History and Belonging: Thomas Jefferson's Descendants, Lincoln's Quotes, and the Fourth of 2026

https://abcnews.com/video/134481691/ Thomas Jefferson's descendants wrestle with complicated family legacy Descendants of America's third president, Thomas Jefferson, grapple with history and belonging. July 4, 2026 [1856] You can fool some of the people all of the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you can't fool all of the people all of the time. America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter, and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves. He will have to learn, I know, that all people are not just- that all men and women are not true. Teach him that for every scoundrel there is a hero that for every enemy there is a friend. Let him learn early that the bullies are the easiest people to lick. I'm a slow walker, but I never walk back. I like to see a man proud of the place in which he lives. I like to see a man live so that his place will be proud of him. I don't know who my grandfather was; I am much more concerned to know who his grandson will be. As I would not be a slave, so I would not be a master. This expresses my idea of democracy. Character is like a tree and reputation like its shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing. Among free men there can be no successful appeal from the ballot to the bullet...The ballot is stronger than the bullet. Abe Lincoln https://fords.org/my-10-favorite-lincoln-quotes/ https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1118823/quotes/

VỀ BẾN CẠN

VỀ BẾN CẠN Nét hoa vừa thấy đã tan theo Sóng nước mênh mông giạt cánh bèo Đành vớt thời gian tìm bóng bạn Để buông vận hạn kiếm hình neo Tầm Dương thủa ấy ai tri kỷ Lạc Việt thời nay khách cột kèo Nhật Nguyệt lênh đênh chờ tái ngộ Thuyền về bến cạn nỗi sầu treo … * Bến cạn chiều sương khói mịt mù Nhớ về nhân dáng khách chinh phu Đã không tồn tại cùng xuân tận Sao chẳng hẹn hò với mộng du Đất trích một lần đi cách biệt Tầm Dương mấy thủa loãng oan thù Lữ hành trên chính quê hương cũ Cố lý mơ hồ bóng chiến khu … Hawthorne. 23 – 6 – 2026 CAO MỴ NHÂN https://vantholacviet.com/vtlv-trang-dac-biet-chao-mung-thi-si-tran-van-le/ https://nhanvannghethuat.com/vien-bao-tang-di-san-nguoi-viet-vietnamese-heritage-museum-ky-niem-10-nam-thanh-lap-2016-2026/

HAWAII

https://nhanvannghethuat.com/hawaii/ DU LỊCH HAWAII May 8, 2026 Khánh Lan & Mạnh Bổng Quần đảo Hawaii (Tên tiếng Mỹ: Hawaiian Islands, tên cũ: Sandwich Islands, tên tiếng Việt: Quần đảo Hạ Uy Di, là một quần đảo gồm 19 đảo, đảo san hô, cùng nhiều đảo nhỏ và núi ngầm trải theo hướng Tây Bắc – Đông Nam, nằm ở vùng Bắc Thái Bình Dương giữa các vĩ tuyến 19° và 29° Bắc. Tên của quần đảo được lấy theo tên của hòn đảo lớn nhất trong nhóm là đảo Hawaii. Quần đảo kéo dài từ đảo Hawaii ở phía Nam cho tới rạn san hô Kure ở phía Bắc. Đảo lớn nhất là Big Island, đảo lớn thứ 2 là Oahu và đảo thứ 3 là Maui. Ngoại trừ quần đảo Midway chưa được hợp nhất vào Hoa Kỳ, thì toàn bộ quần đảo Hawaii đã trở thành tiểu bang Hawaii của Hoa Kỳ (tiểu bang thứ 50) vào ngày 21 tháng 8 năm 1959, vị trí tại vùng Bắc Thái Bình Dương cách đất liền 3700 km ở 21°18’41” độ vĩ bắc 157°47’47″độ kinh đông.

The AVT Band in South Vietnam Before and After 1975

https://nhanvannghethuat.com/tam-ca-avt-ban-nhac-trao-phung-mot-thoi-de-nho/ Tam Ca AVT: Ban Nhạc Trào Phúng – Một Thời Để Nhớ May 12, 2026 Vương Trùng Dương

Viện Bảo Tàng Di Sản Người Việt -Vietnamese Heritage Museum After Ten Years (2016-2026)

https://nhanvannghethuat.com/vien-bao-tang-di-san-nguoi-viet-vietnamese-heritage-museum-ky-niem-10-nam-thanh-lap-2016-2026/

Looking Forward to the 250th Celebration of July the Fourth : The Rich, Richer and Mightier

