2026: THE YEAR AHEAD

 HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYBODY!

While others pause to look back, The Free Choice E-zine prefers to look ahead and see what 2026 has in store.

Besides being the start of a new year, January 1 is also Public Domain Day as any material from 1930 no longer copyright protected falls into public domain. This includes the Mickey Mouse and Betty Boop cartoons from that year, but NOT the characters themselves, as well as Agatha Christie’s very first Miss Marple mystery: The Murder In The Vicarage and the original versions of the very first four Nancy Drew novels but again, NOT the characters themselves.

America celebrates its 250th anniversary of Independence on July 4, 2026.

Of course the bigger news within the United States is the upcoming mid-term elections this November that the Trump/Republican regime are worried about, hence all the voting district gerrymandering that has been going on in some states lately.

Although Republicans control both sides of Congress at the moment, their majority in the House of Representatives is slim compared to the Senate. Between incumbents announcing their retirements and new challengers wanting even positions that have been Republican controlled for years, the balance of political power in Congress might be totally different by the end of January 2027 when all the winners are sworn into office.

There is also the upcoming Winter Olympics in Italy between February 6-22. Whether or not the Ukraine will be sending athletes to compete remains to be seen as that country continues to defend itself against invading Russia.

And elsewhere through the coming year…

205 YEARS AGO

February 24 witnessed Mexico declaring its independence from Spain.

March 26 saw Greece gain its independence from the Ottoman Empire.

125 YEARS AGO

January 1 saw Australia being proclaimed a commonwealth of Great Britain.

80 YEARS AGO

July 5 witnessed the debut of the bikini, and women’s fashions haven’t been the same since.

65 YEARS AGO

March 1 marks the founding of the Peace Corps.

55 YEARS AGO

April 30 witnessed the first Lunar Rover traversing the surface of the moon.

The Free Choice E-zine will not be idle in 2026 either as we celebrate both our 3,300TH AND 3,400TH posts before the close of the new year just on the strength of our regular features THE PUZZLE CORNER and THE WEEK IN REVIEW on Saturdays and THE SUNDAY FUNNIES.

However you look at it, this is going to be an interesting year so please keep visiting and reading!

Lee Houston, Junior

Editor-In-Chief: The Free Choice E-zine

1 January, 2026