From 1915. (via Smithsonian's American History Museum)
Saturday, July 04, 2026
The Parts of the American Revolution They Don't Teach You in School
The United States traces its official birthday to the issuing of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. That's been 250 years now. We celebrate the founding ideals that the US stands for: liberty, democracy, and equality, as the Founding Fathers broke with the British monarchy. But while those ideals are still worth celebrating, they weren't always adhered to. Our elementary history classes used to teach about the more undemocratic episodes of our nation's story as justified. Then they were taught as "just the ways things were back then," and now they are often skipped completely because there's a lot of history and the unsavory parts are just too difficult- and it's sometimes seen as frankly unpatriotic. PBS fills in some of the pieces you didn't learn about in school.
Patriot
Malicious compliance is my jam.
— Gleafer (@gleafer.bsky.social) June 29, 2026 at 12:50 PM
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Friday, July 03, 2026
The Psychedelic Bicentennial
In 1976, when the US celebrated 200 years, this video aired everywhere. It was made with a grant from the federal government. Groovy!
Ridiculous School Rules Sparked by One Incident
If a school suddenly imposes a ridiculous rule that no one understands, you can assume that someone caused a problem, and they can't figure out a better way to deal with it. When I was in high school, they cut our lunch break from a half hour to 20 minutes. Then the next year it was cut to 15 minutes. That was serious for a school that didn't have a cafeteria. Both cuts came after someone was busted for drugs, and all of us suffered.
I'm sure that's happened throughout the history of public schools, but in the age of the internet, such incidences can make the local news and then go viral globally. You probably didn't hear about each of these instances, but Chill Dude Explains did the research. Here are ten times that one prankster, or one group of pranksters, left their legacy for the classes that followed them. Sometimes these new rules spread to schools statewide or even nationwide.
Miss Cellania's Links
It's America's Birthday. What Are We Celebrating? (via kottke)
How did it feel to be an American colonist in 1776? Probably itchy, achy and slightly nauseated.
Three Hundred Fifty-Four Fireworks per Second. A mathematician explains what a bad idea Trump's Fourth of July plans are. (via Metafilter)
What is the most American animal? (via Fark)
Super-Fun-Pak Comix, feat. Lester the Jester, The Truth About 1969 and MORE! The latest from Tom the Dancing Bug.
A small remote control vehicle delivers catnip to the neighborhood. It's free, and customers like it. (via Nag on the Lake)
Australian World Cup fans give us the chant of the summer. (via Everlasting Blort)
True Crime at the White House: The Most Ridiculous Burglary Plan in Presidential History. (via Damn Interesting)
Born In The USA
This is an acoustic demo version of "Born in the USA," from Bruce Springsteen. It is more melodic, sadder, and frankly, more memorable than the finished product. I suppose the word is "haunting." (via Boing Boing)
Wisdom
A crossover between Chekhov's Gun, Schrödinger's Cat, Occam's Razor, and Murphy's law. Original post
— Massimo (mirror) (@rainmaker1973-m.bsky.social) June 27, 2026 at 11:47 AM
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Thursday, July 02, 2026
The Real Reason We Separated from Britain
Josh from England contrasts the food and the hygiene of Britain and the US. Yes, British food had a terrible reputation for a long time, but that's changed somewhat now that the most prominent English meal is Chicken Tikka Masala. Or any Indian takeout in general. If it weren't for immigration, they'd still be eating prison food. Meanwhile, Americans are eating authentic dishes from all over the world, with ranch dressing.
50 Artists Sing the Cities of the US
American musicians have always been drawn to traveling the open roads, or at least singing about some wonderful place they've been before. This compilation by Dustin Ballard of There I Ruined It takes us on a musical trip among the cities of the United States, as sung by artists you know and love, from Dolly Parton to Eminem to Frank Sinatra. Of course, this could have been much longer, but we're getting near a holiday weekend, so he didn't want to put too much work into it. The signature slide whistle is there, and the end is not the end, because a special guest comes in to wrap things up.
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