Watching the coverage of the US 250 celebrations, I couldn't help wondering whether this is meant to commemorate history or replace it.

The version being presented seems to belong more to Hollywood than to the history books—a carefully choreographed story of heroic founders, rugged pioneers, military glory and American exceptionalism, with many of the awkward bits quietly pushed off stage.

Where are the uncomfortable truths? Slavery. The destruction and displacement of Native American nations. Segregation. Political repression. The countless people who had to fight—often against their own government—to make the lofty words of the Declaration of Independence mean something in practice.

Real history is complicated. It isn't a marketing campaign.

Every nation has moments to celebrate, but mature democracies don't strengthen themselves by airbrushing the past. They do so by confronting it honestly.

What disappoints me most is that this glossy, sanitised narrative seems to assume Americans can't handle the truth about their own history. Frankly, I think that's insulting. The American people are perfectly capable of understanding that their country's story is one of extraordinary achievements and profound failures.

You don't honour a nation by pretending it was flawless.

You honour it by trusting its citizens with the truth.

As I said before - If a nation's history only leaves you feeling proud, you've probably been taught mythology rather than history.

"The greatest insult isn't telling Americans the truth about their history. It's assuming they need to be protected from it."

Edited July 5Jul 5 by kwilco

Well, The Kingdom of Great Britain (not the United Kingdom) was officially founded on May 1, 1707 (309 years ago) with the union of the Kingdom of England (which included Wales) and the Kingdom of Scotland but excluding North Ireland.

I never heard of that union being officially celebrated though. I guess Brits don't like to show off.

58 minutes ago, Purdey said:

Well, The Kingdom of Great Britain (not the United Kingdom) was officially founded on May 1, 1707 (309 years ago) with the union of the Kingdom of England (which included Wales) and the Kingdom of Scotland but excluding North Ireland.

I never heard of that union being officially celebrated though. I guess Brits don't like to show off.

The United Kingdom officially started in 1801. It was formed by the Acts of Union 1800, which combined the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland into one state .... The Kingdom of Great Britain was formed in 1707... but what are you trying to say? Nations and states change their names and the land they occupy over time – it's always in a state of flux worldwide

On 7/4/2026 at 8:06 PM, Jingthing said:

Well what's making history now is that the USA's first fascist felon president has ruined the 250th celebration and turned into yet another one of his vulgar perverted partisan corrupt grifts.

The founders did the best they could with the constitution, but nobody could have predicted a president as corrupt, destructive and malicious as Trump.

Everything he touches turns into the brown stuff.

You forgot to say "maga". You lose style points with your delusional infatuation of President Trump. But keep trying....we know you can do better.

3 minutes ago, howlee101 said:

You forgot to say "maga". You lose style points with your delusional infatuation of President Trump. But keep trying....we know you can do better.

Kiss my grits.

This is interesting.

Trump reads children's book "Presidents Play", which shows what former Presidents did outside the White House for relaxation.

Clinton had a track built and went for runs.

Lincoln rode a horse

Quincy Adams swam

Carter played tennis

Obama played basketball

Trump takes jabs at Obama and Biden. He really doesn't like these two.

But compliments several of the other former presidents

This is Washington HQ National Historical Park in Morristown, NJ. My boyhood home was about a km away and I walked by it on the way to grade school. As I kid it was enough to know he was a real person who lived there and he was a big deal.

Edited July 7Jul 7 by JerryM

Millions Of Democrats QUIT PARTY After Experiencing Trump 4th Of July Speech and Fireworks!!!

On 7/4/2026 at 2:06 PM, Jingthing said:

but nobody could have predicted a president as corrupt, destructive and malicious as Trump.

Actually, they did most of the criticism aimed at Trump, which is remarkably similar to the criticism aimed at King George and the British government of the time and was aimed at preventing it happening again... many of the demonstrations have been chanting 'no king' – they fail to see the irony in this as they have allowed a head of state way more powerful than that in the UK.

2 minutes ago, kwilco said:

Actually, they did most of the criticism aimed at Trump, which is remarkably similar to the criticism aimed at King George and the British government of the time and was aimed at preventing it happening again... many of the demonstrations have been chanting 'no king' – they fail to see the irony in this as they have allowed a head of state way more powerful than that in the UK.

The ironic part is that those who say "no kings" and support "Vote Blue No Matter Who" often overlook how Team Blue has continuously concentrated power in the executive branch since FDR.

7 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

Kiss my grits.

3 hours ago, Jingthing said:

Kiss my grits.

