THANK YOU US Capitol Police for Defending Democracy from Terrorist Attack on 1/6/2021 American Heroes!

T-Shirt for Sale: Click Here!

all my Royalties Donated to Charity.

and another Real Life Hero... 

My Friend Mike Johnson (the San Jose, CA  Policeman) Was Murdered in the Line of Duty. He Was a Great Guy. He a Responding to a Domestic Violence Call. The Criminal Shot Mike and then Was Shot by other SJPD Officers... The Criminal Died... 

Mike and I worked together at the Branham Lane Radio Shack during the 1990s. We had many lengthy debates at our store while waiting for customers to show up... He and I disagreed on almost every subject but it was an interesting intellectual stimulation to talk to him. One thing we disagreed about was his joining the Police Force. I was opposed to it because it is a High Risk Profession... Tragically, I was unable to convince him that his opinion was wrong. He joined and died. He should have studied electronics and went to work at a Computer Factory. He was really smart... and had a great grasp of electronics...

Funeral Today in San Jose. 4/2/2015 8,000 People attended.

Article from the Newspaper... SJ Mercury News

SJPD Officer Michael Johnson: Police, family, community say goodbye to hometown hero. 

A community came to a stop Thursday. It paused as a long procession of sorrow slowly traveled through streets lined with people paying their respects. At the downtown SAP Center, a somber sea of law enforcement, shoulder to shoulder, gathered to mourn the death of San Jose police Officer Michael Johnson.

It was there, amid an emotional day of tears and anguish, that David Solis made a simple request. Solis, a police academy classmate of Johnson, noted the "Shark Tank" normally was the site of raucous hockey games.

"This is obviously something different," said Solis, now a Menlo Park officer. "But I truly believe Mike is looking down on us right now. So I would like us to give Mike a standing ovation for the life that he gave to us."

And for the next two minutes, SAP roared with the sound of deafening cheers and clapping.

They stood to thank a man who was shot and killed in the line of duty on March 24 while responding to an emergency call. But true to Solis' words, this memorial, which drew more than 8,000 people, focused on his life, not his death. Colleagues remembered him as the epitome of everything a police officer should be -- fair, firm and compassionate. Family remembered him as someone who always was there for them.

Bishop Patrick J. McGrath, the head of the Catholic Diocese of San Jose, compared Johnson, who was 38, to a meteorite that flashes across the sky and disappears all too quickly.

"They don't last long, but those who experience their light remain forever dazzled," McGrath said. "And that was true with Mike."

California Attorney General Kamala Harris, the state's top law enforcement official, said Johnson's death underscores the inherent risks police face every day they put on a uniform.

"This ultimate sacrifice is an eternal reminder that safety comes at a supreme price, and that price must always be remembered by a grateful state and her people," Harris said.

In the time-honored tradition of police memorials, law enforcement came from around the country, representing agencies from distant states, including Illinois, Texas and New York. But the death of Johnson, a married, 14-year veteran of the force, has been most keenly felt in his hometown of San Jose.

That's why residents took to the streets as the procession made its way from a Los Gatos funeral home to SAP, evoking the sort of patriotism seen on the Fourth of July. Diane Urbano and Patrick Donahue held signs that read "Rest In Peace Michael Johnson" in Los Gatos. Small children in strollers waved tiny American flags.

At St. Lucy Catholic Parish church on Winchester Boulevard, bells tolled as more than 350 schoolchildren in their blue plaid uniforms stood quietly, also holding American flags, as the motorcade passed.

"All of us are so appreciative of the sacrifices all police officers have made for the community," Pastor Kevin Joyce said. "We all feel this tragedy."

Marianne Williams and Carol Jerger stopped ironing church linens for Easter Sunday to join the sidewalk tribute.

"He's one of ours," said Williams, choking up. "Police have been so good to me over the years."

As the motorcade passed Santana Row, Morgan Hill resident Terry Shaffer waved a large American flag, tears filling his eyes.

Jeff Sauer, a 20-year San Jose resident, said he often walks his dog through Jeffrey Fontana Park, past the bronze statue honoring the last SJPD officer killed on duty, in 2001. He said news of Johnson's death impacted him much differently this time.

"It's such a tough job they have, and I know they're understaffed," said Sauer, 47. "I was a younger man last time this happened -- I have a different level of respect now."

At SAP, an entire length of Autumn Street was filled, rows deep with police officers and their families who were silent as the motorcade arrived. Law enforcement officers -- including from departments in Los Angeles, Riverside, Benicia, Vacaville, Lodi, Fresno and Hanford -- saluted the hearse carrying Johnson.

Inside the arena, the crowd was pin-drop quiet as a bagpipe player and honor guard escorted pallbearers carrying the fallen officer's casket to the foot of a stage.

Speakers remembered Johnson as a loving husband, son and uncle, loyal friend, committed police officer and shining light in the lives of the people who knew him best.

Jamie Radack, Johnson's older sister, offered the crowd a glimpse into her brother's upbringing and his apparent destiny to protect and serve, in part to follow in their father's footsteps as a police officer.

"I knew he would grow up to become a cop," Radack said. "Whenever Mike and I played cops and robbers as kids, he always insisted on being the cops and I always had to be the bad guys.

"That turned out to be fortuitous, not just because Mike grew up to become a cop, but I grew up to become a lawyer," she said, eliciting laughter from the crowd.

Radack also recalled her brother's commitment to mastering everything he did.

"He didn't just play chess, he was captain of the chess team," she said. "He didn't just do jiujitsu, he became an instructor. He didn't just make a cheesecake, he made the best damned cheesecake you ever had from our grandma's supersecret recipe. And he not only kept the recipe secret, he literally stored it in his gun safe. He didn't just scuba dive, he dove with great white sharks in the Farallon Islands."

And she lamented the loss of a person who was tirelessly devoted to his family. Her brother was the one who helped with every move, always was the designated driver and made it to every family event no matter how briefly, sometimes while in uniform.

He shared his love of martial arts with both her children, teaching his niece how to do a sleeper-hold when she was 3. He would play Barbies with her, too.

"Mike loved his family with his entire heart and he expressed that love by always being present," she said. "And now, he's gone."

Police Chief Larry Esquivel described March 24 as the hardest day of his career. But Esquivel added that he and the rest of the department have been heartened by the vast outpouring of public support in the wake of the tragedy.

"The state of the San Jose Police Department is strong, and that's because of officers like Michael," Esquivel said. —... This horrific event has galvanized our city. It's made our big city feel like a small community."

Solis remembered his friend chose "to live differently," and that included becoming a police officer. He spoke directly to current police academy cadets and told them that in the face of the tragedy, to turn to Johnson's sense of duty as inspiration.

It was a plea made all the more poignant by the fact that Fontana was a member of the same academy class as Johnson.

"To Mike," he added, "We thank you for your life and your sacrifice to us. Death did not make you a hero. You were already a hero while you lived. You are forever stitched to us, bonded to us, and now your heart will beat through ours."

The memorial concluded with one final police ritual. A San Jose police dispatcher broadcast was piped into the arena, making a symbolic, last call.

"Officer Michael Johnson, badge 3718," the dispatcher said. "Officer Johnson, you will always be remembered and honored for your service and bravery. End of watch, March 24, 2015. Attention all units: Resume all normal traffic."

Then, the procession reformed outside to complete this painful journey at Oak Hill Cemetery, where a private funeral service was scheduled. Officers streamed out of SAP, some wiping their eyes and hugging one another. They once again lined up to salute Johnson and his family.

One officer instructed others to stand straight and bring their right hands to their heads in salute.

"It's time for him to go home."

Staff writers Julia Prodis Sulek, Katie Nelson, Erin Ivie, and Sal Pizarro contributed to this report.

HOW TO HELP
Donations to support the family of Officer Michael Johnson can be made online at sjpoa.com/donations or by mail to the San Jose Police Officers' Association, 1151 N. Fourth St., with checks payable to SJPOACF with "Michael Johnson" in the memo line.

Source: http://www.mercurynews.com/crime-courts/ci_27839580/sjpd-officer-michael-johnson-police-family-community-say

Gimme an 'F'- and the Crowd Shouts 'F' - Gimme a 'U' - and they Shout 'U' - Gimme an 'N' - and they Shout 'N' --- What's That Spell? 'FUN' - What's That Spell? 'FUN' - What's That Spell? 'FUN' - Quotation of Wavy Gravy at the Ram Dass Funeral...

Of Course, To Understand This Chant It Would Be Handy To Know Who Ram Dass Was and To Have Seen the Country Joe and the Fish Performance of Fixing to Die Rag at Woodstock...