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/financial-disclosure-1-billion-cryptocurrency-earnings-meme-coins-rcna352497 Trump’s financial disclosure lists $1.4 billion in crypto earnings, powered largely by meme coins The annual report also includes $80 million in income from settlements tied to his lawsuits against companies like ABC, CBS, Meta and YouTube. June 30, 2026, 6:27 PM CDT By Rob Wile President Donald Trump earned more than $635 million from a licensing agreement with a cryptocurrency group specializing in “meme” coins bearing his name last year, an amount that pushed his total crypto holdings past $1 billion, according to a lengthy financial disclosure form he released Tuesday. The figures from 2025 — the first year of Trump’s second term — were disclosed to the U.S. Office of Government Ethics in a 927-page document. By comparison, President Barack Obama’s final disclosure form was eight pages, while President Joe Biden’s was 11. Vice President JD Vance’s form for last year is 17 pages. Trump’s meme-coin earnings came on top of more than $236 million worth from additional crypto token sales, and an additional sale of equity worth more than $65 million associated with Trump family crypto venture World Liberty Financial. There’s also more than $290 million classified as income from cryptocurrency wallets associated with World Liberty. The $635 million was earned from a group called “Celebration Coins.” No digital footprint could be found for the group, and a representative for the Trump Organization did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday night. A recent letter from Senate Democrats said a company called “Celebration Cards” registered in Wyoming — which is now a major crypto hub — facilitated a crypto conference at Mar-a-Lago in April. “Neither the President nor his family has ever engaged — or will ever engage — in conflicts of interest,” a White House representative said in a statement Tuesday. “President Trump proudly made the United States the crypto capital of the world through executive actions, supporting legislation like the GENIUS Act, and other commonsense policies to drive innovation and economic opportunity for all Americans.” Unlike past presidents, Trump did not divest his assets or place them in a blind trust before taking office. The Trump Organization has said the assets are managed by third-party financial institutions, with trades executed through automated technology. “What strikes me as remarkable is how many pies Trump has his fingers in,” said Douglas Brinkley, a history professor at Rice University. “There is no precedent to compare it with. No president in the 20th or 21st century has had something that’s vaguely comparable.” Trump has faced bipartisan criticism for alleged conflicts of interest, assertions the White House has vigorously denied. Trump’s total crypto earnings totaled some $1.4 billion during his first year back in office, when he began making liberalized cryptocurrency regulations a cornerstone of his presidency. The disclosure also lists Trump’s investment accounts as buying and selling shares of the GEO Group, a private prison company and one of the largest contractors with ICE. Starting just 10 days after his inauguration, the disclosure shows Trump’s investment accounts made purchases of the prison company. As the number of immigrant detainees swelled from 35,000 to almost 70,000, the purchases increased with the total ranging from $143,000 to $445,000. The last purchase was listed in late November. The stock that was sold ranges from $67,000 to $180,000. Because many of the amounts listed on the disclosure form are reported as ranges, it is impossible to state exactly how much Trump earned last year from his tens of thousands of investments. Before Tuesday, Forbes estimated the president’s net worth at $6 billion, while Bloomberg put it at $7.6 billion. “This disclosure once again demonstrates that The Trump Organization continues to maintain a strong financial position, supported by world class, valuable assets, substantial liquidity and a conservative balance sheet,” a representative for Trump’s business firm said in a statement, adding that the form’s length “underscores our commitment to transparency.” “At nearly 1,000 pages, it represents one of the most comprehensive financial disclosure reports ever submitted and demonstrates a level of financial transparency unmatched in presidential history.” Other disclosures in the form include: • First lady Melania Trump making more than $10 million from licensing her image to the producers of the documentary “Melania.” • $80 million listed as income from settlements with ABC and anchor George Stephanopoulos, as well as CBS, Meta, YouTube and Sundar Pichai, chief executive of YouTube parent company Google. The proceeds from those settlements were paid to The Donald J. Trump Presidential Library Foundation Inc., according to the disclosure form. • Gifted tickets to sporting events for the president worth thousands of dollars by multiple professional team owners and the heads of various pro sports leagues including FIFA, NASCAR, PGA of America and UFC. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/birthright-citizenship-argument-shifting-medicare-covers-weight-loss-d-rcna352515 One year after President Donald Trump signed the “One Big Beautiful Bill,” it has reshaped the country — altering who gets help from the government. The most consequential legislation of Trump’s second term reaches into nearly every corner of American life. It supercharges immigration enforcement. It rewrites student loan rules. It dismantles tax incentives for electric vehicles and clean energy. It creates a national school-voucher tax credit. And at its core is a seismic shift: extending roughly $4.5 trillion in tax cuts disproportionately benefiting corporations and the wealthy over 10 years while cutting about $1.1 trillion from healthcare and food assistance programs serving poor and working-class people. Supporters frame the act as a long-overdue correction. They argue it’s reducing dependence on government programs, rooting out waste, encouraging work and making American businesses more competitive. But many health policy experts, economists and antipoverty advocates see it as something else: one of the largest transfers of resources from low-income Americans to the rich in U.S. history. NBC News poll https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/different-worlds-americans-see-huge-divide-haves-nots-new-poll-shows-rcna350523 …A majority of Americans (54%) say most Americans share the same core values but disagree about policies and issues, while 44% say most Americans have fundamentally different core values, according to the survey, which was sponsored by More Perfect, a nonpartisan nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing democracy. There are notable splits along some lines, including age and geography. But even those are overshadowed by the overwhelming shares who see sizable divisions between Republicans and Democrats (80%) and between the wealthy and the not wealthy (81%). Do you think people from these backgrounds have more that unites them than divides them, or vice versa? More than unites – Not sure – More that divides Women and men 60% …. 38% People of different races/ethnic backgrounds 59% …. 39% Immigrants and U.S.-born citizens 55% …. 43% People who went to college and did not 50% … 48% Young people and older people 46% …. 52% People in cities and rural areas 43% …. 55% Republicans and Democrats 18% …. 80% Wealthy people and not wealthy people 17% …. 81% Notes: The poll was conducted May 29-June 7 and surveyed 3,000 adults nationally. The margin of error is plus or minus 1.8 percentage points. Some questions were asked of a half-sample, which has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.5 percentage points. Source: NBC News poll …Still, most Americans say they feel disconnected from those in power, according to the NBC News poll, which was conducted by Republican pollster Bill McInturff of Public Opinion Strategies and Democratic pollster Jeff Horwitt of Hart Research Associates. An overwhelming share of respondents — 82% — agree that most ordinary Americans, regardless of political party, have more in common with one another than with people in the country who hold a lot of power. And some voters believe wealthy Americans have far more access to that power. “When it comes to politics, those that have money are able to actually have a voice that is heard and have opinions that matter, versus those of us that don’t have money,” said Amanda Larson, a 50-year-old independent from Minnesota who works in childcare. “Our opinions don’t matter. What we need doesn’t matter.” Many Americans also believe those with wealth effectively operate under a different system of justice, with 86% agreeing that in the U.S., wealthy people can often avoid consequences that ordinary people would face for the same actions. “Laws and rules don’t apply to people if they can just pay their way out of it,” said Ann, a 26-year-old Democrat from Kansas who is unemployed. Inflation - Gas Price https://www.nbcnews.com/data-graphics/gas-prices-iran-war-state-national-cost-trump-rcna265835 Average gas prices have increased more than a dollar since the U.S. and Israel first attacked Iran. In five states — Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada, Oregon and Washington — average gas prices are at or near $5 per gallon. In California prices are near $6, the highest in the nation. States toward the middle of the country are paying the least, according to AAA data. According to one analysis, the increase in gas prices since the start of the war has cost Americans more than $30 billion. The Cost of the Iran War https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/iran-war-cost-25-billion-dollars-us-munitions-hegseth-armed-services-rcna342714 Iran war has cost the U.S. $25 billion so far, Pentagon official says Acting Pentagon Comptroller Jules Hurst said most of the costs came from munitions. April 29, 2026, 10:55 AM CDT / Updated April 29, 2026, 2:10 PM CDT By Alexandra Marquez A top Pentagon official said Wednesday that the cost of the ongoing U.S. war with Iran is estimated to be $25 billion so far, as the conflict nears a 60-day mark. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/heat-wave-temperature-danger-rcna352470

