Monthly Archives: July 2026

A sad anniversary

On its 250th anniversary this is not the nation I once knew.




Our flag. Crown Graphic 4×5, 135mm Xenar, Kodak film.

I left the failed nation of England for America 49 years ago, full of anticipation and hope for this new adventure.

Today, the America I so proudly joined in 1977 is unrecognizable.

– Where there was love now there is hate.
– Where there was tolerance now there is bigotry.
– Where minds were open now they are closed.
– Where there was adulation of education now there is denigration.
– Where there was a Great Society now every man is out for himself.
– Where there was a decent leader now there is a common criminal.
– Where immigrants were welcomed with open arms now there is ICE.
– Where children could look forward to a better future than their parents now they cannot.
– Where there was peace now there is endless war.
– Where there was a thrust for equality now we have the greatest inequality since the Gilded Age.

I weep for my adopted country.

Independence Hall

In Philadelphia.

Snaps from a trip in 2019.



Independence Hall where both the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution were signed.


Independence Hall is very well maintained – here’s the clock tower.


The Court Room inside the Hall.


The architecture has withstood time well.


The Hall room where the Declaration of Independence was signed on July 4, 1776.


The Liberty Bell, crack and all. Wikipedia has the story of this mess.
Independence Hall is in the background.

All snaps on the Panny GX7 with the 12-35mm pro zoom.