Richard Kraneis Blog

Happy Birthday to Abraham Lincoln

Since this blog is partially based on Abraham Lincoln, I certainly need to say “happy birthday”.

Here’s a first paragraph from Wikipedia regarding Abraham Lincoln.

Abraham Lincoln was born on February 12, 1809, to Thomas Lincoln and Nancy Hanks, two uneducated farmers, in a one-room log cabin on the 348-acre (1.4 km²) Sinking Spring Farm, in southeast Hardin County, Kentucky (now part of LaRue County).

I’ve read my share of Abraham Lincoln biographies. Perhaps no more than 20 books. That’s a good start. Currently I am reading Carl Sandburg’s biography on Lincoln.

In reading Lincoln things begin to bubble to the surface. Sometimes great things, sometimes small things.

For example, Lincoln loved cats. There’s a story about how when Lincoln stayed overnight in someone’s home, a cat meowed sadly during the night. Lincoln found the kitten, fed and held it through the night.

Lincoln also was known to walk the hospitals and hospital tents of the Civil War visiting both Union and Confederate wounded. One week President Lincoln visited the Confederate wounded, chatting with the men, giving them his companionship and support. The next week Lincoln was assassinated. Many of those same southern soldiers wept upon hearing of Lincoln’s death.

There’s so much we don’t know about Abraham Lincoln. What we do know is that he was born February 12, 1809.

Enjoy the day and remember. Abraham Lincoln changed the United States irrevocably. And although our country may not be perfect, we are an imperfect beacon of hope to many in this world.

Happy birthday Abe.

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious Politics

This blog is really both a blogging test on keywords and a brief statement on our national politics in the U.S. this primary season.

First, let’s define supercalifragilisticexpialidocious (from www.Dictionary.com )

a nonsense word meaning fantastic; also called supercalifragilistic

So supercalifragilisticexpialidocious politics means “fantastic politics”. It makes sense.

I’m just wondering if an incredibly unique phrase in my blog title of supercalifragilisticexpialidocious politics will get a high ranking in Google for blogging or either web searches.

Does Google maintain two separate indexes for web pages and blogs or is it the same? Sorry if its fundamental, but I’m hoping a visitor will comment.

But back to supercalifragilisticexpialidocious politics, “ain’t it great?”.

Obama, Clinton, and Edwards on the one side. McCain, Romney, Huckabee, Giuliani on the other side. Did I miss any important candidates? Hope not.

A few days ago my train friend Christine seemed very upset about Obama-Clinton arguments and debates. For me, it’s enjoyable. Without bullets, without threats of primaries or elections being postponed, with an occasional sense of humor, our national candidates are vying for our votes, state by state.

And don’t worry about the shenanigans too much.

When Lincoln was nominated in 1860 at the Republican Convention in Chicago, IL, he sat in Springfield waiting for news. Here’s a drawing of that convention in a building called the Wigwam.

Did Abraham Lincoln know that his supporters controlled the seating at the convention so that delegations were strategically separated so they couldn’t align themselves against Lincoln? Did Lincoln know that on the first day when many at the convention wanted to nominate Seward from New York, a handful of his people managed to take a quick voice vote to close the convention on the first day? Or my favorite, did Lincoln know that his supporters forged 10,000 tickets overnite and then packed the convention hall with Lincoln supporters, shutting out 10,000 Seward supporters with valid entry passes?

So we had some shenanigans and dirty tricks in 1860, we still do. But at least it’s a relatively peaceful process where sharp words fly instead of bullets. Although some world observers think our process quaint, most of the world would love to have a peaceful transition of national power every four or eight years.

Abraham Lincoln and Thanksgiving Day

Yes, it was Abraham Lincoln who initiated the national holiday we know as Thanksgiving Day.

The year was 1863. General Robert E. Lee of the Confederate Army had begun the year in April with his victory at Chancellorsville. But as the year wore on, the Union forces finally began to win major battles at Vicksburg and Gettysburg. But General Bragg of the Confederate Army won the battle of Chickamauga in September of that year.

141,000 men (or more) had been killed, wounded, or captured during 1864.

Amidst this semi-good year militarily for the Union, but realistically, amidst slaughter of good men from both the North and the South, Abraham Lincoln decided to proclaim a national day of Thanksgiving.