LINK: Poster for Sale at Zazzle Gregvan

All Royalties Donated to Charity

and THIS is What Wavy Gravy is Doing NOW...
https://www.campwinnarainbow.org/

Camp Winnarainbow is a socially minded, justice focused organization founded by Hippy Icon, Flower Geezer, Poet, Activist Wavy Gravy in 1975. Wavy was later joined by his wife Jahanara, who has been a very important part of creating who we are as a Camp Winnarainbow community.  Utilizing all the ideals and teachings they learned through traveling the world, being a part of their Hog Farm community, and their devotion to “do something good for a change”, the philosophies and values of Camp Winnarainbow were created. Through the years our culture and traditions have been created from the inspiration and ingenuity of the staff and campers who have become the Winnarainbow community. Our motto is Toward the Fun!

Winnarainbow is fortunate to rent our facility in Laytonville from the Black Oak Ranch every summer. The land, with it’s sacred Black Oak trees, beautiful Streeter Creek, wide open field and surrounding mountains are very much a part of the Camp experience. We at Camp acknowledge that we are on Cahto Wylaki Tribal Lands. We also pay respect to the Yuki, Concow Maidu, Little Lake and other Pomo, Nomlaki, and Pit River People’s and extend this respect to all Tribal communities of our region. To read about why our camper’s sleep in tipi’s, which are traditional lodging for the Native People’s of the Plains, please read our We Stand In Responsibility to Be Change page.

A 2nd generation of leaders have been mentored by Wavy and Jah to step into their roles at Camp. This new leadership brings with them the wisdom from Wavy and Jah and a fierce dedication to continue to grow Camp Winnarainbow’s vision to meet the complex world of today and the future. Together we CAN create a peaceful, sustainable, harmonious World!

a meme that fits the FaceBorg 

"My Story" - READ RAM DASS

I just found this poem,

written by Ram Dass after Jerry died.

Jerry's Gone

Jerry's dead

An era has ended

And here we are...still.

All these years,

The Dead concerts have been spirit

Made manifest,

Deep connections into...

Living Vibrant Love

Now The high priest has split.

The Tao Te Ching speaks of the best leader as one who leaves

The people thinking they did it all themselves.

Jerry was that kind of a leader.

He turned the power back to the people.

He, and the band...they have never really bought into

****SUPERSTARDOM****

They have seen themselves

more as catalysts

In the magical mix of the moment

That allowed each person at the gathering to feel safe enough to

Become self-luminous.

So now Jerry has dropped his body...

And here we are... still.

Through him and his mythic playmates came the sound that Connected us to our deeper selves...

This was our spiritual practice... our doorway...

Genuinely ours... and it worked...

Now Jerry isn't

And we are...still.

So... has all that free form ecstasy

That we garnered from an otherwise shadow world

Transformed us? Or made us more free?

Or Has it just left us a group of

Sad Grateful Dead addicts

In withdrawal?

For sure we will grieve the monumental loss of our friend...Jerry

For a long...long...long...time.

Most likely we will go through some powerful depression

And despair...

We may even court cynicism...

After all...it's not easy to lose your connection.

But Jerry's legacy to us is more profound than all of that.

He is in us...

Just as we have been in him.

We have all been not a tribe... or a family,

But a bubble of awareness

Riding upon the ocean of sound

That is in and beyond the sounds we ear hear.

Now it's up to us to co-create other safe spaces

Where we can listen to hear what Jerry heard

And to allow our love-light to Shine.

Jerry is gone in one form, But...like the magician that he is,

He has explosively been transformed into

A million Jerrys... One...improvising in each of our hearts. Jerry...We express our gratefulness...

By becoming the memory of you.

-Ram Dass

Patti and Our Dad's Funerals. - and Traveling to Los Gatos from Eureka and Back... Part of My Autobiography...

At our Dad's Funeral I got to have a personal conversation with every person that attended. We had all afternoon and each of us talked until we did not need to talk anymore. That was very healing.

My brother showed a Slideshow of Family Photographs and described who and what they were all about... He had inherited all the shoe boxes of family photos and albums and there were many pictures that we had not seen. This show was very popular with the people that attended. I Had Written a Long Speech That I Had Planned to say at the Funeral. However, I Decided to Not Say anything. I Had Already Done All the Talking I Needed to do. I Had Previously Emailed my Speech to Many Friends and Family and That was Enough. I Got a Lot of Positive Feedback About That Email... I Did Play the Piano.

We waited a year before we had Dad's Funeral. It was in the same year that Patti died so there was just too much grief to have Dad's Funeral any sooner. We had it at the Unitarian Church on Blossom Hill road in Los Gatos. From the Church you could see the "Top of the Hill" tuberculosis sanitarium that Dad lived at as a child. I found it Appropriate That I Could See The Beginning of Dad's Life in Los Gatos and The End at the Same time. 

One man told me that he always wished that he had Dad's courage to speak up during meetings.   Dad was not shy and freely expressed his opinions. This instance the Man was Referring to was at a Park Commission meeting and another member was droning on and on and on about something when Dad spoke up and told the speaker "We have already heard all of that, why don't you go on to a new subject."

I also got to Meet Kathy Nunn's Mom. I was a Friend of Kathy's From School and Her Mom was a Part of Dad's Bridge Club. I Always Imagines That She was Dad's Girlfriend but That was All in My Imagination. Since I Dreamed of Being Kathy's Boyfriend, I Wondered if Dad Felt the Same. They Were Both Stunningly Beautiful Women. 

Martin, Vanessa and I Drove Down Highway #280 from San Francisco to Los Gatos Early that Day so we could Help the Caterers set Stuff Up. During that Ride I Told Them the "Box of Rain" Story about a Song by The Grateful Dead. Phil Lesh Sang the Vocals on that Song and He Practiced in his Car While Driving to See His Dying Father in a Hospital. Phil found Comfort Singing That Song... I found Comfort Telling that story... I Did Not Sing it While Traveling to My Dad's Funeral. 

After Dad's funeral Martin drove Vanessa and I back home. We were very cheerful and Martin took an UNMARKED short cut thru the hills of San Francisco... Vanessa said it was like using the magic train station in Harry Potter... We drove fast...

Earlier That Week Martin and I went out to dinner at a Oriental restaurant and discussed what stocks to buy on the stock market. I had an extra $10,000 that I wanted to invest and I wanted his opinion. That was a really MIND STRETCHING conversation... He said buy Apple. I did buy Apple and made some money. WHEE! Sadly I never went to a stockholders meeting at their corporate headquarters... I've heard that sometimes those are really special events... a missed opportunity... deep sigh... 

~~~~~~~~ (~);-} ~~~~~~~~

Patti's funeral was at a Unitarian Church in San Francisco. A lady that spoke at Patti's Funeral said that Patti taught her to "Always live your life as if what you do will be printed on the front page of the newspaper." - Dad said the same thing to me. 

I Now Watch Zoom Broadcasts of That Unitarian Church's Services... Every Sunday. They are Insightful. 

Patti took me to my first AA meeting in Lake Tahoe. That prolonged my life by years.

I always love meeting friends and family at funerals. This time I met Mitzi Raas. She and Alan Raas had two sons the same age as Martin and I. We had many adventures together as they lived in San Francisco and whenever our family wanted to go do something in the city we visited them. For example: Go crab fishing, visit the Exploratorium or go to a concert at The Fillmore West.

I also got to chat with Brodie, my nephew in law and he told me that they lived in Dana Point, named for the author of "Two Years Before the Mast". I Did Not Know That and I Still Have Not Read That Book. 

My cousin Gary said that he had started Marijuana Farming at home. Cheaper than buying medicine at the dispensary. It's FREE! I also learned that Gary's daughter had graduated from Chico State and already had a job offer as a nurse.

~~~~~~~~ (~);-} ~~~~~~~~

During the months before Dad's funeral I was experiencing paranoid thoughts because I spent all my time on the internet posting to my protest BLOG about Anti-War activism, ecology, government spying and corporate brainwashing. I had a popular BLOG with a thousand visitors a day... I also posted Tourism Photographs and descriptions of the places I had visited after retirement. I kept on seeing unmarked white vans and trucks parking in my neighborhood... and I Drank a Lot of Coffee and Smoked a Lot of Tobacco... THAT CAUSES PARANOIA. 

SO, I got in my car and drove away from the house... I went to the Avenue of the Giants to my secret place. I had gone to a "Save the Redwoods League" hike exploring the forest after the Canoe Fire. We parked at the "San Francisco Garden Club" grove and walked over a hidden footbridge over the Eel river. That bridge is not visible from the locations most people see when visiting that grove. You have to walk a quarter mile Upstream to get to the bridge... Anyway, as soon as I was on the OTHER side of the Eel river my Paranoia faded away and I felt safe. After all, no humans were there so no evil government agents would bother me... a True Human Free Zone. 

