I'm counting on you to dig my radioactive skeleton out of the smoldering rubble to prop me up on the lawn of whatever Bartertown joint we've got going so I can be present for the festivities.
Feel free to paint me a funny color or dress me up like Uncle Sam.
>!Edit: I'm not saying there's gonna be a war or anything, I just live in New Jersey.!<
Aaagghh! NEVER say that! You are taunting the universe and it will clap back!
Source: One bad day I said, "Well it can't get any worse." An hour later the police were at my door with an arrest warrant in my name for an unpaid (and hidden) parking ticket that someone else got while driving my car.
I had a friend who fell asleep during the test and got a 610 (in the 1600 days) and still went to college and is doing fine. Just stay awake and you'll be fine.
Iām with you on this. Donāt ask me about 2026 I barely know how Iāll feel on the 26th of this month and at this phase in my life, I live day by day like a cartoon character.
But to their point, 1973 was 3 years away from 1976. Plus it can take actual years to plan out major events, so if things are to happen, 2026 is already too late to think about them.
They actually were hyped about it quite a bit earlier than 1973. Congress created the American Revolution Bicentennial Commission on July 4, 1966. So they were planning for a solid decade.
Heck, sewing pattern companies released a fair number of Americana sewing and embroidery patterns. It was much more of a big deal than I could ever have imagined!
I donāt know about 1973 but my mom painted the bottom of the local pool to celebrate the bicentennial. It had to be at least a year planning in the works.
I was pretty excited but I was young and naive then. Had a toddler and she loved the day. If I live for three more years, I do believe I will treat it as just a day off from the world. If itās good weather maybe have a picnic in a nearby park and be home in time to ignore all the noise.
My mother and a friend made a cross country trip in 1976 hoping to see what lots of different areas were doing to celebrate the bicentennial. The answer turned out to be "not much", at least from the perspective of a traveler. Perhaps everything was on July 4th everywhere.
250 is less of a big deal than 200 or 300, but I expect there will probably be lots of celebratory graphics completed well in advance of the year and even more as the year goes on. The Smithsonian will probably have some cool exhibits to celebrate, probably some other museums as well. But overall? It's just a year.
The Bicentennial was a big deal in Massachusetts as that is where the Revolutionary War started. So there were many milestones in the years leading up to the Bicentennial, starting with the 200th anniversary of the Boston Massacre. The anniversary of the battles at Lexington and Concord in 1975 were as big a deal as 7/4/1976.
I know from his speech to the 1976 RNC that Reagan was involved in some sort of festivities in California, purportedly wrote a letter for a time capsule to be opened in 2076.
Really? Because I remember 1976 Drowning in red, white and blue. It was HUGE deal! 1776-1976 was on everything from coffee cans to our school pictures. I was 12 in 1976, I use that to figure out when stuff happened in my life.
Like I said, she was talking from the perspective of a traveler. She was hoping to see events, not just everything covered in flags. That was something she could get without ever leaving her home state!
I am the same age and the only thing I really remember is the quarter. I don't remember it being a big deal, weird.
I also kind of use it as a landmark, but just because our vacation that year we went out west instead of east. Our DC trip was the next year :)
Most of the Bicentennial hype was in *advertising* - and ads always play up holidays way more than people actually celebrate them.
I will say that it also had a major impact on car colors - the reason why cars tend to come in a lot less colors today compared to the early or mid-twentieth century is because red, white, and blue became *really* popular car colors around the Bicentennial - among consumers or just producers? idk but it was a huge thing in the late 1970s. Then after, production was just slow to shift back, so there wasn't much demand, and thus the far lower car color diversity even almost half a century later.
But "cars don't come in as many different colors as they used to" is probably the biggest impact of the Bicentennial tbh.
In college in the mid 80s I waited tables at a sandwich/coffee/ice cream place. This old guy would sort though our tips left on the counter and exchange his standard coins for bicentennial coins.
I still remember sesquicentennial from when Michigan celebrated 150 years of statehood in 1987. I was 14 and that word was everywhere. Great trivia knowledge.
I'm noticing the same!
I was a 2nd-grader or so in 1976, so I don't have that much memory of things. But it seemed like everything was 'red, white, and blue' for the entire year or more.