The Stars and Stripes ---- To fly or not to fly an American flag on July 4th, 2026

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/america-turns-250-say-stars-stripes-now-red-flag-rcna345939 June 29, 2026, 5:01 AM CDT By Corky Siemaszko As nation turns 250, many Americans say the Stars and Stripes is now a red flag The American flag: To some, it’s Old Glory. To others, it’s a MAGA hat on a stick. https://media-cldnry.s-nbcnews.com/image/upload/t_fit-560w,f_avif,q_auto:eco,dpr_2/rockcms/2026-06/260625-rebecca-dyer-quote-lr-71c4e8.jpg .... The country may be 250 years old, but until the mid- to late-19th century, flags were displayed mainly on government buildings, historians say. It wasn’t until after the Civil War and the 1876 centennial celebration that Americans started flying their own in earnest. Bruce Watson stands in front of an American flag The battle over who can lay claim to America’s flag, historians say, has been raging since at least the Vietnam War, when both Democrats and Republicans waved it at demonstrations for or against the conflict that divided the nation. “The right used it to make the point that patriotism meant that the U.S. could do no wrong even when it did,” said Alex Wagner, an adjunct professor at Syracuse University’s Maxwell School of Citizenship & Public Affairs. “People on the left used it to make the point that we as Americans shouldn’t be fighting a war that’s at odds with our national principles, like that of self-determination.” But it was the hard right that “seized the flag” and began smearing all liberals as unpatriotic, said Sean Wilentz, a historian at Princeton University. “Conservative and right-wing politicians went along with this, exploited it, and the dialectic of disaffection worsened,” Wilentz said, adding that Trump has amplified that brand of patriotism. Even so, Wagner said, Americans should be embracing the Stars and Stripes.“Our flag is ever-evolving, like our country,” he said. “The United States has evolved from 13 colonies to the 50-state union that it is now, and the flag has changed along with it. It’s not MAGA’s flag. It’s not Trump’s flag. It’s the American flag, and it belongs to all of us.”