I drove south on 101 until I got to the turnoff for Highway 1 and Fort Bragg. I couldn't go south on 101 due to the fire in Laytonville. Traveling down 1 on the coast I stayed at a bed and breakfast in Elk.  Then I drove to Bodega Bay and ended up camping in Muir Woods. I met a bicycle rider at a swimming hole on a river and we smoked some Marijuana... I had not smoked for years and it was very powerful grass. In Muir Woods I stayed awake for most of the night listening to the Radio...

The next morning I drove to a little country store for a cup of coffee on the porch and I wondered... If Jesus came back, how would you know it was him? Inspired by the song "What if God was one of us? I was drinking coffee with a group of retired men on the front porch in the redwoods and I questioned Each person individually to see if they were Christ... or the Buddha... Including myself... I concluded that none of us were divine...

I drove to San Anselmo and Got lost... I stopped and emailed my family from the library and asked them to come pick me up... but after waiting an hour, I got directions from the owner of a coffee shop.. I cruised over the Golden Gate Bridge and went to my brother's house. I was still tense and anxious due to traffic and my general paranoia... I told my niece, Vanessa that I was "Channeling my Inner Chewbacca"... I could tell that she was frightened of me... Whenever I experience madness, people fear me. I do not mean harm but being a giant and having "That Look" in my eyes must be scary for other people...

I Slept One Night at Martin's House and One Night at a Hotel near the Ocean Next to the "Java Beach" Coffee Shop. Spent Hours Drinking Coffee at that Shop and Wandering Around The Beach and Gardens... It Looked So Elegant to Chat in Groups With Other Sophisticated San Franciscans. 

