kate jack

Abraham Lincoln is our greatest hero in my mind. He was a deeply thoughtful and moral man who was able to balance all the forces that threatened to tear the country apart. If he had lived reconstruction would surely have had a profoundly different face.

One interesting facet of his presidency I recently read about was his contribution to the creation of the transcontinental railroad which was largely built during the civil war. While he did free the slaves, his actions also meant the end of a way of life for the plains Indians. When finally completed the railroad bound the economic future of California with the rest of the country and spurred the settlement of the whole land that lay between the Mississippi and California.

He was a very complex man, an extremely controversial figure in his time, and a masterful politician. He probably did more to preserve the legacy of our forefathers while skillfully guiding the country through the most serious crisis in its history than any other American. He was also a very eloquent yet humble man with a great sense of humor as well.

essendoubleop

Interesting question. I would have to go with George Washington. He was a great general with a strong personality that the country adopted. Although he was offered the equivalence a kingship, he turned it down in favor of the presidency. During a very formidable time in the America's history existed many great people (e.g. Jefferson, Hancock, Henry) and Washington stood above them. I'm not convinced of his effectiveness as President, but he did unite a very quarrelsome group of states following the rebuilding process after the Revolution. While Lincoln was a great president with strong ideas and ideals, Washington's prowess on the battlefield built his legacy to a higher level at the nation's inception.

Great_White

Between


and

Redjake

harvey dent!!!!

line cook

?

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Willravel

My first thought was Bobby Kennedy, but really it has to be Dr. MLK Jr. His movement to establish equal rights is inspired and took a kind of bravery that's exceedingly rare.

djtestudo

Without Washington, the entire nation would look different, probably unimaginably so.

There would either have been a civil war much earlier (and with a better chance of succeeding), or someone would have seized power, or there would have been a foreign takeover.

We would have been Mexico, basically.

What Washington did (especially what he DIDN'T do) in controlling the power given to him, and in listening to and mediating between the opposing forces within the government set the stage for the rest of American history.

Lincoln probably comes second for his willingness to sacrifice everything for the idea that a divided United States (what an oxymoron) would destroy everything that was built by the founders and the subsequent generations. And if he had lived long enough to put his plans in place for rebuilding the South, he might deserve to be number one (John Wilkes Booth might be to blame for an awful lot of the political situation in the US in the ensuing century-and-a-half, especially when it comes to what happened in the South).

Once you get to number three, that is when it gets difficult. I could go with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., because of what he both did and tried to do in order to create true equality in a nation built upon that idea, or what up until that time was more of a joke.

Beyond that, there aren't too many famous (for lack of a better term) people who had enough of a direct effect to stand out from others like themselves.

If you want to go small scale, you could throw in Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, who was instrumental in the Union victory at Gettysburg by holding the flank of the line around Little Round Top, one of the more famous "minor" moments in American history that could have caused huge changes if altered.

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girldetective

Benjamin Franklin

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Vigilante

I'll second that one.

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sadistikdreams

Superman.

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hearts, by d.a.

MexicanOnABike

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dlish

i was going to say MacGyver... but

it seems that this isnt in Tilted Nonsense..

so im going to have to say that the greatest American in my mind would have to be Martin Luther King Jnr.

He was well respected and liked during and after his time.

History looks at some as despots, others as saviors, some as saints, but to me, MLK is a legend.

Malcolm X may be my favourite civil rights leader because of his tough stance and nature and his ability to criticize himself and go through personal growth in the meantime, but i wont let my prejudices get in the way to say that MLK was a much more liked and character and was accepted by much of the United States.

His groundbreaking thoughts have been unparalleled and his legacy lives to this day. If the means test for Americas Greatest Hero is Bravery, Charisma, and Acceptance during and after their time, then who can stand in the way of Martin Luther King Jnr?

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kurty[B]

I'll third this one. Without his brilliance, intelligence and charisma would the colonies even have decided it was a nation worth fighting for?

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Bear Cub

How could it NOT be Al Gore?

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thespian86

Karl Marx, Claude Henri de Rouvroy comte de Saint-Simon, Isidore Marie Auguste François Xavier Comte, Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche, and Martin Luther King, Jr.