I only eat MAGA grits. Do you agree, or do you have another canned response like "fascist maga grits", or "misogyny", or "homophobic". Your responses to most of your anti post are the same...up your game or leave the forum. OBTW, Trump's your daddy 🤣

3 hours ago, Jingthing said:

Kiss my grits.

15 minutes ago, howlee101 said:

I only eat MAGA grits. Do you agree, or do you have another canned response like "fascist maga grits", or "misogyny", or "homophobic". Your responses to most of your anti post are the same...up your game or leave the forum. OBTW, Trump's your daddy 🤣

So you're ordering me off the forum now?

Who are you exactly?

On 7/4/2026 at 8:06 PM, Jingthing said:

Well what's making history now is that the USA's first fascist felon president has ruined the 250th celebration and turned into yet another one of his vulgar perverted partisan corrupt grifts.

The founders did the best they could with the constitution, but nobody could have predicted a president as corrupt, destructive and malicious as Trump.

Everything he touches turns into the brown stuff.

Well, Trump should promote Willow Grove Naval Airstation for FUN.

I was there in 1976.

There were Marine pilots in F4-Phantoms, screaming only about 100 feet off the deck with afterburners going full blast.

Why can't we just do this again?

Edited July 7Jul 7 by GammaGlobulin

if it wasnt for the french, the americans would be speaking english

On 7/5/2026 at 9:43 PM, kwilco said:

But that's why I'm referring to US 250...

If not for USA & RU, UK & EU would be speaking German.

How silly & far back do we want to go. If not for France, Spain & Russia, USA would only consist of the original 13 colonies / states. About 1.1M sq km, about the size of present Ethiopia or Bolivia.

Far cry from the current 9.14 Million square kilometers.

Edited July 7Jul 7 by KhunLA

1 hour ago, KhunLA said:

If not for USA & RU, UK & EU would be speaking German.

How silly & far back do we want to go. If not for France, Spain & Russia, USA would only consist of the original 13 colonies / states. About 1.1M sq km, about the size of present Ethiopia or Bolivia.

Far cry from the current 9.14 Million square kilometers.

It's astounding how little most modern Americans know about the early years of the USA , let alone pre European sttlement – they then go on Google and find little nuggets, take them out of context, and because they've never heard of it before, think no-one else knows about it.

I was educated in the UK (and Australia), and we were taught history and how to study history, not a mish-mash of myth and propaganda spewed out in the American educational system... a country that has no idea where Belgium is.

Edited July 7Jul 7 by kwilco

32 minutes ago, kwilco said:

It's astounding how little most modern Americans know about the early years of the USA , let alone pre European sttlement – they then go on Google and find little nuggets, take them out of context, and because they've never heard of it before, think no-one else knows about it.

I was educated in the UK (and Australia), and we were taught history and how to study history, not a mish-mash of myth and propaganda spewed out in the American educational system... a country that has no idea where Belgium is.

Are you still pissed about taking the loss after the 4th of July?

Americans, generally speaking, have a reputation for being poor at learning foreign languages. Perhaps that's understandable when English has become the world's dominant international language, but the history of language in the United States is far more interesting than many people realise.

The idea that "Americans have always spoken English" isn't really true.

The original Thirteen Colonies were multilingual. Alongside English were Dutch, German, French, numerous Native American languages and, later, Spanish in large parts of what is now the United States.

After independence, the Founding Fathers deliberately did not declare an official national language. To this day, the United States has no official language at the federal level. English simply became the de facto language because it was already the language of government, law, commerce and education.

One of the most persistent myths is that German almost became the official language and supposedly lost by a single vote cast by Frederick Muhlenberg. It never happened. The 1794 vote was merely about whether some government documents should also be printed in German for German-speaking immigrants.

Ironically, while English became dominant by convention rather than law, other languages continued to flourish. Today, Spanish is spoken by more than 40 million people, making it by far the country's second language. Chinese, Tagalog, Vietnamese and Arabic all have millions of speakers.

California's first Constitution (1849) required laws to be published in both English and Spanish, while Louisiana continued to use French extensively after the 1803 Louisiana Purchase. In fact, French became so heavily suppressed after the Civil War that modern organisations such as CODOFIL now exist to preserve Louisiana's French heritage.

The greatest tragedy, however, was the treatment of Indigenous languages. Hundreds of Native American languages were devastated by disease, forced assimilation, displacement and government policies designed to eradicate them. Many disappeared altogether.