That Night I Stayed in a Rarely Used Room at the Very Top of the Stairs. There Was a Fire Escape Where People Smoked Tobacco Outside because it was a "NO Smoking" Motel. I Pretended it was a Haunted Motel Room that had a Ghost... That Said: "Dead Grover, Dead Grover, Let Jimmy Pass Over." A Grover is a Member of the Bohemian Grove Men's Club. No Ghost Spotted... Just a Really Creepy Staircase to Get to That Floor...  

~~~~~~~~ (~);-} ~~~~~~~~

So, We All Met at Martin's Home After Dad's Funeral. Everybody Else wanted to Watch a Football game but... I Hate Watching Football on TV So... I Said Good Bye and Left. 

Traveling HOME from Dad's funeral I was still freaked out by "The Matrix" Flavor of the Bay Area. Too many computers watching your every move. At the Golden Gate Bridge there are NO TOLL COLLECTORS. No Humans! You are supposed to get a computerized travel pass to pay the toll. That might work great for frequent travelers but I have gone over that bridge twice in TEN years. Neither time did I successfully pay the toll and so I got a $45.00 fine instead.

In Golden Gate Park there was a computerized lawnmower... It replaced a human working as a gardener with a "Roomba" mowing the grass. It was Moving a Lawn that Looked Exactly Like The One in Star Trek the "Save The Whales" Movie. 

There was also simply too many cars... I've been living in Small Towns since the late 1990's and Urban Traffic is Stressful. One way streets caused me to drive ten blocks in the wrong direction when we wanted to visit the Cliff House/Sutro Baths... A computer sensed when I wanted to park in a parking garage and when I wanted to escape... ENOUGH!

So, Driving North on 101, I stopped at a rest stop in Laytonville that night... I was in a location where my car radio could not get any radio stations... I put the radio on seek/scan and NO stations were within range. I finally felt relief as I was OUT in the COUNTRY... Civilization was NOT THERE. I could still smell the smoke from the fire but it was out... I relaxed there... finally... in the woods... safe...

So I Wondered as I Stayed There for Hours... What if the truck driver of the 18 wheeler parked nearby was the Second Coming of Christ or was the tourist also parked in that lot was The Buddha.... I realized that THERE WAS NO WAY TO TELL. Could be! That gave me something to ponder for a few hours... or a few years... What If God Was One Of Us? Song... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7dfcpAVvt8Q

and Finally Got Home... and Proceeded to Drink Glenfiddich Whiskey Constantly for a Week... Until I Got in My Car and Drove to Chico for an AA Meeting... and Quit Drinking... Again... 

Read more of my autobiography at: http://gvan42.blogspot.com/2018/03/growing-up-in-los-gatos-california-in.html

Presidents George W Bush, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama Delivered Tributes to John Lewis... Where was The tRUMPSTER? Hiding in a Bunker?

Memories of my Father, Justin Duff (Van) Vanderlaan and Stories of Los Gatos, Saratoga, CA - Family Photographs and Emails

One of the things Dad and I loved to do (in his Eighties) was to sit on a bus stop bench and have significant conversations. He always ended the conversation by asking the question. "Did we solve the problems of the world today?" Our favorite place was in "The Heart of the Willows". We sat very close to the school Mom went to as a child. There was an excellent coffee shop (Le Boulanger) and we would get some to go and talk for hours at the corner of Lincoln and Minnesota Ave. It was a warm and sunny place. Willow Glen is a part of Our Family for Generations. Especially Mom's side. I lived there, too. 

Justin Duff Vanderlaan
and my sister in law Beth Deahl

Another place we liked to sit on a park bench was overlooking The Mouth of the Mad River near Arcata, California. We sat on the top of the cliff overlooking the Pacific Ocean and could hear the seals bark. It is actually quite difficult to find The Mouth of the Mad as the location changes constantly. Victoria, Dad and I took a short level hike and she left us to sit on the park bench to "Solve the problems of the World." 

Gregory, Vanessa, Nicole and Justin Vanderlaan

During the last decade of his life we communicated using email about 3 times a week. Often it was about the weather or the Goddamn Computer but it was some contact. We would have debates, recommend books, choose winners on the stock market... I remember recommending that he buy Varian and it went up. Playing the Stock Market with Dad was fun.

Nicole, Vanessa and Martin Vanderlaan

Justin Vanderlaan, Bonita Post and Nicole Vanderlaan

Justin and Martin Vanderlaan

Hi all,

Vanessa and Patti have been working on a hoop skirt, petticoat and supporting hoops for "appropriate attire" for the Dickens Faire at the Cow Palace yesterday.  It all came together as you can see in the dressing photos.

Marty

Vanessa and Patti Post Vanderlaan

Vanessa Vanderlaan at the Dicken's Faire at the Cow Palace in San Francisco Modeling a Home Made Hoop Skirt made by Patti Post Vanderlaan

EMAILS Written by My Father:

Dear Martin & Patti & Greg:

      The other day I noticed on the blue table in the kitchen a hand  

held fire extinguisher.  I went down to the fire house on Winchester,  

and asked if they thought it needed to be recharged, since it has been  

in the house for 50 years.  They said absolutely!,  but had no  

recommendations as to where it could be done. (they are not allowed to  

recommend private companies}.  I went to the hardware and bought  

another for less than 15 Dollars.  They said to call the County about  

safe disposal.  I looked them up in the phone book, and the only place  

is in Sunnyvale, along the  bay, so I made a reservation for Today at  

10 am.  I talked to someone at Rotary on Tuesday, and they advised me  

that the County charges $20 for disposal of hazardous materials.  

Friday, I called and cancelled my appointment.  Later that day I  

received an unsolicited letter saying that the hazardous materials  

section of the County was having a free disposal in Los Gatos on  

Saturday morning, so I went down this morning and gave them the  

extinguisher.  No problem!  Dad

Dear Greg:

      I have now completed giving to you 20,000 dollars worth of 

General Electric Stock.  These shares are yours.  You can do with them 

as you please.  If you wanted to sell them etc, contact Edward Jones & 

co.  They hold the stock certificates for you.  The dividends will be 

mailed directly to you from the Jones office in New York.  My feeling 

was 1. to reduce my taxable estate, 2. give you some dividend paying 

stock, which is sure to continue paying dividends no matter what the 

state of the U.S. economy.  Happy New Year.  Dad

Greg: (about his trip to Eureka)

      While there I went on two bus trips with local guides.  The one 

after we left company toured all the old houses in town, and the guide 

explained who had lived there and why the architecture was unique. 

Quite enlightening.  Then the guide dropped off in town.  This might 

be something you and Vic would find interesting.  I sure the Chamber 

of Commerce knows when trips are available for locals.  The other went 

to Lolita, and basically told me what you had already commented on, 

with some additional comments on a flood a few winters ago.  Then it 

went on to the Redwoods , with a good lecture  on the trees.  The 

guide dropped off in some small town just South of there.  Dad

I told the family... 
We met at the Bear River Casino where he was staying at their hotel. It is on a hill overlooking the Eel River Valley. Home of many dairy farms... Mild climate and plenty of rain makes this an Ideal place to live if you are a cow or a Dairy Farmer. We drove around the Eel River Valley looking at the cows, mountains and Victorian Ferndale. My new Ford Winstar Van is a great place to sit and view the world passing by. BIG windows in front and warm. It's too cold outside to walk around comfortably.

Then we visited the Loleta Cheese Factory. The vast majority of out time was spent talking. We went out to lunch at Eureka's Village Pantry, my favorite restaurant. Then viewed some construction sites. Federal funding has allowed the city to build many new buildings on the waterfront. Then we met up with the bus and he re-joined his tour. 

They went to The Trucker's Christmas Parade... Lights on 18 wheeler trucks...

Greg:

       I am home safe & sound.  Everything we went well.  We saw the parade across from the Safeway parking lot.  Safeway full, but, our bus driver persuaded to gas station owner to let us see it  from the bus, (good view)  Were we ever lucky that you saw the bus at the bay front parking lot.  We might have  hell of a time finding it, because they left shortly thereafter and roamed around Eureka looking at the old houses.  You might have ended taking me back to the hotel.  God guys get the breaks sometime.  At 93 (the 19th), one never knows how long we have together.  Enjoyed my visit with you.   Dad

Email written by Cousin Dian Combs of Baltimore. 

Hi Marty & Patti,

Good to hear from you. Adorable picture of Cadence with her Aunt Vanessa!! Nice to catch up on the family news. Glad to hear Nicole and Brodie are having another child, I've always enjoyed having a brother. Speaking of my brother George, he now has a great grandson and soon to have a great granddaughter!! How about that! I had wanted my sons to marry and have children, but it wasn't in the cards, at least I have my stepson and his family (wife, 11 yr. old daughter & 3.5 yr old son) and my stepdaughter (who is not married anymore, but has 2 daughters, one about to turn 11 and the other 6) These are my grandchildren and I love them as much as if they were from my sons.

I've been very busy with real estate and may never retire!! Because I like to go on vacations with my friends. This year we flew to Boston, then cruised up to New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, then spent 2 days in Boston. This coming April we are going to Cabo San Lucas on the Baja coast, then I am flying up to California and if you folks are in town in early May, maybe I can visit?

Your Dad is amazing! He has good genes! Hopefully you and Greg got those genes!! Would love to visit with him too.

Got to run, have an appt for my 'fun job', I'm with a small theatre group in my neighborhood and we are putting on another play which starts 12/14 and runs through 1/13/13, this time I'm just helping out with the lobby area. Last show in October I did all the props, moving them on and off stage in between acts, etc. It was exhausting but rewarding.

Hope to see you soon, Love, Dian

Martin Wrote:

Hi Dad, Nicole, and Greg,

 

As per our usual habbit, Vanessa and I celebrated my birthday by going to a Cal Bears football game.  This time it happened to be a night game (the TV Gods decide that) against Oregon, probably the best team in the nation.  The new stadium is great.  A very nice improvement.  We went early enough to walk around Berkeley a bit and explore the new stadium.  Then we watched the game and boy was it COLD.  We both had thermal underwear on under our jeans and ski jackets, hand hats and gloves.  Still cold.  We eventually left early in the 4th quarter, with Cal behind 45-17. 

 

Vanessa has a long time friend from the Lair, who is now a sophomore at Cal, and plays trombone in the band.  They were able to meet up during the 3rd quarter.  She looked very good in her band uniform. 

 

Took BART both ways - standing room only both ways.  Lots of riders with Green and Gold "O"s and Blue and Gold, too.  All and all a good evening, but I went to bed in my thermal underwear and sweatshirt to try to get warm. 

 

Go Bears,

M

Vanderlaan Family Collage for Dad's Coffee Cup.
Gregory, Marguerite, Justin, Vanessa, Nicole, Martin, Patty, Victoria, Brodie and Patty's Mom, Bonita.

Vanderlaan Family Chart
Click on the Picture to See it Bigger.

Dad told me that it's pretty easy to predict which horse will win the race, but then you spend your whole life at Bay Meadows. Not a great way to live. 

Brodie Smith, Nicole Vanderlaan Smith, Cadence and Reese

I remember Dad bought a book on Amazon and had it shipped to me called "Born Fighting: How the Scots-Irish Shaped America" by Senator James Webb. An insightful book about our ancestors. He also bought "The Kite Runner" by Afghan-American author Khaled Hosseini. An autobiography. Part of the book takes place at the San Jose Flea Market where the Author met his wife. 

