Inertial Invites on Nostr: Martin Van Buren's middle name really was Van. His parents named him after the ...

Martin Van Buren's middle name really was Van. His parents named him after the vanguard of the army in the hopes that he would always take the lead. This was sadly ironic when young Martin tried out for track and finished dead last in all races. His father, Abraham, was deeply disappointed in Martin and promptly died on the spot, leaving Martin no choice but to go into law to support his family. Martin was haunted by his father's ghost for the rest of his life. The ghost apparently spent most of his time mocking Martin for being a loser, even after he became president. And you thought you had it bad.