One final curiosity: although the new republic quickly abandoned British currency, adopting the dollar and a decimal monetary system under the Coinage Act of 1792, foreign coins remained legal tender until 1857. Yet despite embracing decimal currency more than two centuries ago, the United States still clings to pounds, miles, gallons and Fahrenheit instead of adopting the metric system used by almost every other country.

History is rarely as simple as the version we learn at school.

1 hour ago, KhunLA said:

If not for USA & RU, UK & EU would be speaking German.

That's one of those stupid, ignorant cliches you hear every now and then from people who haven't learnt from history – if you followed that twisted logic, the States would be speaking German too... or more likely Russian

Edited July 7Jul 7 by kwilco

12 minutes ago, kwilco said:

The greatest tragedy, however, was the treatment of Indigenous languages. Hundreds of Native American languages were devastated by disease, forced assimilation, displacement and government policies designed to eradicate them. Many disappeared altogether.

Europeans should carefully consider their historical role before critiquing others for past atrocities, especially in light of their own history of colonization.

19 minutes ago, temuFarang said:

Europeans should carefully consider their historical role before critiquing others for past atrocities, especially in light of their own history of colonization.

Why? Europeans are in general well aware of their history – at least far more than those in current America – and when did the American settlers stop being "Europeans" and become "Americans"? In fact, many people emigrated to what is now the States to return to their homelands after making their fortune. The idea of creating a new country was only of interest to some, but the American education system never considers that.

"Before critiquing others for past atrocities, especially in light of their own history of colonisation." - My family traces its history back 5 centuries and comes from several countries in Europe and Asia and fought on both sides during the revolution. They were slave owners and took part in ending the slave trade with Wilberforce over half a century before they managed it in the US... – so we look objectively at history and don't make amateur attempts at deflection like the aforementioned quote of yours

Edited July 7Jul 7 by kwilco

1 hour ago, TedG said:

Are you still pissed about taking the loss after the 4th of July?

That's such a childish response, but it says more about you than anything else – as I'm half American and my family fought on both sides. One of my ancestors was a governor of one of the states (there's even a town named after one of them in the US it just shows how many assumptions people make about history rather than studying it.

10 minutes ago, kwilco said:

That's such a childish response, but it says more about you than anything else – as I'm half American and my family fought on both sides. One of my ancestors was a governor of one of the states (there's even a town named after one of them in the US it just shows how many assumptions people make about history rather than studying it.

Give your PayPal email and I'll send you cash to buy some tissues.

europe needs to pay reparations to the world

1 minute ago, Yagoda said:

europe needs to pay reparations to the world

I agree, they profited off the backs of the poor nations.

1 minute ago, Yagoda said:

europe needs to pay reparations to the world

1 minute ago, TedG said:

I agree, they profited off the backs of the poor nations.

actually, maybe the poles and finns deserve a break.

so which countries have paid out reparations to another country? - Have the US?, how about some European countries?

3 hours ago, kwilco said:

so which countries have paid out reparations to another country? - Have the US?, how about some European countries?

Several countries have paid reparations, indemnities, or compensation to other countries following wars, occupations, or other international disputes. Some notable examples include:

* France paid large reparations to Germany after the Franco-Prussian War.

* Germany paid reparations to the Allied powers after World War I under the terms of the Treaty of Versailles.

* Following World War II, Germany paid compensation and reparations to numerous countries including Israel, Poland, Greece, and others affected by Nazi occupation and persecution.

* Finland paid reparations to Soviet Union after the Continuation War.

* Japan paid reparations or economic assistance agreements to countries affected by Japanese occupation during World War II, including Philippines, Indonesia, Burma (now Myanmar), and South Korea through various treaties and settlements.

* Iraq paid more than $50 billion in compensation to Kuwait following the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. The final payments were completed in 2022.

* Italy paid reparations to countries including Greece, Yugoslavia, and Ethiopia after World War II.

* Hungary, Romania, and Bulgaria paid reparations to the Allied powers after World War II.

* China paid an indemnity to several foreign powers after the Boxer Rebellion.

* Mexico paid claims settlements to the United States following disputes arising from the Mexican-American War.

15 hours ago, mordothailand said:

if it wasnt for the french, the americans would be speaking english

If it wasn't for the Americans, the French and the Brits would be speaking German.

59 minutes ago, Trippy said:

If it wasn't for the Americans, the French and the Brits would be speaking German.

King Charles to Trump:

“You recently commented, Mr President, that if it were not for the United States, European countries would be speaking German.

Dare I say that, if it wasn’t for us, you’d be speaking French."