****** (~);-} ******

I remember that the Swings at Oak Meadow Park were Taller than Standard Swings. There was a Metal Bar in the shape of an Arc that held the Chains. I would crawl over That Bar. I also swung as High as I Could and then JUMPED! Hurt to land but I did not break any Bones... so I did it again. 

I remember The Slot Car Racetrack on Main Street Near the High School. 1970. It was as large as a Basketball court. You rented a Car and Put it on the slot and there was a controller that regulated how fast the car went. Go too fast and the Car Flipped... 

When I went to West Valley Junior College I Took a Class in Architectural Scale Model Building. I took Blueprints of a Cabin my Father was having built on North Shore, Lake Tahoe and Built an Accurate Scale Model of it. Dad showed it to his friends and clients... Just to explain what he was having Built... In Retrospect, THAT would have been an EPIC Career... Building Models... Mostly the Professional Career Path was building Models of Oil Refineries... as a way to CHECK if the design was accurate... much cheaper to find errors on a Model than actually build the real thing and find out, OOPS! ---- During the Free time I Had Between Classes I went to the Library and Drew Pictures, Cartoons, Designs ART... while wearing Headphones... My Favorite was 'Whole Lotta Love" by Led Zeppelin... Astonishing on Headphones because of a lot of Left-Right Ping Ponging and Phase-Shifter Effects on the Drums... Try it!

Fred Capp: I also took that class and another one when I was studying at UA Fairbanks. This came in handy when I was working for a company that was supposed to build a parking garage and we couldn't quite make out where what was supposed to be. The thing simply had no level floors and no one had ever seen that design before. I was able to build the model (a rough one as I was both out of practice and lacking in certain materials) and we could see just what the designer wanted.

I did build a Scale Model at work when I was at Analytics Communications Systems in McLean Virginia. We were selling a Computer that Did Not Exist yet and so the Advertising Department took a Photo of my model and we pretended to have a Product..  Sadly, the glue came apart and a corner of the model separated... and the Photo in the Ad Looked like a Fake Scale Model... OOPS... We didn't get that contract. However, I did get to go visit a Giant scale model factory when we were selecting if we wanted to do the work in house or hire professionals to make the model. That Company did Models for the Smithsonian. EPIC Dioramas...  

I remember buying a slice of Redwood Burl at That Store/Gallery on Highway 9 directly across the Street from San Lorenzo High School. We were taking a Stained Glass Window Making Class at West Valley Junior College Night School. I made a Red Rose Framed by that Burl... and it hung in the Window of my Father's House for decades... and... I noticed the ERROR I made in the construction of that window... and it bugged me for about 10 seconds every time I saw it... I also made a Clock from a slice of Burl... and It hung in the Living Room... The School was right next door to a drive in Movie Theater and at Night we could walk over and see the movies without paying. Saw "Carrie" there... My Father Bought a Stained Glass Window for His Office from Mike Coolie... a Business Expense and Fully Tax Deductible because it Had the Name J.D.Vanderlaan - Realtor Etched into the window...

Complete Transcript: President Obama delivers a Eulogy for Elijah Cummings... and... an Inspirational "Get Out The Vote" Speech for 2018. It's Time to Take Action AGAIN. 2020 is a New Opportunity to Throw The Evil Ones OUT! We Had GREAT SUCCESS in 2018 and IMPEACHMENT WAS THE RESULT! In 2020 We Will Win The Presidency, The Senate and The House and a NEW AGE of Peace and Prosperity Will Follow.

Barack Obama: (00:40)
To the bishop and first lady and the new [Salmas 00:00:43] family… To the Cummings family. Maya, Mr. President, Madam Secretary, Madam Speaker, Governor, friends, colleagues, staff.

Barack Obama: (01:18)
The seeds on good sower. The Parable of the Sower tells us, stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop. The seed on good sower. Elijah Cummings came from good sower, and in this sturdy frame goodness took root.

Barack Obama: (02:19)
His parents were sharecroppers from the South. They picked tobacco and strawberries and then sought something better in this city, south Baltimore. Robert worked shifts at a plant and Ruth cleaned other people’s homes. They became parents of seven. Preachers to a small flock. I remember I had the pleasure of meeting Elijah’s mother, Ruth, and she told me she prayed for me every day, and I knew it was true. And I felt better for it. Sometimes people say they’re praying for you, and you don’t know. They might be praying about you, but you don’t know if they’re praying for you. But I knew Ms. Ruth was telling the truth. So they were the proverbial salt of the earth and they passed on that strength and that grit, but also that kindness and that faith to their son.

Barack Obama: (04:07)
As a boy Elijah’s dad made him shine his shoes and tie his tie, and they’d go to the airport, not to board their planes, but to watch others do it. I remember Elijah telling me this story. Robert would say, “I have not flied. I may not fly, but you will fly one day. We can’t afford it right now, but you will fly.” His grandmother, as Elijah relayed it, and as grandmothers do, was a little more impatient with her advice. “Your daddy,” she said, “he’d been waiting and waiting and waiting for a better day. Don’t you wait.” Elijah did not wait.

Barack Obama: (05:07)
Against all odds Elijah earned his degrees. He learned about the rights that all people in this country are supposed to possess. With a little help, apparently, from Perry Mason Elijah became a lawyer to make sure that others had rights, and his people had their God given rights. And from the State house to the House of Representatives, his commitment to justice and the rights of others would never, ever waiver. Elijah’s example, the son of parents who rose from nothing to carve out just a little something. The public servant who toiled to guarantee the least of us have the same opportunities that he had earned. A leader who once said he’d die for his people even as he lived every minute for them. His life validates the things we tell ourselves about what’s possible in this country. Not guaranteed, but possible. The possibility that our destinies are not pre-ordained, but rather through our works and our dedication and our willingness to open our hearts to God’s message of love for all people, we can live a purposeful life. That we can reap about a full harvest, that we are neither sentenced to wither among the rocks, nor assured a bounty, but we have a capacity, the chance as individuals and as a nation to root ourselves in good soil.

Barack Obama: (07:44)
Elijah understood that. That’s why he fought for justice. That’s why he embraced this beloved community of Baltimore. That’s why he went on to fight for the rights and opportunities of forgotten people all across America, not just in his district. He was never complacent, for he knew that without clarity of purpose and a steadfast faith and the dogged determination demanded by our liberty, the promise of this nation can wither. Complacency, he knew was not only corrosive for our collective lives, but for our individual lives. It’s been remarked that Elijah was a kind man.

Barack Obama: (08:59)
I tell my daughters, and I have to say listening to Elijah’s daughter speak, that got me choked up. I’m sure those of you who have sons feel the same way, but there’s something about daughters and their father. And I was thinking I’d want my daughters to know how much I love them, but I’d also want them to know that being a strong man includes being kind. That there’s nothing weak about kindness and compassion. There’s nothing weak about looking out for others. There’s nothing weak about being honorable. You’re not a sucker to have integrity and to treat others with respect.

Barack Obama: (10:13)
I was sitting here, and I was just noticing the honorable Elijah E. Cummings, and this is a title that we confer on all kinds of people who get elected to public office. We’re supposed to introduce them as honorable, but Elijah Cummings was honorable before he was elected office. There’s a difference. There’s a difference if you were honorable and treated others honorably outside the limelight, on the side of a road, in a quiet moment counseling somebody you work with, letting your daughters know you love them.

Barack Obama: (11:42)
You know, as President, I knew I could always count on Elijah being honorable and doing the right thing. And people have talked about his voice. There is something about his voice that just made you feel better. You know, there’s some people that we have a deep baritone, a prophetic voice. And when it was good times, and we achieved victories together, that voice and that laugh was a gift. But you needed it more during the tough times. When the path ahead looked crooked, when obstacles abounded. When I entertained doubts or I saw those who were in the fight start to waiver, that’s when Elijah’s voice mattered most. And more than once during my presidency when the economy still looked like it might plunge into depression. When the healthcare bill was pronounced dead in Congress, I would watch Elijah rally his colleagues. “The cost of doing nothing isn’t nothing,” he would say, and folks would remember why they entered into public service.

Barack Obama: (13:22)
Our children are the living messengers we send to a future we will never see. He would say, and he would remind all of us that our time is too short not to fight for what’s good and what is true and what is best in America. 200 years to 300 years from now he would say people will look back at this moment and they will ask the question, what did you do? And hearing him, we would be reminded that it falls upon each of us to give voice to the voices and comfort to the sick and opportunity to those not born to it and to preserve and nurture our democracy.

Barack Obama: (14:18)
Elijah Cummings was a man of noble and good heart. His parents and his faith planted the seeds of hope and love and compassion and the righteousness and that good soil of his. He has harvested all the crop that he could, for the Lord has now called Elijah home to give His humble, faithful servant rest.

Barack Obama: (15:01)
And it now falls on us to continue his work so that other young boys and girls in Baltimore, across Maryland, across the United States, and around the world, might, too, have a chance to grow and to flourish. That’s how we will honor him. That’s how we will remember him. That’s what he would hope for. May God bless the memory of the very honorable Elijah Cummings, and may God bless this city and this state and this nation that he loved. God bless you. Thank you.

https://www.rev.com/blog/elijah-cummings-funeral-eulogy-transcripts-barack-obama-nancy-pelosi-and-hillary-clinton-among-speakers-at-late-representatives-funeral




https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/9/7/17832024/obama-speech-trump-illinois-transcript

BARACK OBAMA: Hello, Illinois! I.L.L.! I.L.L.! Okay, okay. Just checking to see if you’re awake. Please have a seat, everybody. It is good to be home. It’s good to see corn, beans. I was trying to explain to somebody as we were flying in, that’s corn. That’s beans. They were very impressed at my agricultural knowledge. Please give it up for Amari, once again, for that outstanding introduction.

I have a bunch of good friends here today, including somebody who I served with who is one of the finest senators in the country, and we’re lucky to have your senator, Dick Durbin, is here. I also noticed, by the way, former governor Edgar here, who I haven’t seen in a long time, and somehow he has not aged and it was great to see him.

I want to thank everybody at the U of I system for making it possible for me to be here today. I am deeply honored at the Paul Douglas award that is being given to me.

He is somebody who set the path for so much outstanding public service here in Illinois. Now, I want to start by addressing the elephant in the room. I know people are still wondering why I didn’t speak at the 2017 commencement. The student body president sent a very thoughtful invitation. Students made a spiffy video, and when I declined, I hear there was speculation that I was boycotting campus until Antonio’s pizza reopened. So I want to be clear. I did not take sides in that late-night food debate.