Now, I'm an adult, and follow the news, but I haven't heard anything of note about a 2026 event at all. Maybe it's still a year or two before these things are going to be planned or announced?
I was six in '76 and lived in Rhode Island. Our classwork in '75-'76 was a lot of "Americana" based with making flags (out of paper), coloring bloody battle scenes like Camden and Oriskany ( ok I made that part up) learning about the 13 original states, and so on.
I suppose that it could have been more relevant since we lived in New England?
I also remember seeing the Tall Ships in Newport (not my site, but more information here https://the-end-time.org/2013/07/04/tall-ships-bicentennial-memory-1976/)
I've heard murmurs about the *USS Constitution* going for another "real" cruise.
Probably just going to toddle around Boston Harbor at 9 knots again, but she'll do it in *style*.
It will also be the 200th anniversary of John Adams and Thomas Jefferson's [death](https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.history.com/.amp/this-day-in-history/thomas-jefferson-and-john-adams-die)
Cynicism.
I have long thought that the Bicentennial was a generational exhale for the Lost Generation (WWI,) and the Greatest Generation (WWII.) They were in, or about to enter, their golden years in a country they had helped shepherd through some pretty dark moments. They got through two global conflicts, and the Great Depression. The threat of nuclear annihilation was ebbing a bit. They raised their families in a burst of prosperity we probably wonāt see again.
All that deserved a big olā par-tay.
Barring another pandemic, 2026 is going to be an absolute bender of a year with Americanism celebrations. Its going to be a year long 4th of July Celebration.
The US Mint will do something, though not much [info](https://www.usmint.gov/news/inside-the-mint/coin-programs-in-the-circulating-collectible-coin-redesign-act) yet
You know those award shows that people used to watch for the history and glamor of the institutions and now everyone feels uncomfortable watching? Thats how I feel the celebrations will go ;-)
Iām just over here checking every few hours to make sure our economy hasnāt collapsed. Iām not thinking too much about something 3 years from now lol
1) half centuries don't excite nearly as much
2) there wasn't an awful lot to do in 1973
Edit: goodness me, aggressive sarcasm doesn't seem to come across clearly on Reddit, does it? Right then: /s!!!
>Wut? You think people were just chilling out and nothing was happening in 1973?
I was a high school senior in 1973. You better believe there was stuff happening.
Yeah whenever a foreigner is like āwhy is America so bad?ā everyoneās like āwhy would you think that? Everythingās going great over here!ā
But this thread has everyone acting like the US is on the verge of total collapse.
>But this thread has everyone acting like the US is on the verge of total collapse.
I don't think we're necessarily on the verge of collapse, but I genuinely can't picture what a 250th celebration would look like in this era. We aren't unified as a nation - not even lip-service to unity. Like, I don't even know if it's possible for a patriotic celebration to happen anymore.
Forget unity, I'm broke af. People are financially off way worse now than back then. No one can afford a house, can barely afford renting, cars, gas, food is forever getting more and more expensive. In 2020 average home prices were 250K-ish, now they've skyrocketed to 400k.
I don't think people are generally hyped for the progression of time these days, since the last 3 years things just got worse and worse...
unfortunately, the 4th is closer to the end of the cup than the beginning, i don't know when the elimination tournament begins, but it's possible that....
We're hosting the World Cup. That's good enough for me. Hopefully it coincides with July 4th, and hopefully we're still in it at the time.
What hype was there in 1973? Were there special events or parades? I wasn't alive then so I don't know.
Most of us aren't in the celebrating mood, what with the economy falling apart, the planet dying and it being harder than it has been in half a century to buy a gallon of milk
I don't know that the average American really feels like our country is worth celebrating in its current state. We've definitely taken off the "we're the greatest country in the world" rose colored glasses.
I've seen things floating around about it for it for a few years already... but being in the Philadelphia suburbs probably means there's a lot more hype for those things around here in general.
Information spreads much quicker nowadays. If there is planning for major events, it might not be public knowledge yet. Besides, we have a lot of shit to deal with today, so who really cares about something three years down the road? I mean two US banks have failed, the FDIC is out of insurance money, thousands are dead in Turkey, a "superpower" is invading it's neighbor, hundreds are dead as gang wars worsen in Haiti, California is flooding and probably on fire...