To quote Mr. Lincoln:

The year that is drawing toward its close has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added which are of so extraordinary a nature that they can not fail to penetrate and soften even the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever-watchful providence of Almighty God.

Lincoln did not boast of victories. Further in the Thanksgiving Day Proclamation Mr. Lincoln would ask for national forgiveness:

with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience

Just when you think you know who Abraham Lincoln was, you read something written or authored by him like the Thanksgiving Proclamation and you realize how little you really know about President Lincoln.

Yes, tomorrow is Thanksgiving Day, 2007. If you read Abraham Lincoln’s Thanksgiving Proclamation of 1863, try to visualize the horrible reality of that year, you will find yourself being grateful for more than an extra helping of turkey and a day off.

Best wishes and Happy Thanksgiving from the Land of Lincoln – Illinois.

Abraham Lincoln, Alive in Central Illinois

My wife and I just returned from a weekend in Mt. Pulaski, Illinois. Here, Abraham Lincoln is still alive.

Mt. Pulaski is a little town about 30 miles outside of Springfield, IL. There’s a courthouse on the square, where Abraham Lincoln once practiced law. If you go to the 2nd floor of the courthouse, you can even walk the same floors Lincoln himself walked and paced as he worked as a lawyer.

As we celebrated my brother-in-law’s 50th birthday in a decorated “party farm shed” with 30 other people I chatted with Stan. Stan’s a state of Illinois worker who once majored in History in college. I knew Stan had wanted to be a historian so I struck up a conversation about Abraham Lincoln. To my surprise I learned that Stan’s library at home had 2000 books on Lincoln, Grant, and the Civil War. Who knew?

Like I said, Lincoln is still alive in central Illinois.

I wish others read a little more about Abraham Lincoln. Recently, Barak Obama began his presidential campaign in Springfield with respectful references to Lincoln (Mr. Obama’s deference to Mr. Lincoln has always been respectful and tasteful, in my opinion). At the far end of the spectrum, we see Abraham Lincoln perhaps once a day in a commercial with a beaver advertising sleep medicine for a pharmaceutical company.

And this weekend, I learned that Musharraf of Pakistan recently compared his dictatorial governmental actions to Abraham Lincoln’s conduct during the Civil War.

I’m sure that both Stan and I would gladly educate Mr. Musharraf on the Life of Lincoln if he would join us on Mike’s central Illinois farm. But I don’t think a Pakistani-Illinois “farm shed summit” is likely to happen anytime soon.

For some of us in Illinois, Abraham Lincoln is alive in our memories. We tolerate the silly commercials, we understand our present day politicians paying their homage to Lincoln, and we watch in amazement as a foreign dictator wraps himself in the shroud of Abe’s memories.

As we left central Illinois today for our drive home to Chicago, we passed a little church in Chestnut, Illinois. A stained glass window had the image of Lincoln with two rifles bracketing his image. It's a little hard to see (I need a better camera). But look at the square windows, the top row, the middle window. You'll see the rifles. Abe's photo or image is hard to see, but it's there.

As I recall, Abe wasn’t a Methodist, neither did he attend church much. But Mr. Lincoln would have understood his friends from central Illinois making a stained glass window for him and displaying that window proudly in their little church. I believe Abe Lincoln would have had kind words for the people of Chestnut, IL, humble words of encouragement and thanks.

But as for Mr. Musharraf of Pakistan, I would suggest a trip to Abraham Lincoln’s Presidential Museum in Springfield, IL to learn more about “honest Abe”. If General Musharraf has the time, I’m sure Mike would invite him to his farm for discussing Lincoln around the stove in the farm shed.

It’s a standing invitation.

How to Win a Pocketknife

Yesterday was my birthday.

Last night, at my birthday party, friends and family said I could tell as many Lincoln stories as I wanted.  After all, it was my birthday.

Here's a Lincoln story from The Abraham Lincoln Joke Book by Beatrice Schenk de Regniers, page 53.  Lincoln said this story really happened when he was a traveling lawyer.

"A stranger came up to Lincoln and said, "Excuse me, sir.  I have something that belongs to you."

"What do you mean?" Lincoln asked the stranger.

The stranger took a jackknife out of his pocket.  "Many years ago," he said, "someone gave me this jackknife.  He told me that when I found a man uglier than myself I must hand the knife over to him.  Allow me to say, sir, that I think the knife now belongs to you."