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TransporterMalfunction

Greatest President

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It's no secret that Ronald Reagan is a personal hero of mine. I had a poster of him on my bedroom wall when I was in High School and even gave political speeches in school that reflected his policies and views.

 

In studying his life, both political and private you see that there was something different from him and the average politician. He didn't waver in his views, he didn't flip flop on an issue depending on which way the public wind was blowing. He had core principals and nothing would move him away from them. Even in what became the biggest scandal of his adminstration this can be seen. When it became apparent that members of his adminstration did in fact sell arms to Iran and divert the funds to the Conrtas he didn't try to cover it up. He didn't try to deflect the responsibility to someone else. He went on TV and basically said "This did happen, this was wrong and I take responsibility." Other Presidents would try to deflect this onto someone else or cover it up completely but not Ronald Reagan.

 

I believe that when history examines his Presidency without a biased political eye his will be seen as one of the most successful of the 20th Century, and one of the most important.

 

The President that I think gets too much credit is President Kennedy. I can look back on his Presidency with a completely unbiased eye. He was killed 6 years before my birth so my entire outlook is from a historical stand point. He had good moments but he had bad ones too. He wasn't a "bad" President but he wasn't the "great" President that he has been portrayed as. In fact there can be an argument made that the 1960 election was stolen and that Richard Nixon should have been elected but that's another thread lol.

 

Speaking of Richard Nixon, if his Presidency is honestly studied with an open mind people will see that he was a brilliant man. He was paranoid, but his mind for history, political awareness and policy was brilliant. Had Watergate not taken place he would have been ranked at the top of the list.

 

Anyway I could do a paragraph on every President and my thoughts about them going all the way back to the turn of the 19th century but I won't lol.

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Richard Nixon.

No.I'm not joking.

Nixon did an incredible job as President.If it hadn't been for Watergate and the counsel of advisors who may not have had his best interest at heart,I really,honestly believe Nixon's legacy would have been much different.Nixon's visit to China,and his withdrawal of troops from Vietname are only two examples of why I think highly of him (he showed that although we are different we do not have to fear each other or be enemies in China....he corrected a terrible mistake,IMO,of another administration by expediting the end of the Vietnam conflict).

I'm sure I'll get razzed about my choice (by now I'm getting used to sour looks and raspberries from folks when I say I liked Nixon).Oh well.Nixon's my choice!

:laugh:

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I believe that when history examines his Presidency without a biased political eye his will be seen as one of the most successful of the 20th Century, and one of the most important.

I agree that Reagan was a great one, but its tough to pick out the greatest. I'd be tempted to say any of the "George's" (Washington, Bush Sr., Bush Jr.) but I'm probably biased having lived through two of them, so I might have to say Washington - a pioneer in a great experiment.

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Stardate:213879.8

 

 

 

Lincoln is my favorite.What he did during the Civil War was awsome.

 

 

I agree with VBG about Kennedy.I get sick of hearing everybody say how abosolutly great he was.He was good not great

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I haven't studied every president so I'm not sure I can make an objective choice. Some presidents just got more attention by virtue of what happened on their watch. Although I do have high regard for Abraham Lincolm and I think his writings show him to be an insightful and determined leader.

 

George Washington also gets a vote - a few of years ago I was doing some family history research and found a published county history that included a story about one of my ancestors in the Revolutionary War. (I can't verify it is a true story). Anyway my ancestor was on sentry duty when an officer approached that didn't know the password; Augustus, my ancestor, aimed his rifle and wouldn't let him pass. Turns out it was General Washington and they were going to hang Augustus for treason for threatening to shoot the General. Washington spoke up and said the man was only doing his job and should be let go. Well, if the story is true, I am grateful to the General for being fair minded else I might not be here today.

 

Generally, I would probably pick Jefferson as my favorite; he was a brilliant man, a scientist and practical inventor as well as a statesman. He also expanded the United States territory and sent explorers to map out what we had. However, the Sally Hemmings incident does tarnish his image - what I mean is I don't have too much regard for a man that would "own" a woman and sleep with her. I think most people consider trhe controversy closed but the DNA evidence doesn't rule out Jefferson's nephew as the father of her children. So I'm not sure we'll ever know the truth. Still, I was very disappointed in him. As a side note, when doing my own family research I found someone had published a claim of descendancy from a minor historical figure. Actually we were descended from his brother so you can't always trust your family legends and maybe that's the case with Jefferson.

 

Re: Kennedy - he was young and good looking. Humans are biased towards good looks. Sad but true

Edited by TheUnicornHunter

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The 16th President, the man who saved the Union who brought the North and South together after they were apart. In D.C there is a bridge to show the twos friendship and memory of what it took to keep us together.

 

 

The one and only Abraham Lincoln

 

alincoln.jpg

 

1861-1865

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Abraham Lincoln. And not just because he "freed the slaves" but because he established the union once and for all.

 

I think he found himself in a far tougher situation than he ever bargained for and rose to the challenge, and established the union. I admire him for having taken on this toughest of situations. There were always two notions of America from the founding: one embodied in the great sounding words of Declaration, and one embodied in the reality of American slavery and the 3/5 compromise. It had to come to a head. A lesser man may have given in and let the union split. The great man did not.

 

To me Jefferson was a picture of the American dichotomy, having written some of our greatest words about the rights of man, as well as much on the inferiority of the "negro slave." His personal life reflects the same contradictions...possible liaisons with his female slaves, but then giving his slaves freedom at his death.

 

If Lincoln could have saved the union without ending slavery he might have allowed the institution to continue. But he could not avoid facing the issue that the nation side-stepped at its birth.

 

I think his Second Inaugural Address is one of the greatest and most inspiring speeches ever given by a US President, and captured soul of the nation, the sorrow of wrong choices, the solutions to the dilemma, the source of the strength through which the nation would build its future.

 

Changing the subject, the Kennedy mystique comes from the fact the he was vibrant, handsome, intelligent, surrounded by a huge family, and the embodiment of the American dream, and was struck down before our eyes. I still remember the day he was shot as clearly as today...and more clearly than 9-11.

 

Reagan and Nixon are not on my list of great presidents, although Nixon deserves credit for opening up China. George Bush senior is one of the smartest men we have had as president.

 

None of these men holds a candle to Lincoln.

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I would have to say Franklyn D. Roosevelt. he was the right guy to have in the White House during World War 2 and he help bring the country out of its economic depression.He may have been crippled by Polio but he was a strong willed man that had the love of a nation.

I had always liked Kennedy, but if he were president today peop[le would have a whole different outlook on him. His extra-marital affairs would put Bill Clinton's affair to shame,at least JFK had Marylin Monroe on the side and not some young intern.

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I would have to say Franklyn D. Roosevelt. he was the right guy to have in the White House during World War 2 and he help bring the country out of its economic depression.He may have been crippled by Polio but he was a strong willed man that had the love of a nation.

Franklin D. Roosevelt also gets my vote for the very same reason. He healed this country in many ways. In my mind he was truly great. :dude:

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Something that not many people know about FDR is that he killed himself (according to my grandmother who was an RN at Bethasda Naval Hospital back then). He shot himself in the head. I can't say 100% that this is true, but she was 100% convinced because she knew the doctors that treated him throughout his Presidency.

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That is an extraordinary statement. Can that be corroborated? I have never heard such a thing said about FDR!

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