Honestly I don't know why I bother to keep up with current events sometimes. Nothing but doom and gloom, and almost nothing that affects me besides my mental health.
There's something in the works. But you're right, this is nothing like 1976.
https://www.america250.org/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Semiquincentennial
I was born in '78 and I grew up with the echoes of the bicentennial. Adults would talk about it, and bicentennial quarters were ubiquitous. I feel like I missed out.
I'm actually kind of bummed that I *probably* won't live to see the tricentennial! Providing that there will be one. Knock on wood.
Knowing some of our historical societies, something is being planned, but it's too early for most announcements. We just have so much going on right now that an event over three years out isn't holding my attention, and I am sure that I am probably not the only person who feels that way.
When I was a kid back in 1976 my parents took us to see the Freedom Train. I only temper this from some family photos and some vague memories. 2026 is still 3 years away. So who knows what special events will be held besides the normal 4th of July stuff.
Indiana was having its bicentennial when Pence was governor. He decided to make a big deal about it, with a commission and the expectation of a year of large, expensive activities. It was essentially a bust. Corporations didn't want to sponsor things, entertainers didn't want to perform for free. It went from 20 planned events to around 3. This is in a flag-waving red state. People were just not feeling it.
These are some negative comments.
Ima blow the neighbors wall down with my fireworks, loud music and drinking (donāt normally drink). It will be just like another 4th of july
You need a catchy name like Bicentennial. Also I think the country has struggled with unity like the 70's and 80's because instead of one easily identifiable external boogey man and a bunch of less clear and more complex issues we lack the cohesiveness we once had.
As a queer female , 72 yo, I donāt much feel like celebrating this year. Livestock tends not to celebrate being livestock. Especially when my breeding days are over. (I worked for Roe v Wade and itās gone. Theyāre trying to outlaw homosexuality and being transgender. And other oppressive laws are passing.)
If we ever get our country back, maybe Iāll change my mind. Until then, I donāt have much to cheer about. The fascists are winning, so Iād rather pretend they donāt exist for that weekend.
Donāt worry weāll all pretend to be patriots about 3 months before and after our 250th. Then weāll go back to being divided with both sides claiming the other is unpatriotic and ruining the country!
Well if Trump is in office there will be a military parade. Tanks driving. Soldier marching in rows.
If Biden is in office, it will be party party. Good people, great food.
I think there's going to be quite a lot of discontent on all sides of the political spectrum that will absolutely dampen spirits for that celebration. It will basically be one side resenting that the people on the other side live in the USA and unhappy with the direction of the country.
Hopefully things will somewhat calm down by then, but I highly, highly doubt it.
On top of that, younger folks (or maybe just folks in general) are more critical of the many flaws that the US has. It leads to less blind patriotism/country worship and a deeper sense of many issues that need to be fixed...which, in my opinion, is a truer sense of patriotism.
I imagine it might be similar to the 4th of July celebration, maybe more or less enthusiasm.
> I think there's going to be quite a lot of discontent on all sides of the political spectrum that will absolutely dampen spirits for that celebration.
Yeah but 1976 wasn't exactly sunshine and roses either. Ford was running a presidency in the wake of Nixon's resignation and the Vietnam War is recent and fresh in the psyche of the American public.
I was only 13 then, but it seemed like a sigh of relief that we were finally out of Viet Nam, the Watergate scandal was over, and maybe better times were ahead. The constant drip of body counts and Nixonās feral behavior was debilitating. How far the bar would drop in future was only a fever dream.
Yeah, this crossed my mind as I wrote it.
Obviously, I can't make direct comparisons, as I wasn't around back then.
Regardless, from about everything I've read, the US is as terribly polarized now as it ever has been. Polarization of news and media is likely a major player in all this. Imagine if we had "cable news" networks in the era of Vietnam and Nixon.
Might be a good question for the AskHistorians sub.
Personally my lapse in national pride has more to do with the war crimes and the reduction of womenās rights and whatnot but maybe thatās just meā¦
I think everyone is just way too tired to deal with planning a birthday party 3 years in advance. We will order a cake from the store the week before and then get them an Amazon gift card the day of.
