Chicago RPCV Conference The second city proved it is second to none in putting on an unforgettable event for the NPCA's 2006 Returned Volunteer Conference. Read what RPCV Chris Matthews of MSNBC's Hardball had to say about his service in Swaziland and what Nobel laureate and Landmine Activist Bobby Mueller had to say about US Mideast policy. Read our coverage of the closing ceremony, the opening ceremony, our photo essay of the Flag Procession, our collection of over five hundred photos from the procession, and what VOA said about the conference. Great job, Capca!

Closing Ceremony of the NPCA Convention in Chicago

Welcome to Chicago on behalf of Capca

RPCVs Trina Janes and Chuck Sheftel welcomed RPCVs to Chicago on behalf of Capca.











Ed Smith said Chicago thanks you for coming

Chicago Aldeman Ed Smith, (India 66 - 68) welcomed RPCVs and said it's good to have you here.











Hedayat Amin-Arsal spoke about the Peace Corps

Hedayat Amin-Arsal, Vice President of the Transitional Government of Afghanistan, spoke to the group and said:

That he knew the Peace Corps because his wife was a Peace Corps Volunteer.

The purpose of the Peace Corps is to prevent the peoples of the world from being separated from each other.

We must stand united against terrorism but we must also remember the causes of terrorism and the injustice that leads to terrorism.

We should not try to involve the Peace Corps in political considerations.

We need the Peace Corps and we welcome the Peace Corps back to Afghanistan.











Mioritza performed

"Mioritza" performed dances from Romania.











Speaker Chris Matthews spoke about his Peace Corps experience as a "moveable feast"

MSNBC Hardball host and Swaziland RPCV Chris Mathews spoke from the heart about his Peace Corps experience and said:

The Peace Corps - what an amazing idea. In the middle of the cold war with tanks facing each other at Checkpoint Charlie, JFK said why don't you try to do this at a human level. He was thinking "outside the box" before the expression existed.

The Peace Corps for me was a moveable feast (like Paris in the 20's for the generation after the Great War). I had 20 new impressions a day. We used to have a saying about the Peace Corps in Swaziland: "Misery loves company."

I was at home in Mozambique. I thought it was a great place to hang out. We read everything, Jung, Fitzgerald, Siddhartha. The kids used to come up to you on the street and would ask you if you knew John Wayne, if you knew Muhammad Ali, and we could argue politics on the street corner with the kids. And when I would visit a village there would always be a chair, it would always come from somewhere - that many times you would be the only white guy in the room.











Chris Matthews said that it's all about respect

He said that you've got to come to a country with some other face than the tourist or the soldier or the oil executive. And that's the Peace Corps - I like being liked in the world. That music from Peter Yarrow that was played last night - that's the 60's - that's my generation you missed.

The one thing that I learned in the Peace Corps is that it's all about respect. People want to be loved, they wanted to be respected.

When this nation was formed, we wanted respect - our flag was a picture of a snake and it said "Don't tread on me." When we got started that's what we said. And that's how people feel in the rest of the world - respect me, don't tread on me. Imagine how sensitive people are to an invasion

This talk of "evil ones" - that's baby talk.

It bugs me that I don't read more op-ed pieces in the newspapers by Peace Corps Volunteers. We shouldn't just bore our spouse to death with our Peace Corps stories. We've been there, we have something to say.











Latin Rythmns performed

Latin Rhythms Dance Company performed music from Latin America.











Peace Corps Legacy: How many of you joined the Peace Corps because another family member had joined?

Trina Janes brought her mother onto the stage and said that she had followed in her mother's footsteps in joining the Peace Corps. She called for other Peace Corps Legacy members to stand and be recognized.











Speaker Bobby Mueller said we are waiting for the "teachable moment"

NPCA President Kevin Quigley introduced Bobby Mueller and said that you can't talk about peace unless you talk about war. Bobby Mueller, Nobel Laureate for his work banning land mines, spoke about the political situation in the world today and said:

I have talked to people in this administration and sometimes we take comfort that there are really smart people in Washington who know what they are doing, but the truth is that the group up there now is clueless. They don't know what they are doing and we are waiting for the "teachable moment."

