Five Things Visitors Will Love and Hate About the U.S.

I found this neat video on the Wolters World channel in YouTube - a site providing information and advice regarding travel, life and languages abroad.  This video, however, concerns the United States.

If I were asked by someone from a foreign country what I believe they could expect to both dislike and love about this country from a tourist's standpoint, I couldn't do better than this. 

How They Make Orange Juice

Another "How They Make ...." video from the Discovery Channel. I drive through this area several times a year and am often tempted to pull over onto the shoulder and sneak into a grove to grab an orange or two from a tree.

But I get a vision on having to remove buckshot from my rear end ..... so I keep on driving.

DC Emancipation Act - 150th Anniversity

One hundred fifty years ago this April President Abraham Lincoln signed into law the DC Emancipation Act which freed slaves in the District of Columbia.  While several individual states had previously abolished slavery, this was the first step by the Federal Government in the process to legally end slavery in all of the United States.

The following year, 1863 the President issued the Emancipation Proclamation freeing slaves in the states that had seceded from the Union.  With the end of the Civil War and when the several border states within the Union that still permitted slavery independently abolished it, this disgraceful chapter in American history was ended.

This very interesting video was uploaded to YouTube by the US National Archives to commemorate the occasion.

Tom Cruise Scientology Rant

There have been over seven million views of this video on YouTube in which Tom Cruise discusses Scientology.  I found the video to be both fascinating and disturbing - not about Scientology, about which I know very little - but because Tom Cruise becomes progressively more weird as the video plays out.

Frankly, I think he's nuts!  At around the 4:30 mark of the video he especially appears to be close to "going around the bend".  I would be frightened to be in the same room with him.

Win a Car!

Wow! A giveaway of 5 Ford autos! And all anyone now has to do is use a time machine and go back to California in 1932 and go to the movies! I can hardly believe it, but I am so old that I can remember seeing those Fords (not the exact ones!) on the road.

How Hot Dogs Are Made

I have a package of hot dogs in my refrigerator's freezer.  They will likely remain there until memory of this video fades.

WW2 Internment of Japanese-Americans

The United States has much in its history for which it can be justifiably proud.  On the whole I believe the World is a better place because of the United States and I am proud to be an American.  But there are also things in our history which are shameful - certainly slavery and the treatment of the original native population come immediately to mind.  I believe it's important that we remember the bad as well as the good - that we always be cognizant of what we are capable of, and be prepared to resist those among us who would appeal to our basest instincts.

The internment of Japanese-American citizens during World War 2 is another shameful incident in American history. While it may have been argued that it was a means of protecting Japanese-Americans against widespread anti-Japanese sentiment in the country, and there likely was some question as to the loyalties of a few,  the blanket imprisonment of American citizens without suspicion or cause solely because of their race is totally unjustifiable.

This new YouTube video from the Unknown World War 2 in Color channel shows views of Japanese-Americans before and during internment and the US Army 442nd Regiment; composed entirely of  Japanese enlistees who fought in Europe during the war with great distinction.

Jump! Jump! - The Wisconsin Jump Around

I believe college provides an ideal transition to adulthood. Naturally students are expected to act in a mature manner most of the time, both in one's studies and in the conduct of personal relationships with faculty, staff and peers. But, as opposed to those entering the 'real world' immediately after high school, they enjoy the privilege of acting like five year olds in certain conditions - and that behavior is perfectly acceptable; sometimes even encouraged. One can gradually morph into adulthood while still occasionally enjoying the comforts of childhood and its attendant irresponsibility - at least that's the way I view it.

I thought about this, recalling my own experiences in college, when I watched the YouTube video below. During the break between the third and fourth quarters of football games in Camp Randall Stadium at the University of Wisconsin, all the students seated at one end of the stadium, numbering maybe 20,000 or more, and anyone else who gets caught up in the enthusiasm, commences to jump up and down throughout the loudspeakers blaring "Jump Around" by the band House of Pain. The marching band, all down on the field leads this mass silliness. Engineers insist that the structure can withstand this activity, but it has to be a bit scary to be there and feel the entire stadium vibrate. I know if I ever attended a game there I would obtain seats as far from the student section as possible.

The lunacy starts in this video at approximately the 45 second mark. You will see that even some of the opposing players can't stop themselves from joining in. To fully appreciate this I recommend viewing the video full screen at at least 720p resolution.

Cute Mascot

Here is one of the cutest and funniest mascots in action.  The person inside has to be rather small because he or she completely turned around inside the costume twice during the routine.

Drum Major Tryout

I never thought much about drum majors, even though I love marching bands.  I noticed them strutting in front of their bands and occasionally tossing batons.  And I knew they had major leadership responsibilities.  But it was the band's marching and music that always drew my attention.