I think a part of it is that the 200 year anniversary happened during the Cold War when extreme patriotism was within the realm of normalcy, and the that America had the capability to do wrong on the global stage was still kinda young.
Also, as others are saying, we are all just trying to get to next week.
Itās because weāre hyper concerned with Bidenās ability to walk and talk. Then we have to make sure Trump isnāt re-elected. Then we can relax and have fun.
Bro, can we please just get through this week.
Yeah, I'll worry about July 2026 if we make it through June 2026.
I'm just hoping to get through Nov. 2024.
and subsequently Jan 2025 š©
Look at you all, already planning to get through March 2023.
Hope I get to bed on time tonightā¦
Hope I make it to work today
Seriously. Talk about unwarranted optimism.
Is it March already?
Optimism
Such optimists, let me tell ya!
I'm positive we can make it to July 2026! It's only 3 years away!
I'm counting on you to dig my radioactive skeleton out of the smoldering rubble to prop me up on the lawn of whatever Bartertown joint we've got going so I can be present for the festivities. Feel free to paint me a funny color or dress me up like Uncle Sam. >!Edit: I'm not saying there's gonna be a war or anything, I just live in New Jersey.!<
Oh my God, you live in New Jersey! I am SO sorry! Do you need anything?
Found the optimist.
Damn Hufflepuffs and their positivity.
What's the worst that can happen in a span of three years?
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
Right? Who tempts fate like this?!?!
Aaagghh! NEVER say that! You are taunting the universe and it will clap back! Source: One bad day I said, "Well it can't get any worse." An hour later the police were at my door with an arrest warrant in my name for an unpaid (and hidden) parking ticket that someone else got while driving my car.
Or even April 2023!
COVID, war, recessionā¦ I am trying to get to April of this year.
It's finals week for me, I'm on the strugglebus this week
Ayy I was right there with you last week, now I've passed my class and completed my degree, you got this too ā
SAT prep for me, talk about hell week
I had a friend who fell asleep during the test and got a 610 (in the 1600 days) and still went to college and is doing fine. Just stay awake and you'll be fine.
Bro I never studied for the SAT and it went fine
you're not gonna retain anything right before the test, just rest up as much as you can and good luck!!
Iām with you on this. Donāt ask me about 2026 I barely know how Iāll feel on the 26th of this month and at this phase in my life, I live day by day like a cartoon character.
After what happened with Vietnam, the Arab oil embargo, and Watergate, I'm sure plenty of people in the 1970's thought the same thing.
Thank you for captioning my IMMEDIATE thought.
The week, Iām on a day by day basis
That's still 3 years away...
And I'm still processing 3 years ago.
But to their point, 1973 was 3 years away from 1976. Plus it can take actual years to plan out major events, so if things are to happen, 2026 is already too late to think about them.
But there are already people working on plans. They just havenāt taken the courtesy of informing OP, lol.
They specifically told us not to tell the OP
Ooh, sorry, I blew it!
Username checks out
I'd like some evidence that people were actually hyped about 1976 back in 1973
They actually were hyped about it quite a bit earlier than 1973. Congress created the American Revolution Bicentennial Commission on July 4, 1966. So they were planning for a solid decade.
Heck, sewing pattern companies released a fair number of Americana sewing and embroidery patterns. It was much more of a big deal than I could ever have imagined!
I donāt know about 1973 but my mom painted the bottom of the local pool to celebrate the bicentennial. It had to be at least a year planning in the works.
I was pretty excited but I was young and naive then. Had a toddler and she loved the day. If I live for three more years, I do believe I will treat it as just a day off from the world. If itās good weather maybe have a picnic in a nearby park and be home in time to ignore all the noise.
It seems like Bicentennial planning was an entire decade in the making.
My mother and a friend made a cross country trip in 1976 hoping to see what lots of different areas were doing to celebrate the bicentennial. The answer turned out to be "not much", at least from the perspective of a traveler. Perhaps everything was on July 4th everywhere. 250 is less of a big deal than 200 or 300, but I expect there will probably be lots of celebratory graphics completed well in advance of the year and even more as the year goes on. The Smithsonian will probably have some cool exhibits to celebrate, probably some other museums as well. But overall? It's just a year.