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• George Read
• Caesar Rodney
• Thomas McKean
• George Clymer
• Benjamin Franklin
• Robert Morris
• John Morton
• Benjamin Rush
• George Ross
• James Smith
• James Wilson
• George Taylor
•John Adams
• Samuel Adams
• John Hancock
• Robert Treat Paine
• Elbridge Gerry
• Josiah Bartlett
• William Whipple
• Matthew Thornton
• Stephen Hopkins
• William Ellery
• Lewis Morris
• Philip Livingston
• Francis Lewis
• William Floyd
• Button Gwinnett
• Lyman Hall
• George Walton
• Richard Henry Lee
• Francis Lightfoot Lee
• Carter Braxton
• Benjamin Harrison
• Thomas Jefferson
• George Wythe
• Thomas Nelson, Jr.
• William Hooper
• John Penn
• Joseph Hewes
• Edward Rutledge
• Arthur Middleton
• Thomas Lynch, Jr.
• Thomas Heyward, Jr.
• Abraham Clark
• John Hart
• Francis Hopkinson
• Richard Stockton
• John Witherspoon
• Samuel Huntington
• Roger Sherman
• William Williams
• Oliver Wolcott
• Charles Carroll
• Samuel Chase
• Thomas Stone
• William Paca

The 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence.

highthief

Of course, he's Canadian ...

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mrklixx

Duh.....Ralph Hinkley

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RAGEAngel9

Everyone else is wrong.

Thank you and good night.

Jeff

George W. Bush for being brave enough to fighting American's greatest threat-terrorists-and not giving a damn what America thinks. He follows through with what he believes in, and that's truly heroic.

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Aladdin Sane

Yep.

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MSD

Nice to see everyone taking this thread seriously.

Poppinjay

Git'r Done!

I was going to vote for Ralph Hinckley, but it's been done.

I vote for FDR.

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thespian86

I was being completely serious.

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dlish

surely you didnt quote those off the top of your head

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djtestudo

I don't think David McCullough could quote those off the top of his head

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dksuddeth

I have an extremely difficult time accepting Lincoln as Americas greatest hero, considering the numerous violations of the US constitution he committed.

I think I'd have to vote George Washington as well.

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Bees

I want to vote for the guy who is the greatest current hero in the area of technology:



Burt Rutan

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jorgelito

Definitely NOT Abe Lincoln. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr was also morally bankrupt, not a hero in my mind.

Perhaps Teddy Roosevelt. George Washington, Thomas Jefferson are good candidates.

Rosa Parks, Bruce Lee, Susan B Anthony, Malcolm X, Eleanor Roosevelt, Booker T Washington, Daniel Inouye, John McCain, to name a few.

All the brave men and women who serve/d our great nation in the armed forces.

All the brave men and women who serve/d in our great nation's law enforcement agencies and firefighting departments.

My brother.

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djtestudo

Congratulations, you've just eliminated the entire historical population of the United States from consideration.

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Daniel_

I'd say George III Rex of England.

If it wasn't for is mishandling of the political situation, America would be Canada II.

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sibylable

haha... i totally agree... he is the hero in my heart

Poppinjay

I read on another thread that having ideas dismissed is a part of the give and play of being tilted. So I dismiss your ideas. John McCain, a big war hero who crashed 7 planes and gave info to the NVA.

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I think the Apocalypse is happening all around us. We go on eating desserts and watching TV. I know I do. I wish we were more capable of sustained passion and sustained resistance. We should be screaming and what we do is gossip. -Lydia Millet

UKking

Awesome! Very cool pick, an engineer... And a wikipedia entry to adjoin!


Wow, look at the fierce hair he's got goin on....

ottopilot

Definitely George Washington and innovating pioneers like Burt Rutan.

Personally, and most of all, my late father (Army Major - Vietnam)

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Bees

Yeah he's got wicked cool hair & sideburns.
It doesn't hurt a hero's image any does it?

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hannukah harry

i vote for jesus...

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dlish

you mean billy ray cyrus...right!?!?!

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hannukah harry

nah... since billy ray cut his hair, there doesn't seem to be anything jesusy about him.

i mean the jesus. the one everyone prays to in the buildings with the steeples.

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dlish

yeah your right.. the jesus mullet is gone.

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