Re: Historic Hero? Hypatia Raoul Wallenberg The guy in Tiananmen Square Malala Yousufzai Arkady Renko A few others
I don't think I've ever given much thought to it but in the interest of naming a worthy candidate not yet mentioned: George Carlin.
"It's my estimation that... every man ever got a statue made of him was one kind of sumbitch or another." - Mal Reynolds, Firefly I don't buy the "Great Man" theory. Sure, Genghis Khan brought together hundreds of warring tribes. Sure, he set the wheels in motion that created some of the greatest, most artistic, and culturally and monetarily rich Chinese Dynasties. But, at what cost? It's estimated that he killed anywhere from 10-25% of the Earth's total, then current, population during his rule. I read one source that said, because he raped so many women, that even today we all have something along the lines of 1-in-40 chance of being related to him. He's a primary source for the cultural stagnation of the Arab world that gave rise to the radical Islam we face today. We may benefit from some of the things he did today, but ask someone in the Song Nation of China, the Jin Nation of China, or Eastern Europe at the time how wonderful the Great Khan was. Our history is replete with such examples and while the history needs to be understood, the old cliche of being doomed to repeat it, these men shouldn't necessarily be admired or deified. So... Meh.
Now that I think about, Ben Franklin. In fact, I'd say he was the greatest man who ever lived. Consider his accomplishments: 1.) Scientist 2.) Inventor (everything from health care products, still in use today, to musical instruments) 3.) Revolutionary 4.) Author 5.) Spy 6.) Lothario 7.) Successful business man 8.) Diplomat 9.) Gourmand And he did much of it as a fat, balding, middle aged man, who deliberately dressed like a bumpkin. James Bond, by contrast, didn't do half those things and needs the physique of an Adonis to accomplish the things he has done!
More: Hypatia of Alexandria Thomas Paine David Hume Simon Bolivar Charles Darwin Abraham Lincoln Gandhi Alan Turing Nye Bevan Martin Luther King John Hume
