Recently, The Atlantic published a list of who they believed are the most influential Americans of the past. Here's some of my thoughts and analysis:
1. Abraham Lincoln tops the list. Good choice. America's favorite president and amazing leader.
2. George Washington. My personal pick for number one. The most versatile and humble leader of the new free world.
3. Thomas Jefferson. Third president, third choice - I see a pattern.
4. FDR. God of the Democratic Party loses to the god of the GOP (Lincoln). No surprise. Still, one must wonder what makes FDR so special. He essentially bankrupted America with his New Deal, didn't deal decisively with Hitler, broke the precendent of two terms and waited for the Japanese to attack us. Somehow he remains so loved.
5. Alexander Hamilton. One of the biggest characters in the inception of America. Hugely talented and brilliant. Broker of federalism and the first bank. Strange to see him in the top five with Jefferson.
6. Benjamin Franklin. Highly talented thinker. Inventor, ambassador, newspaperman, etc.
7. John Marshall. Amazing man of many talents like his counterparts. Soldier, politician, justice.
8. Martin Luther King, Jr. Leader of equal rights for minorities. King's Christ-like stature in the black community makes it difficult for one to say anything negative without somehow insulting all black people. King had good ideas, but once the Civil Rights Act was passed in 1965, King became more of a black leader, rather than a human leader.
9. Thomas Edison. Brilliant inventor and scientist. No argument here.
10. Woodrow Wilson. Although I'll agree he led in a tumultous time, his influence is questionable. Wilson won his second term with "he kept us out of the war" just to get us in the war. Wilson's League of Nations was a huge failed experiment which led to the United Nations - and they are a failed experiment, too. Where Wilson certainly had influence, I wouldn't place him in the top 10.
11. John D. Rockefeller. Businessman and philanthopist. Believed in tithing all of his life - amazing.
12. Ulysses S. Grant. Not a very good president, not as good of a general as Lee, not very influential. Why is he here at number 12?
13. James Madison. The Constitution-maker. Why isn't he in the top ten?
14. Henry Ford. Made cars.
15. Theodore Roosevelt. The most fatherly president since Washington and nearly as strong.
16. Mark Twain. You can't argue with his influence on American writers and writing.
17. Ronald Reagan. Communism shriveled up and died. For the first time since WW2, Americans felt safe again.
18. Andrew Jackson. Loner, soldier, rebel, incorrigible. Jackson was an enigma - for good and bad.
19. Thomas Paine. Common Sense . The rebel that swayed a lot of public opinion to the idea that America should shake off England.
20. Andrew Carnegie. Scottish-born steel businessman and philanthropist. His philanthropy, unlike Rockefeller's, was mainly for educational purposes. Carnegie employed the questionable Napoleon Hill to co-write a few money-is-God books.
21. Harry Truman. One of the few Democrats that I can respect. Truman showed resolve, backbone and class. Truman always remained in the shadow of his predecessor, but his presidency was much more complicated and Truman, unlike Roosevelt, was never afraid to act.
22. Walt Whitman. Humanist. Homosexual. Highly influential. My pick for top poet is Robert Frost, but that's just me.
23. Wright Brothers. The amazing aviators. Their invention brought a whole new dimension to everything from travel to warfare. Their influence is universal.
24. Alexander Graham Bell. Scientist and inventor, second only to Edison. His influence, like the Wright Brothers, is universal.
25. John Adams. Probably one of the most misunderstood presidents and one of the smartest. Adams was a lawyer, an ambassador and a farmer with a huge love for his country and politics. I believe that had Adams won a second term, his presidency would've went down better in history.
Part Two soon to follow...
