United States Air Force Academy

Postcard US-4036245 from Colorado shows the United States Air Force Academy (USAFA), located in Colorado Springs, Colorado. According to Wikipedia, it is the youngest of the five United States service academies, with its first class graduated in 1959. Graduates of the Academy's four-year program receive a Bachelor of Science degree, and are commissioned as second lieutenants in the United States Air Force. The Academy is also one of the largest tourist attractions in Colorado, receiving close to one million visitors every year.

President Obama attended the Academy's 2016 graduation ceremony yesterday on June 2, 2016 as the keynote speaker. In his final commencement address of his presidency, Obama shared some of the lessons he learned in the White House as president and commander-in-chief, and warned the graduating cadets about isolationism.

The United States Air Force Thunderbirds performed during the graduation ceremony. However, one of its fighter jets crashed on its way back to the Peterson Air Force Base after the fly-over demonstration.

Faneuil Hall Marketplace, Boston

Postcard US-3230012 from Boston was a shaped card showing Faneuil Hall Marketplace near the waterfront and today's Government Center in Boston, Massachusetts. Built in 1743, it has been served as a marketplace and a meeting hall since. Because its significance in history as the site of several speeches by Samuel Adams, James Otis, and others encouraging independence from Great Britain, it is known as "the Cradle of Liberty." Faneuil Hall was designated as a National Historic Landmark in 1960. One of those famous stops on the Freedom Trail, Faneuil Hall Marketplace is part of Boston National Historical Park that was added to National Register of Historic Places in 1966.

Boston’s St. Patrick’s Day parade made history today as two LGBT groups marched for the first time after decades of opposition. In 1995, the parade organizers took its battle to exclude LGBT groups to the U.S. Supreme Court and won on First Amendment grounds. Boston’s mayors had boycotted the event since. With an inclusive parade this year, Boston Mayor Marty Walsh, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker and other political leaders such as first-term U.S. Representative Seth Moulton took part.

Boston broken another record today after receiving 2.9-inch snow by Sunday evening. A seasonal total of 108.6 inches so far, it has broken Boston’s old record of 107.6 inches since the winter of 1995-96. The buildup of previous snow on side streets even caused the organizers of the St. Patrick's Day Parade, billed as the second largest in the U.S. in terms of spectators, to shorten the route.

#HeForShe: Emma Watson on Women's Rights

Harry Potter movie star Emma Watson, a Global Goodwill Ambassador for UN Women, calling on men to join her #HeForShe campaign for gender equality during a powerful speech in New York City on Saturday September 20, 2014.

Gender equality is not only a women's issue, as she pointed out: "I've seen young men suffering from illness, unable to ask for help for fear it will make them less of a man ... I've seen men fragile and insecure by a distorted sense of what constitutes male success. Men don't have the benefits of equality, either. We don't often talk about men being imprisoned by gender stereotypes but I can see that they are."

An anonymous user at 4Chan website had threatened to leak nude photos of the actress for speaking out. The incident highlights the current unequal social landscape in a long history of bullying against women both on and off the Internet. It adds urgency to act: "If not me, who? If not now, when?"

The featured postcard was a Harry Potter stamped card showing Hermione Granger, a fictional character played by Emma Watson in the Harry Potter series. It was sent in for a black and white or “hand cancel” first-day-of-issue postmark of 1.733" x 1.222″ in size.

Fast Food Workers Demand Living Wage

President Obama said in his Labor Day speech at Milwaukee, Wisconsin: “All across the country right now there’s a national movement going on made up of fast-food workers organizing to lift wages so they can provide for their families with pride and dignity.” Meanwhile, organizers representing fast food workers around the country are planning a one-day strike next Thursday on September 4, 2014 at restaurants such as McDonald’s, Wendy’s and KFC in 150 cities, demanding a living wage of $15 per hour and the right to unionize. The Bureau of Labor Statistics had the average hourly wage for restaurant workers at $8.74 as of May 2013.

The campaign started with 200 fast-food workers in New York City in November 2012. It has since gained momentum as 13 states increased their minimum wages at the beginning of 2014 and Seattle approved a $15 minimum wage. According to Chicago Tribune, "in May, 101 McDonald’s workers were peacefully arrested for trespassing at a protest outside the company’s Oak Brook headquarters. Since then, the so-called Fight for $15 campaign has continued to raise awareness of its goals of unionizing fast food workers and raising their wages to $15 an hour."

The featured postcard shows a McDonald's Restaurant at Sahara Paradise Plaza in Las Vegas, as seen from the Stratosphere Tower.

JFK Assassination Anniversary

JFK at Inauguration

I was at the post office today and noticed the U.S. flag was flown at half staff. President Barack Obama has ordered that flags be lowered at government buildings on November 22, 2013 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of President John F. Kennedy's assassination.

U.S. Post Office Garside Station on November 22, 2013

However, personally I feel it's more important to remember what JFK attempted to achieve and than how he was assassinated. So, I went to watch his inauguration speech on YouTube.

After more than 50 years and many progresses have been made, many of his statements and challenges still ring true. One of many that stood out was "if a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich."

Then, "...... we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe, in order to assure the survival and the success of liberty. This much we pledge -- and more."

This much I pledge.

As a token of resolution, I went online and bought a copy of the postcard showing JFK was delivering his inauguration speech on January 20, 1961. You can purchase your own copy here.

One Year Later: Obama and Same Sex Marriage

LGBT Supporters with Bill Clinton for Obama Re-Election in 2012 

This postcard is made to mark the anniversary of President Obama's endorsement for same-sex marriage on May 9, 2012. On the postcard, a "LGBT for Obama" banner was held high when former President Bill Clinton spoke during a rally at the the Springs Preserve in Las Vegas on October 9, 2012.

Jonathan Capehart had a blog on "Obama and gay marriage: one fabulous year" at Washington Post that documented major related events in the year following Obama's announcement. (updated on May 10, 2013: he had a new blog titled "Minnesota, Clinton and Obama: More gay firsts" following a 75 to 49 vote on May 9, 2013 in the Minnesota State House to legalize same-sex marriage.)

The postcard can be purchased at Zazzle.com