The truth is, after eight years in the white house, I needed to spend some time one on one with Michelle if I wanted to stay married. And she says hello, by the way. I also wanted to spend some quality time with my daughters, who were suddenly young women on their way out the door. And I should add, by the way, now that I have a daughter in college, I can tell all the students here, your parents, they cry privately. It is brutal. So please call. Send a text. We need to hear from you. Just a little something.

Truth was, I was also intent on following a wise American tradition of ex-presidents gracefully exiting the political stage and making room for new voices and new ideas.

Truth was, I was also intent on following a wise American tradition of ex-presidents gracefully exiting the political stage and making room for new voices and new ideas.

We have our first president, George Washington, to thank for setting that example. After he led the colonies to victory as General Washington, there were no constraints on him, really. He was practically a god to those who had followed him into battle. There was no constitution. There were no democratic norms that guided what he should or could do. And he could have made himself all-powerful, could have made himself potentially president for life.

Instead, he resigned as commander in chief and moved back to his country estate. Six years later, he was elected president. But after two terms, he resigned again and rode off into the sunset.

The point Washington made, the point that is essential to American democracy, is that in a government of and by and for the people, there should be no permanent ruling class. There are only citizens, who through their elected and temporary representatives, determine our course and determine our character.

I’m here today because this is one of those pivotal moments when every one of us as citizens of the United States need to determine just who it is that we are. Just what it is that we stand for. And as a fellow citizen — not as an ex-president, but as a fellow citizen — I’m here to deliver a simple message, and that is that you need to vote because our democracy depends on it.

Now, some of you may think I’m exaggerating when I say this November’s elections are more important than any I can remember in my lifetime. I know politicians say that all the time. I have been guilty of saying it a few times, particularly when I was on the ballot. But just a glance at recent headlines should tell you that this moment really is different. The stakes really are higher. The consequences of any of us sitting on the sidelines are more dire.

And it’s not as if we haven’t had big elections before or big choices to make in our history. Fact is, democracy has never been easy, and our founding fathers argued about everything. We waged a civil war. We overcame depression. We’ve lurched from eras of great progressive change to periods of still, most Americans alive today, certainly the students who are here, have operated under some common assumptions about who we are and what we stand for.

Out of the turmoil of the Industrial Revolution and the Great Depression, America adapted a new economy, a 20th century economy, guiding our free market with regulations to protect health and safety and fair competition, empowering workers with union movements, investing in science and infrastructure and educational institutions like U of I, strengthening our system of primary and secondary education, and stitching together a social safety net. All of this led to unrivaled prosperity and the rise of a broad and deep middle class and the sense that if you worked hard, you could climb the ladder of success.

Not everyone was included in this prosperity. There was a lot more work to do. And so in response to the stain of slavery and segregation and the reality of racial discrimination, the civil rights movement not only opened new doors for African-Americans but also opened up the floodgates of opportunity for women and Americans with disabilities and LGBT Americans and others to make their own claims to full and equal citizenship.

And although discrimination remained a pernicious force in our society and continues to this day, and although there are controversies about how to best ensure genuine equality of opportunity, there’s been at least rough agreement among the overwhelming majority of Americans that our country is strongest when everybody’s treated fairly, when people are judged on the merits and the content of their character and not the color of their skin or the way in which they worship God or their last names. And that consensus then extended beyond our borders.

And from the wreckage of world War II, we built a post-war architecture, system of alliances and institutions to underwrite freedom and oppose Soviet totalitarianism and to help poorer countries develop. American leadership across the globe wasn’t perfect. We made mistakes. At times we lost sight of our ideals. We had fierce arguments about Vietnam and we had fierce arguments about Iraq. But thanks to our leadership, a bipartisan leadership, and the efforts of diplomats and peace corps volunteers, and most of all thanks to the constant sacrifices of our men and women in uniform, we not only reduced the prospects of war between the world’s great powers, we not only won the Cold War, we helped spread a commitment to certain values and principles like the rule of law and human rights and democracy and the notion of the inherent dignity and worth of every individual.

And even those countries that didn’t abide by those principles were still subject to shame and still had to at least give lip service to the idea, and that provided a lever to continually improve the prospects for people around the world. That’s the story of America. A story of progress, fitful progress, incomplete progress, but progress. And that progress wasn’t achieved by just a handful of famous leaders making speeches. It was won because of countless acts of quiet heroism and dedication by citizens, by ordinary people, many of them not much older than you. It was won because rather than be bystanders to history, ordinary people fought and marched and mobilized and built, and yes, voted to make history.

Of course, there’s always been another darker aspect to America’s story. Progress doesn’t just move in a straight line. There’s a reason why progress hasn’t been easy and why throughout our history every two steps forward seems to sometimes produce one step back. Each time we painstakingly pull ourselves closer to our founding ideals, that all of us are created equal, endowed by our Creator with certain inalienable rights, the ideals that say every child should have opportunity and every man and woman in this country who’s willing to work hard should be able to find a job and support a family and pursue their small peace of the American dream, ideals that say we have a collective responsibility to care for the sick and the and we have a responsibility to conserve the amazing bounty, the natural resources of this country and of this planet for future generations — each time we’ve gotten closer to those ideals, somebody somewhere has pushed back.

The status quo pushes back. Sometimes the backlash comes from people who are genuinely, if wrongly, fearful of change. More often it’s manufactured by the powerful and the privileged who want to keep us divided and keep us angry and keep us cynical because it helps them maintain the status quo and keep their power and keep their privilege. And you happen to be coming of age during one of those moments.

It did not start with Donald Trump. He is a symptom, not the cause. He’s just capitalizing on resentments that politicians have been fanning for years, a fear and anger that’s rooted in our past but it’s also born out of the enormous upheavals that have taken place in your brief lifetimes.

By the way, it is brief. When I heard Amari was 11 when I got elected and now he’s like started a company — that was yesterday!

But think about it. You’ve come of age in a smaller, more connected world where demographic shifts and the wind of change have scrambled not only traditional economic arrangements but our social arrangements and our religious commitments and our civic institutions. Most of you don’t remember a time before 9/11, when you didn’t have to take off your shoes at an airport. Most of you don’t remember a time when America wasn’t at war or when money and images and information could travel instantly around the globe. Or when the climate wasn’t changing faster than our efforts to address it.

This change has happened fast, faster than any time in human history. And it created a new economy that has unleashed incredible prosperity, but it’s also upended people’s lives in profound ways. For those with unique skills or access to technology and capital, a global market has meant unprecedented wealth. For those not so lucky, for the factory worker, for the office worker, or even middle managers, those same forces may have wiped out your job or at least put you in no position to ask for a raise, and as wages slowed and inequality accelerated, those at the top of the economic pyramid have been able to influence government to skew things even more in their direction.

Cutting taxes on the wealthiest Americans, unwinding regulations and weakening worker protections, shrinking the safety net. So you have come of age during a time of growing inequality, a fracturing of economic opportunity. And that growing economic divide compounded other divisions in our country. Regional, racial, religious, cultural. And made it harder to build consensus on issues. It made politicians less willing to compromise, which increased gridlock, which made people even more cynical about politics. And then the reckless behavior of financial elites triggered a massive financial crisis.

Ten years ago this week a crisis that resulted in the worst recession in any of our lifetimes and caused years of hardship for the American people. For many of your parents, for many of your families. Most of you weren’t old enough to fully focus on what was going on at the time, but when I came into office in 2009, we were losing 800,000 jobs a month. 800,000. Millions of people were losing their homes. Many were worried we were entering into a second great depression.

So we worked hard to end that crisis but also to break some of these longer term trends. The actions we took during that crisis returned the economy to healthy growth and initiated the longest streak of job creation on record. And we covered another 20 million Americans with health insurance and cut our deficits by more than half, partly by making sure that people like me who have been given such amazing opportunities by this country pay our fair share of taxes to help folks coming up behind me.

And by the time I left office, household income was near its all-time high, and the uninsured rate hit an all-time low, poverty rates were falling. I mention this just so when you hear how great the economy is doing right now, let’s just remember when this recovery started. I’m glad it’s continued, but when you hear about this economic miracle that’s been going on, when the job numbers come out, monthly job numbers and suddenly Republicans are saying it’s a miracle, I have to kind of remind them, actually, those job numbers are the same as they were in 2015 and 2016 and -- anyway. I digress.

So we made progress, but -- and this is the truth -- my administration couldn’t reverse 40-year trends in only eight especially once Republicans took over the house of representatives in 2010 and decided to block everything we did. Even things they used to support.


So we pulled the economy out of crisis, but to this day, too many people who once felt solidly middle class still feel very real and very personal economic insecurity. Even though we took out bin Laden and wound down the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, got Iran to halt its nuclear program, the world’s still full of threats and disorder that come streaming through people’s televisions every single day. And these challenges get people worried and it frays our civic trust and it makes a lot of people feel like the fix is in and the game is rigged and nobody’s looking out for them.

