History Buffs: who is the greatest American?

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King Jippo

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After seeing some of the horrid names on the Discovery Channel's list (Oprah? Pat Tillman? GW Bush & John Edwards?!?! THE FUCK?!) I felt compelled to make this thread. To those who live outside the US, feel free to add your own countrymen who you consider to the greatest to your homeland. My vote:

Alexander Hamilton
AlexanderHamilton.jpg

and to think, the guy was an "accident" born out of wedlock, and not even born in the US.

BTW: Discovery Channel's list is here:
http://dsc.discovery.com/convergence/greatestamerican/top100/top100.html
 
Jesus that list is incredibly fucked up. Seriously. WTF.

Lincoln, Jefferson, Edison, Einstein, Twain, and uh...

...Dr. Phil. No, Brett Favre! Seriously, WT*F* is up with that list?
 
King Jippo said:
might as well since only drunks & pedo-queers are on these forums right now. btw- im drunk. :D
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well im a pedo-queer. covering all the bases here at gaf.

btw, my answer would be abraham lincoln. If he hadn't been shot, our country would've been entirely different (i suppose i mean slavery would not have been such an humongous problem for the next 100 years). Even though i kno his first reasons for getting into the civil war had nothing to do with slavery, once the issue of slavery came to the forefront, you can easily see that he opposed it with a fervor that was unmatched for tons of years. also, he seemed to be really well liked and since the amendment for only 2 terms came around 1915, he probably would've been re-elected again.
 
Yeah, though Hamilton is one of my favorite founding fathers, his not being American sort of disqualifies him from the running, IMO.

If we stick with Presidents and political leaders, though, my vote goes to Lincoln.
 
What the... DeGeneres, Ellen ... how is she great?

Walt Disney, Mark Twain, and an assortment of older presidents... along with a few other folks.
 
MetatronM said:
Yeah, though Hamilton is one of my favorite founding fathers, his not being American sort of disqualifies him from the running, IMO.
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Well, technically America sorta didnt exist back then as it does today so he is a citizen. If anyone has time for 900+ pages of small print then I highly recommend "Alexander Hamilton" by Ron Chernow. It'd make even Raoul Duke cry.
 
MetatronM said:
Yeah, but he's not even from territory that would BECOME the US. :)
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Damn you MetatronM with your technicalities!! By European standards at the time the man was just slightly above that of a slave. The same could be said of most Euro immigrants to the USA of the 19th century. He's American on principle.
 
King Jippo said:
f_elz...you suck. Getting your skull shot off and having a stupid son means nothing. Boo-fucking-urns. Kennedys suck
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you fucking suck.. the Kennedys on a whole are not so wonderful.. but John rocked..
 
chaostrophy said:
I'd say Ben Franklin or Einstein.
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If Einstein was American enough, he'd have to be in the top three. That man is going to be the first one to thank for time travel. And let's face it, Franklin was indeed a genius and a man of wisdom, but let's be real... sooner or later someone was going to 'invent' bifocals and the odometer, he just beat the other guys to the chase, slightly.
 
Santo said:
If Einstein was American enough, he'd have to be in the top three. That man is going to be the first one to thank for time travel. And let's face it, Franklin was indeed a genius and a man of wisdom, but let's be real... sooner or later someone was going to 'invent' bifocals and the odometer, he just beat the other guys to the chase, slightly.
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well define American? Einstein was an American by status...
 
Tie between Ben Roethlisberger and George Washington.

We all owe everything we enjoy today to the founding fathers (and Ben Roethlisberger).
 
Well, I would choose the Founding Fathers of course (With a shout out to Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton, and Ben Franklin).

Also special mention for Thomas Edison and Henry Ford (though Ford was a grade A asshole when it cames to workers rights)

Best President hands down, FDR. Lead America through two major American crisis to become the Super-Power we are today. However, if it wasn't for him Clinton would probably be in his 4th term right now. (Can't win them all)

Special mention goes to

Abe Lincoln
JFK
MLK and other civil rights activists
Harry Truman
and Dwight D. Eisenhower
 
It's hard to choose. I'd say for America in general, it's George Washington. In terms of popularity, Michael Jackson, Elvis Presley or John F. Kennedy. In terms of influence on today's world (the last 25 years), definitely Steve Jobs and Bill Gates.

Why the fuck do we always need to choose ONE? Why do we always make lists? I hate this obsession people have with it.
 
Santo said:
And let's face it, Franklin was indeed a genius and a man of wisdom, but let's be real... sooner or later someone was going to 'invent' bifocals and the odometer, he just beat the other guys to the chase, slightly.
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Franklin is greater than any individual feat he did. He is great because he basically defined what being American is with his actions -- hoisting yourself by your own bootstraps, making a name for yourself through hard work, and being louder than the next guy.

I'd also like to add that he invented swimfins, the lightning rod, and the concept of a volunteer fire department. He was also the first postmaster-general of the US and generally ruled, so for all you Franklin haters, I would like to give you a big F U!! ,|,,

IMG0039.jpg
 
It's either George Washington or Abe Lincoln.

I don't think the United States would have come together under a democratic, strong federal government if it were not for Washington. Washington was so popular that he could have just become "King of America", but he did not want that kind of power. He left office after two terms through his own will, and he set an important precedent in doing so. He was also able to talk certain people out of staging a coup against the failed government established by the articles of Confederation.

Abe Lincoln freed the slaves and prevented the Union from collapsing. The US would not even exist today as we know it if it were not for his leadership.

Honorable mentions go to FDR and Martin Luther King Jr.
 
Gonna definitely have to go with Jefferson on this one. The guy pretty much idealized American government, and not only that, but was the only real reason (via his strong relationship with the French throne and Louis XVI) America even won the Revolutionary War.

Martin Luther King Jr. is a great choice, too. Abe Lincoln... meh, not so much. I'd put Lincoln in the same category as I put Clinton-- way above average, definitely top 15%-- but with at least one major flaw that keeps him from being TEH BETS!!1 (Lincoln never really wanted to free the slaves, contrary to what people learn in history class, and Clinton turned his back on Rwanda, a crime which I refuse to accept or forgive him for.)
 
King Jippo said:
Damn you MetatronM with your technicalities!! By European standards at the time the man was just slightly above that of a slave. The same could be said of most Euro immigrants to the USA of the 19th century.
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WTF
 
how can you guys go with JFK? Lest ye forget the whole bay of pigs debacle and starting vietnam?

now... RFK could have been great. I mean he coulda been really something.
 
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