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The 250th Fourth    

4 July 2026

On what should be a joyous occasion -- celebrating our Declaration of Independence -- we find our hearts empty as we watch this administration trash the ideals Americans cherish. We're still enthralled by that declaration in which braver men insisted all men are created equal. And we are still inspired by the sight of the flame on the torch of the Statue of Liberty.

But, you know, we're no fools.

Every day, as we read curate news we've read on My Country, 'Tis of Thee, we can't believe what we're seeing. The ignorance cloaked in arrogance, the corruption profiting from the cruelty, the incompetence that multiplies the suffering is something we never expected to see in America.

Because what we're seeing play out in 2026 is not American at all.

Fortunately, we don't have to look too far on this Fourth to find something glorious to once again inspire (and distract) us, to remind us of the noble pursuits of our species rather than the sordid ones.

It is one of the virtues of sport that it rises above merely keeping score. It means something to long-denied fans when "their" team wins at long last. A game, a championship, it doesn't matter. One victory is enough to balance a history of defeats.

And in the 2026 World Cup we are seeing a dramatic contradiction of all that this administration has tarnished the country with.

• It's being hosted by Canada, Mexico and the United States. All three together. Just for starters.
• The predatory ticket prices have not shut out the fans, who are watching on TV (uninterrupted by the incessant commercials that disrupt American football), half of them on Telemundo "sin problemas" rather than Fox.
• Forty-eight countries are represented in this World Cup. Europe qualified 16 teams, Africa was next with 10, Asia qualified 9, South America 6, North America 6 and Oceania 1. That's pretty inclusive for a country run by an administration that wants to prohibit immigration except in the case of white South Africans.
• And the games have been good. Hard fought. Spectacular goals. Exhausting both teams. Even the dreaded penalty shootouts have been dramatic.

Win or lose, fans can be proud of their teams in this tournament. And the USA squad, wearing home jerseys with red stripes, is still in the hunt as we celebrate this Fourth without fireworks in much of the country thanks to the extreme weather conditions this administration continues to insist are a hoax.

We don't expect the president to attend any of these games, though. For one thing, he's a jinx (just asks the Knicks). But even if he did show up, he's liable to get a red card for inflicting a great nation with his foul play, abusive language and social posts. (He won't mind. Red is his favorite color.)

And he's the one, after all, who signed the unconstitutional executive order attempting to end birthright citizenship, which would have eliminated the USA's leading scorer from the squad. Folarin Balogun's right to represent the United States is based entirely on his birthright citizenship under the 14th Amendment.

Yes, the Supreme Court recently reaffirmed that right but, shockingly, those "originalists" hypocritically ignored the text of the 14th Amendment to vote against that right.

We don't expect this USA team, the best men's team to play in a World Cup, to visit the White House either. If it hasn't been entirely bulldozed.

No, they play a different game from this administration. One where you play by the rules instead of one where you act as if only fools observe the rules. One where victory means triumph instead of meaning only that you cheated. One American. The other not.

So while the Barker in Chief stands outside his State Fair wondering why no one in that military-occupied city wants to attend, he is being upstaged by a World's Fair happening all around him where the human spirit instead of mere greed is being celebrated, inspiring the race in every corner of the world with a 250-year-old message.

That all games begin scoreless. That all men are created equal.

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