Especially those communities outside our big urban centers. And even though your generation is the most diverse in history with a greater acceptance and celebration of our differences than ever before, those are the kinds of conditions that are ripe for exploitation by politicians who have no compunction and no shame about tapping into America’s dark history of racial and ethnic and religious division. Appealing to tribe, appealing to fear, pitting one group against another, telling people that order and security will be restored if it weren’t for those who don’t look like us or don’t sound like us or don’t pray like we do, that’s an old playbook. It’s as old as time.

And in a healthy democracy, it doesn’t work. Our antibodies kick in, and people of goodwill from across the political spectrum call out the bigots and the fear mongers and work to compromise and get things done and promote the better angels of our nature.

But when there’s a vacuum in our democracy, when we don’t vote, when we take our basic rights and freedoms for granted, when we turn away and stop paying attention and stop engaging and stop believing and look for the newest diversion, the electronic versions of bread and circuses, then other voices fill the void.

A politics of fear and resentment and retrenchment takes hold and demagogues promise simple fixes to complex problems. No promise to fight for the little guy, even as they cater to the wealthiest and most powerful. No promise to clean up corruption and then plunder away. They start undermining norms that ensure accountability and try to change the rules to entrench their power further. They appeal to racial nationalism that’s barely veiled, if veiled at all. Sound familiar?

I understand this is not just a matter of Democrats versus Republicans or liberals versus conservatives. At various times in our history, this kind of politics has infected both parties. Southern Democrats were the bigger defenders of slavery. It took a Republican president, Abraham Lincoln, to end it. Although it was a Democratic president and a majority Democrat Congress spurred on by young marchers and protesters that got the civil rights act and the voting rights act over the finish line, those historic laws also got passed because of the leadership of Republicans like Illinois’s own Everett Dirksen. So neither party has had a monopoly on wisdom.

Neither party has been exclusively responsible for us going backwards instead of forwards. But I have to say this because sometimes we hear a plague on both your houses. Over the past few decades, it wasn’t true when Jim Edgar was governor here in Illinois.

But over the past few decades, the politics of division and resentment and paranoia has unfortunately found a home in the Republican party. This Congress has championed the unwinding of campaign finance laws to give billionaires outside influence over our politics. Systematically attacked voting rights to make it harder for young people and minorities and the poor to vote. Handed out tax cuts without regard to deficits. Slashed the safety net wherever it could, cast dozens of votes to take away health insurance from ordinary Americans, embraced wild conspiracy theories like those surrounding Benghazi or my birth certificate, rejected science, rejected facts on things like climate change, embraced a rising absolutism from a willingness to default on America’s debt by not paying our bills to a refusal to even meet much less consider a qualified nominee for the supreme court because he happened to be nominated by a Democratic president.

None of this is conservative. I don’t mean to pretend I’m channelling Abraham Lincoln now, but that’s not what he had in mind, I think, when he helped form the Republican party. It’s not conservative. It sure isn’t normal. It’s radical. It’s a vision that says the protection of our power and those who back us is all that matters even when it hurts the country. It’s a vision that says the few who can afford high-price lobbyists and unlimited campaign contributions set the agenda, and over the past two years, this vision is now nearing its logical conclusion.

So with Republicans in control of Congress and the White House, without any checks or balances whatsoever, they’ve provided another $1.5 trillion in tax cuts to people like me who I promise don’t need it and don’t even pretend to pay for them. It’s supposed to be the party supposedly of fiscal conservatism. Suddenly deficits do not matter. Even though just two years ago when the deficit was lower, they said I couldn’t afford to help working families or seniors on medicare because the deficit was in existential crisis. What changed? What changed?

They’re subsidizing corporate polluters with taxpayer dollars, allowing dishonest lenders to take advantage of veterans and consumers and students again. They’ve made it so that the only nation on Earth to pull out of the global climate agreement, it’s not North Korea, it’s not Syria, it’s not Russia or Saudi Arabia, it’s us. The only country. There are a lot of countries in the world. We’re the only ones.

They’re undermining our alliances, cozying up to Russia. What happened to the Republican party? Its central organizing principle in foreign policy was the fight against communism, and now they’re cozying up to the former head of the KGB.

Actively blocking legislation that would defend our elections from Russian attack. What happened? Their sabotage of the affordable care act has already cost more than 3 million Americans their health insurance, and if they’re still in power next fall, you better believe they’re coming at it again. They’ve said so. In a healthy democracy, there’s some checks and balances on this kind of behavior, this kind of inconsistency, but right now there’s nothing. Republicans who know better in Congress, and they’re there, they’re quoted saying, yeah, we know this is kind of crazy, are still bending over backwards to shield this behavior from scrutiny or accountability or consequence, seem utterly unwilling to find the backbone to safeguard the institutions that make our democracy work.

And by the way, the claim that everything will turn out okay because there are people inside the White House who secretly aren’t following the president’s orders, that is not a check. I’m being serious here. That’s not how our democracy’s supposed to work. These people aren’t elected. They’re not accountable. They’re not doing us a service by actively promoting 90% of the crazy stuff that’s coming out of this white house, and then saying, don’t worry, we’re preventing the other 10%.

That’s not how things are supposed to work. This is not normal. These are extraordinary times. And they’re dangerous times.

But here’s the good news. In two months we have the chance, not the certainty, but the chance to restore some semblance of sanity to our politics. Because there is actually only one real check on bad policy and abuse of power. That’s you. You and your vote. Look, Americans will always have disagreements on policy. This is a big country. It is a raucous country.

I happen to be a Democrat. I believe our policies are better and we have a bigger, bolder vision of equality and justice and inclusive democracy. We know there are a lot of jobs young people aren’t getting a chance to occupy or aren’t getting paid enough or aren’t getting benefits like insurance. It’s harder for young people to save for a rainy day let alone retirement.

So Democrats aren’t just running on good old ideas like a higher minimum wage, they’re running on good new ideas like medicare for all, giving workers seats on corporate boards, reversing the most egregious corporate tax cuts to make sure college students graduate.

We know that people are tired of toxic corruption and that democracy depends on transparency and accountability, so Democrats aren’t just running on good old ideas like requiring presidential candidates to release their tax returns, but on good new ideas like barring lobbyists from getting paid by foreign governments.

We know that climate change isn’t just coming. It’s here. So Democrats aren’t just running on good old ideas like increasing gas mileage in our cars, which I did and which Republicans are trying to reverse, but on good new ideas like putting a price on carbon pollution.

We know in a smaller, more connected world, we can’t just put technology back in a box. We can’t just put walls up all around America. Walls don’t keep out threats like terrorism or disease. And that’s why we propose leading our alliances and helping other countries develop and pushing back against tyrants.

Democrats talk about reforming our immigration system so, yes, it is orderly and it is fair and it is legal, but it continues to welcome strivers and dreamers from all around the world. That’s why I’m a Democrat. That’s a set of ideas that I believe in. But I am here to tell you that even if you don’t agree with me or Democrats on policy, even if you believe in more libertarian economic theories, even if you are an evangelical and our position on certain social issues is a bridge too far, even if you think my assessment of immigration is mistaken and the Democrats aren’t serious enough about immigration enforcement, I’m here to tell you that you should still be concerned with our current course and should still want to see a restoration of honesty and decency and lawfulness in our government.

It should not be Democratic or Republican. It should not be a partisan issue to say that we do not pressure the attorney general or the FBI to use the criminal justice system as a cudgel to punish our political opponents. Or to explicitly call on the attorney general to protect members of our own party from prosecution because an election happens to be coming up. I’m not making that up. That’s not hypothetical.

It shouldn’t be Democratic or Republican to say that we don’t threaten the freedom of the press because they say things or publish stories we don’t like. I complained plenty about Fox News, but you never heard me threaten to shut them down or call them enemies of the people. It shouldn’t be democratic or Republican to say we don’t target certain groups of people based on what they look like or how they pray.

We are Americans. We’re supposed to stand up to bullies. Not follow them. We’re supposed to stand up to discrimination, and we’re sure as heck supposed to stand up clearly and unequivocally to Nazi sympathizers. How hard can that be? Saying that Nazis are bad.

I’ll be honest, sometimes I get into arguments with progressive friends about what the current political movement requires. There are well-meaning folks passionate about social justice who think things have gotten so bad, the lines have been so starkly drawn, that we have to fight fire with fire. We have to do the same things to the Republicans that they do to adopt their tactics. Say whatever works. Make up stuff about the other.

I don’t agree with that. It’s not because I’m soft. It’s not because I’m interested in promoting an empty bipartisanship. I don’t agree with it because eroding our civic institutions and our civic trust and making people angrier and yelling at each other and making people cynical about government, that always works better for those who don’t believe in the power of collective action.


You don’t need an effective government or a robust press or reasoned debate to work when all you’re concerned about is maintaining power. In fact, the more cynical people are about government, the angrier and more dispirited they are about the prospects for change, the more likely the powerful are able to maintain their power.

But we believe that in order to move this country forward, to actually solve problems and make people’s lives better, we need a well-functioning government. We need our civic institutions to work. We need cooperation among people of different political persuasions. And to make that work, we have to restore our faith in democracy. We have to bring people together, not tear them apart. We need majorities in Congress and state legislatures who are serious about governing and want to bring about real change and improvements in people’s lives. And we won’t win people over by calling them names or dismissing entire chunks of the country as racist or sexist or homophobic.

When I say bring people together, I mean all of our people.

