youtube.com/shorts/6uOEai8NERQ?si=6Lv8Y-HQW9jp5JT- -
#Protesters rally in #PortlandME, advocating for protection of rights amid Trump tensions
Story by Allyson Lapierre, WGME
PORTLAND, Maine (WGME) -- "Making their voices be heard on a day of #revolution, a rally on Saturday pays tribute to the #250thAnniversary of the 'shot heard around the world,' a day that marks the start of the Revolutionary War.
" 'They’re taking away my Social Security and my #MaineCare away from me...which side are you on?' Olivia McDermott, who has #DownSyndrome, said.
"McDermott came to advocate for herself and others who have #disabilities who depend on #SocialSecurity and #Medicaid.
" 'I get really upset that this is happening to me and other people with #disabilities. They go to school like this, and I don’t want people to feel uncomfortable about it,' McDermott said.
"Olivia's mom, Maura Mcdermott, is a #SpecialEducationTeacher. She's worried the $Trump administration could take away those benefits.
" 'We need to not cut the services. We need to expand #MedicaidForAll people, and we need to #TaxTheRich. Enough of this,' Maura said.
"Other protestors voiced concerns about state politics, specifically about Maine senators.
" '#SusanCollins had better vote 'no, no, no' to the #SAVEAct because those are all voting rights, and we need voting for next election,' Nina McKee, a Scarborough resident, said.
"Despite the anniversary of the #AmericanRevolution, protesters on Saturday said there's little to feel #patriotic about.
" 'I can’t even express the need for us to stand up against what is happening in our country. It is beyond consumption,' McKee said.
" 'There’s no good thing going on right now, so any change is for the better,' Duncan Potter, a Brunswick resident, said."
#PortlandMaine #MaineResists #AugustaME #BrunswickME #April19th #Resistance #DumpTrump #DayOfAction