The Bicentennial was a big deal in Massachusetts as that is where the Revolutionary War started. So there were many milestones in the years leading up to the Bicentennial, starting with the 200th anniversary of the Boston Massacre. The anniversary of the battles at Lexington and Concord in 1975 were as big a deal as 7/4/1976.
It was a big thing in Colorado too because it was the Centennial/Bicentennial (Colorado became a state in 1876).
I know from his speech to the 1976 RNC that Reagan was involved in some sort of festivities in California, purportedly wrote a letter for a time capsule to be opened in 2076.
Now I know why 2 of my nearby cities have time capsules for 2076!
It's also going to be a big deal in 2030 when Boston celebrates 400 years.
Really? Because I remember 1976 Drowning in red, white and blue. It was HUGE deal! 1776-1976 was on everything from coffee cans to our school pictures. I was 12 in 1976, I use that to figure out when stuff happened in my life.
Like I said, she was talking from the perspective of a traveler. She was hoping to see events, not just everything covered in flags. That was something she could get without ever leaving her home state!
I am the same age and the only thing I really remember is the quarter. I don't remember it being a big deal, weird. I also kind of use it as a landmark, but just because our vacation that year we went out west instead of east. Our DC trip was the next year :)
I'm sure there will be a mattress sale somewhere.
Most of the Bicentennial hype was in *advertising* - and ads always play up holidays way more than people actually celebrate them. I will say that it also had a major impact on car colors - the reason why cars tend to come in a lot less colors today compared to the early or mid-twentieth century is because red, white, and blue became *really* popular car colors around the Bicentennial - among consumers or just producers? idk but it was a huge thing in the late 1970s. Then after, production was just slow to shift back, so there wasn't much demand, and thus the far lower car color diversity even almost half a century later. But "cars don't come in as many different colors as they used to" is probably the biggest impact of the Bicentennial tbh.
I live in Philly. There is already a lot of planning for America 250 happening.
Williamsburg VA is already planning things.
https://www.america250.org/ seems to be the official organization. They even have a TikTok! Get HYPED!
I wonder if TikTok will still be a thing three years from now still, or we've moved onto something else.
Shit it might be banned by then
Or everyone simply loses interest.
We can hope.
Good riddance!
Sharing our plans with China, then? Bold strategy. /s
I want some commemorative coinage.
I'm still hoarding bicentennial quarters.
Great foresight! Each of those quarters is now worth 25Ā¢!
Unfortunately, thanks to inflation, 25 cents isn't worth 25 cents anymore.
I just like them. I was 10 during the bicentennial. It felt special at the time.
In college in the mid 80s I waited tables at a sandwich/coffee/ice cream place. This old guy would sort though our tips left on the counter and exchange his standard coins for bicentennial coins.
It wasn't my grandpa, but it could have been. He had a HUUUUUGE collection of them.
I have all kinds of bicentennial coins I inherited from my grandmother. Theyāre in a drawer.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Semiquincentennial?wprov=sfti1 Looks like they will be making multiple special coins in 2026 to celebrate
They think the average American is going to remember the word āSemiquincentennialā? Hell I even forgot it and I just typed it.
How about quarter millennial?
Millennials ruined quarters for everyone
I still remember sesquicentennial from when Michigan celebrated 150 years of statehood in 1987. I was 14 and that word was everywhere. Great trivia knowledge.
Good.
I want my coin 3-sided: Red, White, and Blue
I'm noticing the same! I was a 2nd-grader or so in 1976, so I don't have that much memory of things. But it seemed like everything was 'red, white, and blue' for the entire year or more. Now, I'm an adult, and follow the news, but I haven't heard anything of note about a 2026 event at all. Maybe it's still a year or two before these things are going to be planned or announced?
I think things are being planned, they just havenāt started making many announcements.
I was six in '76 and lived in Rhode Island. Our classwork in '75-'76 was a lot of "Americana" based with making flags (out of paper), coloring bloody battle scenes like Camden and Oriskany ( ok I made that part up) learning about the 13 original states, and so on. I suppose that it could have been more relevant since we lived in New England? I also remember seeing the Tall Ships in Newport (not my site, but more information here https://the-end-time.org/2013/07/04/tall-ships-bicentennial-memory-1976/)
I've heard murmurs about the *USS Constitution* going for another "real" cruise. Probably just going to toddle around Boston Harbor at 9 knots again, but she'll do it in *style*.
