Country music star Toby Keith, long known for his active support of American troops serving overseas, was the musical guest of honor in Boston, Massachusetts this July 4th.

Joining the Boston Pops on stage at the city’s famous Hatch Shell, Keith played his hit song “How Do You Like Me Now?” and his famous homage to the military, “American Soldier.”

The host of the event was late night TV personality Craig Ferguson, a native of Scotland, who’s such a fan of America that he became a United States citizen in 2008.

After Ferguson introduced Toby Keith, large screens on each side of the stage displayed footage of Keith’s work with the troops overseas. The video below shows the intro segment and Keith’s live performance of “American Soldier.” (more…)

I grew up in the rural South. In a land covered with tobacco plants, farmhouses, and American flags.

In a park across the road from where we lived, businesses and community organizations would provide a firework display on the 4th of July. It was a big show, with massive fireworks that kissed the sky then opened up like colorful umbrellas before falling down like rain.

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The display was timed with music that played on an AM or FM channel (I can’t remember which). Whatever the channel, it was made known to everyone in the town beforehand so that car stereos and portable radios could be tuned in.

On the evening of the 4th, the family would all gather. My mom and dad, my brother and sister, my aunts, uncles, and cousins, all in my front yard, watching the fireworks explode and anticipating the finale, which was always Lee Greenwood’s “God Bless the U.S.A.” (more…)

In honor of Independence Day, please recall the legendary American entertainer and patriot, Richard “Red” Skelton.  A man of humble Midwestern roots from Vincennes, Indiana – Red Skelton reached the pinnacle of Hollywood stardom in the early 1950s through the early 1970s with his Emmy Award-winning “The Red Skelton Show.” 

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Red’s musical variety program enabled him to perform a wide range of lovable characters such as the “Mean Widdle Kid,” “Clem Kadiddlehopper” and “Freddie the Freeloader.” His iconic muses made audiences laugh, cry, and more often than not, think.  

Red Skelton loved America. 

In one of his most famous soliloquies, Red Skelton re-enacted a lesson about the American Flag taught to him by his childhood teacher, Mr. Laswell. [See the video above and please visit Red's website here for more.]  (more…)

For the Fourth of July, we asked a few of our contributors to wrap a couple hundred words around a specific piece of popular culture that they felt best defined the day. That series will run throughout today, so in-between barbecues, parades, horseshoes and fireworks, be sure to come on back for a look. My pick was easy, and I have to admit I worried someone else would choose it. But I also have to admit that I don’t have a few hundred words for this one: 

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There’s simply no way to adequately express what it means to hear Ray Charles sing “America the Beautiful.” And in this clip Brother Ray did so in 1971 at the height of the anti-war movement on what was then the “hippest” show on television.

Talk about subversive.

God bless The United States of America.

God bless The Genius of Soul.

My son was confused. “Why does everyone hate America?” Sadly he wasn’t referring to Iran or even France. He was talking about the other children in his class. Apparently during his 6th grade class discussions a great many of his classmates expressed hatred for their country. Not only did they blame America for everything that was wrong in the world and condemn this nation for its greed and materialism, a great many of them expressed a desire to live someplace else. They believed New Zealand or Canada would allow them the opportunity to grow up without the stain and humiliation of being an American.

Now I was confused. I suspect the sentiments expressed by these children were more reflective of their parents beliefs than they were of any deep thought by the children themselves. Yet I am puzzled by such vitriol coming from children (and parents) advantaged with more liberty and opportunity than any other people in the history of the world.

I am, however, not discouraged. I know that in spite of the inclination of his classmates(and their parents)the majority of Americans love their country and love being Americans. No offense to New Zealand, but I suspect there are only a small number of Americans aspiring to live as ex-pats in Auckland. The truth is that even those that are critical of America love her dearly. (more…)

I’m one of the last liberal believers in American Exceptionalism, and as I look around the political and media landscapes around me, I’m damn lonely. Not just liberals, but conservatives – like Andrew Bacevitch – seem to be shedding any idea that America is more than just another country with bigger shopping malls than most.

I don’t agree, and I think it matters that I be right and they be wrong.

It matters because in a world where the power of images and ideas is becoming stronger every day – where people defend themselves against men with guns by using cellphone cameras – we seem to be fresh out of ideas.

There’s a physical war going on out in the world with us on one side – and on the other a group allied in large part by their rejection of our beliefs as much as their rejection of our power. They are fighting us with bullets and bombs – and with YouTube videos, discussion forums, and impassioned manifestos. They believe, alright. If you ask them, they will clearly tell you that they do and tell you in what. (more…)

July 4, 1776. One of the greatest days in the history of the human race. For this is the day the founders of this country executed the Declaration of Independence and declared themselves free from the British Empire. It is a day we should be reverent about and a day in which we should remember those who have fallen in order for the ideals of the Founding Fathers to be upheld.

It is a day the whole world admires whether they be Western or whether they be the people rebelling in Iran against the tyrannical regime in power. It is a day the South Koreans think of whenever they fear the Communist empire to the north. And, it is a day all people throughout the world who want to be free cherish and remember. (more…)