Independence Day - Pictures of "America"

Well, once again it's 4th of July time. Yep, Independence Day is tomorrow - the day we in the USA celebrate our independence from England.

Most people shorthand "the United States of America" as just "America."

And "America" means a lot of different things to different people.

Instead of going in depth and boring prose on what it means to me, I'll let pictures do the talking. More specifically, pictures I've taken over the last several years.

With that as set up, below are three "teaser" pictures for a full set of images that I think in one way or the other - and as a whole - capture some of the best things about the United States of America. That full set can be seen by clicking HERE.


Grand Canyon in Arizona
Copyright - Marc Osborn

Independence Hall in Philadelphia
Copyright - Marc Osborn



Sun Studios in Memphis
Copyright - Marc Osborn














Team USA Wins...Moves On to Next Round of Wold Cup!

Oh what a difference one run down the field can make.

After wasting opportunity after opportunity to score goals vs. Algeria in their World Cup match today, "The Yanks" finally put one in at the VERY end of the game.

And what a goal.

Scoring it means that they advance on to the next round of the tournament.

Scoring it means they win Group C...the first time USA has won a group since 1930s.

Scoring it means they get an easier draw for their next opponent as they will play the runner up in Group D rather than the group's winner.

Scoring it means USA soccer can hold its head high rather than slink home a la France or some other nations who turned in less than impressive showings.

Scoring it means more Americans will get to see USA soccer.

So, great job Yanks!

But now things get even more difficult, and from this point forward it's "loser out."

And lets face it, as much as we all will be rooting for a win for Team USA, the odds are not good. Why you may ask? Well, in three group games the trends are disturbing. Too many breakdowns on defense. Too many misses on easy open net goal opportunities. Too many times US players were a step to late or too slow. Too many sloppy turnovers in midfield. Too much possession time by opponents.

Sure, they were criminally robbed of two goals by referees, but overall the type of play on display will very likely get you beat at the next level.

But hey, for now let the celebration commence. USA is through to the next round and that's a BIG deal. It's exciting and a major accomplishment for the nation's soccer team.

And you never know. Sports are the ultimate "reality TV." Who knows how we'll do in the next game. Maybe we'll work the magic once again.

Here's hoping!

World Cup 2010: Why Soccer Isn't So Popular In the USA

The World Cup starts this month. Will anyone in America watch?

Certainly yes. But, despite it being THE big sport in virtually every nation on the globe, soccer definately isn't nearly as popular in the USA as it is elsewhere.

I've always wondered why this might be...especially considering that teams from the USA have done decently well in World Cups gone by.

CNN has a good story HERE that explains some of the reasons soccer hasn't taken off in the United States.

Popular or not, I'll be watching the World Cup and rooting for our team to advance as far as possible.

Know Your History - Iran

Anybody paying attention to the news knows there is some serious stuff going on in Iran right now as many in that nation are openly protesting against the conservative religious government over what appears to be rigged elections.

As of last week, the Iranian leaders have started to talk about how the unrest in their country is being orchestrated by the U.K. and the U.S.A. This sounds paranoid, and it's definitely a diversionary tactic on the government's part to cover up whatever they've done.

However, it's not all that surprising why the Iranians would bring this up as a reason for the protests and unrest. Why you may ask? Know your history I say.

Turns out, we and the Brits did in fact overthrow a democratically elected Iranian government back in the 1950s...installing the Shah of Iran who ruled as a dictator and ensured the west got its oil for cheap. The Shah was in turn overthown by a revolution against his dictatorship in 1979...a popular uprising led by the current religous leaders.

And, lets not forget that the U.S. backed one Saddam Hussein in the long running and horrific Iran/Iraq war in the 1980s.

So, there is a rich history of western involvement in overthrowing the Iranian goverment. Based on that, it's plausable for the Iranian goverment to use the spectre of our influence as an excuse for what's happening now in their attempts to shift attention and blame.

Check out the info on the US-backed coup on Wikipedia here.

All of this goes a long ways to explaining why the Iranian government is saying what it is about the west right now, and it also helps inform why President Obama is not projecting a loud and aggressive tone on this issue right now.