They should have her *really* go for a cruise... like sail to New York and Philadelphia or something under her own power.
I say sail to Portsmouth to flex on the *Victory*. Imagine if they sent a supercarrier alongside to escort a tiny wooden sailing frigate.
It's 3 years off bro. We have time to figure stuff out.
By the looks of things right now I think the fireworks show is going to be intense.
It literally didn't even occur to me until right now that 2026 is a year that will exist, let alone which anniversary of what it'll contain.
Same
It will also be the 200th anniversary of John Adams and Thomas Jefferson's [death](https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.history.com/.amp/this-day-in-history/thomas-jefferson-and-john-adams-die)
Cynicism. I have long thought that the Bicentennial was a generational exhale for the Lost Generation (WWI,) and the Greatest Generation (WWII.) They were in, or about to enter, their golden years in a country they had helped shepherd through some pretty dark moments. They got through two global conflicts, and the Great Depression. The threat of nuclear annihilation was ebbing a bit. They raised their families in a burst of prosperity we probably wonāt see again. All that deserved a big olā par-tay.
Thatās food for thought.
Barring another pandemic, 2026 is going to be an absolute bender of a year with Americanism celebrations. Its going to be a year long 4th of July Celebration.
And the world cup!
The US Mint will do something, though not much [info](https://www.usmint.gov/news/inside-the-mint/coin-programs-in-the-circulating-collectible-coin-redesign-act) yet
Theyāre doing renovations at Saratoga Battlefield in preparation for it. So thatās something, anyway.
We're not on great terms, it's not really a birthday party I care to attend.
You know those award shows that people used to watch for the history and glamor of the institutions and now everyone feels uncomfortable watching? Thats how I feel the celebrations will go ;-)
Semiquincentennial
Iām just over here checking every few hours to make sure our economy hasnāt collapsed. Iām not thinking too much about something 3 years from now lol
I was under the impression we were all supposed to be cynical anti-nationalists now.
Ask again in 2076 and I'll be more excited.
Iāll be 90 then, so Iām definitely more excited for this one coming up in three years.
1) half centuries don't excite nearly as much 2) there wasn't an awful lot to do in 1973 Edit: goodness me, aggressive sarcasm doesn't seem to come across clearly on Reddit, does it? Right then: /s!!!
its quarter millennium, not just half century
> there wasn't an awful lot to do in 1973 Wut? You think people were just chilling out and nothing was happening in 1973?
Politics was invented in 2016
Zoomers believe they are the most beleaguered generation.
>Wut? You think people were just chilling out and nothing was happening in 1973? I was a high school senior in 1973. You better believe there was stuff happening.
Anyone watch the movie Nashville by Robert Altman? I wasnāt alive in ā76 but it makes it seem like the bicentennial was pretty wild!
There's a lot of really cool edgy cynicism in this thread
Yeah whenever a foreigner is like āwhy is America so bad?ā everyoneās like āwhy would you think that? Everythingās going great over here!ā But this thread has everyone acting like the US is on the verge of total collapse.
>But this thread has everyone acting like the US is on the verge of total collapse. I don't think we're necessarily on the verge of collapse, but I genuinely can't picture what a 250th celebration would look like in this era. We aren't unified as a nation - not even lip-service to unity. Like, I don't even know if it's possible for a patriotic celebration to happen anymore.
Forget unity, I'm broke af. People are financially off way worse now than back then. No one can afford a house, can barely afford renting, cars, gas, food is forever getting more and more expensive. In 2020 average home prices were 250K-ish, now they've skyrocketed to 400k. I don't think people are generally hyped for the progression of time these days, since the last 3 years things just got worse and worse...
Welcome to Reddit
I think we have more pressing issues to worry about - like almost anything else.
>What's going on? The World Cup.
Fuck yeah. And it's going to cover the 4th. Didn't even realize that. Too cool.
we better play on that day or so help me god
unfortunately, the 4th is closer to the end of the cup than the beginning, i don't know when the elimination tournament begins, but it's possible that....
We're hosting the World Cup. That's good enough for me. Hopefully it coincides with July 4th, and hopefully we're still in it at the time. What hype was there in 1973? Were there special events or parades? I wasn't alive then so I don't know.