Prepare yourself for the "teachable moment" that is coming soon. If you haven't seen it - see the movie "The Fog of War" which is an extended interview with Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara who was the architect of the war in Vietnam. McNamara said that the number one reason we lost the was was that we did not understand who the Vietnamese were.

McNamara said that he knew in 1967 that we had lost the war but that the war went on until 1975 and 3 millon more Vietnamese died as a result.

The second thing you should do is read the book "Imperial Hubris" by a CIA analyst who has been studying the Muslim world for many years. The author says not to believe the garbage that it's our value system that Islamic militants have a problem with - no, it's not our value system - it's what we do.











Speaker Bobby Mueller said we are looking at a storm that is coming our way and returned volunteers have a role to play

Bobby Mueller went on to say:

I've known Kerry for 30 years and he is a calculating politician. He is a good man but he can only move within the constraints of public opinion. For him to lead us to some justice, the public has to be informed, they have to be engaged, and this is where Returned Volunteers can help - it's a call to service again.

Today things are different. More people are getting their ideas from blogs than from the New York Times. People are using the internet and it is having an effect because of the authenticity of what people write on their web sites.

With all due respect to Chris Matthews who spoke to us just a minute ago - the mass media in this country is into entertainment, it is into celebrity worship and the American people are not getting the facts.

We are looking at a storm that is coming our way. I predict that there will be civil disorder in Saudi Arabia within one year. President Musharraf of Pakistan has had so many assassination attempts they aren't even reported in the newspaper as news anymore. Musharraf's beating heart that is all that stands between us and 30 Muslim nuclear warheads because many Pakistani people support the militants.

When Saudi Arabia starts to break down or when Pakistan starts to break down, then there will be a draft in this country again. Last time we had a draft, the majority got a pass. That ain't going to happen again. It's not going to be an invitation. We are going to tool up for war - and that will be the "teachable moment."

No retreat, No surrender.











Peter Yarrow speaks about a safe and respectful environment

Former NPCA President Chic Dambach introduced Peter Yarrow as his friend and as a man who was not just a musician but had been an organizer all his life and said that Peter had been at the Lincoln Memorial with King and had organized a march against the Vietnam war with 500,000 participants.

Peter Yarrow played the anthem of Peace - and led the group in singing "Where have all the flowers gone" and talked about his organization "Operation Respect." He said to go to his web site Operation Respect, a non-profit organization working to transform schools, camps and organizations focused on children and youth, into more compassionate, safe and respectful environments.

He said his next song was the most sacred song of the movement and that singing it is the best prepartation for getting arrested - "We Shall Overcome."











We shall overcome

Hundreds of volunteers rose and joined hands singing:

We shall overcome
We shall overcome
We shall overcome some day

Oh deep in my heart
I do believe
We shall overcome some day


We'll walk hand in hand
We'll walk hand in hand
We'll walk hand in hand some day

Oh deep in my heart
I do believe
We shall overcome some day:

We shall all be free
We shall all be free
We shall all be free some day

Oh deep in my heart
I do believe
We shall overcome some day











NPCA President Kevin Quigley came to the stage and gave the closing remarks

NPCA President Kevin Quigley came to the stage and said:

Peter Yarrow has a request that he would like to make of us.

He would like to skip the experience ande just be a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer.

The crowd approved the idea by acclamation.

Kevin concluded by saying that we'll see you in Washington in 2006 and many more times in between.

This Month's Issue: August 2004 Teresa Heinz Kerry celebrates the Peace Corps Volunteer as one of the best faces America has ever projected in a speech to the Democratic Convention. The National Review disagreed and said that Heinz's celebration of the PCV was "truly offensive." What's your opinion and who can come up with the funniest caption for our Current Events Funny? Exclusive: Director Vasquez speaks out in an op-ed published exclusively on the web by Peace Corps Online saying the Dayton Daily News' portrayal of Peace Corps "doesn't jibe with facts." In other news, the NPCA makes the case for improving governance and explains the challenges facing the organization, RPCV Bob Shaconis says Peace Corps has been a "sacred cow", RPCV Shaun McNally picks up support for his Aug 10 primary and has a plan to win in Connecticut, and the movie "Open Water" based on the negligent deaths of two RPCVs in Australia opens August 6. Op-ed's by RPCVs: Cops of the World is not a good goal and Peace Corps must emphasize community development.