This video of a try out for Ohio State University's Drum Major was among the related videos highlighted with a band performance video I watched, so I clicked on the link out of curiosity.  This guy's talent talent blew my mind.  Incidentally, he won the try outs.

Berlin (1936) in Color

This fantastic video shows Berlin in 1936, the year of the Olympics, in color and excellent resolution. I found it on YouTube in the UnknownWW2InColor channel maintained by the Romano Archives. That channel, which I subscribe to, contains hundreds of color films from the WW2 era made by government, press and private photographers of all the participants.

This video was remastered in high resolution, so it looks great in full screen.

Tacoma Narrows Bridge Collapse

I first saw this newsreel of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge collapse when I was very young. It is most likely the reason that I am always a wee bit nervous whenever I drive on a bridge The bridge, which crossed Puget Sound in the state of Washington, opened on July 1, 1940 and collapsed four months later, on November 7, 1940. World War 2 caused postponement of plans to replace the bridge. The new bridge opened in 1950.

Tom Brokaw Explains Canada to Americans

In this beautiful little piece aired on NBC prior to the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics newsman Tom Brokaw explains the unique relationship between the United States and Canada.

Pete Maravich

Pete Maravich was one of my favorite basketball players. This video found on YouTube shows highlights of his fantastic career both in college and the pros. In addition to being an outstanding scorer at both the collegiate and professional levels he was an outstanding passer and one of the all-time most colorful players.

Maravich played three seasons for Louisiana State University ending in 1970, a period in which freshman were not permitted to play on varsity teams, and had a ten year career in the National Basketball Association in which he averaged over 24 points per game and led the league in scoring one season.

The following charts illustrate his dominance as a scorer in college:

Top Five Major College Scorers in a Career (Total Points)

 3,667 - Pete Maravich   Louisiana St.   1967-1970   44.2 PPG
 3,249 - Freeman Williams   Portland St.   1974-1978   30.7 PPG
 3,217 - Lional Simmons   LaSalle   1986-1990   24.6 PPG
 3,165 - Alphonso Ford   Miss. Val.St.   1989-1993   29.0 PPG
 3,066 - Harry Kelly   Texas Southern   1979-1983   27.9 PPG


Top Five Major College Scorers in a Season (PPG)

 44.5 - Pete Maravich   1969/70   Louisiana St  . 1,381 Points
 44.2 - Pete Maravich   1968/69   Louisiana St.   1,148 Points
 43.8 - Pete Maravich   1967/68   Louisiana St.   1,138 Points
 41.7 - Frank Selvy   1953/54 Furman   1,209 Points
 40.1 - Johnny Newman   1970/71   Mississippi  923 Points

In January 1988 Pete Maravich collapsed and died after competing in a half-court pickup basketball game.  He was just 40 years old.  An autopsy revealed the cause of death to be a rare congenital heart defect; he had been born with a missing left coronary artery.  His right coronary artery was grossly enlarged and had been compensating for the defect.



This YouTube video is a tribute to Maravich on CBS television shortly after his death.

Nuclear Testing

This amazing YouTube video shows every nuclear explosion from 1945 through 1998, month by month, with a running count for each country. In total, 2053, beginning with the first US test in 1945 through a 1998 test by Pakistan. -- very scary

Andy Rooney

For over 30 years the highlight of CBS' Sunday night news magazine for me has been the few minutes with Andy Rooney, WW 2 war correspondent, author and writer of numerous television documentaries. At the age of 92 Andy still produces weekly sometimes witty and sometimes serious thought provoking essays.

Here are two of the many that can be found on CBS's YouTube channel.

USC Drumline Cadence

This is a video featuring the drumline of the University of Southern California. Absolutely fantastic. But I pity their poor parents!

Ominous Storm Clouds at Football Game

This YouTube video shows very scary looking storm clouds approaching Kansas State University's stadium during a September, 2010 game between Kansas State and Central Florida University in Manhattan, Kansas. The game was suspended for an hour and a half. It is amazing how many of the crowd remained in the open as the storm approached. I can guarantee that I would have been under the stands in record time, coward that I am!

How to Terrify Children

This Civil Defense film from 1951 is a typical example of the propaganda we children were subjected to in the early days of the Cold War. The intention may not have been to scare the Bejesus out of us but that certainly was the result.

I recall often wondering on mornings as I left for school if it was going to be my last day on Earth. I also recall the frequent A-Bomb drills at school where sirens alerted us to duck and cower beneath our desks so we could get our clothes dirty!

Ad for 1956 Studebaker

The 1956 Studebakers in this advertisement I found on YouTube look great to me; not like 55 year old relics. They look like what I think cars should look like. Today's cars look like wieners on wheels to me.

I am not normally one obsessed with the "good old days". I like to think of myself as being "with it" even though the calendar suggests that I am rapidly approaching relic status. But in the case of automobiles I feel that modern designs suck from an aesthetic standpoint.