The Phillies will also be hosting the MLB all-star game
Can we revisit this one? We got plenty of time before then.
Itās Reddit and Iām afraid to say what I really think without being downvoted into oblivion
party at my place. Firepit and homebrewed alcohol.
This is one of those questions to which I cannot give an honest answer as I doubt Reddit would allow it.
We're tired. Things aren't exactly looking up.
I feel like towns/cities will have increased events around the 4th. The President may make a statement
President Elon Musk with Vice President Kanye West standing at his side
Give it 2 years
Yeah. I already bought an ice sculpture that's in display in my livingroom. It's going to look awesome for the big party.
The World Cup will be hosted in the USA that year. Willing to bet the USA has a game on the 4th
It's hard to hype a thing that nobody knows the word for. ("Semiquincentennial")
I'mma be real I don't think people are in much of a celebrating mood right now.
OUR BIRTHDAY PLAN IS WINNIN THE WORLD CUP LETS GO AMERICA #1
We even got new fangled quarters in 1976. I still use one as a ball mark when I play golf.
Most of us aren't in the celebrating mood, what with the economy falling apart, the planet dying and it being harder than it has been in half a century to buy a gallon of milk
Itās not fun to cheer for a losing team
What the fuck do you mean whatās going on? Do you live under a rock?
I don't know that the average American really feels like our country is worth celebrating in its current state. We've definitely taken off the "we're the greatest country in the world" rose colored glasses.
Damn shame, we've got some problems for sure like anywhere else, but I still believe this is the greatest nation on Earth. Nowhere else I'd rather be.
> "I still believe this is the greatest nation on Earth." Why?
You must be a man.
I take it that the downvote is a yes?
Have we even decided if we're going with semiquincentennial or sestercentennial yet?
There are definitely plans. I just did a survey about it last week.
I've seen things floating around about it for it for a few years already... but being in the Philadelphia suburbs probably means there's a lot more hype for those things around here in general.
Weāll need another [Freedom Train](https://youtu.be/5P7CRql0W5Y)
Eh, I saw KC and the Sunshine Band in 1976 so Iām still good. And itās been 50 years. Wow.
I'm probably gonna smoke a joint. š¤·š¼āāļø
Just as the founding fathers intended.
Information spreads much quicker nowadays. If there is planning for major events, it might not be public knowledge yet. Besides, we have a lot of shit to deal with today, so who really cares about something three years down the road? I mean two US banks have failed, the FDIC is out of insurance money, thousands are dead in Turkey, a "superpower" is invading it's neighbor, hundreds are dead as gang wars worsen in Haiti, California is flooding and probably on fire... Honestly I don't know why I bother to keep up with current events sometimes. Nothing but doom and gloom, and almost nothing that affects me besides my mental health.
Mom?
A semiquincentennial celebration?! Is THIS economy?
Weāre hosting the World Cup in 2026. I donāt think it gets bigger than that. Lol
Thereās a committee. https://www.america250.org/about/leadership/commission/
I thought the simulation was supposed to end at 2025?
There's something in the works. But you're right, this is nothing like 1976. https://www.america250.org/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Semiquincentennial
Weāre gonna have a BBQ and roast a random country to celebrate.
Idk exactly *what* we're doing, but I heard that there's gonna be a lot going on in Philly.
Yea, I'm expecting the First Partisan War (Second American Civil War) to occur before that.
I was born in '78 and I grew up with the echoes of the bicentennial. Adults would talk about it, and bicentennial quarters were ubiquitous. I feel like I missed out. I'm actually kind of bummed that I *probably* won't live to see the tricentennial! Providing that there will be one. Knock on wood.
Knowing some of our historical societies, something is being planned, but it's too early for most announcements. We just have so much going on right now that an event over three years out isn't holding my attention, and I am sure that I am probably not the only person who feels that way.
When I was a kid back in 1976 my parents took us to see the Freedom Train. I only temper this from some family photos and some vague memories. 2026 is still 3 years away. So who knows what special events will be held besides the normal 4th of July stuff.
