United States Celebrates Its 233rd Birthday July 4

Americans celebrate with parades, fireworks, concerts and other festive activities. © AP Images

The United States celebrates its Independence Day on July 4, a day of patriotic celebration and family events throughout the country. In the words of Founding Father John Adams, the holiday would be “the great anniversary festival. It ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance. … It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forever more.”  The Fourth of July holiday is a major civic occasion, with roots deep in the Anglo-American tradition of political freedom.  Each year, crowds of visitors flock to the National Mall -- the grassy expanse between the U.S. Capitol and the Washington Monument -- for the Smithsonian Folklife Festival, which always takes place on two weekends overlapping the Fourth of July holiday.  The 2008 festival celebrates the culture of Bhutan, the music, food and wine of Texas and the history of NASA and the U.S. space program.  Throughout the United States, Fourth of July fireworks displays are popular, from the spectacular exhibition on the National Mall to more modest fireworks shows in city parks across the land. (more)

Honduran Crisis Must be Resolved Peacefully and Lawfully

The United States continues to recognize President Mel Zelaya as the democratically elected leader of Honduras. © AP Images

Political tensions in Honduras must be resolved peacefully and with respect for democratic norms, President Obama says, voicing his concern over the June 28 detention and expulsion of President José Manuel Zelaya Rosales.  In a June 28 statement, Obama called on all of the political and social entities in Honduras to “respect democratic norms, the rule of law, and the tenets of the Inter-American Democratic Charter.”  The president added that the ongoing tensions and disputes in Honduras “must be resolved peacefully through dialogue free from any outside interference.”  The Honduran military forcibly removed Zelaya from the presidential palace June 28 and expelled him to Costa Rica before the start of a survey he had called for June 28 to gauge popular support for a second term despite a Honduran Supreme Court order to the contrary. Under the Honduran Constitution, a president may serve only one term. Also, the country’s congress voted June 28 to remove Zelaya for repeatedly violating the constitution and disregarding other government institutions.  Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said June 29 that the restoration of full democratic and constitutional order in Honduras is the “immediate priority” of the United States. (more)

Scientists Say Climate Change Could Harm Health

Climate change is affecting daily life in the form of severe weather and droughts, a scientist says. © AP Images

Climate change is happening faster than anticipated and is starting to negatively impact health, two scientists say.  Amanda Staudt, a climate scientist with the National Wildlife Federation, and Dr. Paul Epstein, associate director of the Center for Health and the Global Environment at Harvard Medical School as well as a medical doctor trained in tropical public health, came together to discuss the situation at a Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars event, “Healthy Solutions to Climate Change.”  Staudt said there is mounting scientific evidence that “climate change is happening faster than what we had anticipated even a few years ago.” According to Staudt, these unanticipated changes are already affecting the lives of people around the world.  “There’s an increasing awareness that these changes are going to be irreversible and … that we’re already being impacted,” she said. “In particular, the increasing severity of weather and climate extremes, drought, floods, rainfall, hurricanes and wildfires are all ways that I think we’re experiencing global warming in our day-to-day life.” (more)