This whole notion that has sprung up recently about Democrats needing to choose between trying to appeal to white working class voters or voters of color and women and LGBT Americans, that’s nonsense. I don’t buy that. I got votes from every demographic. We won by reaching out to everybody and competing everywhere and by fighting for every vote. And that’s what we’ve got to do in this election and every election after that. And we can’t do that if we immediately disregard what others have to say from the start because they’re not like us, because they’re white or they’re black or they’re man or a woman or they’re gay or they’re straight.

If we think that somehow there’s no way they can understand how I’m feeling and therefore don’t have any standing to speak on certain matters because we’re only defined by certain characteristics, that doesn’t work if you want a healthy we can’t do that if we traffic in absolute when it comes to make democracy work, we have to be able to get inside the reality of people who are different, have different experiences, come from different backgrounds. We have to engage them even when it is frustrating. We have to listen to them, even when we don’t like what they have to say.

We have to hope that we can change their minds, and we have to remain open to them changing ours. And that doesn’t mean, by the way, abandoning our principles or caving to bad policy in the interests of maintaining some phony version of civility. That seems to be, by the way, the definition of civility offered by too many congressional Republicans right now. We will be polite so long as we get 100% of what we want and you don’t call us out on the various ways we’re sticking it to people. And we’ll click our tongues and issue vague statements of disappointment when the president does something outrageous, but we won’t actually do anything about it. That’s not civility. That’s abdicating your responsibilities. But again, I digress. Making democracy work means holding on to our principles,

having clarity about our principles, and then having the confidence to get in the arena and have a serious debate. It also means appreciating progress does not happen all at once but when you put your shoulder to the wheel, if you’re willing to fight for it, things do get better. And let me tell you something, particularly young people here.

Better is good. I used to have to tell my young staff this all the time in the white house. Better is good. That’s the history of progress in this country. Not perfect, better. The civil rights act didn’t end racism, but it made things better. Social security didn’t eliminate all poverty for seniors, but it made things better for millions of people. Do not let people tell you the fight’s not worth it because you won’t get everything that you want. The idea that, well, you know, there’s racism in America, so I’m not going to bother voting, no point, that makes no sense. You can make it better. Better is always worth fighting for. That’s how our founders expected this system of self-government to work. Through the testing of ideas and the application of reason and evidence and proof, we could sort through our differences, and nobody would get exactly what they wanted, but it would be possible to find a basis for common ground. And that common ground exists.

Maybe it’s not fashionable to say that right now. It’s hard to see it with all the nonsense in Washington. It’s hard to hear it with all the noise. But common ground exists. I have seen it. I have lived it. I know there are white people who care deeply about black people being treated unfairly. I have talked to them and loved them, and I know there are black people who care deeply about the struggles of white rural I’m one of them. And I have a track record to prove it. I know there are evangelicals who are deeply committed to doing something about climate change. I’ve seen them do the work.

I know there are conservatives who think there’s nothing compassionate about separating immigrant children from their mothers. I know there are Republicans who believe government should only perform a few minimal functions but that one of those functions should be making sure nearly 3,000 Americans don’t die in a hurricane and its aftermath.

Common ground is out there. I see it every day. It’s just how people interact, how people treat each other. You see it on the ball field. You see it at work. You see it in places of worship. But to say that common ground exists doesn’t mean it will inevitably win out.

History shows the power of fear and the closer that we get to Election Day, the more those invested in the politics of fear and division will work -- will do anything to hang on to their recent gains. Fortunately, I am hopeful because out of this political darkness, I am seeing a great awakening of citizenship all across the country. I cannot tell you how encouraged I’ve been by watching so many people get involved for the first time or the first time in a long time. They’re marching and they’re organizing and they’re registering people to vote and they’re running for office themselves.

Look at this crop of Democratic candidates running for Congress and governor, running for the state legislature, running for district attorney, running for school board. It is a movement of citizens who happen to be younger and more diverse and more female than ever before, and that’s really useful. We need more women in charge. But we have first-time candidates. We have veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan. Record numbers of women. Americans who have previously maybe didn’t have an interest in politics as a career but laced up their shoes and rolled up their sleeves and grabbed a clipboard because they, too, believe this time’s different. This moment’s too important to sit out.

And if you listen to what these candidates are talking about in individual races across the country, you’ll find they’re not just running against something, they’re running for something. They’re running to expand opportunity and running to restore the honor to public service. And speaking as a Democrat, that’s when the Democratic party has always made the biggest difference in the lives of the American people. When we led with conviction and principle and bold new ideas. The antidote to a government controlled by a powerful few, a government that divides is a government by the organized, energized, inclusive many. That’s what this moment’s about. That has to be the answer.

You cannot sit back and wait for a savior. You can’t opt out because you don’t feel sufficiently inspired by this or that particular candidate. This is not a rock concert. This is not Coachella. We don’t need a messiah. All we need are decent, honest, hard-working people who are accountable and who have America’s best interests at heart. And they’ll step up and they’ll join our government, and they will make things better if they have support.

One election will not fix everything that needs to be fixed. But it will be a start. And you have to start it. What’s going to fix our democracy is you.

People ask me, what are you going to do for the election? No, the question is what are you going to do? You’re the antidote. Your participation and your spirit and your determination, not just in this election, but in every subsequent election and in the days between elections. Because in the end, the threat to our democracy doesn’t just come from Donald Trump or the current batch of Republicans in Congress or the Koch brothers and their lobbyists or too much compromise from Democrats or Russian hacking. The biggest threat to our democracy is indifference. The biggest threat to our democracy is cynicism.


Cynicism led too many people to turn away from politics and stay home on Election Day. To all the young people who are here today, there are now more eligible voters in your generation than in any other, which means your generation now has more power than anybody to change things. If you want it, you can make sure America gets out of its current funk. If you actually care about it, you have the power to make sure what we see is a brighter future. But to exercise that clout, to exercise that power, you have to show up. In the last midterm elections in 2014, fewer than one in five young people voted.

One in five. Not two in five or three. One in five. Is it any wonder this Congress doesn’t reflect your values and your priorities? Are you surprised by that? This whole project of self-government only works if everybody’s doing their part. Don’t tell me your vote doesn’t matter. I’ve won states in the presidential election because of 5, 10, 20 votes per precinct. And if you thought elections don’t matter, I hope these last two years have corrected that impression.

So if you don’t like what’s going on right now, and you shouldn’t, do not complain, don’t hashtag, don’t get anxious, don’t retreat, don’t binge on whatever it is you’re bingeing on, don’t lose yourself in ironic detachment, don’t put your head in the sand, don’t boo. Vote. Vote. If you are really concerned about how the criminal justice system treats African-Americans, the best way to protest is to vote. Not just for senators and representatives but for mayors and sheriffs and state legislators.

Do what they just did in Philadelphia and Boston and elect states attorneys and district attorneys who are looking at issues in a new light, who realize that the vast majority of law enforcement do the right thing in a really hard job, and we just need to make sure all of them do. If you’re tired of politicians who offer nothing but thoughts and prayers after a mass shooting, you’ve got to do what the parkland kids are doing. Some of them aren’t even eligible to vote yet. They’re out there working to change minds and registering people. And they’re not giving up until we have a Congress that sees your lives as more important than a campaign check from the you’ve got to vote.

If you support the #metoo movement, you’re outraged by stories of sexual harassment and assault, inspired by the women who have shared them, you’ve got to do more than retweet a hashtag. You’ve got to vote. Part of the reason women are more vulnerable in the workplace is because not enough women are bosses in the workplace. Which is why we need to strengthen and enforce laws that protect women in the workplace, not just from harassment, but from discrimination in hiring and promotion and not getting paid the same amount for doing the same work. That requires laws, laws get passed by legislators.

You’ve got to vote. When you vote, you’ve got the power to make it easier to afford college and harder to shoot up a school. When you vote, you’ve got the power to make sure a family keeps its health insurance. You could save somebody’s life. When you vote, you’ve got the

power to make sure white nationalists don’t feel emboldened to March with their hoods off or their hoods on in Charlottesville in the middle of the day. 30 minutes. 30 minutes of your time. Is democracy worth that?

We have been through much darker times than these. And somehow each generation of Americans carried us through to the other side. Not by sitting around and waiting for something to happen, not by leaving it to others to do something, but by leading that movement for change themselves. And if you do that, if you get involved and you get engaged and you knock on some doors and you talk with your friends and you argue with your family members and you change some minds and you vote, something powerful happens. Change happens. Hope happens. Not perfection, not every bit of cruelty and sadness and poverty and disease suddenly stricken from the Earth. There will still be problems, but with each new candidate that surprises you with a victory that you supported, a spark of hope happens.

With each new law that helps a kid read or helps a homeless family find shelter or helps a veteran get the support he or she has earned, each time that happens hope happens. With each new step we take in the direction of fairness and justice and equality and opportunity, hope spreads. And that can be the legacy of your generation.

You can be the generation that at a critical moment stood up and reminded us just how precious this experiment in democracy really is, just how powerful it can be when we fight for it, when we believe in it. I believe in you. I believe you will help lead us in the right direction, and I will be right there with you every step of the way. Thank you, Illinois. God bless you. God bless this country we love.

Thank you.