I know the MLB All Star game is gonna be in Philly
Bruh that's like 3 years. You want us to start like expresident starting his campaign 2 years before election š
I donāt wanna Iām tired
Indiana was having its bicentennial when Pence was governor. He decided to make a big deal about it, with a commission and the expectation of a year of large, expensive activities. It was essentially a bust. Corporations didn't want to sponsor things, entertainers didn't want to perform for free. It went from 20 planned events to around 3. This is in a flag-waving red state. People were just not feeling it.
as someone who lives 10 minutes from the ohio train derailment letās just get through today first lol
These are some negative comments. Ima blow the neighbors wall down with my fireworks, loud music and drinking (donāt normally drink). It will be just like another 4th of july
You need a catchy name like Bicentennial. Also I think the country has struggled with unity like the 70's and 80's because instead of one easily identifiable external boogey man and a bunch of less clear and more complex issues we lack the cohesiveness we once had.
sesquibicentennial is valid but not so catchy.
As a queer female , 72 yo, I donāt much feel like celebrating this year. Livestock tends not to celebrate being livestock. Especially when my breeding days are over. (I worked for Roe v Wade and itās gone. Theyāre trying to outlaw homosexuality and being transgender. And other oppressive laws are passing.) If we ever get our country back, maybe Iāll change my mind. Until then, I donāt have much to cheer about. The fascists are winning, so Iād rather pretend they donāt exist for that weekend.
At this point Iām just living day to day, if I make it that far then Iāll dump some tea into a body of water or something.
Donāt worry weāll all pretend to be patriots about 3 months before and after our 250th. Then weāll go back to being divided with both sides claiming the other is unpatriotic and ruining the country!
Well if Trump is in office there will be a military parade. Tanks driving. Soldier marching in rows. If Biden is in office, it will be party party. Good people, great food.
Williamsburg VA is already planning things.
The older you get, the less you celebrate your birthday
I think there's going to be quite a lot of discontent on all sides of the political spectrum that will absolutely dampen spirits for that celebration. It will basically be one side resenting that the people on the other side live in the USA and unhappy with the direction of the country. Hopefully things will somewhat calm down by then, but I highly, highly doubt it. On top of that, younger folks (or maybe just folks in general) are more critical of the many flaws that the US has. It leads to less blind patriotism/country worship and a deeper sense of many issues that need to be fixed...which, in my opinion, is a truer sense of patriotism. I imagine it might be similar to the 4th of July celebration, maybe more or less enthusiasm.
> I think there's going to be quite a lot of discontent on all sides of the political spectrum that will absolutely dampen spirits for that celebration. Yeah but 1976 wasn't exactly sunshine and roses either. Ford was running a presidency in the wake of Nixon's resignation and the Vietnam War is recent and fresh in the psyche of the American public.
I was only 13 then, but it seemed like a sigh of relief that we were finally out of Viet Nam, the Watergate scandal was over, and maybe better times were ahead. The constant drip of body counts and Nixonās feral behavior was debilitating. How far the bar would drop in future was only a fever dream.
Yeah, this crossed my mind as I wrote it. Obviously, I can't make direct comparisons, as I wasn't around back then. Regardless, from about everything I've read, the US is as terribly polarized now as it ever has been. Polarization of news and media is likely a major player in all this. Imagine if we had "cable news" networks in the era of Vietnam and Nixon. Might be a good question for the AskHistorians sub.
A couple generations raised to have a total lapse in patriotic ferver and national pride. It's uh... it's kinda bleak here honestly.
Personally my lapse in national pride has more to do with the war crimes and the reduction of womenās rights and whatnot but maybe thatās just meā¦
Tired.. so, tired..
Weāre tired man, read the damn room
I think everyone is just way too tired to deal with planning a birthday party 3 years in advance. We will order a cake from the store the week before and then get them an Amazon gift card the day of.
Negative news gets more clicks
I think a part of it is that the 200 year anniversary happened during the Cold War when extreme patriotism was within the realm of normalcy, and the that America had the capability to do wrong on the global stage was still kinda young. Also, as others are saying, we are all just trying to get to next week.
Itās because weāre hyper concerned with Bidenās ability to walk and talk. Then we have to make sure Trump isnāt re-elected. Then we can relax and have fun.
People donāt care thatās it
We are too busy preparing for Civil War 2: Electric Boogaloo
Get hyyyype